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$3,000 NLH Main Event
Day 3 Completed
2026 Potomac Summer Poker Open
$3,000 NLH Main Event
Day: 3
Event Info
2026 Potomac Summer Poker Open
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 3
Buy-in
$3,000
Prize Pool
$756,000
Total Entries
280
Level
28
Blinds
60,000 / 120,000
Ante
120,000
Entries
6
Players Left
1
Players Left 1 / 280
Filter
Level 28
: Blinds 60,000/120,000, 120,000 ante
One hand changed Kyle Smith’s destiny. He would either have a big chip lead, or, as he called it, he would make the “biggest punt in tournament poker history.” Smith, though, wound up on the right side of that sharp dividing line, and it made all the difference today at the final table of the Potomac Summer Poker Open $3,000 Main Event.
Smith’s double up off start-of-day chip leader Patrick Martorella right at the beginning of the final table gave him a massive chip lead and propelled him on to victory as the family doctor took down the title and $136,054 top prize after agreeing to a heads-up deal with Phong Nguyen.
Potomac Summer Poker Open $3,000 Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyle Smith | United States | $136,054* |
| 2 | Phong Nguyen | United States | $130,000* |
| 3 | Justin Liberto | United States | $83,320 |
| 4 | Patrick Martorella | United States | $60,640 |
| 5 | Jonathan Moritz | United States | $48,544 |
| 6 | Chris Kiani | United States | $37,204 |
| 7 | Nicholas Verderamo | United States | $28,132 |
| 8 | Kevin Kwak | United States | $20,118 |
| 9 | Casey Hatmaker | United States | $14,902 |
*Denotes heads-up deal
“It’s so exciting. The money means more than the trophy, but it’s fun saying you took down a field of 280 people. All respect to my opponent, you know, he put me in a very, very difficult spot heads-up. We agreed to a chop. But it’s nice bringing home a little bit of hardware,” Smith said after taking home the trophy for beating out the 280-entry field.
Smith describes himself as a recreational player. Originally from Michigan, he now works as a family doctor in Bethesda, Maryland. He even went to work this morning before coming to play the final table. He had only around $90,000 in live earnings before this event, according to the Hendon Mob, with his largest career score coming here at the MGM National Harbor when he finished second in a $320 Mystery Bounty event at the 2023 Potomac Poker Open for $51,000. His score today vastly exceeded all his previous earnings combined, but it’s not going to change much in his poker career.
“I’m a recreational player. I got up and went to work this morning after sleeping four hours last night, so it’s not going to change my poker career. It might make a few differences financially,” he said.
Smith Makes the Right Diagnosis Against Martorella
Smith began the final table in fourth place as six players returned at 1 p.m. local time to battle for the trophy. On one of the first hands, he was faced with an all-in shove from Martorella on the turn. Smith tanked for several minutes before calling with a pair of eights, while Martorella had straight and flush draws. Smith held on, and he earned the massive double up to take a big chip lead over the rest of the final table.
“What was going through my mind is, if I call this off and I’m wrong, it’s one of the biggest punts in tournament poker history. But I made the right call, and thankfully faded a bunch of outs,” he said. “It gave me a lot more confidence and patience. I didn’t feel like I needed to be in a rush, and I was able to put other people in more difficult situations.”
Smith then spiked a straight on the river to bust Chris Kiani in sixth, while Martorella got some chips back when he called Jonathan Moritz’s shove with two fives. Moritz was looking for an ace to survive, but he couldn’t connect with the board and the BetMGM online qualifier busted in fifth place.
Martorella then moved all in for 1,270,000 and Smith called in the small blind. Smith hit top pair on the flop, while the river gave Martorella kings and sevens. He began to celebrate a double up, but Smith then pointed out he had aces and jacks to win the pot. Martorella’s day came to an end with a fourth-place finish, and Smith took 60 percent of the chips in play into three-handed action.
Justin Liberto entered the final table as the most accomplished player left in the field. The two-time WSOP bracelet winner is a regular in some of the biggest buy-in events on the poker calendar and had compiled a stellar resume with more than $8 million in live earnings. But he couldn’t beat the doctor today. Liberto dropped multiple pots to Smith before he moved all in for his last 1,000,000 from the small blind. Nguyen woke up with nines in the big blind and snap-called, and Liberto’s eight-high couldn’t come from behind as he had to settle for third place.
Nguyen Mounts a Comeback Before Deal is Reached
Smith led 13,400,000 to 3,400,000 at the start of heads-up, and the two opponents agreed to look at the numbers and discuss a deal. Nguyen was offered an additional $12,000 on top of the $112,048 second-place prize, but he turned it down. “I don’t have anything to lose,” he said, and they went ahead with heads-up play.
