The 10 Greatest WSOP Moments of All Time

From Straus’ lonely chip to Nguyen’s break-dance, the WSOP has served as poker’s grandest theatre for more than half a century. These ten moments stretch across eras, formats and personalities, yet they share three common threads:

1. Storytelling power – each hand delivered a narrative so compelling that even non-players remember where they were when they first saw it.
2. Rule-book impact – several of these spots led directly to changes in table-talk etiquette, broadcast standards or tournament structures.
3. Cultural reach – whether sparking a global boom (Moneymaker), spotlighting charitable causes (One Drop) or challenging media conventions (Colman), every scene pushed the boundaries of what poker could mean beyond the felt.

Queue up the videos, watch them in order, and you’ll witness poker evolve from smoky back-rooms to glitzy arenas — all in ten unforgettable acts. If history is any guide, the next iconic WSOP moment is already hiding in a future deck, waiting for the right river card to make it legend.

1. “A Chip and a Chair” – Jack Straus, 1982

Early on Day 2 of the Main Event, a towering Jack Straus jammed his stack and lost. Convinced he was out, he rose from his seat—only for the dealer to spot a single 500-denomination chip hidden under a crumpled napkin.

Rules said the game wasn’t over: if you still have chips, even one, you’re alive. Straus sat back down, rolled up his sleeves and began an absurd resurrection that carried him all the way to heads-up against Dewey Tomko.

Two emotional days later he held every chip in the room, turning a near-exit into a $520 k triumph and coining the phrase that now comforts short stacks everywhere.

Watch it happen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h2ypxH2OpI

Why it matters: every modern short-stack strategy column, every gutsy ladder-up run, traces its DNA back to Straus. Television producers still splice this highlight into today’s broadcasts to remind viewers that no stack is truly dead until the last chip is gone.

2. Johnny Chan Lures Erik Seidel – The “Eye-to-the-Sky” Slow-Play, 1988

Johnny Chan was chasing a historic second straight title when he tangled with Wall Street convert Erik Seidel. The flop came J♣ 9♦ 8♦; Chan, holding K♣ Q♣ for the nut straight draw, merely checked and let Seidel take control. By the river, Chan had made the nuts. He gazed toward the ceiling—almost bored—before springing a lethal check-raise. Seidel shipped the lot, Chan snap-called, and binocular-wearing railbirds roared as the defending champ made history. Rounders later immortalised Seidel’s shell-shocked face and Chan’s nonchalance, ensuring this hand would be replayed in poker classrooms forever.

Watch the trap: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwNqyiYkM60

Why it matters: Chan’s composure re-defined what a “poker face” looked like, while Seidel’s anguished stare skyward became an iconic lesson in emotional control (or lack thereof) at the biggest stakes imaginable.

3. Stu Ungar’s Final Spark – The Third Crown of 1997

By the late ’90s Stu Ungar was regarded as a fallen genius, his brilliance dimmed by addiction. Entering the 1997 Main Event, he looked frail and disinterested, sporting borrowed clothes and oversized shades. Yet when the pressure peaked, “the Kid” found a last well of fire. In the closing hand, his A-4 turned into a wheel straight that beat John Strzemp’s top pair, cementing Ungar as the first (and still only) three-time modern-era Main Event champion. The victory was both glorious and bittersweet—he died the following year—but it reminded the poker world that raw talent can burn bright, even on its final breath.

Watch the rivered wheel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VZFONkQ8Ic

Why it matters: Ungar’s victory proved raw talent could still triumph over demons — but also served as a poignant swan song; he died the following year. His story fuels countless debates on “best ever” lists to this day.

4. Scotty Nguyen’s Legendary Line, 1998

The televised final table was plagued by a leaky roof, yet it’s Scotty Nguyen’s showmanship everyone remembers. Five-handed on a wet stage, the board ran 8♣ 9♦ 9♥ 8♥ 8♠, giving both Nguyen and Kevin McBride full houses. Nguyen, swirling his beer, stared at McBride and delivered, in velvet tones, “You call, it’s gonna be all over, baby!” McBride called, the room erupted, and Scotty toasted the rail with champagne. The quip hasn’t left the highlight reels since—and it nudged tournament officials to tighten rules on table talk and alcohol.

Watch the mic drop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr98qbVilbQ

Why it matters: the hand highlighted the tension between table talk and sportsmanship and led to new WSOP rules about verbal conduct. It also cemented Nguyen’s status as the tour’s consummate showman.

