Monday was already a huge day for poker with the release of the highly anticipated 2025 World Series of Poker schedule. But just hours after the WSOP dropped its full itinerary, Phil Hellmuth stunned the poker world with a major announcement.
The all-time bracelet leader and 1989 World Champion announced on X (formerly Twitter) that he would not be playing this summer’s WSOP Main Event—citing the gruelling length of the tournament and the toll it takes on older players.
Hellmuth Explains Why He’s Skipping the 2025 WSOP Main Event
“It’s just too tough,” Hellmuth said. “People always tell me, ‘Phil, you could play seven days in a row.’ Yeah? Try it. Try getting up and playing from noon to midnight for seven days straight—It’s exhausting.”
"I just can’t play the Main Event anymore.”
At 60 years old, Hellmuth says he simply doesn’t believe he can physically keep up with the relentless grind of the Main Event.
And he’s not alone—he claims several top pros have told him they busted deep in the tournament purely due to fatigue.
"I hope that in 2026, there are some changes made so that we can restore more skill and less endurance."
“It’s turned into an endurance test,” he continued. “I don’t think the WSOP Main Event is measuring skill. If you go out there and poll the players on whether or not they should have days off in the Main Event, 80% are going to say yes.
"The 20% who don’t? They're the guys who are 20, 25, 26, 27 years old, they're 'yeah yeah, people get tired, they blow all their chips, of course, we want it to be ten days straight.'"
“I love the WSOP. It’s very important to me,” he said. “But I just can’t play the Main Event anymore.”
Hellmuth made it clear that this decision wasn’t easy. He still calls the Main Event his favorite tournament in the world. But after more than three decades of competing, he just doesn’t believe he can keep up with the structure as it stands today.
Hellmuth’s announcement was as definitive as it gets—he says he’s out for 2025. But will he really stay away from the Main Event when the cards go in the air?
Let’s be honest: Hellmuth has a history of making bold declarations, only to later change his mind (backtracking on buying in for $300,000 in a televised cash game/burning down The Rio). He thrives on the energy of the WSOP and has never missed a Main Event in 37 years. Could he really sit in his WSOP cubicle lounge while thousands of players chase poker immortality?
And then there’s the competitive fire. Hellmuth has built his career on proving doubters wrong. If the Main Event gets rolling and he sees a field full of players he knows he can outplay, will he really resist the urge to jump in? Not to mention, if other high-profile figures push for schedule adjustments—perhaps a day off deep in the tournament—could that be enough to lure him back?
At the end of the day, Hellmuth sounds serious about his decision. But come July 2, if we see him in his signature black tracksuit and gold-trimmed hat, ready to take his seat in the biggest tournament of the year, would anyone really be surprised?
Phil Hellmuth WSOP Main Event Record Since Last Cash
Hellmuth has made it clear—he believes the WSOP Main Event has become more about endurance than pure skill. But considering he hasn’t cashed in the tournament since 2015, how does he know?
Since his 417th-place finish in 2015, Hellmuth has struggled in the Main Event, failing to make it past Day 3 in any attempt. More often than not, he’s been eliminated in the first two days of play, meaning he hasn’t personally experienced the deep-run fatigue he describes. In fact, some of the longest Main Event runs he’s had in recent years—like in 2018 and 2021—ended well before the true grind of the final stages began.
So, while Hellmuth hasn’t been there himself in nearly a decade, he’s convinced that the modern Main Event is an endurance test. The question remains: does that argument hold weight, or is it just an easy explanation for his own struggles?
Even 2024 WSOP Main Event winner Jonathan Tamayo agreed with Hellmuth that the Main Event is an endurance test and admitted to not being able to perform at his peak over the last few years.
"At some point, my mental acuity will diminish to a point where I will be overwhelmed, too," said Tamayo.
Calum has been a part of the PokerNews team since September 2021 after working in the UK energy sector. He played his first hand of poker in 2017 and immediately fell in love with the game.
Calum has written for various poker outlets but found his home at PokerNews, where he has contributed to various articles and live updates, providing insights and reporting on major poker events, including the World Series of Poker (WSOP).
