Espen Jorstad: 2022 WSOP Main Event Champion

Espen Jorstad became one of the most recognizable Norwegian poker players in history when he won the 2022 World Series of Poker Main Event for $10 million. That championship completed an extraordinary summer in which Jorstad won two WSOP bracelets, while his career before and after the victory has included high-level online poker, cash games, major live tournaments and high-roller competition.

As of August 2026, Jorstad remains an active professional. His official WSOP player profile lists two bracelets and no WSOP Circuit rings, while Hendon Mob records nearly $19.8 million in live tournament earnings.

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Who Is Espen Jorstad?

Espen Uhlen Jorstad is a Norwegian professional poker player best known for winning the 2022 WSOP Main Event.

He is from Norway and is publicly listed as residing in London, England. Long before his Main Event championship made him known to a much wider audience, Jorstad had established himself through online poker and cash games.

PokerNews has documented his online play under the names “Hymn2ninkasi” on PokerStars and “COVFEFE-19” on GGPoker. He also developed a public presence through poker streaming and strategy content.

Jorstad's tournament record now spans live and online no-limit hold'em as well as high-stakes events in other formats, including pot-limit Omaha.

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From Online Poker to Live Tournament Success

Jorstad's recorded live tournament history stretches back to 2012, according to Hendon Mob, but much of his earlier poker reputation came from playing online.

Before his breakthrough at the live WSOP in 2022, he had already accumulated significant experience in WSOP online events. One of his biggest results came in 2021, when he finished sixth in the $5,000 WSOP Online Main Event Championship for $603,058.

His background was not limited to tournaments. PokerNews has described Jorstad as primarily a cash-game player during the period leading into his Main Event victory, helping explain why his tournament résumé was less extensive than those of many established live professionals when he arrived in Las Vegas in 2022.

That changed dramatically over the course of one summer.

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Espen Jorstad Won Two WSOP Bracelets in 2022

Jorstad entered the 2022 World Series of Poker without a live WSOP bracelet and left Las Vegas with two.

His first came in Event #55, the $1,000 Tag Team No-Limit Hold'em tournament, where he teamed with British professional Patrick Leonard. The victory gave Jorstad his first WSOP bracelet only days before the Main Event began.

The official 2022 WSOP results list Jorstad as the winner of both Event #55 and Event #70, the $10,000 Main Event No-Limit Hold'em World Championship.

Winning either tournament would have made the summer significant. Winning both established 2022 as the defining season of his career.

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Winning the 2022 WSOP Main Event

Jorstad's second bracelet came in poker's most recognizable tournament.

The 2022 $10,000 WSOP Main Event attracted 8,663 entries and generated a prize pool of $80,782,475. Jorstad advanced through the massive field and reached the final stage of the tournament with one of its largest stacks.

He ultimately defeated Australia's Adrian Attenborough heads-up to win the championship and the $10 million first-place prize. Michael Duek finished third.

The victory made Jorstad the first Norwegian player to win the WSOP Main Event. Norway had previously come close in 2014, when Felix Stephensen finished runner-up.

Jorstad's path into the event added another notable element to the story. PokerNews reported that he won his Main Event seat through a $1,050 satellite on GGPoker before converting that entry into poker's biggest annual championship.

His $10 million prize remains the largest recorded live tournament cash of his career.

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Espen Jorstad's WSOP Record

The World Series of Poker continues to list Jorstad as a two-time bracelet winner.

As of August 26, 2026, his official WSOP profile records:

• Two WSOP bracelets

• Zero WSOP Circuit rings

• Six final tables

• 60 cashes

• More than $11 million in earnings from events tracked by the WSOP database

The WSOP earnings figure should not be confused with Jorstad's total live tournament earnings. The WSOP database tracks results associated with its own events and related brands, while Hendon Mob compiles a broader live tournament record.

Both of Jorstad's bracelets came during the 2022 WSOP: the $1,000 Tag Team event and the $10,000 Main Event World Championship.

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Espen Jorstad's Live Tournament Earnings

Jorstad has continued adding significant results since becoming world champion.

As of August 26, 2026, his Hendon Mob profile lists $19,796,079 in live tournament earnings. Hendon Mob also lists his $10 million Main Event victory as his largest live cash and ranks him second on Norway's all-time live tournament money list.

Career earnings are a moving statistic. The total can change whenever additional qualifying live results are recorded or the database is updated.

The size of Jorstad's Main Event prize naturally dominates his earnings record, but his results since 2022 show that his tournament career did not end with that championship.

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Major Results After the Main Event

Jorstad has continued competing in major international tournaments and high rollers following his WSOP championship.

