Nelson Mari Sanchez Wins $777,777 in WSOP Lucky 7’s Event
On July 15, 2025, at the Horseshoe Las Vegas, Nelson Mari Sanchez of Mexico secured the biggest victory of his poker career by winning Event #90 of the 2025 World Series of Poker, the $777 Lucky 7’s No-Limit Hold’em tournament. Sanchez topped a field of 8,012 entries to claim the event’s guaranteed first-place prize of $777,777 along with his first WSOP gold bracelet.
The tournament was structured as a seven-handed No-Limit Hold’em event with a $777 buy-in and a guaranteed $777,777 for the winner. The format has become a fixture in the WSOP schedule since its introduction, and in 2025, it generated a total prize pool of $5,447,118. A total of 1,204 players finished in the money.
Sanchez, who has been playing poker for 12 years and participating at the World Series for two, entered the final day of play with 12 big blinds. He was one of eight players returning for Day 3. Also returning was Patrick Leonard, a 2022 WSOP Tag Team event winner and CoinPoker ambassador. Leonard was eliminated on the first hand of the day after his A♣J♥ ran into Nicola Bracchi’s A♦K♦. Leonard exited in eighth place for $59,470.
Sanchez quickly doubled up at the final table and began eliminating opponents. He knocked out Hayato Kitajima in seventh place for $77,777. On a flop of 10♣8♦3♦, Sanchez had flopped two pair with ten-eight against Kitajima’s ace-queen. The turn brought an ace, but the river did not improve Kitajima’s hand.
Hertsel Levy was eliminated in sixth place for $101,777 in a hand involving Sanchez and Bracchi. After Levy moved all in, both players called. Bracchi revealed trips with nine-four to win the hand.
Kieran Walsh was eliminated in fifth place for $135,777. Walsh attempted a bluff on a board of 9♠6♥Q♥7♦Q♦, but Sanchez had queens full of sixes and called.
Allen Shen finished in fourth place for $181,777. Shen defended his big blind with eight-four and made second pair on the flop. He moved all-in and was called by Sanchez, who was sitting with aces; the bullets held.
Nicola Bracchi, who began the day as chip leader, finished in third place for $244,777. He shoved preflop with ace-four and was called by Sanchez holding ace-king. The board gave Sanchez a broadway straight.
This left Sanchez heads-up against Yu Liu of Canada. Liu, who previously won a WSOP Circuit ring in Calgary and the Main Event at the Deerfoot Spring Super Stack earlier in 2025, entered heads-up play at a chip disadvantage of more than 3:1.
The heads-up match lasted four hands. In the final hand, Sanchez raised with A♦10♠ and called Liu’s all-in. Liu held A♥3♠. The board ran out K♣10♣6♦K♥Q♣, giving Sanchez kings and tens with an ace kicker. Liu finished as runner-up for $332,777.
Before this win, Sanchez’s highest recorded cash was $6,006, according to The Hendon Mob. His career earnings before the event totaled under $10,000. The $777 Lucky 7’s victory increased his career earnings to approximately $787,479.
Although Sanchez had been playing poker for more than a decade, he had never received much attention before this. With no well-known online poker record, this win was a rare and dramatic jump from unknown to champion.
In a post-win interview with PokerNews, Sanchez said, “This is a huge change for my bankroll. I’m not sure what’s next, but I know I’ll be back to defend this title next year.” He also thanked his wife, Erika, for her support throughout the tournament.
The final table results were:
- Nelson Mari Sanchez (Mexico) – $777,777
- Yu Liu (Canada) – $332,777
- Nicola Bracchi (Italy) – $244,777
- Allen Shen (Canada) – $181,777
- Kieran Walsh (Ireland) – $135,777
- Hertsel Levy (Panama) – $101,777
- Hayato Kitajima (Japan) – $77,777
- Patrick Leonard (United Kingdom) – $59,470
Among the 1,204 players who cashed in the event were Huck Seed (60th), Jack Duong (58th), Michael Wang (49th), Justin Arnwine (34th), Erik Cajelais (29th), Katie Lindsay (28th), Justin Fawcett (21st), and Ronnie Bardah (11th).