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Businessman Who Has Played Poker for 40 Years Wins Event #5: $10,000
California businessman Peter Placey has been playing poker recreationally for 40 years, and he can now add a high roller title to his resume. Today, he shipped Event #5: $10,000 inside the PokerGO Studio for $224,000 as he defeated heads-up opponent Qinghai Pan.
The fields at the 2026 U.S. Poker Open (USPO) in Las Vegas have mainly consisted of high-stakes pros, but it was a recreational player who took down today's event.
Placey, who runs an information company in California, told PokerNews he always admire(s) and enjoy(s) the opportunity to play with the level of players here." In 2022, he finished tenth in this very same event for $19,800.
"I love playing in this room," Placey said. "I seem to have done okay the times I've played here. This is the perfect exclamation point."
Event #5 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter Placey | United States | $224,000 |
| 2 | Qinghai Pan | United States | $144,000 |
| 3 | Anil Jivani | United States | $104,000 |
| 4 | Brandon Wilson | United States | $76,000 |
| 5 | Justin Zaki | United States | $56,000 |
| 6 | Cherish Andrews | United States | $40,000 |
| 7 | Jesse Lonis | United States | $32,000 |
Hitting Quads to Beat the Pros
The second $10,000 buy-in of the series drew 80 runners for a prize pool of $800,000. Those who ran deep in the event include Poker Hall of Famer Nick Schulman, top pro Jesse Lonis, and poker power couple Cherish Andrews and Brock Wilson, who have both won events this series.
Placey, who had the chip lead for part of Day 1, has never had trouble battling top pros. In 2014, he finished 35th in the WSOP Main Event for $230,487, busting to eventual champion Martin Jacobson.
Day 2 began with short stack Andrew going out in sixth place, enough to put her in first place on the overall series leaderboard.
Justin Zaki and Day 1 chip leader Brandon Wilson were the next two out, and it ended up being the two players with accomplished careers outside of poker, Placey and Pan, a doctor, that played for the title as Anil Jivani bowed out in third place.
Pan managed to double into the chip lead through Placey, but he was no match for Placey's flopped trips against top pair that turned into quads to end Pan's run.
That wraps up PokerNews' coverage of Event #5 here at the U.S. Poker Open in Las Vegas. Check out the live reporting hub for other series highlights.
*Photos courtesy of PokerGO