The 2026 Major Series of Poker: The Tour Heart Poker Championship $1,600 no-limit hold’em event drew a total of 878 entries to The Venetian Las Vegas. The prize pool swelled to $1,246,760 as a result, with the top 99 finishers earning a share.
In the end, the largest chunk of that prize money was ultimately awarded to Adam Walton. The 2023 World Series of Poker main event third-place finisher earned $185,966 as the champion, growing his lifetime haul to over $5.9 million in the process.
This was the third-largest score yet for Walton, trailing the $4 million that came with his podium finish in the big dance a few years ago and a runner-up showing in a $3,000 buy-in at the 2022 World Poker Tour World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas for $283,072.
“It feels great,” Walton told MSPT reporters after coming out on top. “This is the reason why we play the game, to close out tournaments, and it feels really good after coming so close a couple of times before.”
This was Walton’s fifth recorded title, and his largest payday for an outright win.
“It’s definitely up there,” Walton offered when asked about where this victory fits in among his accomplishments on the felt. “This is one of the bigger wins of my career, so it’s definitely special and pretty exciting to say the least.”
In addition to the title and the money, Walton also earned 912 Card Player Player of the Year points. This was his second title and fourth final-table finish of the year. With 2,429 total points, he now sits in 82nd in the overall standings presented by CoinPoker.
Walton Outlasts Stacked Field On Last Day
The final day began with 99 remaining, all of whom had made the money. Plenty of big names ran deep, including bracelet winner Stephen Song (73rd), five-time bracelet winner David Peters (35th), Jeremy Becker (31st), two-time bracelet winner Justin Lapka (24th), bracelet winners Joe Serock (23rd) and Ian O’Hara (19th), and MSPT Hall of Famer Kou Vang (15th).
Walton knocked out World Poker Tour champion Justin Young (9th – $23,341) early at the final table. Floridian poker tournament crusher Raminder Singh soon bowed out in fourth place ($79,022), which saw the remaining contenders lock up six-figure scores for making the final three.
Craig Mason went out third ($104,041) to see Walton take a slight lead into heads-up play with bracelet winner Anthony Reategui. Walton was soon able to close out the victory, getting all-in with second pair against bottom pair and a gutshot. Walton improved to trips on the river to secure the pot and the title. Reategui earned $138,375 as the runner-up.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points |
| 1 | Adam Walton | $185,966 | 912 |
| 2 | Anthony Reategui | $138,375 | 760 |
| 3 | Craig Mason | $104,041 | 608 |
| 4 | Raminder Singh | $79,022 | 456 |
| 5 | Andre Miranda | $60,637 | 380 |
| 6 | Richard Kellett | $47,014 | 304 |
| 7 | Elvyn Bello Santos | $36,834 | 228 |
| 8 | Atanas Pavlov | $29,164 | 152 |
| 9 | Justin Young | $23,341 | 76 |
Photo credit: MSPT
