Jonathan Tamayo

Jonathan Tamayo

Nationality
United States
United States
Coaching
GPI Rank 305
WSOP Bracelets 1
Total Live Earnings $12,348,502
The Hendon Mob Data provided by The Hendon Mob

Biography

Jonathan Tamayo is a 38-year-old poker player from Humble, Texas, best known for winning the record-breaking 2024 World Series of Poker Main Event for $10 million.

The Main Event win marked his first WSOP bracelet, which joined the four WSOP circuit rings he'd won across his career.

As expected, the eight-figure windfall was the biggest cash of his career and took his live tournament earnings to more than $12.3 million.

Jonathan Tamayo's Main Event Story

Tamayo made a strong run in the 2009 Main Event, finishing in a commendable 21st place for $352,832. It would take another 15 years for him to make the late stages of Poker's World Championship. In that time span, Tamayo watched his good friend Joe McKeehen take down the 2015 edition and was even in McKeehen's winner's photo.

Fast forward a decade and a half, McKeehen was watching on from the sidelines and then presented the bracelet to Tamayo after the latter defeated Jordan Griff in heads-up play.

Tamayo entered the final table seventh in chips and spoke to PokerNews ahead of the FT.

"It feels like it would never happen [again]," he told PokerNews, "Because I feel like in my head, you get one shot in life at this, and you never get it again. And now I have multiple — two shots inside the top 50.

"I don't think I even have a final table at a tournament here at the Series in over a decade. I think the $1,500 HORSE was the last one. And so I said, ok, it's hard. Maybe it never happens."

Having started on Day 2, Tamayo's Main Event journey took a setback on Day 4 with his stack almost halving to sit in the lower rungs of the chip counts.

However, a stellar Day 5 saw him 12x his stack to sit 37th in chips with 160 players remaining.

He's navigated all major hurdles so far and said he worked with Dominik Nitsche and the aforementioned McKeehen on a plan for approaching the final table and the 15 big blinds he started with.

"We'll talk strategy, something that we can easily implement. You can't get too detailed, but it'll be pretty solid."

Well whatever was discussed worked miraculously as he made it to the second day of the final table, and was joined by Griff and online legend Niklas Astedt in the final 3.

Griff took out Astedt to set-up heads-up play, with Tamayo pulling off a heads-up comeback to become a Main Event champion.

Jonathan Tamayo's Top 5 Poker Results

DateEventPlacePrize
Jul 2024$10,000 WSOP Main Event1st$10,000,000
Jul 2009$10,000 WSOP Main Event21st$352,832
May 2021$1,100 NLHE1st$237,935
Feb 2013$1,675 WSOPC Palm Beach1st$206,020
Apr 2024$3,300 NLHE3rd$180,000

