As the 56th World Series of Poker (WSOP) gets underway, BonusFinder has set out to discover who Canada’s best poker players are.
The next edition of the World Series of Poker will take place in Las Vegas, NV from May 27 to July 16 2025. To honor the latest edition BonusFinder.com, Canada’s leading casino bonus and online casino review site, has explored the history of the tournament and its past winners.
BonusFinder looked into all 338 main event final participants, since 1971, and filtered the top Canadian finalists into nine categories to determine who are the most successful Canadian WSOP players of all time.
It must be noted that due to structural changes in the tournament over the decades, only players who reached the main event final table in the last 30 years (1995-2024) were considered for the top five rankings.
1. Jonathan Duhamel, Quebec
Overall score: 61
Hometown: Boucherville, Quebec
Residence: Boucherville, Quebec
No Canadian poker list is complete without the legend that is Jonathan Duhamel.
The legacy spurs from Duhamel becoming the first Canadian to win the WSOP main event in 2010, capturing the $8.9m top prize.
To win, the Quebec native dominated the final table, defeating John Racener in one of the most watched WSOP finals of all time.
Duhamel’s win was a watershed moment and established him as not only a Canadian ambassador, but a global ambassador for the game.
Further, he proved this wasn’t a one hit wonder after winning two more bracelets, including a prestigious High Roller for One Drop title in 2015.
🏅 Placement in main event final table – 1 (10)
💲 Total prize money earned in main event(s) – $8,944,310 (9)
🎰 No. of times in final table (main event) – 1 (7)
👑No. of titles – 3 (6)
🏆 No. of bracelets – 3 (6)
💍 No. of rings – 0 (1)
🎲 No. of placements in a final table – 14 (6)
💸 No. of cashes – 46 (6)
💰 Total WSOP earnings – $14,623,467 (10)
2. Alex Livingston, Nova Scotia
Overall score: 53
Hometown: Halifax, Nova Scotia
Residence: Las Vegas, Nevada
Livingston was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia and made his mark on the scene, back in 2013, when he finished in 13th place at the main event.
After having a few years to hone his craft, he later went on to get third place at the main event in 2019 – winning $4m.
With 66 cashes and two bracelets he ranks among the most consistent Canadian players in WSOP history.
🏅 Placement in main event final table – 3 (8)
💲 Total prize money earned in main event(s) – $4m (6)
🎰 No. of times in final table (main event) – 1 (7)
👑No. of titles – 2 (5)
🏆 No. of bracelets – 2 (5)
💍 No. of rings – 0 (1)
🎲 No. of placements in a final table 14 (6)
💸 No. of cashes – 66 (7)
💰 Total WSOP earnings – $6,581,398 (8)
3. Scott Montgomery, Ontario
Overall score: 42
Hometown: Perth, Ontario
Residence: Perth, Ontario
With his aggressive playing style Scott Montgomery quickly became a fan favorite at the 2008 WSOP main event. At the tournament he secured fifth place and walked away around $3.1m richer.
He wasn’t done there either; in 2010 he returned to the competition and captured a WSOP bracelet after winning a $1,000 no-limit hold’em event which added a further $481,760 to his bankroll.
🏅 Placement in main event final table – 5 (6)
💲 Total prize money earned in main event(s) – $3,088,012
🎰 No. of times in final table (main event) – 1 (7)
👑No. of titles – 1 (4)
🏆 No. of bracelets – 1 (4)
💍 No. of rings – 0 (1)
🎲 No. of placements in a final table – 4 (4)
💸 No. of cashes – 37 (5)
💰 Total WSOP earnings – $4,037,926 (6)
4. Andre Boyer, Quebec (Shared)
Overall score: 38
Hometown: Action Vale, Quebec
Residence: Action Vale, Quebec
Before the days of streaming and online poker, there was – the man, the myth, the legend – André Boyer. Boyer is known as a trailblazer for Canadian poker due to having reached the final table of the 1996 main event, finishing sixth in an era when poker was still largely underground.
Following this stellar performance, he went on to win two WSOP bracelets, cementing his prominence and iconism in the Canadian professional poker scene.
🏅 Placement in main event final table – 6 (5)
💲 Total prize money earned in main event(s) – $97,500
🎰 No. of times in final table (main event) – 1 (7)
👑No. of titles – 2 (5)
🏆 No. of bracelets – 2 (5)
💍 No. of rings – 0 (1)
🎲 No. of placements in a final table – 10 (6)
💸 No. of cashes – 31 (5)
💰 Total WSOP earnings – $1,280,126 (3)
4. Tuan Lam, Ontario (Shared)
Overall score: 38
Hometown: Mississauga, Ontario
Residence: Mississauga, Ontario
Following his dramatic second place finish in 2007, where he came agonizingly close to becoming world champion, Tuan Lam’s name is etched into the history of WSOP.
In the final hand, his flopped top pair lost to Jerry Yang’s flush draw and it became one of the most heartbreaking finishes in Canadian poker history.
Despite only a handful of WSOP appearances, Lam walked away with $4.8m. Quiet, humble and largely media-shy, he has become what some would describe as a cult figure – a symbol of how one incredible run can change your life.
🏅 Placement in main event final table – 2 (9)
💲 Total prize money earned in main event(s) – $4,840,981 (6)
🎰 No. of times in final table (main event) – 1 (7)
👑No. of titles – 0 (3)
🏆 No. of bracelets – 0 (3)
💍 No. of rings – 0 (1)
🎲 No. of placements in a final table – 1 (2)
💸 No. of cashes – 3 (1)
💰 Total WSOP earnings – $4,851,424 (6)
Why does Canada dominate on the felt?
With a strong online poker scene, a generation raised on the 2000s poker-boom and accessible home games, it’s no surprise that Canada has put themselves on the poker map. Today’s poker stars were inspired by the likes of older poker legends like Chris Moneymaker and Daniel Negreanu – and are now rewriting the history books themselves.
Methodology
To determine the best poker players in the world, we analyzed all 338 WSOP main event final tablists from 1971 to present, in the following categories:
🏅 Placement in main event final table (score out of 10)
💲 Total prize money earned in main event(s) (score out of 10)
🎰 No. of times in final table (main event) (score out of 10)
👑 No. of titles (score out of 10)
🏆 No. of bracelets (score out of 10)
💍 No. of rings (score out of 5)
🎲 No. of placements in a final table (all WSOP events) (score out of 10)
💸 No. of cashes (all WSOP Events) (score out of 10)
💰 Total WSOP earnings (score out of 10)
