If you want to catch up on poker news from September 21–27, 2026, the week splits cleanly between a GGPoker festival and a new live series in the Czech Republic. WSOP Online paid a first bracelet in the $5,000 Main Event and another in the $25,000 High Roller. At King's Resort in Rozvadov, the King's Million European Poker Championship handed out its first Royal Scepter. Last week's September 14–20 roundup stayed with the same WSOP Online series at the $400 COLOSSUS. This week follows the Main Event that closed after it, plus the live results dated inside September 21–27.

The sections below use reporting you can date to this window, chiefly PokerNews on September 21, 23, 24, and 27, and Poker.org on September 23. Where a final table runs nine deep, the payouts are the ones those articles printed. Screen names are the GGPoker lobby names PokerNews listed next to the Main Event finishers.

Andrii Novak Wins the WSOP Online Main Event for $3,931,259 and a First Bracelet

According to PokerNews on September 23, 2026, Ukraine's Andrii Novak won #28: $5,000 WSOP Online Main Event for $3,931,259, his first WSOP bracelet, and a $30,000 Super Pass to the 2026 WSOP Paradise Super Main Event. The field was 6,008 entries. The prize pool was $28,538,000. Day 2 brought back 608 players and reduced them to a nine-handed final table, with Novak holding the chip lead over Simon Beckmann.

If you only remember the winner, you miss how much of the pool sat at the final table. Second paid more than $3 million. Third still cleared $2.3 million. PokerNews listed countries as they appeared in the GGPoker lobby.

Brazil's Pablo Silva was the first finalist out. He opened ace-queen from middle position and jammed over Beckmann's three-bet. Beckmann called with ace-king. Both players paired their kickers on the flop, and the turn and river did not change the hand. Yury Nadinsky, listed eighth for $637,476 under the lobby name Ex Nadinsky, three-bet shoved ace-four for seven big blinds. Charles La Boissonniere had opened the button with ace-king and called. The ace-king held.

Arian Hassankashani, lobby name Who Am I, then committed a short stack with pocket tens and ran into Moyan Chen's red jacks. No ten arrived. Chen is the player PokerNews lists as JinWanDalaoHu36. Ukraine's Pavlo Yakovliev, filthiest in the lobby, had been making hero calls and ambitious bluffs, but the hand that ended his tournament was a coin flip: ace-queen of clubs against Chen's black pocket sevens. Yakovliev spiked a queen on the river. That same card left four spades on the board, and Chen made a flush. Sixth paid $1,071,761.

Fifth was a cooler of a different shape. La Boissonniere, LaughingStorm in the lobby, opened ace-jack of clubs around the three-hour mark and called when Novak three-bet almost all of his stack with pocket threes. The first card off was a jack. The next card was a three. PokerNews reported that La Boissonniere was drawing dead on the turn. Fifth paid $1,389,754. Fernando Liano, liano96, then lost ace-ten to Beckmann's ace-queen of clubs. A queen on the turn left Liano drawing dead and paid him $1,802,141 for fourth.

Chen's third-place hand is the one worth replaying if you care how the heads-up stacks were built. He defended the big blind with nine-eight after Beckmann opened the button with queen-jack of diamonds. Chen check-called a continuation bet on an ace-ten-nine flop, then check-raised all-in after a four arrived. Beckmann called and completed a straight with a king on the river. Chen banked $2,336,938. That pot gave Beckmann a substantial chip lead over Novak going into heads-up.

Novak doubled to take the lead back. By the final hand he held about a 10-to-1 advantage. He raised ace-jack far enough to put Beckmann all-in, and Beckmann called with queen-seven of hearts. An ace on the flop paired Novak. The river was a five. Beckmann took the $3,030,486 runner-up prize. Novak left with the Main Event title, the bracelet, the Super Pass, and $3,931,259. For a $5,000 buy-in, the top two prizes are the number to sit with: both cleared $3 million from a field of 6,008.

Casimir Seire Wins the $25,000 High Roller as Negreanu Finishes Fourth

The same PokerNews desk, still on September 23, had a second bracelet to report. Finland's Casimir Seire won the $25,000 High Roller NLH Championship for $906,647 and his first WSOP bracelet. An earlier article that day, written while 14 players remained, said the champion would also receive a $30,000 Super Pass to the WSOP Paradise Super Main Event. Jon Sofen's result piece says Seire finished heads-up against Fabiano Kovalski by hitting quads, and that the match ended quickly. Kovalski's second-place prize was $699,120.

Before that restart, PokerNews published the top of the chip counts among the final 14. Everyone still in was guaranteed $72,550. A final table seat would raise the floor to $113,331, and the top three would each clear half a million. Play was due to resume at 7:00 p.m. BST on September 23. These are the stacks the article listed for the top ten, with countries again as shown in the GGPoker lobby.

