Andrew Lichtenberger, Patrick Leonard, Taylor Wilson, and Sergei Varnaev have emerged as champions in prestigious recent high-roller events, showcasing exceptional skill and determination. Here is a quick recap of their victories achieved in PGT Kickoff High Roller, 2025 Lucky Hearts Poker Open High Roller, and Merit Poker Western High Roller.
2025 PGT Kickoff Winners
The new season of PokerGo Tour began with the 2025 PGT Kickoff on January 20th. In Just two days since it began, the series has crowned two winners in Events #1 and #2 – Andrew Lichtenberger & Patrick Leonard.Â
Andrew Lichtenberger Wins 2025 PGT Kickoff Event #1
The first event of the 2025 PGT Kickoff had a buy-in of $5,100, which drew 84 entry fields, generating a total prize pool of $420,000. As the dust settled, it was PGT regular Andrew Lichtenberger, who took down the event, defeating top pros and banking a six-figure score of $117,600. It was his 7th career PGT title, which brought his total live earnings to $21.3 million.
As the field was small, only the top 12 players collected a piece from the total prize pool. 2010 Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel made it to the final table but was out in 7th place. Meanwhile, 2024 Poker Hall of Famer contender Nick Schulman finished 2nd to grab the $75,600 payout. He was followed by Matthew McEwan, who picked $54,600 for his podium finish.
PGT Kickoff #1: $5,100 Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout |
| 1st | Andrew Lichtenberger | $117,600 |
| 2nd | Nick Schulman | $75,600 |
| 3rd | Matthew McEwan | $54,600 |
| 4th | John Riordan | $39,900 |
| 5th | Dennis Beres | $29,400 |
| 6th | Patrick Leonard | $21,000 |
| 7th | Erik Seidel | $16,800 |
Patrick Leonard Wins 2025 PGT kickoff Event #2
The $5,100 buy-in event saw an impressive turnout of 96 players, almost creating a $500k prize pool but missed it by just four entries. Although the event saw PGT regulars like Aram Zobian and the 17-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, it was England’s popular pro Patrick Leonard who outlasted them all to score a live tournament victory after 2.5 years. For his victory, he earned a whopping $124,800 payday, which brought his live earnings to $3.4 million.
Leonard defeated PGT regular Aram Zobian in the heads-up for his first PokerGo title. Zobian for his 2nd place finish collected $79,200. Joseph Cheong finished on the podium, adding $57,600 to his live earnings.
PGT Kickoff #2: $5,100 Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout |
| 1st | Patrick Leonard | $124,800 |
| 2nd | Aram Zobian | $79,200 |
| 3rd | Joseph Cheong | $57,600 |
| 4th | Joey Weissman | $43,200 |
| 5th | Sam Laskowitz | $33,600 |
| 6th | Natalie Ferguson | $24,000 |
| 7th | Chino Rheem | $19,200 |
Sources – PGT Blog
Taylor Wilson Ships 2025 Lucky Hearts Poker Open High Roller
The 2025 Lucky Hearts Poker Open (LHPO) $25,500 buy-in High Roller saw an entry field of 56 players, smashing the guaranteed $1 million for a total prize pool of $1,383,200. The 1-day event was fast-paced and saw only the final seven players sharing the massive prize pool.
The heads-up of the event saw the emerging high-roller star Brandon Wilson facing up against Taylor Wilson. In the Wilson Vs Wilson battle, it was Taylor Wilson who emerged victorious, winning his career’s second high-roller title for a career-best live cash of $511,900.
Brandon Wilson ended 2024 with three high-roller victories at Seminole Hard Rock and began 2025 with two high-roller victories at PGT Last Chance. In this event, added another six-figure score of $304,300 for runner-up finish. His latest finish pushed his overall live earnings past $4 million.
2025 LHPO High Roller Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout |
| 1st | Taylor Wilson | $511,900 |
| 2nd | Brandon Wilson | $304,300 |
| 3rd | Chance Kornuth | $186,700 |
| 4th | Daniel Sepiol | $131,400 |
| 5th | Dylan Smith | $103,700 |
| 6th | Matthew Sabia | $82,900 |
| 7th | Brian Luo | $62,300 |
Source: Seminole Hard Rock Poker Blog.
Sergei Varnaev Triumphs in Merit Poker Western $5,300 High Roller
Russia’s Sergei Varnaev triumphed in the $5,300 buy-in Merit Poker Wester High Roller, securing a career-best $200,000. The $5,300 high roller attracted 174 entries inside the Crystal Cove Hotel & Casino and created a total prize pool of $800,400. Not only did Varnaev put his name among Merit Poker champions, but he also took his live earnings past $250k.
The top 23 players shared the massive prize pool, whereas the top 2 players ended up picking a six-figure sum. Lyudmil Ivanov finished as the runner-up to collect $134,000. Maxime Chilaud rounded up to the top 3, earning $89,900.
Merit Poker Western $5,300 High Roller Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout |
| 1st | Sergei Varnaev | $200,000 |
| 2nd | Lyudmil Ivanov | $134,000 |
| 3rd | Maxime Chilaud | $89,900 |
| 4th | Maher Achour | $65,000 |
| 5th | Bogdan Jontulovic | $50,000 |
| 6th | Mehmet Demirkol | $39,000 |
| 7th | Ludovic Uzan | $30,000 |
| 8th | Sachin Joshi | $23,000 |
| 9th | Xin Tang | $18,000 |
Source – Merit Poker Facebook
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