Bernhard Binder Manifests Prediction to Win WSOP Super Main Event for $10 Million

Simply weeks in the past, high-stakes poker participant Mario Mosböck predicted that Bernhard Binder can be certainly one of poker’s breakout stars of 2026. The 27-year-old Austrian manifested that prediction a number of weeks early by taking down Occasion #11: $25,000 Tremendous Most important Occasion at 2025 World Collection of Poker Paradise for $10,000,000.

Earlier this 12 months, Binder, who’s primarily an internet participant, received the GGMillion$ Most important Occasion for $1.8 million. However he received practically ten occasions that at present, in addition to his first WSOP bracelet, after defeating France’s Jean-Noel Thorel in an almost four-hour heads-up battle.

There was a 51-year age hole between Binder and Thorel. They had been the youngest and oldest gamers at a closing desk that additionally included high-stakes professional and bracelet winner Eric Wasserson, poker media’s Terrance Reid and Natasha Mercier, a longtime grinder and spouse of poker famous person Jason Mercier.

“[Thorel’s] a particular opponent, and taking part in heads-up towards him is difficult as a result of there are extra surprising issues [that] occur than [with] a whole lot of different opponents,” Binder instructed PokerNews in a winner’s interview. “However yeah, it was a terrific problem.”

The $60 million assured Tremendous Most important Occasion, the most important assured poker event in historical past, had 2,891 runners — with a number of gamers who had been in for over a dozen bullets — for a prize pool of $72,275,000.

$25,000 Tremendous Most important Occasion Last Desk Outcomes

Battle of the Ages

There have been loads of storylines to comply with because the record-setting occasion reached its closing desk of eight.

There was Natasha Mercier seeking to make historical past by surpassing Liv Boeree’s $2.8 million money in final 12 months’s tremendous Most important Occasion — the largest-ever poker event money for a lady. There was additionally Terrance Reid buying and selling in his press badge for a beginning stack and making a run at a life-changing rating after an already spectacular two years of poker.

After which there was Eric Wasserson, a longtime high-stakes professional and Legends Room fixture who received his first bracelet final 12 months within the Bahamas, who changed aspiring colour commentator Martin Kabrhel because the event’s villain on Day 4 with a sickening sluggish roll of eight-time bracelet winner Benny Glaser.

However there can be no dangerous karma for “EWass” on Day 5. He shortly eradicated Argentina’s Franco Spitale in eighth place as his pocket queens held up towards the Argentinian’s ace-jack, and he was later capable of get away from a rivered straight towards the flopped flush of Binder.

Peter Chien was much less lucky on the closing desk and went out in seventh place to the runner-runner flush of Binder, regardless of having had his opponent dominated.

Mercier, whose supportive sister, Sandra Barbour, flew in from Florida to observe her older sibling play for tens of millions, was one other sufferer of dangerous runouts. The stay-at-home mother and longtime poker participant discovered herself all in with ace-queen towards the king-eight of Thorel, however a rivered king ended Mercier’s run in fifth place for $1,800,000.

Wasserson was the subsequent participant to fall by the hands of Binder. He received it in with ace-jack towards the king-queen, however 4 diamonds on the board had Wasserson drawing lifeless to the river.

Talking of drawing skinny to made flushes, Reid fell in fourth when he check-jammed center pair just for Binder to snap him off with a flopped flush. There can be no runner-runner full home or quads because the poker journalist’s run reached an finish.

Belarmino De Souza, who earlier folded a straight in what high-stakes professional Chris Brewer referred to as “the craziest poker hand,” fell to Thorel in third place to make method for a marathon heads-up battle between the elder Frenchman and the Austrian solver professional.

When PokerNews instructed Binder he had folded his opponent off a chop, he referred to as the hand “unimaginable.”

“I did not know that he had jack-ten as properly,” he mentioned. “I used to be all in for worth.”

Thorel, an everyday on the Triton circuit who acquired excessive reward on social media from Jason Koon forward of the ultimate desk, put up an intense struggle towards the heads-up opponent 5 many years youthful than him, and did it with a smile.

There have been nearly no all-ins within the heads-up match till the ultimate hand as stacks received shallow. Thorel moved all in with king-queen and could not pull forward of Binder’s ace-eight.

“It is Superb to Have Such Good Buddies”

Binder’s rail, crammed with Austrian poker execs, was with him all through the total closing desk, and there is audio to show it. The rowdy rail — sporting matching “Group Binder” shirts — cycled by means of chants like “Strolling in a Binder Wonderland” and others impressed by Austrian musician DJ Ötzi.

“That’s the greatest. The most effective of all. If I used to be right here alone and win this, it would not imply a fraction of what it means proper now to rejoice with so many individuals. And to additionally have an effect for them, as a result of a whole lot of them additionally had a share,” Binder mentioned.

A type of mates on the rail was Samuel Mullur, who Binder referred to as “my greatest good friend for eternally, mainly,” and who received a bracelet of his personal right here within the Bahamas on the 2023 WSOP Paradise pageant.

“When he wins one thing huge, I believe I am extra joyful for him than he’s for himself, and after I win one thing huge, I believe he is extra joyful for me than I’m for myself,” Binder mentioned. “It is wonderful to have such good mates.”

Connor Richards is a Senior Editor U.S. for PokerNews and host of the Life Exterior Poker podcast. Connor has been nominated for 3 World Poker Awards for his writing.