Last year, the WSOP Badugi champion was the Brazilian Aloisio Dourado. In this edition, another Brazilian representative came close to the final. Yuri Martins was eliminated in 10th place and received US$ 8,979, while the American Michael Casella won the title and pocketed the prize of US$ 141,963.
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Thus, the Event #08 (US$ 1,500 Badugi) gathered a legion of mixed games stars. Many of them advanced to the final table but could not overcome Michael Casella. The tournament recorded 554 entries and distributed US$ 735,435 in prizes.
In addition, the podium brought together two great names from the recent history of the WSOP. Nick Schulman and Scott Seiver were seeking their eighth career bracelet. However, they finished in second and third place respectively. Schulman received US$ 94,607, while Seiver earned US$ 62,920.
However, another big name in today’s game also appeared in the final stretch. Yuri Martins has five series bracelets. The Brazilian started the Final Day with few chips and, with only 1.5 big blinds, lost a confrontation against the American Walter Chambers. The elimination in 10th place represented Yuri’s second ITM at WSOP 2026.
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Check out the final table payouts:
| Position | Name | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Casella | United States | US$ 141,963 |
| 2 | Nick Schulman | United States | US$ 94,607 |
| 3 | Scott Seiver | United States | US$ 62,920 |
| 4 | Gary Benson | Australia | US$ 42,815 |
| 5 | Brant Hale | United States | US$ 29,824 |
| 6 | Stephan Nussrallah | United States | US$ 21,279 |
Chess master and battle in the final
For much of his life, Casella worked as a chess master. Thus, the patience developed in the board game helped the American overcome Nick Schulman in the heads-up. The decisive duel lasted more than three hours and ended with Casella’s first career bracelet.
Thus, the champion praised his opponent in the one-on-one. “He is such a good player that anything can happen. Every time he won, I felt I could lose at any moment”, said Michael Casella, who also recalled past experiences. “I competed in chess my whole life. It is very demanding physically and emotionally, so I can handle heads-up poker better”, he added.
Finally, the result boosted the champion’s resume on The Hendon Mob to US$ 717,187 in live circuit earnings. Moreover, most of his career results happened in No-Limit Hold’em tournaments. The main prize came in 2025, when he finished second in Event #38 (US$ 600 Mega Millions XXVIII) in Los Angeles, earning US$ 201,455.
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