Entire Final Table Chops Potomac Summer Poker Open Super Seniors Event
- angryaces4
- Aug 12
- 4 min read
A the final table chops it all at the 2026 Potomac Summer Poker Open ended without a traditional winner after all nine remaining players agreed to an ICM-based deal at MGM National Harbor.
The unusual finish came in the Super Seniors No-Limit Hold’em event, which was open to players age 60 and older. The tournament drew 153 entries and generated a $50,490 prize pool, according to PokerNews. Rather than continuing until one player had every chip, the entire final table agreed to divide the remaining prize money based largely on their chip positions.
Phillip Murphy, who held the chip lead when the deal was reached, received the largest payout at $6,088. Pepper Rodgers, the shortest stack among the nine players, collected $2,881.
Final Table Chops-Nine Players Split the Remaining Prize Money
The final-table deal produced the following payouts:
Phillip Murphy — $6,088
Michael Mathers — $5,832
Lawrence Zerolnick — $5,591
Frederick Narding — $5,133
Eric Persian — $4,033
Joseph Bianchi — $3,905
Charles Ausell — $3,363
Gordon Haab — $3,034
Pepper Rodgers — $2,881
The agreement dramatically flattened the payout differences that would have existed if the tournament had played to completion.
Murphy's calculated payout based on the original finishing structure was $13,570, according to the final-table figures published by PokerNews. Rodgers, meanwhile, had been in line for $1,357 if he finished ninth. Under the deal, Murphy sacrificed a significant amount of potential first-place money in exchange for locking up the largest guaranteed share, while Rodgers more than doubled the amount associated with ninth place.
That tradeoff is at the heart of many multiway tournament deals.
What an ICM Deal Means in a Poker Tournament
ICM stands for Independent Chip Model, a method commonly used to estimate the monetary value of tournament chip stacks when players are discussing a deal.
Tournament chips do not translate directly into dollars. A player holding twice as many chips as another player does not necessarily have twice as much equity in the remaining prize pool because every surviving player still has some probability of moving up the payout ladder.
An ICM calculation accounts for those stack sizes and remaining payouts to estimate each player's tournament equity. Players can then use those numbers as the basis for negotiating a chop rather than continuing to play for the scheduled payouts.
The Potomac Super Seniors agreement is an especially noticeable example because the deal included every player at the nine-handed final table.
Why a Nine-Way Chop Stands Out
Deals between the final two or three players of a poker tournament are common. A nine-player agreement is much less routine because substantially more players have to agree that locking up money is preferable to playing for the original payout structure.
The incentives can also be very different around the table.
A large stack gives up some of the upside associated with winning outright, while shorter stacks can secure substantially more money than their current finishing position guarantees. In this case, the difference was particularly clear at opposite ends of the chip counts.
Murphy secured $6,088 instead of risking elimination while pursuing the tournament's largest scheduled prize. Rodgers locked up $2,881 despite entering the agreement as the shortest stack.
For tournament players, the result is a useful reminder that deal-making is itself a financial decision. Players considering a chop need to understand both the guaranteed amount being offered and the value they are surrendering by ending play.
Potomac Summer Poker Open Continues at MGM National Harbor
The Super Seniors event was part of the 2026 Potomac Summer Poker Open at MGM National Harbor, which runs from August 5 through August 17 in National Harbor, Maryland.
The festival features more than $1.5 million in announced guarantees across its schedule, with events covering No-Limit Hold’em, mixed games, Pot-Limit Omaha and several specialty formats.
The largest tournament on the schedule is the $3,000 Main Event, which carries a $750,000 guarantee and is scheduled for August 14-17.
That means the nine-way Super Seniors chop was an unusual result inside a much larger festival rather than the conclusion of the series itself.
Big Multiway Chops Are Uncommon, but Not Unprecedented
Poker has produced several large final-table deals in recent years.
PokerNews reported an 11-way chop during a Monster Stack tournament at the 2026 Grosvenor Goliath festival in England. A 2024 ladies tournament at Wynn Las Vegas also generated discussion after 15 remaining players agreed to a deal.
Those examples illustrate why large chops attract attention: they effectively replace the normal final stages of a tournament with a negotiated financial settlement.
There is nothing inherently unusual about players wanting to reduce variance when the remaining money becomes meaningful. What made the Potomac Summer Poker Open result notable was simply the number of players who reached the same conclusion at the same time.
Instead of nine players battling through an entire final table, all nine walked away with guaranteed payouts — and the Super Seniors tournament was finished by roughly 9 p.m.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many players chopped the Potomac Summer Poker Open Super Seniors event?
All nine players at the final table agreed to a deal.
Who received the largest payout?
Phillip Murphy received $6,088, the largest share of the nine-way agreement.
How many entries were in the Super Seniors tournament?
PokerNews reported 153 entries and a total prize pool of $50,490.
Who was eligible to play the Super Seniors event?
The tournament was restricted to players age 60 and older.
What is an ICM chop in poker?
An ICM chop uses tournament stack sizes and the remaining payout structure to estimate each player's monetary equity. Those calculations can then serve as the basis for dividing the remaining prize pool without playing the tournament to completion.
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