A player opened to 5,000 before Nikki Limo opted to jam for her final 31,000. Terrance Reid opted to make the call as the original raiser folded to put Limo at risk.
Nikki Limo: 3♠3♣
Terrance Reid: A♠10♥
Limo held the lead going into the runout, but the flop was precarious for Limo as it came 7♦6♠7♠ to give Reid additional outs as he could counterfeit the pocket pair of Limo.
The K♠ was safe, but the 6♦ was a welcome sight for Reid as he teased Limo. The two engaged in some friendly banter as Reid eliminated Limo on Day 1a.
Action began with a raise to 10,000 from the cutoff before the small blind made the call. Coltrane Conklin opted to raise to 30,000, which resulted in a fold from the cutoff and a call from the small blind.
The small blind checked the 9♣7♠K♠ flop, but Conklin did not slow down as he shoved for the rest of his stack. The small blind gave it a brief consideration before he yielded the pot to Conklin with a fold.
Satya Vegi has had a good Day 1a thus far as he has now surpassed 200,000 in chips.
Vegi did so after he got entangled in a pot with an opponent in the big blind. A series of raises resulted in the chips going in preflop with his opponent at risk.
Opponent: A♦5♣
Satya Vegi: K♦J♦
Vegi needed to improve to knock out his opponent, and the flop gave him additional outs to do so as it came Q♥4♣9♦ to give Vegi some straight outs.
The J♥ gave Vegi the lead, and the 9♥river sealed the deal to award Vegi the pot and the knockout.
Few people have the unique experience and perspective on the Texas poker scene as much as Billie Martin, who has seen poker in Texas grow from the underground scene to the filled hall of The Lodge Card Club in 2026.
Martin came to play the RunGood Poker Series for the first time and shared with PokerNews her unique story and a slice of poker history as she generously shared her photos of legends of the industry.
Photo Courtesy of Billie Martin
Martin’s relationship with poker dates back to the 1980s when she met her then-boyfriend Johnny Joseph, who was a local gambler in the Austin scene. Martin knew little to nothing about poker at the time, but her partner Joseph was a fixture of the Austin poker community. It was during this period that Martin was introduced to now legends of poker such as: Benny Binion, Doyle Brunson, Billy Baxter, Stu Ungar, and Jack Binion.
To Martin, it was just another day, and she shared that at the time, these legendary poker names were just people she had met playing a no-limit deuce to seven game. Martin shared that she was just taking normal photos of people and didn’t have any aspirations or perspective that these photos would be a piece of poker history.
“No, I didn’t. You know, it would be like me taking a picture of you. It’s like no big deal. You walk past these people all day long,” said Martin, reflecting on her experience meeting some legends of the game.
Photo Couresy of Billie Martin
Martin’s particular prized treasure is a signed copy of Brunson’s Super System that is a trove of the who’s who of poker legends, including Benny Binion, Brunson, and Unger.
Photo Courtesy of Billie Martin
Martin was particularly proud of the signature from Unger, whom she had fond memories of as a player.
“He was brilliant,” Martin said. “The guy never slowed down.”
Martin’s perspective on poker is unique, as she has seen the poker culture in Texas come out from the dark and into the light. She reflected that playing games in Texas was a risky proposition for coniserable time and is thankful that the poker scene has gone from the backroom to the vibrant scene it is currently.
“The poker scene in Austin was actually really scary because there were a lot of games that got held up,” Martin said. Factors such as these meant that poker was relegated to when she would visit Las Vegas, but now that the local poker has grown, Martin feels comfortable with staying close to home.
Martin shared that she has no desire to leave Texas poker now, after living through an era where playing poker locally was a dubious if not unattractive proposition, but she did share that the poker scene isn’t as close-knit as it was during the late 1980s and early 1990s and still has a fondness for that period of poker history.
“It’s not as intimate as it used to be,” Martin said. “I was truly blessed to have witnessed that era.”
Registration will end following the conclusion of the break. Players will resume at the 1,000/2,000. A total of 113 entries have piled in so far on Day 1a.
An opponent in early position opened the action with a raise to 3,000 before a player from the hijack opted to re-raise to 10,000.
The button called before Ashley "Pokerface Ash" Frank jammed for approximately 30,000. The original raiser and the hijack called while the button folded to put Frank at risk.
Early Position: A♦J♦
Ashley Frank: A♥K♠
Hijack: 10♠9♠
The flop was a welcome sight for the hijack as it fanned out 10♦4♥7♠ to give the hijack a pair.
The hijack gained some outs to a straight on the 6♥ turn, but Frank spiked the A♠ on the river to stay alive as she scooped a healthy pot to cross the six-figure mark in chips.
A player in early position raised to 3,500 before Cy Stone decided to take a stand with an all-in for 14,900. His opponent quickly made the call after he got a count to put Stone at risk for his tournament life.
Cy Stone: Q♠Q♦
Opponent: 8♥8♦
Stone needed to fade an eight as the dealer spread the board of 4♥7♥3♦A♦5♦ to award Stone the double without any drama.
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