Daniel Lowery won the 2026 RunGood Poker Series Passport Season Dallas Main Event on Sunday, defeating Thao Tran heads-up after a back-and-forth match to earn $100,007 and his 12th RGPS title, the most by any player in series history.
The $1,200 buy-in event was held at Palace Poker in Grand Prairie, Texas, a room that opened last summer and hosted its first RunGood stop. The tournament drew 468 entries and generated a $500,000 prize pool. It marked the first time a six-figure prize was awarded at the venue.
Lowery bagged the overall chip lead on Day 1c, returned Sunday as the frontrunner with over 100 big blinds, and carried that momentum through the final table before closing out the heads-up match against Tran.
"Ecstatic. I mean, it's great. This room's great, the staff was great, the food was great, and I just had a great time. And to cap it off, I get to win two tournaments down here, so it's been a fun week."
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Lowery | $100,007 |
| 2 | Thao Tran | $66,618 |
| 3 | Ryan Albert | $49,149 |
| 4 | William Berry | $36,715 |
| 5 | Sophie Le | $27,693 |
| 6 | Mason Vieth | $21,114 |
| 7 | Karanvir Singh | $16,273 |
| 8 | Sharon Aloor | $12,681 |
| 9 | Charles Keisling | $9,992 |
Record-Setting Week in Dallas
Lowery also won the $400 Big O Ring Event earlier in the series, giving him two titles for the week and pushing his total to 12, one ahead of Preston McEwen, who previously held the record at 11.
"So, I was behind Preston McEwen when I came down here. He had 11, I had 10 titles, and now I have 12, and he has 11. That's a really good friend of mine. So a little good, friendly competition on something like that, for sure."
The main event cash also moved Lowery past Tyler Patterson to the top of the RGPS all-time money list, making him the most decorated player in series history by both titles and earnings.
The OG Ambassador
Lowery has been with RunGood since the beginning, promoting the brand across the circuit long before it had its current following.
"I started with Tana [Karn] back in '13, '14, and then ever since the inception of the RunGood Poker Series, I wore his apparel everywhere. I would try to be an ambassador at all the stops I would go to on the circuit or anywhere around the country, in the South mostly."
"He had me go to most of all the newer stuff that we've ever had and try to promote any tournaments that were upcoming. The face of RunGood has kind of changed over the last 3 or 4 years where it's more content creators and I don't fall into that category, but, there was 8 or 10 of us that we call ourselves the OGs that promoted RunGood back in the day. When I say back in the day, for the first 7-8 years, we helped it grow and we're proud of that. And most of us are still a big part of it."
Winning in Dallas had personal significance for Lowery, who has a long history playing in the area.
"I used to play in Dallas a lot, I know a lot of the players down here. I thought that would be good for me to come and try to promote. And it just so happened that I get to win the biggest one down here, so it's kind of cool."
For Lowery, the titles and prize money matter, but it is the community around the series that keeps him coming back.
"This poker series is great for poker. We just all turned into family and it's really cool to me to be a part of something like that."
