James Cheung won the WSOP event #6:$1,500 Seven-Card Stud, defeating five-time bracelet winner Brian Yoon to win his first career bracelet and $103,185 in prize money.
Three years ago, when James Cheung first entered the World Series of Poker, his mindset was that he believed he was capable of winning any tournament he entered. This mindset led him to make several deep rounds in the WSOP over the next few years and win titles in several overseas tournament series. However, despite repeatedly missing out on the championship, he has yet to win a WSOP gold bracelet—until now.
In his first event at the 2026 WSOP, Cheung battled through three days of competition, defeating a field of 359 players, including a brief heads-up victory over five-time bracelet winner Brian Yoon. He won his first bracelet and a first-place prize of $103,185 in the #6:$1,500 Seven-Card Stud event – his biggest tournament winnings to date.
Event #6: $1,500 Seven-Card Stud Final Table Results
| Ranking | player | country | bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Cheung | United Kingdom | $103,185 |
| 2 | Brian Yoon | United States | $67,771 |
| 3 | Gregory Josephson | United States | $45,570 |
| 4 | Thomas Savitsky | United States | $31,380 |
| 5 | Bradley Jansen | United States | $22,141 |
| 6 | Jonathan Glendinning | United States | $16,017 |
| 7 | Korey Simeone | United States | $11,888 |
| 8 | Karle Wilson | United States | $9,058 |
Post-championship interview
For Cheung, this was a perfect moment, as he said Yoon was the first professional player he had faced in his first WSOP.
"It felt amazing to face him in heads-up and win the championship," Cheung told PokerNews.
"When I first entered the WSOP, he was the ultimate boss. Being able to beat him and win my first WSOP gold bracelet is a great tournament story for me."
The moment Cheung realized he had won, he let out a huge "Yes!!!" that probably echoed throughout Horseshoe and the Paris Ballroom of the Paris Las Vegas Hotel.
“As a poker player, I train myself to control my emotions, never getting too excited when I win or too frustrated when I lose. I never count the chicks before the egg hatches… especially in heads-up, anything can happen,” Cheung explained. “You might get a bad hand, you might let your emotions control you. But when you finally win, for me, it feels like all the pent-up emotions can finally relax and be released.”
"There's no better feeling than making it to the deep rounds of the tournament."
His sense of relief and self-affirmation was palpable in the moments following his victory.
"(It feels) amazing. I feel like I've been waiting for this moment for a long time. I'm mainly a cash game player, but I've played more tournaments in the last few years. Cash games are consistent, but there's no better feeling than making it to the deep rounds of a tournament."
"I knew that if I continued to play well and stay humble, I would eventually have a chance to win a gold bracelet at the WSOP. It really felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders."
Before winning his first gold bracelet, Cheung had already achieved considerable success, particularly in Asia. However, Cheung described his victory in the $1,500 Stud as the "pinnacle" of his tournament career to date.
"In terms of tournaments, this is the pinnacle," Cheung said. "Poker players all over the world are judged by how many gold bracelets they have. Winning one is a dream for many players. It feels amazing to be one of the other bracelet winners. I haven't quite come to my senses yet."
Looking ahead, Cheung plans to attempt to win the $1,500 Seven-Card Stud and the $10,000 Seven-Card Stud tournament in the same summer, aiming for a unique record in WSOP history.
"I plan to participate in the $10k Stud tournament. I think there can only be one $1,500 and one $10k champion in the same series, so I may have to try to break that record."
Final table results
From the very beginning, this wildly volatile game was full of exciting plays, with Jonathan Glendinning and Bradley Jansen successfully doubling their chips in the first and second hands, respectively.
Thomas Savitsky, who entered the final day as the chip leader, got off to a bad start, running into Yoon's two pairs early on, foreshadowing a tough day for the overnight chip leader.
Despite doubling down, Glendinning couldn't maintain his momentum. He became the first player eliminated on Day 3, having a strong run against Savitsky, but Savitsky found himself with a higher pair on Seventh Street, eliminating Glendinning in sixth place.
Cheung took the lead for the first time that day after hitting a set and forcing Savitsky and Gregory Josephson to fold.
Bradley Jansen then fell to a short stack, but managed to nearly quadruple his stack in several hands that went his way, prompting Cheung to say to him, "Beautiful comeback, sir!" However, the inherent volatility of stud poker eventually caught up with Jansen, who lost several small pots and then a large pot to Cheung (who beat Jansen's two pair with a flush), finishing in fifth place.
After Jansen was eliminated, Cheung continued to increase his chip stack, at one point holding more than half the chips in a four-player game. Josephson quickly became Cheung's biggest obstacle after winning two large pots in quick succession and took the lead.
Meanwhile, Savitsky, who had been the chip leader, continued to lose chips and was ultimately eliminated in a disappointing fourth place. He went all-in with his last chips against Yoon, who immediately made a straight, leaving Savitsky with no hope of a comeback.
The three-way battle produced the most dramatic fluctuations in the tournament, with all three players experiencing huge swings in chip stacks. In particular, Josephson and Cheung repeatedly traded the lead until Cheung got hot, winning four substantial pots in a row from Josephson in just a few rounds, leaving Josephson with a short stack.
Despite Josephson successfully doubling up once with a short stack, he couldn't avoid being eliminated in third place. He went all-in with a flush draw but failed to make it, losing to Cheung's two pair.
With a chip lead of over 3:1 and a large betting limit, Cheung's heads-up duel with Yoon proved short-lived. After a series of small pots, Cheung and Yoon were drawn into a large pot, eventually with Cheung making trips of kings and raising, leaving Yoon wondering if he had no chance. Yoon then openly threw in his last chips on sixth street with a pair of nines, which Cheung instantly called.
Yoon's suspicions were confirmed when the dealer dealt each player an insignificant card on Seventh Street, officially declaring Cheung's victory and bringing the tournament to a close.
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