Harvey Castro has recorded several big scores on the live poker tournament scene in recent years, including winning the 2023 World Series of Poker Circuit main event at Choctaw, just north of his home state of Texas. Castro has also come close to securing a few other big wins this year, finishing as the runner-up at World Poker Tour Rolling Thunder and second in a PokerGO Cup event back in February.
Castro claimed a significant piece of poker history on Monday night at the Lodge Card Club in Austin, Texas. The 23-year-old won the inaugural WPT Prime Lodge Championship, outlasting a field of more than 1,600 entrants on his way to the title in the first live WPT Prime championship event held in the United States outside of Las Vegas.
Castro received a first-place prize of $225,020, a pair of trophies, and a seat to December’s WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas. He also claimed 1,080 Card Player Player of the Year points, pushing him up to 91st in the yearlong race presented by CoinPoker.
“It feels amazing, I feel super blessed, ” said Castro following his victory. “This was a super fun weekend, and I am grateful.”
This was the second-largest payday yet for Castro, who now has nearly $1.6 million in career cashes.
WPT Debuts In Texas
The first-ever WPT championship event in the state of Texas drew a sizable turnout across five standard starting sessions and a turbo finale. In all, 1,648 entrants put up the $1,100 buy-in, producing a prize pool of $1,598,560 to easily top the $1 million guarantee. There were 209 players who advanced to Day 2, securing a spot in the money, and the final 17 returned for Day 3 on Monday to battle for the WPT Prime Lodge Championship.
Among the most notable players in that group was Esther Taylor. Fresh off a summer in which she made a deep run in the WSOP $50,000 Poker Players Championship, finishing third, Taylor was on the hunt for one of the more significant titles of her career.
By the time the field reached an unofficial final table of nine, Castro held a chip lead over Taylor by the narrowest of margins. Among the other remaining contenders was Rafael Reis of Brazil, a 2023 WSOP bracelet winner.
Castro picked off Hai Pham in ninth place ($21,400), as his turned two-pair bested Pham’s flopped two-pair when the money went in on the turn.
Taylor briefly dropped in the chip counts, but surged back into second place with a flopped set of threes. She held off David Sollee’s pocket queens, eliminating him in eighth place ($27,500).
Castro Avoids Disaster Amidst Minor Controversy
Castro extended his lead significantly when he A♠Q♦ outran Martin Torres’ A♥K♣, finding a Q♥ on the flop to eliminate Torres in seventh ($35,000). He wasn’t quite so fortunate in a similar spot shortly thereafter. Reis shoved for 11 big blinds under the gun, Castro called, and Steve Hwang called in the small blind. On the river of a J♣8♠6♥4♣A♣ board, Castro bet, and Hwang called. All three players showed an ace, but Hwang’s A♠K♣ beat Castro’s A♥Q♥ and Reis’ A♦10♦. Reis went out in sixth ($45,500), and Hwang claimed a key pot.
Then came a hand that drew significant attention and a minor controversy. Five-handed, Taylor opened with Q♠Q♣ on the button, and the action folded to Castro in the big blind. Harvey, who had A♣10♠ said, “9 million?” seemingly inquiring about the size of Taylor’s stack. Taylor did not press the issue, but a conversation on social media ensued, insisting that if Taylor had pressed the issue, an all-in bet for Castro likely would’ve been binding.
is this binding @SavagePoker? 🤨 pic.twitter.com/BdYjpRd9hO
— World Poker Tour (@WPT) October 14, 2025
As it played out, they checked down a king-high board and Taylor won a significantly smaller pot.
Hwang eliminated Nicholas Scott in fifth place ($60,000), flopping top two-pair on a K♥Q♥8♠ board to crush Scott’s K♠6♦.
Castro, having built up a massive stack and chip lead, started to wield it. He shoved the cutoff with A♥7♥, putting all three players behind him at risk. Hwang called all-in on the button with J♥J♣, and Stewart, who had Hwang covered, called in the big blind with K♠K♣.
🤯 THREE WAY ALL IN at the @WPT Prime Lodge Championship FINAL TABLE pic.twitter.com/qQTH02LOwL
— World Poker Tour (@WPT) October 14, 2025
Hwang tripled up into the chip lead after flopping a set of jacks and holding from there. Stewart was left among the short stacks with Taylor.
Castro’s Run To Victory
Castro regained the chip lead when he improbably forced Hwang to fold trip eights with a king kicker in a river raising war. Hwang slipped further when he doubled Taylor’s short stack shortly thereafter.
Things got even worse for Hwang when he doubled up Stewart, who hit a runner-runner straight to survive and double. Stewart then had enough chips to eliminate Taylor in fourth, as his A♠K♥ held off Taylor’s K♣J♥. Taylor earned $79,000 for her latest deep run, growing her lifetime haul to nearly $3.2 million. Her podium finish at the WSOP $50,000 Poker Players Championship earlier this year saw her earn a career-best payday of $595,136 while setting the record for the highest finish by a female player in the prestigious mixed games event.
Castro held more than half of the chips in play at the start of three-handed action. Stewart absorbed a significant portion of Hwang’s stack, but Castro continued to climb as well. Hwang made his stand with A♠2♣. Castro held K♣Q♠. The A♣10♠2♠ flop gave Hwang two-pair, but Castro made a Broadway straight on the J♣ turn. With no boat on the river, Hwang went out in third ($106,000).
Castro opened with a 2:1 lead, and extended his advantage over Stewart to 4:1 early in the heads-up bout. An ill-timed river bluff ran into Stewart’s rivered flush, though, to see the gap narrowed considerably.
It was but a momentary slip, though. Castro grinded Stewart back down, and the title was soon within reach. Stewart shoved his last 15 big blinds on the button with J♦10♣, and Castro called with 9♠9♦. The board ran out K♠Q♠Q♦Q♥6♥, and Castro’s full house made him a champion.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points |
| 1 | Harvey Castro | $225,020 | 1,080 |
| 2 | Joshua Stewart | $143,000 | 900 |
| 3 | Steve Hwang | $106,000 | 720 |
| 4 | Esther Taylor | $79,000 | 540 |
| 5 | Nicholas Scott | $60,000 | 450 |
| 6 | Rafael Reis | $45,500 | 360 |
| 7 | Martin Torres | $35,000 | 270 |
| 8 | David Sollee | $27,500 | 180 |
| 9 | Hai Pham | $21,400 | 90 |
Photo Credit: World Poker Tour.
