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The 2026 WSOP Player of the Year race will go down to the wire at WSOP Paradise in December, with only 29 points separating the top three contenders. Shaun Deeb currently leads with 3,410 points, just ahead of Naoya Kihara and Alex Foxen.
For the first time, the POY standings combine results from WSOP Europe, the Las Vegas summer series, and WSOP Paradise, giving the leaders one final chance to pull away before the season ends. The eventual winner will receive the newly created Binion Cup, while $1 million in prizes will be split among the top 100 finishers.
Deeb, last year’s champion, is chasing a record third POY title after already winning in 2018 and 2025. He secured his ninth career bracelet this summer and posted a $89,286 profit from $956,086 in earnings, despite recording fewer cashes than in previous years.
Kihara enjoyed a breakout summer, winning back-to-back $10,000 Championship events in 2-7 Lowball Draw and Seven Card Stud, lifting his bracelet total to three. He also cashed 16 times overall, positioning him as a strong challenger and potentially Japan’s first WSOP Player of the Year.
Foxen rounded out the top three with 14 cashes, including a bracelet win in the $10,000 Super Turbo Bounty and deep runs in multiple high rollers, including a $522,347 score in the $100,000 event.
Other names remain in contention, including eight-time bracelet winner Daniel Negreanu and reigning Main Event champion Lucas Jumalon, both hoping to climb the standings when the $50 million guaranteed Super Main Event headlines WSOP Paradise.
