PGT Last Chance Series Offers One More Shot to Qualify for $1M Championship
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Though the calendar year ends on Dec. 31, there will still be a chance in January for poker players to earn points in the 2025 PokerGO Tour (PGT) Player of the Year race for a chance to play in the $1 million PGT Championship freeroll through the PGT Last Chance series.
The PGT Last Chance series will take place in the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas from Jan. 5-10, 2026, and will offer the final opportunity to earn leaderboard points. The PGT Championship, which is exclusive to the top 40 players from the PGT leaderboard and Dream Seat winners and will award $500,000 to the winner, will take place Jan. 12-13.
Last Chance to Earn PGT Points
The PGT Last Chance series will consist of six $10,100 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em events, the first of which will kick off on Jan. 5. There will be one tournament per day until the final event on Jan. 10.
Expect all of the usual crushers in the PokerGO Studio as the series gives them their last shot at qualifying for the $1 million freeroll open to the top 40 finishers.
As of writing, Alex Foxen leads the PGT POY leaderboard with 2,816 points from 24 cashes and four victories, putting him ahead of Sam Soverel with 2,772 PGT points from 26 cashes and four wins and Chino Rheem with 2,350 points from 29 cashes and five wins.
Other players in the top 40 of the leaderboard include Daniel Negreanu, Jesse Lonis, Adam Hendrix, Joao Simao, Kristen Foxen, Isaac Haxton, Michael Wang, Stephen Chidwick, Sean Winter, Chad Eveslage and Ben Tollerene.
Reigning PGT Player of the Year Jeremy Ausmus, who was recently the beneficiary of a Royal Flush against quad aces cooler in the PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) Main Event, sits a few spots outside the top 40 with one victory and 20 cashes.
Looking Back at Last Year's Series
Despite only consisting of six events, last year's Last Chance series produced only four champions. That's due to the fact that Shannon Shorr and Brandon Wilson both won multiple titles, with Shorr winning Event #2 for $297,500 and later closing out the finale for $290,000.
Meanwhile, Wilson, a high-stakes pro with $7.9 million in Hendon Mob earnings, went back-to-back by winning Event #3 for $297,500 and Event #4 for $285,000.
The series kicked off with this year's Poker Hall of Fame inductee, Nick Schulman, winning Event #1 for $283,050 and also saw fellow American high-stakes pro Martin Zamani winning Event #5 for $302,500.
2024 PGT Last Chance Series Winners
| Tournament | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Event #1: $10,100 No-Limit Hold'em | Nick Schulman | $283,050 |
| Event #2: $10,100 No-Limit Hold'em | Shannon Shorr | $297,500 |
| Event #3: $10,100 No-Limit Hold'em | Brandon Wilson | $297,500 |
| Event #4: $10,100 No-Limit Hold'em | Brandon Wilson | $285,000 |
| Event #5: $10,100 No-Limit Hold'em | Martin Zamani | $302,500 |
| Event #6: $10,100 No-Limit Hold'em | Shannon Shorr | $290,000 |
There's other action on the PGT trail before the Last Chance Series. That includes the recent Texas PLO Roundup at Champions Club Texas and a slate of high roller events at World Series of Poker (WSOP) Paradise.
The full schedule for the upcoming PGT Last Chance series is available in the table below.
PGT Last Chance Schedule
| Date | Time | Event | Buy-In |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 5 | 1:00 p.m. | PGT Last Chance #1: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em | $10,100 |
| Jan 6 | 1:00 p.m. | PGT Last Chance #2: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em | $10,100 |
| Jan 7 | 1:00 p.m. | PGT Last Chance #3: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em | $10,100 |
| Jan 8 | 1:00 p.m. | PGT Last Chance #4: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em | $10,100 |
| Jan 9 | 1:00 p.m. | PGT Last Chance #5: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em | $10,100 |
| Jan 10 | 1:00 p.m. | PGT Last Chance #6: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em (Single Day Turbo) | $10,100 |
*Photos courtesy of PokerGO
