Chad Taylor Bags Chip Lead After Day 1a in Tunica
The legendary Horseshoe Casino Tunica poker room was bustling on the opening day of the 2026 RunGood Passport Season Tunica $600 Main Event.
The first of three flights saw 111 entries take part in Day 1a, with the final 13 survivors earning a spot in the money on Sunday, March 15. They’ll all be chasing pieces of the $200,000 prize pool, along with the chance at RunGood glory at this historic poker venue.
Leading the way after the opening day of action is Chad Taylor, who set the pace by collecting 510,000 chips. That’s good for a sizeable lead over Michael Monaghan, who added the final pot of the night to his stack to finish with 409,000.
Monaghan did his best to burst bubble, first scoring a double knockout before eventually locking up the cash for the remaining players.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chad Taylor | United States | 510,000 | 51 |
| 2 | Michael Monaghan | United States | 409,000 | 41 |
| 3 | Brandon Owens | United States | 374,000 | 37 |
| 4 | Michael Cordell | United States | 370,000 | 37 |
| 5 | Dante Prado | United States | 339,000 | 34 |
| 6 | Sokchheka Pho | United States | 278,000 | 28 |
| 7 | Gerald Irvin | United States | 230,000 | 23 |
| 8 | Justin Goree | United States | 219,000 | 22 |
| 9 | Rafael Lopez | United States | 168,000 | 17 |
| 10 | Tyler Burke | United States | 163,000 | 16 |
Late Night Action
Rounding out the top three on the leaderboard is Brandon Owens, who was at risk on the direct money bubble but survived with pocket nines to bag 374,000.
The night came to an end shortly after, when Brandon Garrison saw his pair come up short to exit on the stone bubble.
Among others to fall short on Day 1a were RGPS Ambassadors who joined the field for the opening flight. Preston McEwen lasted the longest, hitting the rail in the double knockout scored by Monaghan late in the night.
Jeff Copeland and Craig Welko also saw their stacks disappear, but they will have another shot on Saturday.
Fresh off his victory in the $250 PokerNews PowerStack event, Cody Stanford made a brief appearance at the very end of late registration, just moments after finishing in third place in the $300 Pot Limit Omaha Ring Event.
The second flight will begin on Saturday, March 14 at 11:00 a.m. local time, while the final flight follows at 6:00 p.m. in Tunica.
Another day of 30-minute levels will play down to the top 12.5 percent of the field once late registration closes at the start of Level 9.
$600 Main Event Remaining Schedule
| Date | Day | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Mar. 14 | 1b | 11:00 a.m. |
| Mar. 14 | 1c | 6:00 p.m. |
| Mar. 15 | 2 | 12:00 p.m. |
PokerNews coverage continues all weekend long from three RGPS Main Events around the country, so don’t miss a moment of the action on the road to crowning the latest RunGood champions.