Nick Schulman crossed an important milestone last September, and it has nothing to do with his play at a poker table: he turned 40 years old.
With the passing of that threshold, Schulman became eligible for the Poker Hall of Fame. His credentials were already sparkling, with six World Series of Poker bracelets, a World Poker Tour title, more than $20 million in live earnings, and a reputation as one of the finest poker commentators.
But then he outdid himself today, adding another checkmark on his legacy that will soon put him among poker’s all-time legends. Schulman survived a nearly eight-hour heads-up match with Darren Elias to win his seventh bracelet and $497,356 top prize in the event that’s become his personal playground, the $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Single Draw Championship.
“First of all, Darren Elias who I was heads-up with is easily, probably the toughest No-Limit Deuce player I’ve ever played with. Big shoutout to him. It was a crap shoot at the end and I made hands. It’s a little silly. He just hung in there the whole time and played so great,” Schulman said after surviving the war, offering nothing but compliments to his opponent. “It’s a little emotional because I was content to lose to him because he deserved it. I wanted to win. It feels amazing. I’m a little bit overwhelmed with this one.”
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nick Schulman | United States | $497,356 |
| 2 | Darren Elias | United States | $336,421 |
| 3 | Chad Eveslage | United States | $231,321 |
| 4 | Oscar Johansson | Sweden | $161,721 |
| 5 | Ben Yu | United States | $114,989 |
| 6 | Dan Smith | United States | $83,179 |
| 7 | Daniel Negreanu | Canada | $61,231 |
Schulman became the 13th player in WSOP history to win seven bracelets, a list that Benny Glaser already joined earlier this year but also includes names like Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan, Erik Seidel, Billy Baxter, John Hennigan, Daniel Negreanu, and Scott Seiver. It’s a club of players who have dedicated their lives to the game, and Schulman now belongs among them.
“It means a lot. Anybody on that list has spent most of their time at the card table, or at the least a real percentage of their life. A lot of people drop off and stop playing and do other things. There’s a lot of talented players over the years who just don’t want to be here for six weeks every summer. It’s a sacrifice and I just want to play my best and do right by myself and all that, because I started so young. It means a lot. It’s very special,” Schulman said.
It’s the last name on that list, Seiver, that Schulman will now be linked with. Seiver also just turned 40, with seven bracelets, a WPT title, and a WSOP Player of the Year award on his resume. He and Schulman have not only survived poker’s pitfalls over the decades but have thrived. While both will one day end up in the Hall, just one can make it this year, and Schulman admits he’ll be happy either way.
“It’s just impossible not to think about. Seiver—and there are others from before who are worthy—but a lot of people are saying it’s me or Scott. That’s another guy that, when he busted, I was so relieved and that was with 70 players left. That’s how good this f**king guy plays. Not because of the Hall, because he’s just transcendentally great at this game. So that one I’m at peace with. If he got in, or if he goes and wins a couple, cool. But to get into the Hall of Fame in anything, it means a lot. It’s profound, and I’m very grateful,” Schulman said.
Day 4 Action
The final day began with six players remaining out of a record-setting field of 233. Elias was the chip leader with 3,475,000, while Schulman sat in third place with 2,670,000 behind Oscar Johansson (2,910,000).
Dan Smith, bringing out his cowboy hat for the occasion, began as the short stack and raised to 920,000, leaving behind one 5,000 chip. Schulman called and made a 7-6 to leave Smith on fumes. Smith was all in the next hand against Schulman who stood pat, while Smith drew one. “You gotta beat an eight, cowboy,” Schulman told Smith as he showed an 8-7, but Smith turned over a 9-6 and was already drawing dead before receiving his last card and headed to the rail in sixth place.
Ben Yu then called off his last 1,660,000 against Chad Eveslage and stood pat with 10-9, but Eveslage had a 10-8 to bust Yu in fifth place. Schulman picked off a big bluff from Johansson to leave the Swede as a short stack, and Johansson was then eliminated in fourth place after Elias made a J-9-5 against his J-9-6.
