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Lucas Jumalon’s $10,000,000 victory in the 2026 WSOP Main Event looks a lot smaller once taxes are factored in. According to an annual analysis by tax professional Russell Fox of Clayton Financial and Tax, the 22-year-old Washington state native will actually keep $6,009,174 after paying $3,990,826 in federal and self-employment taxes, a rate of 39.91 percent.
Fox’s yearly breakdown estimates what each Main Event final table finisher owes in local, state, and federal taxes, not accounting for any backer deals. This year’s nine finalists shared $30,250,000, with an estimated $12,273,963 total going toward taxes.
The heaviest burden fell on seventh-place finisher Jamie Shaevel, a California resident. Between state and federal obligations, he’ll lose more than half of his $1,500,000 payout, a 50.37 percent tax hit, the highest at the table.
Fourth-place finisher Michael Gagliano of New Jersey wasn’t far behind, losing 48.39 percent of his $2,750,000 score, roughly $1,330,683, to combined taxes.
International players fared better. Runner-up Lauri Saaskilahti, a Finnish player residing in Spain, owes no U.S. tax thanks to a treaty preventing double taxation, though Spain will still collect about $2,773,000 of his $6,000,000 prize. Third-place finisher Greg “FBT” Mueller of Canada will pay roughly 30 percent to the Canada Revenue Agency, keeping $2,628,000 of his $3,750,000. Sixth-place Canadian Rami Hammoud owes no domestic tax but must pay the IRS about $522,000 of his $1,750,000 cash.
Jumalon, now the youngest Main Event champion from Washington and the second-youngest ever, has said he hopes to become a poker ambassador, suggesting future tax bills may follow future winnings.