Those counts are a snapshot before the final table, not a finishing order. Sturm, Topsecret500, RRomashka, Bruschi, and Vogelsang do not appear on the payout list Sofen published later the same day. The finishing prizes do.

Daniel Negreanu is the name most readers will look for, and the reporting is specific about why fourth hurt. PokerNews framed the final table as his chance to become the 10th player to win nine WSOP bracelets, and as a chance at a first online bracelet. He livestreamed the action on his YouTube channel. He began the final table third in chips at around 60 big blinds, deeper than the 41 big blinds he held when 14 players remained.

The stack started well. Negreanu held pocket queens against Parahat Nurmuhammedov's jack-seven of clubs. Nurmuhammedov check-raised a flop of 5♣ 6♥ 5♦, then paired the jack on a J♦ turn. That turn cost him the rest of his stack and left Negreanu in front with seven players remaining. Eighth paid Nurmuhammedov $146,971.

The next large pot went the other way. Negreanu picked up A♥ K♠ and had Ole Schemion all-in with A♠ Q♠ and Roman Emelyanov all-in with 6♥ 6♦. The board ran A♣ 10♠ Q♥ 9♥ 9♦. If you sort the hands, Schemion's ace-queen makes two pair, aces and queens. Negreanu's ace-king is a pair of aces. Emelyanov's sixes finish behind both and leave in seventh for $190,599. Schemion moved up. Negreanu fell to one of the shorter stacks.

Schemion busted in sixth for $247,176. Negreanu won a race to double, and with five players left he was still fourth in chips. Seire had taken a large lead and was using it to apply pressure. Negreanu later eliminated Pedro Neves in fifth for $320,548. The tournament then turned on one four-handed hand. Seire shoved with 9♣ 8♦, putting Negreanu all-in for 27 big blinds. Negreanu called with 10♦ 10♥. The board came A♦ 9♥ 6♣ 8♠ K♣. Seire's nine-eight made two pair, nines and eights, and the pocket tens lost. Fourth paid $415,699. Negreanu's line, as PokerNews quoted it, was "That's it, guys, that was our chance to win the tournament."

Erwann Pecheux was eliminated in third for $539,095 immediately afterward. Seire and Kovalski played the bracelet heads-up, and Seire's quads ended it. PokerNews also noted the longer arc: after an 11-year drought, Negreanu had won two bracelets in the past three years, including an eighth over the summer. The online bracelet was the one this final table did not add. The player who did take a first bracelet home was Seire, from the chip lead he had been pressing once the table got short.

Viorel Gavrila Becomes the First King’s Million EPC Champion for €125,500

The live headline of September 21 belongs to Rozvadov. According to PokerNews that day, Romania's Viorel Gavrila became the first champion of the 2026 King's Million European Poker Championship. He won the €250 EPC Mini Main Event from 4,389 entries, taking a career-best €125,500 from the €1 million guaranteed prize pool and the Royal Scepter. The final day began with 34 players. Gavrila moved to the top of the counts and was the first player through 10 million, 20 million, and 30 million chips. He eliminated each of the last four opponents between him and the title.

Heads-up against Israel's Mystery Kid did not last. The first all-in and call was also the last. Gavrila's nine-five offsuit cracked ace-king. Mystery Kid finished second for €76,500. Germany's Maximilian Kuntz was third for €54,000. The rest of the final table, as PokerNews printed it, runs through familiar screen names as well as full names.

The Hendon Mob figures PokerNews cited put Gavrila's prior live earnings at $535,157, with a previous best of $40,779. He was not new to live titles. PokerNews lists an 888poker LIVE Main Event, results on the Circuito Nacional de Poker, and a Gentlemen's Elite Series Main Event. The 2026 live ledger before Rozvadov was thinner: $10,007 in live cashes, with most of his volume online. That is the context for the quotes he gave after the win.

He told PokerNews he plays a lot online and now wants to make a transition toward more live poker. He said he played without emotion, that 12 years online made the final day feel straightforward, and that he ran well. He also placed the result next to an older one: about three years ago he final-tabled this event under the WSOPE umbrella and finished ninth. This time he finished first. He already knew Mystery Kid from earlier tables and said his opponent played well, and that he ran better on the day. The part that reads as a reason, rather than a slogan, is the last one he gave: he likes live poker because he can enjoy the table and talk to people, and it feels different from online.

The next King's Million trophy in this window belongs to Aliaksei Chernak. According to PokerNews on September 24, the Belarus player won the €400 Deepstack after a final day that lasted almost 16 hours. The event drew 1,054 entries and a prize pool of €358,360. One hundred six players returned in the money. Seven opening flights each locked up at least €800 for a bag. Chernak began Day 2 in the middle of the pack, reached the final nine among the shorter stacks, and still left with €54,800 and another Royal Scepter.