Schulman climbed up to near 9,000,000 three-handed as Eveslage slid down to less than 1,000,000. Eveslage then moved all in for 915,000 and Schulman called, drawing one with a 9-7 draw. Eveslage took one with 10-6 as Schulman caught an eight to leave Eveslage drawing dead and out in third.
With four rapid eliminations, it seemed like Day 4 would be a short one. Schulman and Elias, though, had other plans and proceeded to wage one of the most epic, back-and-forth heads-up duels in recent WSOP history.
Schulman led Elias 9,640,000 to 4,340,000 at the start of heads-up. It was almost over early, as Elias four-bet to 2,000,000 on the button and Schulman called, each player drawing one. Schulman then moved all in and Elias snap-called for 2,970,000. Schulman showed a 10-7, but Elias had made an 8-7 to double up into the chip lead.
The chip counts remained virtually the same for two hours until Elias tried a bluff with a pair of sixes, raising after the draw to 1,100,000. Schulman called with 10-9 to win the pot and move back in front. Schulman extended his lead when he called a three-bet of 1,255,000 and drew one against Elias’ pat hand. Schulmen then bet 3,500,000 after the draw and Elias mucked.
Elias began to draw even again before retaking the lead when he bet 575,000 and showed a 10-9 after Schulman called. Elias picked off a bluff with A-J to move up to 9,600,000 but Schulman began to crawl back as the stacks evened out once more.
Elias was dealt a pat eight and his bet of 600,000 was called by Schulman as Elias reopened a gap, but Schulman was then all in for 5,300,000 and drawing to an 8-5 as Elias drew one with 7-4. Elias paired a three on the draw, while Schulman pulled an ace to win the pot and double up.
Schulman’s new lead proved short lived, as he tried a bluff with a pair of sixes and Elias called him down with a Q-J. Soon after, Elias drew one and Schulman two. Elias bet 900,000 and Schulman tanked for a few minutes before raising to 3,000,000. Elias called and Schulman tabled a 9-6 to win the massive pot and move up past 10,000,000 once more.
Elias, the WPT's all-time winningest player but still seeking his first bracelet, doubled up again when he was all in for 3,775,000 with a pat J-10 and Schulman missed a draw to a 7-6. Schulman had chipped back up past 8,000,000 as the two players took what proved to be the last break of the day.
Soon after returning, Schulman raised to 600,000 on the button and Elias moved all in for 4,000,000. Schulman called with a pat 10-8, while Elias took one but was already drawing dead with 10-9. Finally, nearly eight hours after heads-up began, Schulman was the champion.
The victory was nothing new for Schulman. It was his third in this event, first capturing it in 2009 and again in 2012. He’s established himself as the premier 2-7 player in the poker world, but he gives all the credit to the players who came before him and paved the way.
“2-7 Single Draw, it really is a beautiful game. A lot of times there is a moment in a hand where, you know, maybe you got him a little bit. You can bet thin for value, but often times it’s you have it or you don’t. I played with some of the best players ever. Rest in peace, Doyle Brunson. Billy Baxter, I played a ton of cash with him. These old school guys. It’s a fairly simple game, but it’s not. Some of these guys from back in the day would still be some of the best players today,” Schulman said.
Nearly 20 years ago, Schulman was a 21-year-old kid when he won his first WPT title. He’s spent nearly half of his life in the poker spotlight, trying to adapt to all the changes that have taken place in the game over the last two decades. It hasn’t all been a smooth ride, but Schulman is still here and still winning.
“A lot of reinventing the wheel and a lot of rock bottoms. A lot of you guys wouldn’t want to be in here. I feel like it’s probably what you would think it is. I’m thankful to be. here, and I do love to play. That’s one of my big secrets, I love to play,” Schulman said.
With this star-studded final table that featured a combined 14 WSOP bracelets and more than $117 million in career earnings, poker fans were promised a treat today. They got so much more, as Schulman crossed over into another pantheon of poker immortality.
That concludes PokerNews' coverage of Event #30: $10,000 2-7 Single Draw Championship. Stay tuned for more coverage throughout the 2025 WSOP.
