Playground in Montreal, Canada, continues to be the standard-bearer for massive WSOP Circuit Main Event fields, with its second-ever $4 million CAD+ prizepool.
After 902 entries in the third and final starting flight on Saturday, the total field reached 1,781 entries, generating a $4,042,870 CAD prizepool (approx. $2,899,093 USD).
That eclipses the $2,763,360 prize pool from Harrah’s Cherokee in February for the largest Main Event prize pool of 2026 on the WSOP Circuit and the second-largest in WSOP Circuit history.
Playground's Circuit Main last August remains the largest ever. That drew 1,978 entries to build a $4,450,500 CAD prize pool, equivalent to $3,237,454 USD.
Jacob Hobday of Toronto made his own Circuit history that week, taking home the massive $620K CAD ($448K USD) first prize after earning his way into the tournament on a $75 satellite on GGPoker.
More coming at Playground
Monday's winner will come close to earning Hobday's impressive payday, as this week's champion will receive $600,000 CAD.
“We did it again, and we’re going to continue to do it,” said Playground’s Assistant Director of Poker Operations, Andrew Johnson, who teased that this is just the tip of the iceberg for 2026 at the GPI award-winning venue.
“We have a strategy, and this first quarter Circuit series is part of the bigger scope and the bigger strategy we have going forward. So, we’re really proud and excited for this event and this prize pool specifically and the events coming forward.”
Word has been spreading about the Canadian poker hotbed and its record-breaking events, with players flocking to Playground for its Circuit series, not just from across Canada but from the USA.
Los Angeles-based pro David Uvaydov was spotted in Saturday’s Day 1C field, having made the trip up from New York, where he was visiting family.
His friend Dan Stavila, who made both the WPT Prime and Main Tour final tables here in 2024, gave him the heads-up about Playground’s quality and the shot at another potentially huge score for the 2025 WSOP Monster Stack runner-up.
“It’s been fun so far," Uvaydov said. "I’m looking forward to playing.”
Return of the Circuit
With another WSOP Circuit series here in less than six weeks and the first-ever Canadian WSOP Super Circuit series – which has a $5,000 Main Event with a $10M CAD guaranteed prize pool set for late August – there are big things on the horizon at Playground.
“It’s going to be the biggest (tournament) Canada has ever seen, and that’s a fact," said Johnson.
Largest WSOP Circuit Main Event prize pools since 2025
- Playground August 2025 – $3,237,454 USD ($4,450,500 CAD)
- Playground April 2026 – $2,899,093 USD ($4,042,870 CAD)
- Harrah’s Cherokee Feb 2026 – $2,763,360 USD
- Great Canadian Toronto April 2025 – $2,691,614 USD ($3,743,250 CAD)
- Harrah’s Cherokee Feb 2025 – $2,590,650 USD
Images courtesy of Playground.
