button in SafariWhat Went Down at the 2025 World Tournament of Slots!
Welcome to our 2025 World Tournament of Slots Recap!
It's been a wild few days at the premier global slots tournament, so you'll forgive us for pausing for breath and getting caught up on the action.
The 2025 World Tournament of Slots at the Atlantis, Paradise Island in the Bahamas has now concluded, with Hector Barahona of Toronto, Canada claiming the top prize of $1 million. But that's not the whole story, as our 'on the ground' coverage can attest.
WTOS 2025: PokerNews Highlights
500 slots fans and players gathered at the Atlantis Paradise Island resort in the Bahamas last week, all vying to become the 2025 world champion of slots (and, sidenote, a millionaire), and joined by a host of notable faces from the world of gambling and entertainment.
PokerNews was on hand to provide on-the-spot live action and updates from the tournament.
Let's reflect on an action-filled slots extravaganza:
PokerNews Meets 2024 WTOS Champ, Stephanie Hall
To help set the scene before this year's tournament began, we got some time with the 2024 champion, Stephanie Hall. During an in-depth chat with PokerNews Podcast host, Chad Holloway, Stephanie expressed her delight at returning to the scene of her slots triumph, reflected on her chances this time around, and looked forward to her head-to-head battle with WSOP winner, Michael Mizrachi.
Watch the interview in full:
Giveaway Qualifier Jimmy Schmotzer Rocks WTOS 2025
If you've followed our lead up to this year's World Tournament of Slots, you'll know that we recently ran a giveaway to send one lucky player to the 2025 event. Jimmy Schmotzer from Ohio was our giveaway winner, and he and his wife jetted off to the Bahamas to compete this time around.
We managed to speak to Jimmy before he got the chance to spin, and he explained that although he was nervous, his main goal was to go one better than his wife, Michele!
When it came down to the competition itself, luck was definitely in their favour, as both qualified for the semi-finals after posting high scores in the first round.
Ultimately, Jimmy finished in 18th place, just in the money, whilst Michele came a creditable 36th. Not bad for a field of 500 players!
Drama in the Bahamas!
WTOS 2025 wasn't just about the 500 slots fans competing on the reels; there was also the small matter of a unique gaming battle.
- In one corner, 2024 tournament winner Stephanie Hall, who hoped to repeat last year's triumph.
- In the other corner, none other than WSOP World Champion, Michael Mizrachi - going all in to prove that it's not just a titan of the tables.
Not only were we on hand to witness this head-to-head, but our own Chad Holloway was invited to commentate on the battle with Casino Kelly:
After three rounds of spinning the popular Cleopatra slot, Mizrachi emerged as the ultimate winner. Not long afterwards, he sat down to speak to Chad for the PokerNews Podcast.