5. Chris Moneymaker Ignites a Global Boom, 2003

A Tennessee accountant who had never played a live tournament with a four-figure buy-in, Chris Moneymaker turned a $39 online satellite into a seat at poker’s grandest stage. With cameras now showing every hole card, viewers watched in disbelief as he bluffed legend Sam Farha off the best hand with nothing but queen-high. Hours later he lifted the bracelet and a $2.5 million cheque. That underdog story flooded card rooms and online sites with new dreamers, a seismic shift forever dubbed the “Moneymaker Effect.”

Relive the bluff: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUxk1P172Xc

Why it matters: Moneymaker’s win convinced recreational players that anyone could beat the pros, doubling Main Event field sizes overnight and ushering poker onto primetime sports networks across the globe.

6. Greg “Fossilman” Raymer’s Full-House Pile-Up, 2004

Sporting 3-D dinosaur glasses and brandishing a fossil card-protector, patent lawyer Greg Raymer caught lightning against wunderkind David Williams. The board triple-paired to give both men full houses, but Raymer’s eights-full crushed Williams’ fours-full. When the river fell, Raymer bellowed—part primal scream, part victory cry—before swallowing a $5 million payout, the last Main Event ever played inside the smoky confines of Binion’s Horseshoe. His eccentric celebration helped convince ESPN execs poker was gripping television, not late-night filler.

Watch the cooler: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDqu6lb0XSI

Why it matters: Raymer’s end-zone celebration and quirky persona were tailor-made for TV, helping convince ESPN to increase its weekly WSOP package and legitimising poker as an entertainment product, not just a card contest.

7. Jamie Gold’s Verbal Blitz, 2006

Jamie Gold arrived at the final table with the largest stack in WSOP history and an actor-agent’s flair for talk. He narrated hands, bluffed with boasts, and baited opponents into disastrous calls. In the last hand he coaxed Paul Wasicka to commit his chips while stone dead, chattering about blueberries and weakness moments before tabling top pair. Gold’s $12 million score remains colossal, and the subsequent lawsuit over his backing deal became a cautionary saga about handshake agreements. Meanwhile, WSOP rule-makers hurried to clarify what exactly players are allowed to say mid-hand.

Watch the chatter:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHXndrTVCyg

Why it matters: Gold’s polarising style inspired new generations of “verbal” players, while his post-win litigation over backing deals served as a cautionary tale about handshake agreements in the high-stakes world.

8. Antonio Esfandiari Wins the First $1 Million “Big One for One Drop”, 2012

Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberté envisioned a buy-in so enormous it would benefit charity; 48 high-rollers obliged. Antonio Esfandiari, already a fan favourite, navigated the elite field and toppled Sam Trickett to bank $18.3 million, a record at the time. The Magician leapt into his father’s arms in tears, then pledged long-term support for the One Drop Foundation’s clean-water projects. The spectacle proved that poker’s upper stratosphere could generate both massive ratings and meaningful philanthropy.

Watch the record payday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYJYC8M96FI

Why it matters: Gold’s polarising style inspired new generations of “verbal” players, while his post-win litigation over backing deals served as a cautionary tale about handshake agreements in the high-stakes world.

9. Daniel Colman’s Silent Statement – Big One for One Drop, 2014

Two years later, the million-dollar buy-in returned. At 23, online heads-up savant Daniel Colman locked horns with Daniel Negreanu in a see-saw duel that held the Twitch generation spellbound. When Colman’s A♦ Q♥ faded Negreanu’s K♠ 4♠, he collected $15.3 million—then refused victory interviews. His silent protest against the glorification of gambling triggered furious debate: should champions promote the game that enriched them, or are they free to bow out? Colman’s stance still sparks Twitter wars whenever a star declines media duties.

Watch the finale: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyl6hPCmx4w

Why it matters: Gold’s polarising style inspired new generations of “verbal” players, while his post-win litigation over backing deals served as a cautionary tale about handshake agreements in the high-stakes world.

10. Qui Nguyen’s Raccoon-Hat Rampage, 2016

When the November Nine reconvened, recreational grinder Qui Nguyen wore a faux-fur trapper hat that looked more raccoon than fashion. He wielded a hyper-aggressive gear, three-betting Gordon Vayo into submission hand after hand. After 182 hands of heads-up sparring, Nguyen’s K♣ J♦ held versus Vayo’s straight draw on a ten-high board, netting $8 million. Nguyen burst into a break-dance across the stage, his hat flopping wildly—an exclamation mark reminding fans that joy and personality still thrive in a solver-driven era.

Watch the crowning moment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90yy1_tBAtQ

Why it matters: The 2016 broadcast showed that fearless, entertainment-driven poker could still triumph in the “solver era,” inspiring casual fans and helping WSOP pivot successfully to its new home on PokerGO streaming.

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