One global icon is now chasing the biggest payout of the series so far, but he’ll have to fend off some of poker’s most established names if he wants to claim his first major title on the felt.
The player in question? PokerStars ambassador and soccer superstar Neymar Jr.
A longtime poker enthusiast, Neymar still plays and captains his childhood soccer team, Santos, in his home country of Brazil. Off the field, he’s navigated his way to the final seven of the WCOOP Super Tuesday High Roller, a $10,300 buy-in tournament that carried a $500,000 guarantee. The event ultimately drew 60 entries to build a $600,000 prize pool.
The winner will eventually take home over $180,000, small change for the Brazilian whose net worth is estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
Pedro Padilha
Leading the way is fellow Brazilian Pedro “PaDiLhA SP” Padilha, who bagged 1,601,941 chips (80 big blinds). Ole “wizowizo” Schemion sits in second, while UK businessman Talal “raidalot” Shakerchi and high-stakes pro Sean “Nolet20” Winter occupy the middle of the pack.
Austria’s “Jepser8” and online phenom Linus “LLinusLLove” Loeliger have under 30 big blinds apiece, while Neymar returns as the short stack with just 23 big blinds.
Alexandros Theologis
The bubble burst late on Monday when Alexandros “pwndidi” Theologis bowed out in eighth, leaving the remaining contenders guaranteed $26,111. Neymar has already locked up a profit despite firing two bullets, as did Padilha and Shakerchi.
From here, every elimination brings a meaningful jump in prize money, from more than $10,000 between seventh and sixth, and up to a $52,000 swing for the final two spots. The eventual winner will collect $186,434, with the runner-up banking $134,352.
Play resumes at 6:05 p.m. UTC on Wednesday, September 10.
WCOOP 17-H: $10,300 NLHE Super Tuesday High Roller Chip Counts
Rank
Player
Country
Chips
Big Blinds
1
Pedro “PaDiLhA SP” Padilha
Brazil
1,601,941
80
2
Ole “wizowizo” Schemion
Austria
1,328,819
66
3
Talal “raidalot” Shakerchi
United Kingdom
896,862
45
4
Sean “Nolet20” Winter
Canada
596,826
30
5
Jepser8
Austria
578,551
29
6
Linus “LLinusLLove” Loeliger
Austria
534,212
27
7
Neymar
Brazil
462,789
23
Remaining Payouts
Place
Prize
1
$186,434
2
$134,352
3
$96,819
4
$69,771
5
$50,280
6
$36,233
7
$26,111
Want to stay on top of all the action? Check out our WCOOP Daily Blog and check back every day for live updates, results, and highlights from the entire series.
2025 WCOOP Winners So Far
Denis Strebkov
Brazil’s “vinicius_sci” kicked things off by winning the $5.50 Kickoff event for $6,781. On the high-stakes side, Leon “RUMUKULUS” Sturm came out on top in the $5,200 Bounty Builder Super High Roller, securing the largest prize of the series so far at $109,822.
Other notable results include Rodrigo “SELOUAN1991” Selouan taking down the $1,050 PLO for $29,111 and Vladimir “SerVlaMin” Minko picking up two titles, including a $42,296 haul in the $1,050 PKO.
Don’t just watch the world’s best compete, take your place at the tables. With buy-ins for every bankroll and satellites running around the clock, PokerStars puts you right in the middle of the WCOOP action.
Whether you’re chasing a title or looking for your first deep run, join the action today and play your way into the spotlight.
Calum has been a part of the PokerNews team since September 2021 after working in the UK energy sector. He played his first hand of poker in 2017 and immediately fell in love with the game.
Calum has written for various poker outlets but found his home at PokerNews, where he has contributed to various articles and live updates, providing insights and reporting on major poker events, including the World Series of Poker (WSOP).
