How Much Money Did Players at the 2024 WSOP Main Event Final Table Really Make?
There is one “player” invisibly present at every WSOP Main Event final table each year. Year after year, this “player” wins the most. Its name is Tax Service (also known as Mr. Taxman).
Russ Fox, a federally licensed tax professional with Clayton Financial and Tax of Las Vegas, writes an annual blog post about the tax burdens the players at the final table take on. Here is information about Mr. Taxman’s winnings at the 2024 WSOP Main Event final table.
The Winner Pays the Most
Our eventual champion, Jonathan Tamayo, will likely pay $3,992,302 in taxes (39.92% of winnings) — almost as high as the third-place payout.
Second-place finisher Jordan Griff will likely pay $2,507,808 in taxes (41.8% of winnings). Congratulations to Mr. Taxman for taking down fifth place in the payout!
Third-place finisher Niklas “lena900” Astedt is from Sweden. The US-Sweden tax treaty exempts lena900’s winnings from US withholding (and taxation). However, a 35% tax will be withheld from Niklas Astedt’s winnings in Sweden ($1,400,000). On the other hand, fourth-place finisher Jason Sagle faces 30% withholding ($900,000). However, he can file a tax return to recover part of the withholding based on losses.
Photo Credit: Hayley Hochstetler
Being a Resident of Bulgaria Is the Most Profitable
Fifth-place finisher Boris Angelov faces a 10% income tax rate ($250,000). There is no special tax on winnings or professional gambling in Bulgaria. So, he gets $2,250,000 of his winnings and “moves up” to fourth place.
Sixth-place finisher Andres Gonzalez is from Spain. This is not the best country for poker pros. Gonzalez will face a 47% income tax rate on his winnings (losing $940,000 to tax).
Seventh-place finisher Brian Kim is a Las Vegas resident. He will pay a 39% tax ($908.8K). Eighth-place finisher Joe Serock will also face a 39% tax rate ($491K) as a resident of Las Vegas.
Ninth-place finisher Malo Latinois is a native of France but a resident of the Dallas suburb of Carrollton. Mr. Latinois will be paying a 39% income tax in the US ($391K).
Photo Credit: Hayley Hochstetler
Here are the final table payouts for the main event after taxes
| Place | Player | Country | Before Tax Prize | After Tax Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jonathan Tamayo |  | $10,000,000 | $6,007,698 |
| 2 | Jordan Griff | | $6,000,000 | $3,492,192 |
| 3 | Niklas Astedt |  | $4,000,000 | $2,600,000 |
| 4 | Jason Sagle |  | $3,000,000 | $2,100,000 |
| 5 | Boris Angelov |  | $2,500,000 | $2,250,000 |
| 6 | Andres Gonzalez |  | $2,000,000 | $1,060,000 |
| 7 | Brian Kim | | $1,500,000 | $908,874 |
| 8 | Joe Serock | | $1,250,000 | $758,909 |
| 9 | Malo Latinois |  | $1,000,000 | $608,943 |
Thus, Mr. Taxman earned $8,576,384 this year. This is not a record-breaking payout. For comparison, last year $11,010,024 was withheld in taxes from the final nine.
Congratulations to Mr. Taxman on finishing in second place!
No less interesting this year is the value of the rake, which earned the organizers $7,078,400 from the Main Event alone.
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