WSOP Main Event Runner-Up Wasnock Turns Circuit Ring into WSOP Paradise Ticket
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Last month, John Wasnock arrived in Las Vegas for the PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) Main Event and bagged up a top 10 stack on the first starting flight the next day.
He had some free time before returning for Day 2 on Saturday. But instead of going to a show, a fine restaurant, or taking in the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip, he did what’s familiar to him: he played more poker.
And now, that decision has brought him all the way to the Bahamas for the WSOP Paradise festival.
A Day Off Well Spent
Wasnock used his time off to jump into a World Series of Poker Circuit event on WSOP.com, the first time he had ever played on the client. He made the most of his opportunity, defeating a field of 559 players in the $215 event to win $21,130 and his first circuit ring.
“I had a day off on Friday, and I was just in my room, and I was looking around to see if there were any sort of one-day tournaments live," he said. "I didn’t really find anything that interested me. I live in Washington, where I can’t really play online much. Just started to look around and think, maybe there is a WSOP bracelet event or a circuit event that I can play on the WSOP app."
“So in the afternoon, I downloaded the app and looked. There wasn’t a bracelet event but here was a circuit event starting around 4. I made a deposit for the first time, jumped into the event just as it was starting. Eight hours later, I ended up taking first. I ended up winning my first-ever WSOP online tournament that I’ve ever played.”
The path to the title wasn’t all smooth sailing for the 50-year-old. He recalls being extremely short-stacked in the later stages of the tournament and entered the final table at the bottom of the chip counts.
“I remember I got down to 2.6 big blinds when there were 27 people left. Just got a couple of lucky doubles to stay alive. I got down to the final table and I was the shortest stack with nine or 10 players left,” he said. While he admits the final table is a blur looking back a few days later, he does remember winning with pocket fours against pocket threes on the final hand.
The Run of a Lifetime
The win came four months after the little-known investment consultant from the Seattle area went on a run of a lifetime, taking second place in the 2025 WSOP Main Event for $6 million. His runner-up finish to Michael Mizrachi changed Wasnock’s life. He quit his job, got to spend more time with his four children, travel more, and, of course, further indulge in his passion.
“Since the Main, I subsequently retired. I always wanted to travel around and play more poker. Before, I was only able to travel maybe once or twice a year to WSOP events, something like that,” he said. “I've been trying to travel around a bit. Did a couple of circuit events, a couple of WPT events. Here in Las Vegas, I played the Venetian Classic and a couple of Poker Masters, that sort of thing. So I’ve been pretty active and playing. But, yeah, I’ve been wanting to kind of validate my run as not just a one-hit wonder. I’ve been fairly successful with some fairly deep runs in the travel I’ve done since.”
Wasnock has had some success on the poker circuit over the last few months. He ended up finishing in 49th place in the NAPT Main Event, and also finished 30th in the WSOP Circuit event in Cherokee, North Carolina. Heading down to Texas, he was 38th in the WPT Prime Lodge Championship, and cashed in a $3,300 No-Limit Hold’em event at the PGT Venetian Classic. No longer is he the anonymous player with the Seattle Mariners baseball cap, just one of thousands chasing a poker dream. He got to live it, and Wasnock has enjoyed the celebrity his Main Event run has given him.
"I got to do what everybody who plays poker wants to do in their careers"
“It’s just been a life changer. I was able to retire. Spend more time with my kids, spend more time traveling to play poker. It’s been very surreal coming back into poker rooms, because now I’m recognized. There’s been so many people, strangers and people that I used to play with a lot, that have come up to me to congratulate me. It’s been weird,” he said.
“I’ve probably taken a couple hundred selfies with people, which just boggles my mind. I’ve never been in the least bit famous before. But it’s been a lot of fun. I’ve had a lot of fun with it, just talking to people about the experience. I got to do what everybody who plays poker wants to do in their careers. So I’ve kind of embraced that and had fun chatting with people about it.”
Wasnock doesn’t know how long this journey will last. While he’s not committed to playing poker full-time as a profession just yet, he’s been trying to make the most of his opportunity while also juggling his family life back home in Washington.
“I don’t know how to describe it. I’m not working and traveling to play poker as much as I want. Trying to balance that with still raising four kids and having a family at home. But I’ve been gone more than I’ve been home for the past three months. I expect that, yes, I want to continue to play more poker. Picking and choosing where I want to play. I’ve got several poker trips coming up,” he said.
Wasnock in Paradise
His next stop has brought him to the WSOP Paradise in the Bahamas in December. His circuit win earned him a package to the series, but Wasnock says he was already planning to attend and play the $25,000 Super Main Event.
Wasnock didn’t return home this summer with the Main Event bracelet, but he did take back millions of dollars and the opportunity to do something for the people who mean the most to him. “I asked my kids what they wanted. I gave them each the opportunity, ask me for something you wouldn’t normally ask for,” he said. “I’ve been on a couple of trips with the family, took them to Hawaii for 10 days. We’ve got a cruise planned for Christmas break in December. For myself, I told people I want to do things, not buy things, but I did splurge and bought myself a custom-painted Mariners golf cart.”
Just a few months ago, Wasnock toiled in obscurity in the poker world, the game simply a part-time hobby. Then came a run most people can only dream of. But the real fun has come afterward, as Wasnock has been given the freedom to pursue his passion just as he always wanted. His new ring proves it wasn’t just a fluke, that he’s not just a “one-hit wonder.” Wasnock is here to stay and enjoying every moment of it.
