World Poker Tour Champion Mark Davis Dies at 46 After Stroke

The poker world lost a respected competitor and beloved community member on July 25, 2026, when Mark Davis, a 46-year-old pro from Alabama, died after a series of strokes. Davis was best known for winning the $3,500 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown in 2022, a victory that earned him a career-best $1,000,000 and denied Darren Elias a record-extending fifth WPT title.

Davis was a regular at Gulf Coast card rooms, especially Choctaw in Oklahoma and Harrah’s Cherokee in North Carolina. His live tournament career, recorded by The Hendon Mob, exceeded $2.3 million. He also won three WSOP Circuit rings, including a $334,678 score for taking down the WSOPC Cherokee Main Event in 2022 against 1,402 entries.

Key facts

Coaching played a key role in Davis’s breakthrough. During the 2022 WPT final table, he called on high-stakes crusher Chance Kornuth, founder of Chip Leader Coaching, for guidance. “As far as a poker coach, my style mimics his style without even knowing anything about him or me,” Davis said at the time. “So it’s just a perfect marriage. I know exactly what he’s talking about when he’s telling me some things to do and he’s talking in his own little lingo, and I know exactly what he means, I know exactly where he’s coming from.” Kornuth’s coaching helped Davis secure the seven-figure title, and he was on hand to celebrate the victory.

Community reaction

Fellow Alabama poker player Michael Graydon, who grew up playing with Davis in an old limo shop, shared a memory on Facebook. Graydon wrote that his longtime friend “was fierce at the tables but had a huge heart and was there for people when they needed him.” The two had celebrated Davis’s WPT title together in Las Vegas.

PokerNews learned that Davis suffered a stroke and was airlifted to a hospital, where he suffered additional strokes. The exact date of his death was reported as Saturday, July 25, 2026. No funeral arrangements have been announced as of this writing.

What this means for the video poker community

While Davis was primarily a tournament poker player, his success at the WSOP Circuit and WPT highlights the broader skill set that many video poker players also cultivate: sharp decision-making under pressure, bankroll management, and the ability to read opponents. His passing reminds the poker community—including those focused on video poker—that the game’s tight-knit network extends across all formats. Many video poker enthusiasts also follow tournament news, and the loss of a player of Davis’s caliber is felt across the entire poker ecosystem.

Source: PokerNews – “World Poker Tour Champion Mark Davis Passes Away” (https://www.pokernews.com/news/2026/07/world-poker-tour-champ-mark-davis-dies-51991.htm)