Seat 4: Peter Mugar, 53, from Boston, lives in Las Vegas, Nevada (715,000)
Peter Mugar comes from the East Coast, but he has moved to Las Vegas, where he plays as many tournaments as he can. The 53-year-old has racked up more than $1.1 million in live cashes, but doesn’t necessarily call himself a pro.
Until 2018, he used to coach basketball in Massachusetts. While he is not mentoring college athletes on the court anymore, he claims to “still have a lot of things going on, investment-wise.”
On the poker felt, he belongs to an exclusive group of six players who reached paid places in all three NAPT Las Vegas Main Events since the tour’s reinstatement. He was 35th in 2023, then 27th in 2024, and now will once again improve his year-on-year stat sheet.
“I always liked the EPTs, they’re well-run and well-structured tournaments,” Mugar said, revealing what brings him back every season. He speaks from first-hand experience, having cashed in the EPT Barcelona Main Event back in August.
His best results come from elsewhere, though. Mugar’s best score was $498,177 for fourth place in the 2023 Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship. It was also the best position he’s ever reached in a reported live poker tournament. That may change soon. If he continues his NAPT consistency, it seems the first podium finish might come very soon.
Player bios courtesy of Jan Kores/PokerStars
Tournament Progression
Day 1: 153,500 (13/66, 1a)
Day 2: 924,000 (1/84)
Day 3: 728,000 (11/40)
Day 4: 1,625,000 (7/16)
Day 5: 715,000 (6/6)
Career statistics
Career earnings: $1,126,808
EPT/NAPT cashes: 3
Best result: 27th, 2024 NAPT
Key hands
Mugar first vaulted into the tournament chip lead back on Day 2 when his flopped set of aces beat David Chen's two pair.
On the final table bubble, Baurzhan Akimov moved all in for 1,340,000 on the turn and Mugar called with two kings. Akimov, though, had flopped trips and was poised for the double up until Mugar spiked a two-outer on the river to make a full house and bust Akimov in 10th place.