Heads-up was against boundless of Cuba, who had built a large lead that did not last. With four players left, Chernak was at risk twice against that stack, doubled once when his kicker was dominated, and survived again about ten minutes later. He then knocked out Poland's Karol Radomski in third for €25,300. The final hand was a pair of tens. Boundless finished second for €34,300. Chernak already had a King's Resort title, the 2023 Euro Poker Million. Speaking through a translator, he told PokerNews he tried to enjoy the room rather than repeat to himself that he would not win, that he believed in himself and felt peace, and that Rozvadov feels like home. He also called the day very lucky. The rest of that final table paid Maciej Swicarz €19,000 in fourth, Rafael Griman Pabon €14,600 in fifth, Dan Galinschi €11,200 in sixth, Andro Scarpa €8,700 in seventh, Alpine Nemesis €6,625 in eighth, and ZAK TYGA €5,115 in ninth.

Marek Uharcek Wins the €1,500 PLO Championship for €95,000, His First Title

September 27 closed the week at the same festival with a different game. According to PokerNews that day, Slovakia's Marek Uharcek won the €1,500 PLO Championship for €95,000, a Royal Scepter, and his first tournament title. The event drew 286 entries across two starting flights and a €500,000 prize pool. The final day ran almost 12 hours. Forty-four players returned, each already locked up for €3,525. Uharcek had ended Day 1b as chip leader, started the final day in front, and entered the final table still leading. He also scored the first knockout there.

Uharcek told PokerNews he is not really a tournament player. He plays about ten tournaments a year, prefers cash games, and this was his first title. He described the chip lead as useful and incomplete: you still have to close the day, and he tried to take one decision at a time, including pressure against short stacks. He also pointed at a final table exactly a year earlier, to the day, on the same felt, where he finished eighth, and at two European Poker Tour final tables in the last three years. His advice after a bad beat was to stay calm and avoid a quick judgment. At this final table he said he did not think he had an edge. He named Jan-Peter Jachtmann, whom he described as a bracelet winner, among the experienced players in the field.

The path through the last four matches the cards PokerNews could confirm. Uharcek knocked Jachtmann out in fourth while holding the better two pair, then took a slight lead into heads-up against Germany's Lucas Giebing. The four-outer Uharcek mentioned came when Giebing was all-in and behind, then made a straight on the turn and flipped the match. Uharcek doubled soon after. The next time Giebing was at risk, Giebing missed a straight draw and the title ended. Uharcek called the final hand a relief. He said he had been disappointed, not upset, when the four-outer arrived, and that Giebing still had many outs on the last hand. Second paid €62,600. Third, listed as anonymized and from Germany, paid €42,700.

Ari Engel and Daniel Lowery Each Reach WSOP Circuit Ring No. 21

The Circuit story is smaller in dollars and clearer as a record. According to Poker.org on September 23, 2026, Daniel Lowery and Ari Engel each reached 21 WSOP Circuit rings on back-to-back days at Horseshoe Council Bluffs in Iowa. On September 22, Event #7: $400 Big O drew 96 entries. Eleven players returned for Day 2. Lowery started that day as the short stack and won $8,607. Engel finished third for $3,672. Sean Moore was second for $5,502. Poker.org called it Lowery's third ring in a non-hold 'em event. The previous two were in Pot-Limit Omaha. His prior ring, No. 20, had come in March at Hard Rock Tulsa, a $300 Seniors event with 480 entries, and it was his fourth title at that venue.

Engel's answer came less than 24 hours later in Event #9: $400 No-Limit Hold'em. The field was 68 entries. He entered the day with the chip lead, 367,000, and Theresa Morley sat on 364,000. They were the last two players. Morley took a 4-to-1 lead heads-up. Engel then hero-called for his tournament life with second pair on the turn, took the pot, and won $6,613. Morley's prize in the results table is $4,094. The article's narrative spells her Morley; the finishing table in the same piece spells Morely. Engel said the call was scary because he thought he had an edge heads-up, the pot was large, and a wrong call would have ended the tournament. He had been trying to play low variance. This spot was not that. It was his first ring since the previous year at the same casino, when he won a $1,100 no-limit hold'em event hours after arriving.

Poker.org's all-time ring list, printed with the story, still has a gap at the top.

The same article sketches how the gap opened. A little more than a year earlier, Engel, Lowery, and Hawkins were packed together. Hawkins was the first of them to 20, in New Orleans in August, then won a 21st in that same series and added five more this year to reach 26. Engel's own reading, quoted by Poker.org, is that five rings is still too many to call the race open. He said Lowery shows up at one or two stops a year and usually wins a ring or two, while Hawkins wins often enough that catching him is difficult. Engel left the door at "maybe if I get a couple more," which is a narrower claim than a leaderboard chase.

Taken together, the week's public record is the WSOP Online Main Event, a first bracelet in the $25,000 High Roller, and the first names on the King's Million trophies in Rozvadov. The figures above are the ones PokerNews and Poker.org published on the dates cited. If a detail was not in those pieces, it is not in this roundup.