Carolyn Wayne

Carolyn Wayne grew up in New York and worked in the food service industry before earning a college degree and embarking on a 30-plus-year career in accounting and finance. She had long dreamed of retiring in Las Vegas, so she moved cross-country in 2013, a few years before retiring in 2021. She now works part-time as a Guest Experience Representative for an entertainment venue.

Wayne learned poker with Seven Card Stud in home games and online, transitioning to No-Limit Hold'em in the early 2000s. She focuses on NLH cash games and low-to-mid buy-in tournaments, playing two to three times a week. As of 2026, she has nine WSOP cashes totaling $15,111, including a 274th place in the 2025 Colossus ($5,520) and a 420th place in the 2025 COLOSSUS ($2,310). She also finished 12th in a WSOP Circuit Seniors event at Lake Tahoe ($918) and 40th in a Mini Main Event at Planet Hollywood ($1,700).

In 2022, she played her first WPT event, the Ladies event at the Wynn, though she did not cash. Her recent successes include a second-place finish in the Wynn Fall Classic Seniors event and a victory in a Ladies International Poker Series (LIPS) event at Resorts World, which awarded her a WPT cruise. She also placed third in a Charity Series of Poker event (Viva St. Jude) in September 2023, winning a CSOP Celebrity Cash Game Seat.

In November 2024, Wayne won a Golden Passport into the ClubWPT Gold $5 Million Invitational Freeroll at Wynn Las Vegas, the largest freeroll in poker history. She earned the seat after her friend Louise Francoeur nominated her in a social media contest run by Jamie Kerstetter. Wayne expressed excitement about the opportunity, noting that a win would allow her to invest, share with loved ones, and fund dream trips to Italy and Malta.