Among his notable later finishes was a fourth-place result in the €100,000 EPT Super High Roller at the 2025 PokerStars European Poker Tour Barcelona festival, worth €524,400.

His 2026 schedule has included appearances at PokerStars EPT Monte Carlo and the Triton Poker Series in Montenegro.

At Triton Montenegro, Jorstad recorded three notable cashes in no-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha events. His deepest finish came in the $75,000 PLO 6-Handed event, where he placed eighth for $191,500.

Those results are important to understanding his career after 2022. Jorstad has remained willing to compete against high-level fields across multiple formats rather than relying solely on his status as a former Main Event champion.

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Espen Jorstad's Playing Style and Poker Background

Assigning Jorstad a simple label such as tight-aggressive or loose-aggressive would go beyond what his tournament record alone can establish.

His documented background does show significant experience in online poker, cash games and tournament play. He has also become publicly associated with modern solver-based poker study.

As of 2026, Jorstad is a GTO Wizard ambassador. The poker training company continued to identify him as part of its ambassador roster during the 2026 World Series of Poker and has featured his analysis of tournament strategy and Independent Chip Model decisions.

That role provides a clearer basis for describing his poker reputation than attaching an unsupported stylistic label. Jorstad is an experienced online and live professional whose public strategy work reflects a strong connection to modern analytical poker study.

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Jorstad's Impact on Norwegian Poker

Winning the WSOP Main Event gave Jorstad a permanent place in Norwegian poker history.

He became the country's first Main Event champion and joined the small group of players who have won poker's world championship. His victory also followed the 2014 runner-up finish by fellow Norwegian Felix Stephensen, finally giving Norway a Main Event winner.

Hendon Mob's current rankings place Jorstad second among Norwegian players in recorded live tournament earnings.

His visibility extends beyond tournament results through streaming, strategy analysis and his ambassador work. That combination has given him a public role in poker that reaches beyond the $10 million victory that made him internationally famous.

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Current Status

Espen Jorstad remains an active professional poker player as of August 2026.

His 2026 results include cashes at WSOP Europe, PokerStars EPT Monte Carlo and Triton Montenegro. At the Triton festival, he cashed in both no-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha high rollers, including his $191,500 eighth-place finish in the $75,000 PLO 6-Handed event.

He also remains associated with GTO Wizard as an ambassador and continues to appear in poker strategy content.

More than four years after winning the Main Event, Jorstad's career is therefore best viewed as an active one. The 2022 championship remains his defining accomplishment, but subsequent high-roller results and continued participation at major international festivals show that he remains part of the professional tournament scene.

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Why Espen Jorstad Matters in Poker

Jorstad's place in poker history is secure because of what he accomplished at the 2022 World Series of Poker.

Winning the Main Event alone would have made him a world champion and the first Norwegian to capture the title. Doing so after already winning the Tag Team event gave him two bracelets during the same WSOP and transformed his tournament résumé in a matter of weeks.

His career also represents a path increasingly common in modern poker: extensive online and cash-game experience developing into success on the largest live tournament stages.

With two bracelets, a $10 million Main Event championship and nearly $20 million in recorded live earnings as of August 2026, Jorstad has built a record that extends well beyond a single winning tournament.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Espen Jorstad?

Espen Jorstad is a Norwegian professional poker player and the 2022 World Series of Poker Main Event champion. He is a two-time WSOP bracelet winner and an active international tournament player.

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Where is Espen Jorstad from?

Jorstad is from Norway. Hendon Mob and PokerNews publicly list him as residing in London, England.

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How many WSOP bracelets does Espen Jorstad have?

Espen Jorstad has two WSOP bracelets as of August 2026. He won both in 2022, capturing the $1,000 Tag Team event before winning the $10,000 WSOP Main Event.

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How much did Espen Jorstad win in the 2022 WSOP Main Event?

Jorstad won $10 million for finishing first in the 2022 WSOP Main Event. He defeated a field of 8,663 entries and beat Adrian Attenborough heads-up for the championship.

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What is Espen Jorstad's biggest poker cash?

Jorstad's largest recorded live tournament cash is $10 million from winning the 2022 WSOP Main Event.

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How much has Espen Jorstad won in live poker tournaments?

Hendon Mob lists Jorstad with $19,796,079 in recorded live tournament earnings as of August 26, 2026. That figure can change as new tournament results are added.

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Does Espen Jorstad have a WSOP Circuit ring?

No. The official WSOP player database lists Jorstad with zero WSOP Circuit rings as of August 2026.

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Is Espen Jorstad still playing poker?

Yes. Jorstad remains active as of August 2026, with recent appearances and cashes at WSOP Europe, PokerStars EPT Monte Carlo and the Triton Poker Series in Montenegro.