RunGood Poker Series Road Tripped to New Heights in 2023
The team at RunGood Poker Series – or RGPS – now how to read the room…and the industry. They added some stops to the full-year lineup but divided it into two sections. RGPS Checkpoint Powered by PokerGO ran through July 2023, and RGPS Road Trip took over and ran through November.
Altogether, the regular season stops with Main Event action, including the mid-year Thunder Valley series with The Hendon Mob Championship, rang in at 20, up a few from the 2022 schedule. And the attendance and prize pools reflected the growth. The following numbers compare 2022 and 2023 totals:
- Total entries across 20 Main Event tournaments: 12,527 in 2023 (up 24%)
- Total Main Event prize money awarded: $8,177,880 (up 32.6%)
- Total Main Event players paid: 1,579 (up 27.6%)
Of course, all of the tour stops offered more than just the Main Event, often with more than a handful of side events.
Player of the Year Undecided
The setup for RGPS seasons is unique. In 2022, the entire year was the RGPS Contenders, all of the year’s events under one banner. In 2023, however, RunGood changed it up.
The first half of 2023 was RGPS Checkpoint, which ended in July. From that point forward, the RGPS Road Trip took over. And it actually keeps going until summer 2024, though the tournaments that begin in January will be in the category of RGPS Destination RunGood.
Even with two half-year periods, that summer-to-summer 2023-2024 action is consolidated to host a Player of the Year race in partnership with Global Poker Index (GPI). Players earn points for more than just the Main Event tournaments, as every event open to the public – excluding invitationals, seniors-only and ladies-only events – can earn points or a player. The leaderboard will officially end on June 1, 2024, after the Thunder Valley stop.
When the leaderboard closes, the five players with the most points will each win a seat to the 2024 Hendon Mob Mid-Major Championship tournament and $500 to take care of travel.
POY Standings
As of December 2023, after all Checkpoint points have been distributed, the Player of the Year race looks to have one person holding a significant lead but others quite determined to make moves in 2024.
- 1. Brian Winter (1,490.27 points)
- 2. Shaun Emery (802.88 points)
- 3. Walker Miskelly (639.83 points)
- 4. Jason Simon (639.47 points)
- 5. David Prociak (533.55 points)
- 6. Loi Hoang (529.2 points)
- 7. William Stanford (505.88 points)
- 8. Daniel Hughes (504.54 points)
- 9. John Koo (503.05 points)
- 10. Kevin Grinder (497.62 points)
RGPS 2023 Results
We put together a tally of each Main Event on the RunGood Poker Series 2023 schedule. Here is a list of the numbers and winners of those poker tournaments:
| Run-Good Poker Series – 2023 | ||
| Checkpoint Powered by PokerGO & Road Trip Fueled by PokerGO | ||
| January | $600 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Tulsa Main Event |
| Total entries: | 649 | |
| Total prize pool: | $337,480 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 82 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,147 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Pete Petree $62,911 |
| February | $600 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint San Diego |
| Total entries: | 533 | |
| Total prize pool: | $277,160 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 68 | |
| Minimum payout: | $800 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Rafi Azam $52,820 |
| February-March | $600 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Tunica |
| Total entries: | 601 | |
| Total prize pool: | $312,520 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 75 | |
| Minimum payout: | $844 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Kevin Broadway $46,804 |
| February-March | $800 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Graton |
| Total entries: | 1,043 | |
| Total prize pool: | $730,100 | ($250K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 132 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,175 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Pe Kyaw $90,330 |
| March-April | $1,200 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Jacksonville |
| Total entries: | 628 | |
| Total prize pool: | $653,120 | ($300K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 79 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,921 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Antwan Prince $92,791 |
| April | $600 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Joplin |
| Total entries: | 683 | |
| Total prize pool: | $348,330 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 82 | |
| Minimum payout: | $871 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Dakotah O’Dell $63,647 |
| April | $700 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Council Bluffs |
| Total entries: | 605 | |
| Total prize pool: | $363,000 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 74 | |
| Minimum payout: | $918 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Joshua Kopp $68,797 |
| May | $600 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Reno |
| Total entries: | 359 | |
| Total prize pool: | $186,680 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 44 | |
| Minimum payout: | $955 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Stacey Berger $39,655 |
| May | $1,100 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Kansas City |
| Total entries: | 497 | |
| Total prize pool: | $484,575 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 60 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,806 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Andre Allen $86,550 |
| July | $600 buy-in | RGPS Checkpoint Thunder Valley (with THM) |
| Total entries: | 1,605 | |
| Total prize pool: | $834,600 | ($500K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 203 | |
| Minimum payout: | $900 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Jagdeep Bal $71,036 |
| August-September | $600 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Mississippi |
| Total entries: | 591 | |
| Total prize pool: | $373,360 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 88 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,008 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Loi Hoang $55,394 |
| September | $1,100 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Maryland |
| Total entries: | 196 | |
| Total prize pool: | $200,000 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 23 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,901 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Ari Katz $47,724 |
| September-October | $800 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Missouri |
| Total entries: | 682 | |
| Total prize pool: | $484,220 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 83 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,252 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Keith Keine $88,506 |
| October | $600 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Oklahoma |
| Total entries: | 499 | |
| Total prize pool: | $259,480 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 64 | |
| Minimum payout: | $558 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Tyler Barnes $52,692 |
| October | $800 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip California |
| Total entries: | 837 | |
| Total prize pool: | $585,900 | ($500K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 105 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,160 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Anne Bui $87,425 |
| October | $1,100 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Missouri |
| Total entries: | 423 | |
| Total prize pool: | $412,425 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 51 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,819 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | William McCracken $83,099 |
| November | $1,000 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Ohio |
| Total entries: | 590 | |
| Total prize pool: | $508,580 | ($400K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 78 | |
| Minimum payout: | $1,500 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Louis Ganser $102,225 |
| November | $600 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Mississippi |
| Total entries: | 661 | |
| Total prize pool: | $343,270 | ($200K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 82 | |
| Minimum payout: | $969 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Jack Keller III $62,826 |
| November | $700 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip Iowa |
| Total entries: | 546 | |
| Total prize pool: | $327,600 | ($100K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 67 | |
| Minimum payout: | $918 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Cody Bartlett $63,303 |
| November | $600 buy-in | RGPS Road Trip California |
| Total entries: | 299 | |
| Total prize pool: | $155,480 | ($150K GTD) |
| Players paid: | 39 | |
| Minimum payout: | $855 | |
| Winner: | 1st place: | Derrick Yamada $31,565 |
