Stephen Winters Tops 20,647 Entries In $300 Buy-in WSOP Gladiators of Poker EventColorado Resident Earns $401,210 and His First Bracelet For Topping Fifth-Largest Live Field In WSOP History |
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The 2024 World Series of Poker $300 buy-in Gladiators of Poker no-limit hold’em event attracted a gigantic field of 20,647 entries across its four starting flights, making this the fifth-largest turnout for any live event in WSOP history. As a result, the event easily surpassed the $3 million guarantee to create a prize pool of nearly $5.1 million. Six days after the tournament kicked off at Horseshoe Las Vegas, that sprawling sea of contenders was finally whittled down to a single champion: Stephen Winters. The Lyons, Colorado resident earned $401,210 and his first gold bracelet for the win.
“I guess this is for the little guys,” Winters told WSOP reporters after closing out the victory. “I just play a few small tournaments each year, so it was exciting just to be relevant for once.”
The top 2,763 finishers earned a share of the prize pool in this event, with a min-cash of $600. The payouts hit five figures for the top 44, while Winters was one of just five players to walk away with a six-figure score in this tournament.
Check out the top five live WSOP bracelet events (by field size):
| Event | Entries | Prize Pool | Champion | Top Prize |
| 2019 Big 50 $500 NLH | 28,371 | $13,509,435 | Femi Fashakin | $1,147,449 |
| 2023 Gladiators of Poker $300 NLH | 23,088 | $5,679,648 | Jason Simon | $499,852 |
| 2015 Colossus $565 NLH | 22,374 | $11,187,000 | Cord Garcia | $638,880 |
| 2016 Colossus $565 NLH | 21,613 | $10,806,500 | Benjamin Keeline | $1,000,000 |
| 2024 Gladiators of Poker $300 NLH | 20,647 | $5,079,162 | Stephen Winters | $401,210 |
The final day of this event began with 14 players remaining and Winters in a virtual five-way tie for the chip lead. Winters had taken sole possession of the top spot by the time the official final table of nine was set.
Winters knocked out Caleb Levesque (9th – $41,337) to extend his advantage. Simon Britton then won a flip against Jordan Johnson (8th – $52,590) to narrow the field to seven.
Steve Foutty bowed out in seventh place ($67,320) before Winters got involved in a preflop race with pocket sevens against the A-K of Sung Pil Kim, who had doubled through him a bit earlier at the final table. Winters then landed the knockout blow on Kim, who earned $86,710 for his sixth-place showing.
James Morgan’s (5th – $112,350) K-Q was unable to outrun the pocket eights of Quang Vu. Winters then won a three-way all-in with A-Q holding against the A-J of Brandon Herrick and A-5 of Vu. Herrick cashed for $146,450 as the fourth-place finisher.
Vu soon followed when his pocket fives were outflopped by Winters’ A-8 suited. Winters held through the river to eliminate Vu in third place ($192,030).
It took only one hand for Winters to close out the win. Britton called all-in on a Q
10
9J
board with J
10. Winter revealed the K9 for a turned straight. The Q on the end was no help to Britton, who finished second for $253,300.
Here is a look at the payouts awarded at the final table:
| Place | Player | Earnings |
| 1 | Stephen Winters | $401,210 |
| 2 | Simon Britton | $253,300 |
| 3 | Quang Vu | $192,030 |
| 4 | Brendon Herrick | $146,450 |
| 5 | James Morgan | $12,350 |
| 6 | Sung Pil Kim | $86,710 |
| 7 | Steve Foutty | $67,320 |
| 8 | Jordan Johnson | $52,590 |
| 9 | Caleb Levesque | $41,337 |
Visit the Card Player 2024 World Series of Poker page for schedules, news, interviews, and the latest event results. WSOP coverage sponsored by Global Poker.
Photo credit: WSOP / Hayley Hochstetler.
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