Just a couple of days after capturing his record-setting 20th World Series of Poker Circuit gold ring, Maurice Hawkins battled his way back to the winner’s circle to further extend his lead on the WSOPC all-time titles leaderboard.
Hawkins’ latest triumph saw him beat out a field of 159 entries in the $400 no-limit hold’em event at the WSOPC Caesars New Orleans festival, earning $12,996 and the hardware as the champion. The 45-year-old poker pro’s win earlier at the same series was in the $600 pot-limit Omaha event, which drew 106 entries.
With 21 total WSOPC titles, Hawkins now boasts a two-ring lead over second-ranked Ari Engel. He won his first ring back in 2008, and has captured multiple rings in a single calendar year in 2009, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2025. Six of Hawkins’ 21 wins on the tour have come in WSOPC main events.
Hawkins also extended his advantage as the highest earner in WSOPC history with this latest victory, with more than $3.2 million in total cashes in gold ring events.
| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points |
| 1 | Maurice Hawkins | $12,996 | 115 |
| 2 | Shane Bissinger | $8,359 | 96 |
| 3 | Rex Clinkscales | $5,566 | 77 |
| 4 | Bo Xu | $3,842 | 58 |
| 5 | Pankaji Kumar Behera | $2,753 | 48 |
| 6 | Birol Lermi | $2,050 | 38 |
| 7 | Anthony Graphia | $1,589 | 29 |
| 8 | James Calloway | $1,284 | 19 |
| 9 | Oscar Ojeda Gomez | $1,085 | 10 |
2025 A Year Of Both Triumph And Controversy For Hawkins
This was the fourth title and 12th overall final-table finish of the year for Hawkins. With 2,489 total Card Player Player of the Year points accrued across those scores, he now sits inside the top 100 in the 2025 POY standings sponsored by CoinPoker.
While Hawkins has had a strong year at the tables, there has also been plenty of negative press for the often controversial figure. His win in this year’s WSOPC Horseshoe Baltimore main event was overshadowed in the headlines when a key pot was mistakenly awarded to him in a hand that saw the third-place finisher sent to the rail. Hawkins was also publicly called out by several former backers for failing to live up to their agreements.
Photo credit: Poker.Org / WSOP.