Smith turned a pair of kings to beat Nguyen’s pocket tens in a big pot, and Nguyen fell below 2,000,000 before he doubled up after flopping top pair of queens against Smith’s pair of nines. Nguyen hit a flush and nut straight on back-to-back hands to take the chip lead for the first time at the final table. Just as the players were going to head off on a break, they saw a board featuring two tens when Smith bet 1,700,000 on the river. Nguyen called with queen-ten, but Smith had ace-ten to win the big pot and move back in front.
When they returned from break, they agreed to take another look at the numbers. It didn’t take long for them to reach a deal, with Nguyen taking home around $130,000 and Smith $137,000. They even shared the trophies, Smith taking the glass MGM National Harbor one and Nguyen the black BetMGM trophy. Smith, though, got to sit in the spotlight and take the winner’s photos as the official champion.
Smith explained that, even when Nguyen started to come back and claim the lead during their heads-up match, he never lost hope. “I told myself to just be patient and play my game. It’s easy to feel like everything is slipping away, but ultimately, we were still very, very deep with a lot of poker left to play. So I told myself to just be patient, let it come,” he said.
Tomorrow it's back to work at his medical practice, but for today, Smith got to call himself a champion after making the biggest diagnosis of his poker career.
That concludes PokerNews' coverage of the Potomac Summer Poker Open Main Event. Stay tuned for more coverage of events from around the world.
Level 28
: Blinds 60,000/120,000, 120,000 ante
Kyle Smith has been crowned the champion of the Potomac Poker Open $3,000 Main Event after making a heads-up deal with Phong Nguyen. Smith earned $136,054 for conquering the 280-player field.
Stay tuned for a recap of the final table and an interview with the champion.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyle Smith | United States | $136,054* |
| 2 | Phong Nguyen | United States | $130,000* |
| 3 | Justin Liberto | United States | $83,320 |
| 4 | Patrick Martorella | United States | $60,640 |
| 5 | Jonathan Moritz | United States | $48,544 |
| 6 | Chris Kiani | United States | $37,204 |
| 7 | Nicholas Verderamo | United States | $28,132 |
| 8 | Kevin Kwak | United States | $20,118 |
| 9 | Casey Hatmaker | United States | $14,902 |
*Denotes heads-up deal
Level 28
: Blinds 60,000/120,000, 120,000 ante
Just as the players were preparing to return from the break, they agreed to reopen deal negotiations. They quickly agreed to the numbers, and Kyle Smith was declared the champion.
Stay tuned for official numbers and a recap of the final table.
Level: 28
Blinds: 60,000/120,000
Ante: 120,000
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
The players are going on a quick break.
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
Phong Nguyen raised to 250,000 on the button, Kyle Smith three-bet to 600,000, and Nguyen called.
The flop came 10♠3♠4♣ and Smith bet 400,000. Nguyen called, and they both checked the 2♠ turn.
Smith then bet 1,700,000 on the 10♣ river, and Nguyen snap-called. Smith showed A♥10♦ for trips, and Nguyen mucked Q♥10♥.
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
In a limped pot, Phong Nguyen bet 100,000 from the button on a flop of A♥Q♦5♥ and Kyle Smith called.
Both players checked the K♦ turn. Nguyen then bet 400,000 on the J♥ river, and Smith called. Nguyen showed 8♥2♥ for a flush, and Smith mucked.
The next hand, Smith opened to 250,000 on the button and Nguyen called.
Smith continued for 200,000 on the 9♠10♥2♥ flop, and Nguyen called. Both players then checked down the 3♦ turn and 6♠ river. "I have the nuts," Nguyen said, showing 8♣7♦.
"I can't beat that," Smith said as he mucked.
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
Kyle Smith raised to 250,000 on the button and Phong Nguyen called.
The flop came 10♣4♦7♣ and Smith bet 200,000. Nguyen called, and the A♥ fell on the turn.
Smith then bet 400,000, and Nguyen again called. Both players checked the 8♣ river, and Nguyen showed A♠5♣ for a pair of aces to win the pot.
Level 27
: Blinds 50,000/100,000, 100,000 ante
Phong Nguyen raised to 200,000 on the button, Kyle Smith three-bet to 600,000, and Nguyen called.
The flop came Q♣9♦2♣ and Smith bet 450,000. Nguyen then moved all in for 2,785,000, and Smith confirmed the amount before calling.
Phong Nguyen: Q♠J♦ 
Kyle Smith: K♥9♥
Both players had flopped a pair, while Nguyen was ahead with his queens. The turn was the A♦, and Nguyen remained in the lead after the 7♥ river to secure the double up.
