2025 WSOP PokerNews Deepstack Challenge

The Daily Deepstack action continued to draw big numbers in the 2025 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge, with May 29's $250 No-Limit Hold’em attracting 521 entries and generating a $112,015 prize pool. A total of 79 players made the money, with payouts starting at $499.

In the end, it was Juan Sosa who came out on top, earning $18,101, a career-best score for the Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), surpassing his previous high by just $101.

Jerrimie Pacheco (pictured) finished runner-up for $12,562, while Japan’s Haruka Murata claimed $8,889 for third. Pasi Petteri Kakkonen also recorded his biggest live cash to date, banking $6,397 for fourth place.

Final Table Payouts

When Sinéad Davenport boarded a flight to Las Vegas in 2024, she had no idea she’d be the reason someone else made it there alive. Midway through the transatlantic journey, a fellow passenger collapsed and began choking.

With no working medical equipment onboard, Davenport, who had only recently left her nursing career to pursue poker full time, sprang into action and her swift response helped save a life at 35,000 feet.

Fast forward to 2025, and Davenport’s latest Vegas trip is off to a flying start of a very different kind.

On Wednesday, she topped a competitive field in the $400 Daily Deepstack, part of the 2025 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge, earning $15,067 and capturing the ninth recorded tournament win of her career. The result pushes her over $450,000 in live earnings, continuing a remarkable run that began with a breakout 2024 on the UK circuit.

The event paid 31 players and built a $70,902 prize pool. Davenport outlasted a tough final table that included Branden Shimamoto, Mika Hilaire, and Shayne Mogilski.

Davenport once again proved that she’s a force on both sides of the Atlantic, and that her 2025 grind is just heating up.

Read more about Sinéad Davenport’s incredible poker journey

Final Table Payouts

Tags: Sinéad Davenport

The opening three days of the 2025 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge has delivered in a big way, with heaps of entries, six-figure prize pools, and breakout victories from players both known and new to the scene.

Across nine events held between May 27–29, the series has already attracted 1,879 total entries, generating a combined $432,948 in prize money, with $88,513 going to the victors.

Buy-ins ranged from $200 to $400, with each daily event offering a one-day shot at glory on the Vegas felt and a chance to qualify for the $600 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge.

So far, the biggest payout of the series went to Juan Sosa, who banked $18,101 after topping a 521-entry field in the May 29 $250 Daily Deepstack, the largest field and prize pool of the series so far. Sinéad Davenport wasn't far behind, taking home $15,067 in the same day's $400 event after a composed and clinical run through a 202-player field.

Other notable winners include Mark Selley, Jeremy Calverley, Lewis Christensen, and Koveh Waysei, all of whom walked away with five-figure or near-five-figure scores in their respective flights.

We'll be updating the leaderboard with the results from May 29 later today, but in the meantime, check out the standings here. Remember, the top ten each week get a ticket to the $600 PokerNews Deepstack Championship which runs July 1-4.

But if we want to see you're in the running before the leaderboard gets up to date, you can use the points calculator to see how many points you've earned.

Ready to show off your skills and compete for amazing prizes? The PokerNews Daily Deepstack Challenge is here from May 28 to June 24, and it’s your time to shine! Play in daily WSOP deep stack tournaments, earn points, and score fantastic rewards—including seats to the $600 PokerNews Deepstack Championship and some cool memorabilia.

Want to see how you’re doing? Track your progress, check out the latest standings, and get all the updates on our leaderboard page. Click the link below to dive into the action!

Check Out the Leaderboard Now!

Congratulations are in order to three skilled poker players — Edgar Propst, Jacob Baumgartner, and Pierre-Alexandre Lessard — who captured PokerNews Daily Deepstacks titles on Friday at the Horseshoe.

The winners all had to weed their way through large fields, and their efforts paid off handsomely.

Edgar Propst Propels His Way to Victory in $250 Tournament

Action began on Friday with a $250 no-limit hold'em tournament that attracted 765 entrants, creating a $153,000 prize pool. When all was said and done, the only player who still had chips was Propst.

The champion took home $23,906 and earned 791 points on the PokerNews Daily Deepstacks leaderboard. Propst beat Raphael Gonzalez heads-up to finish it off. The runner-up received $16,698 as a consolation prize, while Brian Wood earned $11,874 for third place.

$250 PokerNews Daily Deepstacks Final Table Results

Jacob Baumgartner Ships the $400

The second tournament of the day was of the $400 buy-in variety. This was another huge field with 312 entrants, making the prize pool $102,960. Baumgartner came out victorious for a nice cool $20,673 and 753 points.

Liran Betito took second place for $14,345, followed by Yen-Tuan Chen in third place for $10,132.

$400 PokerNews Daily Deepstacks Final Table Results

Pierre-Alexandre Lessard Dominates the $200 Nightcap

The third and final tournament of the day cost $200 to enter. The field reached 317 entrants in this one, creating a prize pool of $49,135.

