Galstyan Doubles Up, Hubbard Wins Deuce In Early WSOP Action

We’re only a week into the 2026 World Series of Poker, and greater than 10 p.c of the dwell bracelets to be gained this summer season are already off the board.

The newest batch of winners consists of Karapet Galstyan, a repeat winner, taking down his first dwell WSOP bracelet. There’s additionally Stephen Hubbard, a multi-time PokerGO Tour winner and pot-limit Omaha specialist who discovered gold in no-limit deuce-to-seven.

As the WSOP motion kicks into excessive gear with the change from May to June, right here’s the most recent dispatch from Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.

Karapet Galstyan Captures Second No-Limit Hold’em Bracelet

Karapet Galstyan isn’t essentially the sort of poker participant you think about when you concentrate on on-line tournaments. The 53-year-old from Armenia, who now lives in California, gained his first WSOP bracelet throughout a web-based sequence within the United States in 2023. In that occasion, Galstyan outlasted a discipline of 480 and beat out a remaining desk that included Jim Collopy on the best way to victory.

Galstyan needed to navigate his approach by a significantly bigger discipline to safe his second bracelet. He battled by a two-day marathon in a $600 buy-in no-limit maintain’em deepstack, topping 4,622 entries to safe one other piece of WSOP {hardware}.

He earned $259,829 for the win, the most important results of his profession thus far. The victory pushed Galstyan’s recorded earnings to $1.1 million. The triumph additionally netted Galstyan 660 Card Player Player of the Year factors. This was his second qualifying consequence on the year-long leaderboard offered by CoinPoker.

A Marathon, Into A Sprint

Galstyan was one in every of 230 gamers to outlive an extended first day of motion. It took one other prolonged session of poker to battle all the way down to a remaining desk after which a winner. With 37 gamers left, Galstyan was the final remaining bracelet winner within the discipline, because the fast-paced format churned by eliminations.

Galstyan surged into the chip lead along with his elimination of Michael Destephen in tenth place, courtesy of a rivered king-high straight. Galstyan additionally took out Michael Wagner in seventh place ($42,295) when he picked up pocket aces and held. One of probably the most essential pots on Galstyan’s run to victory was a three-way all-in, through which Galstyan’s pocket nines held in opposition to pocket eights and Joshua Lusby-Angvick’s A♠8♦. That hand noticed Russell Giordano despatched to the rail in third place ($128,446).

As heads-up play started, Galstyan nonetheless wanted a comeback. He picked up an enormous double as his A♥10♣ flopped an ace and held off Lusby-Angvick’s spade draw. Galstyan completed off the win when his button steal with 9♥6♦ become a full home on a 8♦2♦2♣9♠9♦ runout.

Final Table Results

Texan Takes Down Deuce-to-Seven Title

Since 2022, Stephen Hubbard has largely centered his event play on PLO. In November 2025, the Texan gained a pair of PGT PLO titles in his house state. Hubbard didn’t document one other event money till just some days in the past, when a deep run within the $5,000 PLO occasion led to fifth place.

Hubbard does often throw a combined sport event into his schedule, too. In 2025, he bubbled the ultimate desk of the $1,500 no-limit deuce-to-seven occasion, settling for eighth place. One 12 months later, minus a day, Hubbard discovered gold in the very same $1,500 deuce-to-seven occasion.

Hubbard’s first profession WSOP bracelet comes with a $155,819 first-place payout. His profession earnings now sit at $1,660,300. Hubbard collected 840 POY factors for his win, and mixed along with his earlier PLO remaining desk efficiency on the 2026 WSOP, he presently sits simply outdoors the highest 100 on the Card Player leaderboard.

Three days of deuce-to-seven noticed an preliminary discipline of 626 diminished to 96 after day 1, with simply six gamers remaining on the conclusion of day 2. The final two bracelet winners within the discipline, Jerry Wong (tenth place, $10,325) and David ‘ODB’ Baker (eighth place, $13,405), each fell in need of the ultimate day.

That’s to not say it was a remaining desk missing in ability or expertise. Dylan Smith owns a World Poker Tour championship, Gabriel Paul already had a WSOP bracelet occasion runner-up end, and Per Hildebrand was at his eighth profession WSOP remaining desk, with a runner-up exhibiting on this very event in 2017.

Hubbard was the chip chief coming into day 3 motion, however Paul made an upward transfer with the primary elimination of the day, on the expense of Philip Jaffe (sixth – $24,219).

Hubbard Hits His Draws

One of the most important pots of the event allowed Hubbard to distance himself from the pack. Anthony Lamps shoved all in with a pat 10-8 low, and Hubbard drew one card in direction of an 8-4 low. Hubbard peeled a 9, making a 9-8 low to scoop the huge pot and get rid of Lamps in fifth place ($33,672). From that time on, Hubbard wouldn’t relinquish the lead till heads-up play.

Smith had an opportunity at a uncommon remaining desk double knockout, with Paul and Timothy Wong each in danger. Paul’s made 9-5 low held off Smith’s 8-7 low draw and Wong’s fruitless 10-4 low draw, greater than doubling Paul up, and sending Wong out in fourth place ($47,846).

Hubbard and Smith clashed in one other massive pot, with every participant drawing one card following a pre-draw all-in. Hubbard hit his draw with 8-7-5-3, nailing a 4 to finish his hand. Smith’s 5-4-3-2 couldn’t discover an eight or a seven, and so his event led to third place ($69,456).

Paul got here again from a 2:1 deficit to overhaul Hubbard within the chip counts throughout heads-up motion. The event hinged, like most deuce-to-seven fingers, on a single draw.  Hubbard shoved all in, Paul known as, and Paul took one card. Hubbard stood pat with a jack-perfect, J-5-4-3-2. Paul had loads of outs with 7-6-5-2, needing a 3, 4, eight, 9, or ten to win the event. He slowly peeled a card with potential, however turned over a deuce, which paired him up.

That pot put Hubbard properly forward, with a chip lead of greater than 8.5:1. The event led to probably the most unlikely of the way, as each gamers drew one card on the ultimate hand, and each gamers paired up. Hubbard’s pair of threes was finest, although, and his victory was secured.

Final Table Results

Photo credit: WSOP/Dominic Iaquinto, Miguel Cortes.