Editor
The first of two $100K NLH High Rollers at the 2025 WSOP wrapped up on Friday night with Joao Vieira of Portugal taking down the win as he bested a 103-player field to win the grand prize of $2,649,158.
Seeing these eye-popping numbers is almost commonplace for poker fans now, who have become accustomed to the nose-bleed buy-ins of high rollers that have become a regular fixture in the game. At the 2025 WSOP, there are two $100K buy-in high rollers and a $250K super high-roller, as well as four other events with a $50K buy-in.
But it is worth remembering that this was not always the case. When did this proliferation of high rollers become such a standard fixture at the WSOP?
History of WSOP High Rollers
Traditionally, the highest buy-in at the WSOP was always the $50K Poker Players Championship (PPC), which was the most prestigious title in poker for many years.
That changed in 2012 when the WSOP held the $1 million buy-in, “The Big One For One Drop.” That event had 48 entries, and the over $18.3 million grand prize won by Antonio Esfandiari remains the largest first-place prize in poker history.
Thus began the trend from 2013 to 2017 of having one high roller event at each WSOP that had a larger buy in than the PPC. Each were “One Drop” charity events with buy-ins of $100,000 with one oft them being another version of the $1 million Big One For One Drop in 2014, which got fewer entries than the 2012 edition.
But similar to how the Colossus was a pioneer for lower buy in events, these One Drop events were just the beggining for high roller poker at the WSOP. The 2018 WSOP featured the first non One Drop high roller called simply “$100K NLH High Roller”.
That year also featured another $1 million Big One For One Drop to make it the first year to have two events with a larger buy in than the PPC. 2019 returned to form with just one event featuring a six-figure buy-in.
2021 marked the first WSOP with two high roller events that had no affiliation with One Drop. There was a $250K NLH high roller and a $100K one. The number of high rollers increased again in 2022 with three six-figure buy-in events. 2023 and 2024 had two each and now in 2025 there are three once again to make multiple high rollers a fixture of the modern WSOP.
Increased Appetite For High Rollers Worldwide
The WSOP is simply mirroring the rest of the poker world as the appetite for huge buy in events continues to increase around the world in recent years. This has led to an inflation of the all time money leaderboard and created a whole slate of poker pros who play high rollers exclusively; a player pool that the WSOP certainly does not want to miss out on.
There are many players, pros and rich amateurs alike, who are willing to play at massive stakes in today’s poker world. Many of these six-figure buy in events surpass 100 entries. Prestigious tours around the world are all looking to invite these high rollers to come to their stops.
The Triton Poker Tour, founded in 2016, has upped the ante for high rollers by holding several series a year, all featuring large buy in events. Fast forward to 2025 and Triton is setting records nearly every series.
The PokerGo Tour (PGT) has also made high rollers a regular part of their Las Vegas based schedule for players who want to battle for big cash prizes year-round. Poker properties like the Aria offer regular large buy-in high rollers as well.
Not to be left behind, the EPT has started holding more high rollers and even super high roller six-figure events for the European market.