PokerNews Covered Events

Event Place Prize
2024 NAPT Las Vegas
$5,300 NAPT Main Event
23rd $26,000
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #81: $10,000 WSOP Main Event World Championship
1st $10,000,000
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #62: $600 PokerNews Deepstack Championship
366th $1,453
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #64: $600 No-Limit Hold'em DeepStack
305th $1,749
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #54: $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em
1004th $3,150
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #12: $1,500 6-Handed No-Limit Hold'em
44th $9,718
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #5: $1,000 Mystery Millions No-Limit Hold'em
1073rd $2,639
2024 Champions Club Winter Poker Open
$1,500 Main Event
87th $3,300
2024 Champions Club Winter Poker Open
$400 Mystery Bounty
86th $479
2023 World Series of Poker
Event #95: $1,000 Super Turbo No-Limit Hold'em
133rd $2,001
2023 World Series of Poker
Event #70: $400 Colossus
1865th $700
2023 World Series of Poker
Event #53: $1,500 Millionaire Maker
820th $3,440
2023 World Series of Poker
Event #18: $300 Gladiators of Poker
1991st $639
2023 World Series of Poker
Event #3: $1,000 Mystery Millions
346th $4,680
2023 World Series of Poker
Online Event #1: $333 No-Limit Hold'em Triple Treys Summer Tip Off
15th $4,951
2022 Wynn Summer Classic
$1,600 Mystery Bounty
144th $3,200
2022 World Series of Poker
Event #57: $600 Deepstack Championship No-Limit Hold'em
274th $1,703
2022 World Series of Poker
Event #37: $1,500 MILLIONAIRE MAKER No-Limit Hold'em
798th $3,000
2022 World Series of Poker
Event #21: $1,500 Monster Stack No-Limit Hold'em
818th $2,400
2022 The Lodge Championship Series
Event #9: $800 NLH
45th $2,496
2021 WSOP.com Online Bracelet Events
Event #13: $1,000 NLH Freezeout
30th $2,474
Wynn Summer Classic $1,600 Mystery Bounty
Wynn Summer Classic $1,600 Mystery Bounty
122nd $2,735
MSPT Venetian $1,600 Main Event ($2M GTD)
MSPT Venetian $1,600 Main Event ($2M GTD)
96th $5,158
MSPT Venetian $1,100 Main Event ($1.5M GTD)
MSPT Venetian $1,100 Main Event ($1.5M GTD)
5th $107,694
Lone Star Poker Series Champions Social
$1,300 Texas State $1M GTD Main Event
163rd $2,825
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #73: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em MAIN EVENT - World Championship
1047th $15,970
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #84: The Closer - $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
20th $18,586
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #61: COLOSSUS - $400 No-Limit Hold'em
681st $1,008
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #59: $600 No-Limit Hold'em Deepstack Championship
206th $2,254
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #37: $800 No-Limit Hold'em Deepstack
16th $12,227
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #19: Millionaire Maker - $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
966th $2,545
2019 World Series of Poker
Event #3: BIG 50 - $500 No-Limit Hold'em
1909th $1,361
2018 World Series of Poker
Event #75: $1,500 The Closer No-Limit Hold'em (30 minute levels) - $1 Million Guarantee
28th $16,392
2018 World Series of Poker
Event #65: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em MAIN EVENT - World Championship
641st $21,750
2018 World Series of Poker
Event #45: Big Blind Antes $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em (30 minute levels)
10th $15,730
2018 World Series of Poker
Event #41: $1,500 Limit Hold'em
43rd $3,422
2018 World Series of Poker
Event #21: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em MILLIONAIRE MAKER
155th $7,697
2017 World Series of Poker
Event #47: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em MONSTER STACK
338th $4,768
2017 World Series of Poker
Event #43: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em SHOOTOUT
83rd $4,837
2017 World Series of Poker
Event #12: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
180th $2,594
2014 World Series of Poker
Event #8: $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em
581st $3,446
2014 Borgata Spring Poker Open
Event 14: $15,400 $5 Million Guaranteed WPT World Championship
28th $30,085
2013 World Series of Poker
Event #62: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event
613th $19,106
2013 World Series of Poker
Event #56: $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em
23rd $21,326
2013 World Series of Poker
Event #3: $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em
26th $14,067
2012-13 World Series of Poker Circuit Event - Harrah's New Orleans
Main Event
51st $3,703
2012-13 World Series of Poker Circuit Event - Palm Beach Kennel Club
Main Event
1st $206,020
2012-13 World Series of Poker Circuit Event - Horseshoe Hammond
Main Event
32nd $9,400
2012 World Series of Poker
Event 38: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
190th $3,079
2012 World Series of Poker
Event 36: $3,000 No-Limit Hold'em Shootout
48th $9,086
2012 World Series of Poker
Event 9: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Re-Entry
259th $3,216
2011 World Series of Poker
Event #17: $1,500 H.O.R.S.E.
4th $84,516
2011 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure
Main Event
106th $23,500
2010 World Series of Poker
Event #57: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Championship
333rd $36,463
2010 World Series of Poker
Event #53: $1,500 Limit Hold’em Shootout
17th $4,135
2010 World Series of Poker
Event #44: $2,500 Mixed Hold'em
12th $16,663
2010 World Series of Poker
Event #18: $2,000 Limit Hold'em
37th $4,097
2010 NAPT Venetian
2010 NAPT Venetian Main Event
120th $7,232
2009 World Series of Poker
Event 57 - $10,000 World Championship No Limit Hold'em
21st $352,832
2008 World Series of Poker
Event 53 - $1,500 Limit Hold'em Shootout
17th $5,055
2008 World Series of Poker
Event 41 - $1,500 Mixed Hold'em
2nd $140,093
2008 World Series of Poker
Event 38 - $2,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em
24th $6,607
2008 World Series of Poker
Event 31 - $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em Six-handed
47th $6,982
2007 World Series of Poker
Event 34 - $3,000 Limit Holdem
10th $10,212

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