Chino Rheem isn’t any stranger to success on the PokerGO Tour. The longtime skilled participant has been topped a PGT collection champion 4 instances, essentially the most of any participant within the tour’s historical past.
The 46-year-old is off to a powerful begin in his push for a record-extending fifth collection triumph due to his victory within the kickoff occasion of the 2026 PGT Sprint collection. Rheem bested a area of 92 entries within the $5,300 no-limit maintain’em event to earn $119,600 and his tenth profession PGT title.
This win pushed Rheem’s profession earnings previous $20.3 million. The PokerStars Caribbean Adventure primary occasion winner and three-time World Poker Tour champion is considered one of simply 86 gamers on the planet to surpass the $20 million mark.
In addition to the cash and {hardware}, Rheem additionally locked up loads of essential rating factors heading into the ultimate months of the 12 months. The 432 Card Player Player of the Year factors he secured for his twelfth ultimate desk of 2026 grew his whole to 4,669. That’s presently good for twenty eighth within the total standings introduced by CoinPoker. He additionally earned 179 PGT factors, placing him within the lead on the series-long leaderboard and nineteenth within the seasonal rankings.
The high 14 gamers cashed in on the $460,000 prize pool after three-time bracelet winner Jim Collopy busted on the bubble. Following Collopy out the door had been Justin Vaysman (thirteenth), Joe McKeehen (twelfth), David Coleman (eleventh), Darren Rabinowitz (tenth), Brock Wilson (ninth), and Nicholas Seward (eighth).
Rheem Races To Winner’s Circle Again
Neil Warren held the chip heading into the official ultimate desk, with Rheem in third to start out. Bracelet winner Andrew Lichtenberger received a preflop flip with pocket tens in opposition to the A-Q suited of two-time bracelet winner John Riordan (seventh – $18,400) to chop the sphere to a half dozen.
Soon after that, reigning Card Player POY Jesse Lonis made his ultimate stand with A♣10♦ in opposition to the Q♥J♥ of Michael Berk. A jack-high flop gave Berk the lead, which he maintained by way of the river to finish Lonis’ run in sixth place ($23,000). The three-time bracelet winner now has over $35.1 million in profession cashes to his title.
Berk landed the subsequent knockout blow as effectively, with A-3 beating A-Q to ship Warren packing in fifth place ($32,200). However, a significant collision with Lichtenberger quickly crippled Berk’s stack. He managed a few double-ups, however finally ran J♦5♦ into Rheem’s Ok♥J♥ to put fourth ($41,400).
CoinPoker ambassador Patrick Leonard was the subsequent to fall. The bracelet winner from the UK ran A♣Q♥ into the Ok♦Ok♣ of Lichtenberger and whiffed on a 10♥10♦4♠9♠2♥ runout. He earned $55,200 because the third-place finisher, placing him simply shy of $6.6 million in recorded scores.
Lichtenberger entered heads-up play with the lead, however Rheem picked off a giant bluff try with pocket tens on a Q♥8♣6♦8♦J♦ board, sniffing out his opponent’s 9♣5♣ to take a commanding lead. Shortly after that, 7-2 bested 6-5 for the remaining crumbs of Lichtenberger’s stack to carry the occasion to an in depth. He took house $75,900 because the runner-up.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Payout | POY Points | PGT Points |
| 1 | Chino Rheem | $119,600 | 432 | 179 |
| 2 | Andrew Lichtenberger | $75,900 | 360 | 114 |
| 3 | Patrick Leonard | $55,200 | 288 | 83 |
| 4 | Michael Berk | $41,400 | 216 | 62 |
| 5 | Neil Warren | $32,200 | 180 | 48 |
| 6 | Jesse Lonis | $23,000 | 144 | 35 |
| 7 | John Riordan | $18,400 | 108 | 28 |
Photo credit score: PGT / Antonio Abrego.
