The German pro outlasted a field of 5,961 entries in the $5,000 buy-in event
Benjamin Rolle, better known in the online poker world as “bencb789,” secured his first-ever World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet by winning the 2025 WSOP Online Main Event. The German pro triumphed over a field of 5,961 entries in the $5,000 buy-in event, earning a massive $3,900,707 payday and finally breaking through after years of near-misses on poker’s biggest stage.
The tournament generated a prize pool of $28.3 million, making it one of the most lucrative online events in WSOP history. Rolle entered the final table with the chip lead, a stark contrast to his 2024 run in the same event, where he finished eighth after starting as the short stack. This time, he maintained control for much of the session, using his position and experience to navigate through the high-pressure spots.
Early eliminations included Zengxiang Chen, who ran into Anatoly Zlotnikov’s better ace, and Amit Ben Yacov, who was knocked out holding ace-jack against pocket aces. Rolle solidified his lead with a key hand against Andreas Christoforou, where his ace-king connected for Broadway against pocket sevens, eliminating Christoforou in seventh place. From there, Rolle continued to apply pressure, knocking out Santiago Plante in sixth place with top pair.
As play moved closer to the finish, Felix Rabas and Daniel Smiljkovic also fell, leaving Rolle, Zlotnikov, and Rabas to battle three-handed. A massive confrontation between Rolle’s ace-king and Rabas’ ace-nine effectively sealed Rabas’ fate, propelling Rolle back into a dominant position with a full house.
Heads-up play between Rolle and Zlotnikov was brief but decisive. Rolle first doubled with ace-king against king-jack, then finished the match when his king-queen outdrew ace-nine. The river delivered trips for Rolle, crowning him the WSOP Online Main Event champion and awarding him nearly $4 million.
Beyond the prize, the victory was particularly meaningful for Rolle, the founder of Raise Your Edge, a poker training platform. Known for coaching others on how to win at the highest levels, he demonstrated the strength of his own strategies by capturing one of online poker’s most prestigious titles.
