Grant Matatall: RunGood Houston Main Event Runner-Up
POKER HALL OF FAME
Inducted 2014
Grant Matatall is an American poker player whose early live tournament results include a runner-up finish in the 2026 RunGood Poker Series Golden Expedition Houston Main Event. He earned $38,300 at Champions Club Texas on October 18 after a heads-up deal with Shawn Murphy.
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An early breakthrough at 18
PokerNews identified Matatall as 18 during its Houston coverage. Its Day 1a report documented the first time he had bagged chips for a second day of a live tournament.
Matatall finished that starting flight with 620,000 chips, equivalent to 31 big blinds at the end of play. He was one of four players to advance from the 45-entry flight, securing a place in Sunday's final day.
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Houston Main Event result and payout
The $600 no-limit hold'em Main Event drew 538 entries and generated a $269,000 prize pool. Forty-nine places were paid. RunGood's official results list Matatall second behind Murphy.
The originally advertised second prize was $35,300. A heads-up agreement moved $3,000 from the winner's payout to the runner-up, giving Matatall his higher final payment. The distinction matters when comparing an early payout schedule with the completed results.
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From his first bag to heads-up play
According to PokerNews' final-day reporting, Matatall doubled twice during heads-up play and brought the match level after beginning at a substantial chip disadvantage.
The tournament ended when Murphy called Matatall's river bluff with ace-high. Matatall's queen-ten had missed its straight draw, leaving Murphy's ace-eight ahead.
Angry Aces Poker's Houston Main Event report covers the finish and explains both players' deal-adjusted payouts.
