Artur Martirosyan Bubbles $100K Event After Pocket Aces Lose Twice

The 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP) at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas just witnessed one of the most unpredictable exits in tournament history. Artur Martirosyan became the bubble boy in the $100,000 event, losing with pocket aces in two hands to bust just before the money.

This sudden exit stopped a massive hot streak for the Russian professional. Just three days earlier, Martirosyan won the Event #24 $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller 6-Handed for $1,286,285 to collect his fourth career WSOP gold bracelet. Instead of securing a bubble cash prize of at least $201,754, he left the tournament area empty-handed.

Lightning Strikes Twice

Martirosyan’s downfall started as the tournament reached the bubble. Christopher Nguyen moved all-in for 3,480,000 chips with king-queen of spades, and Martirosyan quickly called with pocket aces.

Martirosyan was a massive favorite to win the hand, but the community cards turned against him. The flop brought two spades, giving Nguyen a flush draw.

A king on the turn gave Nguyen more ways to win, and a queen on the river completed a runner-runner two pair. The unexpected loss took away most of Martirosyan’s chips and destroyed his lead.

When Pocket Aces Turn Into a Curse

Down to just 495,000 chips on the bubble, Martirosyan found pocket aces again. He moved the rest of his chips into the middle, and Teun Mulder called with jack-ten of spades.

As the dealer prepared to show the cards, the WSOP livestream picked up Martirosyan saying “not twice.” Unfortunately for him, the cards brought another bad beat. The board ran out eight-queen-six-six-nine, giving Mulder a straight on the river.

Stone Bubble Madness in the $100K

On the stone bubble of the WSOP $100K High Roller, Artur Martirosian picks up pocket aces against Thomas Mulder with a $200,000 min-cash on the line. pic.twitter.com/89VJXR2kCa

- WSOP – World Series of Poker (@WSOP) June 12, 2026

With that river card, Martirosyan officially busted on the bubble, leaving the remaining 18 players to play for the $2,841,432 first-place prize.

Strong Career Numbers for Artur Martirosyan

Despite the unmatched bad luck of losing with the best starting hand twice in a row, Martirosyan remains one of the most successful players in the game. He is the reigning Triton Series Season 4 Player of the Year and holds over $33.5 million in live tournament earnings.

His consistency over the last two years is remarkable, with $15 million – nearly half of his total lifetime earnings – coming since the start of 2025.

For Martirosyan, the challenge now lies in moving past this rare double bad beat and focusing on the remaining events of the summer schedule.

Poker requires immense skill, but bad luck can happen to anyone.

All photos courtesy of WSOP.