Joe McKeehen won the final tournament of the 2026 PGT Sprint, topping a 53-entry field in Event #7: $10,500 No-Limit Hold'em. He earned $174,900, 175 PGT points and his first PGT title of the 2026 season.
McKeehen had to overcome a deficit of more than 2-to-1 in heads-up play against Daniyal Gheba, who had eliminated three players in succession to reach the final two.
Event #7 Results and the Money Bubble
The tournament generated a $530,000 prize pool. Patrick Leonard and Martin Zamani were eliminated on the same hand at separate tables on the money bubble. They split the minimum payout, receiving $10,600 each. Nine players finished in the money, with seven advancing to the final table.
| Place | Player | Prize | PGT Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joe McKeehen | $174,900 | 175 |
| 2 | Daniyal Gheba | $111,300 | 111 |
| 3 | Darren Elias | $74,200 | 74 |
| 4 | Nicholas Schulte | $53,000 | 53 |
| 5 | Jamie Dwan | $42,400 | 42 |
| 6 | Neil Warren | $31,800 | 32 |
| 7 | Brandon Wilson | $21,200 | 21 |
| 8 | Martin Zamani | $10,600 | 11 |
| 9 | Patrick Leonard | $10,600 | 11 |
McKeehen Turns the Heads-Up Match Around
Jamie Dwan eliminated Brandon Wilson in seventh place, then Nicholas Schulte knocked out Neil Warren in sixth.
During an extended stretch of five-handed play, McKeehen took the chip lead, only for Dwan to double through him and move ahead. McKeehen doubled back on the very next hand to reclaim the lead.
Gheba then scored three consecutive knockouts, sending Dwan out in fifth, Schulte in fourth and Darren Elias in third. That gave Gheba more than twice McKeehen's chips entering heads-up play.
The advantage did not last. McKeehen quickly closed the gap, took the lead and defeated Gheba to claim the title.
McKeehen Climbs 62 Places in the PGT Standings
The victory earned McKeehen 175 PGT points, moving him from 166th to 104th on the season leaderboard. He finished PGT Sprint with 308 points from four cashes, bringing his season total to 492, just 12 points short of the top 100.
Runner-up Gheba earned 111 points and climbed 27 places to 69th. He collected 135 points across the final two Sprint events, moving from 102nd to 69th over that stretch. Elias earned 74 points for third place and rose 23 spots to 121st.
Dwan's fifth-place finish brought his season total to 829 points, placing him 51st and 145 points behind Sergio Martinez Gonzalez in 40th. Brandon Wilson added 21 points to reach 1,637 in seventh, 63 points behind sixth-ranked Adrian Mateos.
2026 PGT Leaderboard Top 10 After the Sprint Finale
| Rank | Player | Wins | Cashes | Prize Money | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sean Winter | 2 | 17 | $4,391,694 | 2,223 |
| 2 | Brock Wilson | 5 | 16 | $1,635,784 | 1,942 |
| 3 | Alex Foxen | 2 | 16 | $2,817,054 | 1,897 |
| 4 | Jeremy Ausmus | 2 | 31 | $2,365,226 | 1,836 |
| 5 | Eelis Parssinen | 2 | 7 | $3,754,917 | 1,783 |
| 6 | Adrian Mateos | 4 | 11 | $5,701,311 | 1,760 |
| 7 | Brandon Wilson | 1 | 20 | $2,983,096 | 1,637 |
| 8 | Yuri Dzivielevski | 3 | 7 | $5,151,421 | 1,602 |
| 9 | Sam Soverel | 5 | 22 | $1,710,283 | 1,590 |
| 10 | Lucas Jumalon | 1 | 1 | $10,000,000 | 1,550 |
The Road to the $500,000 PGT Championship
The 2026 season is scheduled to conclude with the $500,000 PGT Championship freeroll on January 11–12, 2027. The field will include the top 40 eligible players on the season leaderboard and select Dream Seat winners.
A top-40 ranking alone does not guarantee entry. Players must also record at least four cashes in PGT events during the season, including one in a PGT-owned-and-operated event, and opt in before the final series. If a player fails to meet the requirements, the spot passes to the next eligible player.
Twenty qualifying events are scheduled for December, including six at the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas and 14 at WSOP Paradise in the Bahamas. All have buy-ins of at least $10,000 and award 50% of standard PGT points.
The $250,000 WSOP Paradise Pro-Am is excluded. In events where players can cash more than once, only their best finish counts toward PGT points and Championship qualification.
PGT Last Chance returns to the PokerGO Studio from January 4–9, 2027, with six $10,500 No-Limit Hold'em tournaments to close out the regular season. The series leaderboard will award five Dream Seats into the PGT Championship.