No one could bust Lessard on this night, and the win was worth $9,815 and 686 leaderboard points. There were some other big winners, including Nicholas Burnett (second place for $6,605), Jian Zhang (third place for $4,557), Katsumoto Sakaguchi (fourth place for $3,220), and Yangsong Kou (fifth place for $2,331).

That's a wrap on the May 30 results in the PokerNews Daily Deepstacks.

$200 PokerNews Daily Deepstacks Final Table Results

Tags: Edgar PropstJacob BaumgartnerPierre-Alexandre Lessard

Saturday was another big day for poker in the PokerNews Daily Deepstacks. Large fields, huge payouts, and juicy action transpired at the Horseshoe Las Vegas.

Jean Lescadres, Michael Danley, and Steven Thompson won their respective tournaments and earned some value leaderboard points in the process. Let's take a look at how the action went down on May 31.

Jean Lescadres Wins the $250 Buy-In Daily

The deepstack action began, as always, with a $250 no-limit hold'em tournament. Although it was just the first event of the day, it brought out a massive crowd. How massive, you ask? Exactly 935 entrants, creating a prize pool of $187,000.

There were 141 players paid, but none received more money than the champion — Lescadres — who took home $27,585. He also claimed 811 leaderboard points. Lescadres beat Pierre Lewandowski, who won $19,441, heads-up to finish it off. Branden Miller took third place for $13,927, while Axel Reese got $10,121 for fourth place.

$250 PokerNews Daily Deepstacks Final Table Results

Michael Danley Ships the $400 Event

The second deepstack of the day cost $400 to enter, and it attracted 351 entries, 52 cashed. The pot hit $115,830, one of three six-figure prize pools on the day.

Danley came out victorious late in the night when play concluded. He received $22,486 and 764 leaderboard points for the win. Second place went to Andrew Huey for $15,539. Bahman Ataeianfar finished in third place for $10,946. Aaron Lettieri busted in fourth place for $7,853.

$400 PokerNews Daily Deepstacks Final Table Results

Steven Thompson for the Win in the Nightcap

There's always one final event of the day, and it tends to attract some big fields. The May 31 version of the $200 no-limit hold'em tournament was no different. There were 408 entries in this one, with 62 getting paid at least $400.

Thompson was the final player still standing at the end, and he earned $11,768 and 708 leaderboard points. The victory included a heads-up win over Xinli Ye, who claimed $8,015. Dennis Pratt was in third place for $5,587, and Simon Britton was the fourth place finisher for $3,976.

$200 PokerNews Daily Deepstacks Final Table Results

The penultimate day of Week 1 in the 2025 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge saw another strong turnout, as 474 players entered the $400 Daily Deepstack on Sunday, June 1. The event generated a $156,420 prize pool, making it one of the largest of the series to date.

Emerging victorious was Nicholas Murray, a 28-year-old poker professional from Belmont, Michigan, who collected $27,839 for the win. The result marks the biggest recorded cash of Murray’s live tournament career.

The final table featured a mix of first-time finalists and returning names, including Adel Jo (pictured), who made headlines during the 2024 series by winning a $250 Daily Deepstack and a PNDC ticket after defeating a 1,014-player field for $29,183. Jo placed sixth on Sunday, earning $5,349.

While the result is unlikely to push him into the top ten of the Week 1 leaderboard, a deep run on Monday, June 2, the final day of the weekly race, could put him back in contention.

Final Table Results

With Week 1 of the 2025 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge nearing its conclusion, Sunday’s $250 Daily Deepstack delivered one of the most well-attended events of the series so far. A total of 740 players entered the tournament, generating a $148,000 prize pool, with 111 players finishing in the money and a $504 min-cash.

The title went to Dylan Mendes, a 28-year-old player from France, who collected $23,338, nearly tripling his previous career-best score of $8,240. Coming into the event, Mendes had $31,790 in recorded live earnings, making this result a significant milestone.

Several familiar names made deep runs. James Derosa, who won a $250 Deepstack earlier in the series, added more PNDC leaderboard points with a seventh-place finish, earning $3,454. Koveh Waysei, champion of the May 28 $400 Deepstack, also cashed, finishing 85th to lock up another PNDC result.

The field also featured Maurice Hawkins (pictured), joint all-time WSOP Circuit ring leader (19), who placed 18th for $955.

Final Table Results

The $200 Daily Deepstack on Sunday, June 1 attracted 407 entries, generating a $63,085 prize pool as the 2025 PokerNews Deepstack Challenge neared the close of its opening week. The title went to Xiaoxiao Song, who earned $11,717 for the victory, his seventh recorded cash and one that pushed him over $100,000 in live tournament earnings.

While not his largest result to date, Song is building an impressive tournament résumé. Earlier this year, he finished 5th in a $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event at the 2025 PokerGO Tour PLO Series in Las Vegas for $47,700, and last November, he took 2nd in a $1,100 PLO event at the PGT Texas PLO Roundup in Houston for $35,875.

A total of 64 players made the money, with a rare three-way bubble burst involving Hari Sriniva Kamireddi, Tony Miller, and Daniel Craig. All three exited simultaneously and received $134 each in a split bubble payout.

Final Table Results