Poker breakthroughs don’t always arrive early. For Dzmitry Urbanovich, one of Europe’s most talented young stars for over a decade, the biggest prize eluded him year after year despite a resume most players would envy. That changed when Dzmitry Urbanovich wins WSOP bracelet honors in the $10,000 eight-game mixed championship, closing out a chase that stretched back to his teenage years on the European circuit.
The Long Road To Gold
Urbanovich first turned heads at just 20 years old, capturing a European Poker Tour main event title in Dublin back in 2016 — a win that came before he was even old enough to legally enter a WSOP event in the United States. He’d already banked a seven-figure runner-up finish in a European high-roller event by that point, so his arrival in Las Vegas later that year came with plenty of buzz, even if his first cashes were modest.
Over the following ten years, the Warsaw-based pro built one of the more quietly impressive bracelet-event track records in the game: more than 70 in-the-money finishes, eight final tables, and two runner-up finishes, but no title. That drought is exactly why the moment Dzmitry Urbanovich wins WSOP bracelet gold carries so much weight — it validates a level of sustained skill that had, until now, gone one step short of the ultimate reward. Speaking after the win, the 31-year-old admitted the victory took longer than he’d hoped, acknowledging that closing out a title is far harder than it looks from the outside.
Breaking Down The $10,000 Eight-Game Championship
The tournament pulled in 199 entries, creating a $1,850,700 prize pool with the top 30 finishers cashing. Urbanovich’s $431,260 payout pushed his lifetime tournament earnings to nearly $8.9 million, and the win added 840 Card Player Player of the Year points plus 431 PokerGO Tour points to his season totals.
Reaching the final table required getting through a brutal lineup of mixed-game specialists. Respected names like Paul Volpe, Jerry Wong, Marco Johnson, Matthew Schreiber, Rob Hollink, Andjelko Andrejevic, John Racener, and Todd Brunson all cashed but fell short of the unofficial final table. When the last 12 players returned for the final day, Brian Rast held the chip lead, while Urbanovich sat fourth.
Elite Names Fall One By One
The final-table march claimed a string of accomplished mixed-game players. Four-time bracelet winner David “ODB” Baker, Nicholas Marchington, recent stud-eight winner Taylor Atchison, career money leader Bryn Kenney, and two-time champ Ryan Miller all exited in succession. Bracelet winner Maksim Pisarenko went out in seventh after his split queens couldn’t hold against a rivered low hand.
Matt Vengrin’s exit came next, his short stack unable to survive an Omaha eight-or-better cooler against Alex Foxen, who scooped the pot to move into the money. Foxen, who had spent much of the tournament near the chip lead, saw his stack erode through a tough run of triple draw and stud hands — including twice doubling up Urbanovich — before finally busting in fifth. It capped an otherwise strong 2026 for Foxen, who entered the event as the active leader in the year’s overall points race after already picking up a bracelet earlier in the summer.
Seven-time bracelet winner Brian Rast fell in fourth, his two pair no match for a made straight in a stud hand — his first final table of the summer despite well over twenty career deep runs at the series. Derek Hanauer went out in third after a razz hand went the wrong way, setting up heads-up play between Urbanovich and Richard Bai, with Urbanovich holding better than a 3-to-1 chip lead. The title-deciding hand came in pot-limit Omaha, where Urbanovich’s ace-high runout held to end the tournament.
$10,000 Eight-Game Championship — Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dzmitry Urbanovich | $431,260 | 840 |
| 2 | Richard Bai | $283,660 | 700 |
| 3 | Derek Hanauer | $191,570 | 560 |
| 4 | Brian Rast | $132,880 | 420 |
| 5 | Alex Foxen | $94,730 | 350 |
| 6 | Matthew Vengrin | $69,460 | 280 |
Player Background: A Star Before He Could Legally Play
Long before Dzmitry Urbanovich wins WSOP bracelet stories were being written, he was already recognized as one of the most gifted young talents to come out of European poker. Winning a major tour title at 20 marked him as a rising force, and his patient, methodical rise through mixed-game formats over the following decade shows a player who built his game the hard way — one final table at a time — rather than chasing a single flashy score.
Where To Play After Watching The Mixed-Game Action
Anyone inspired by the story of Dzmitry Urbanovich wins WSOP bracelet news to test their own game at the tables has a trusted option right here in New York. NYC Poker Clubs has spent nearly two decades connecting serious players with legal, professionally run cash games across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. Whether it’s a no-limit hold’em session or a mixed rotation, NYC Poker Clubs delivers a Vegas-caliber, dealer-managed experience with vetted players in a secure, private setting. Visit nycpokerclubs.com to reserve a seat.
Trends Shaping The 2026 Mixed-Game Scene
The eight-game championship consistently ranks among the WSOP’s toughest tests, drawing a small but elite field skilled across multiple disciplines. This year’s edition reinforced that reputation once again, with four-time and seven-time bracelet winners falling short against a player finally claiming his first title after years of near-misses.
Quick Facts Box
- Event: $10,000 Eight-Game Mixed Championship
- Winner: Dzmitry Urbanovich (1st career WSOP bracelet)
- Field Size: 199 entrants
- Prize Pool: $1,850,700
- Winning Payout: $431,260
- Runner-Up: Richard Bai ($283,660)
- Career Earnings: Nearly $8.9 million
The story of how Dzmitry Urbanovich wins WSOP bracelet honors is proof that patience and consistency eventually pay off, even for a player whose talent was obvious from his teenage years. A decade after his first big European title, Urbanovich’s breakthrough in one of poker’s most demanding formats stands as one of the standout individual achievements of the 2026 series. For New York players looking to bring that same competitive drive to the felt, NYC Poker Clubs remains the city’s most trusted source for legal, high-quality cash games every day of the week.
