2026 Eastern Poker Open

$35,000 Championship
Day: 1
Event Info
2026 Eastern Poker Open
Event Info
Prize Pool
$35,000
Total Entries
184
Players Left
184
Average Chip Stack
13,043
Total Chips
2,400,000
Level Info
Level
3
Blinds
300 / 600
Ante
0
Players Info - Day 1
Entries
184
Players Left
184
Players Left 184 / 184

Season-Long Qualifiers Gather For the $35,000 Eastern Poker Tour Championship Today at 11 a.m.

Rick Ziegler
Rick Ziegler

For the past 12 months, players have been battling in tournaments across the New England area, accumulating points and trying to earn their way here, the $35,000 Eastern Poker Tour Championship.

Today’s event is the culmination of a season-long race as the top 15 percent from each Eastern Poker Tour region throughout Season 35 gather inside the DoubleTree by Hilton in Milford today at 11 a.m. local time to chase the $35,000 prize pool and title of champion.

Players start the event with a minimum of 20,000, with their starting stack based on their ranking on the points leaderboard. Registration remains open for the first eight levels and will end at approximately 3 p.m. Levels will be 30 minutes long, with a break after every four levels. There will also be a 30-minute buffet break at the end of Level 8.

Play on Day 1 will end once 16 players remain. The surviving players earn $150 and a spot on Day 2, with the chip leader also earning a seat into the Bar Poker Open in Las Vegas. They will be joined on Day 2 by a further host of qualifiers, including regional points leaders and wild card spots.

2025 Final Table results

PlacePlayerCountryPrize
1Rick ZieglerUnited States$10,000
2John RebolloUnited States$6,000
3Slade EdmondsUnited States$3,400
4Chris AlexUnited States$2,400
5Rick SticklesUnited States$1,800
6Linda RodriguesUnited States$1,400
7John GermanoUnited States$1,200
8Shaun WhiteUnited States$1,000
9Dylan MajorUnited States$800

Rick Ziegler is the defending champion, beating out a field of 365 entries to win the $10,000 first prize last year. Ziegler is chasing a second trophy today, as he’s among the 15 remaining players on Day 2 of the $1,200 New England Poker Championship.

PokerNews will be following along and providing live updates throughout the day, so stay tuned for all the action.

Tags: Rick Ziegler