Eight Deuce · Tournament #60

Jeff Ferguson’s Ace Plays on the Final Night

A three-minute heads-up, a kicker decided by the board, and a second Eight Deuce win that sends Jeff Ferguson into the Tournament of Champions on his own ticket.

Jeff Ferguson saved his best for the last night of the regular season. Four hours and 36 minutes in the chair, two knockouts, and they were the two that mattered: Sean Denny in fourth and Joe Johnson at the end, after a heads-up that lasted just three minutes and seven seconds. On the final hand Jeff, holding the chip lead, moved all in with the ace of hearts and the jack of spades. Joe Johnson called with the king and ten of diamonds. Nobody paired. The board brought nines and fours, twice each, so it came down to the fifth card — and Jeff’s ace outranked the king. The win is worth $405. It is his second Eight Deuce win and his first since #49 in September of last year, and it caps a season that already had a third in February and runner-up finishes in March and August.

Joe Johnson took second and $260. The Player of the Year came in chasing a fifth win of the season and spent the night clearing the table to get there: Angela Cain, Joe Rottinghaus and Eric Denny all went out at his hands. It is his sixth cash of 2026 — four wins, a third and now a second.

Angela finished third for $180, her first cash of the season. She bought back in along the way and made it count, and it was Angela who sent Shawn Miller home on the bubble. Her best finish this year had been fifth, back at #55 in May.

Sean Denny took fourth and $135, and by now the number hardly needs announcing. He was fourth at #56, fourth at #57, fourth at #58, fourth at #59 and fourth again here — five tournaments this season, five fourth-place finishes. He was also the busiest player in the room, with four knockouts, more than anyone else on the night.

Where the money went

The undercard

The bubble belonged to Shawn Miller, fifth and one place out of the money. He did plenty of damage first, knocking out Warren Mervin and Brian Connolly, and because Sean had rebought, Shawn actually scored more points from fifth than Sean did from fourth. Joe Rottinghaus made two knockouts of his own on the way to seventh, including Lance Cain. The first player out was Josh Maida, an hour and 52 minutes in, one of Sean’s four.

The bigger picture

The season is in the books, and it belongs to Joe Johnson. He finishes as Player of the Year on 595.30 points — the highest final total in Eight Deuce’s six seasons, and 252.85 ahead of the field, the widest winning margin the league has seen. The night’s biggest mover was Jeff, who jumped from seventh to second in the final standings.

Ten tournaments produced seven different winners: Joe Johnson, Steve McLean, Eric, Shawn, Juan Lopez, Warren and now Jeff. All seven have a seat in the Tournament of Champions, and Joe Johnson’s three extra wins open three at-large seats for the highest-ranked players without a win. Jeff’s win moved him out of that group and into a winner’s seat, so the last at-large chair passes to Justin Vaughn, joining Brian and Andrew Shier. Ten seats, and the field is full. Next up is the Annual on Saturday, November 14, then the Tournament of Champions, with its date still to be announced.

Eight Deuce #60 — Friday, October 9, 2026. 14 entrants and 4 rebuys, four paid from a $980 prize pool. Points shown are the final Player of the Year standings after all 10 tournaments of the 2026 season, counting each player's best 8 results.