The $600 Main Event at the 2024 RGPS Rungood Resort Tunica was more than just another tournament for Preston McEwen—it was a heartfelt homecoming.
Competing in the casino, he proudly calls home, McEwen triumphed over a field of 598 entries, claiming his sixth Rungood ring and $57,206 in prize money. Surrounded by friends and familiar faces, his joy was unmistakable, a sentiment he expressed in his simple but genuine words after the win:
“It feels really good.”
For McEwen, the victory carried a sense of destiny. “There was an odd feeling of déjà vu. It’s like I’ve been here before,” he reflected.
As a Memphis native, McEwen has enjoyed plenty of success at Horseshoe Tunica, including a WSOP Circuit Main Event title in January 2023. His deep familiarity with the venue and its players proved invaluable.
“I grew up playing here. It helps to know all the players and their tendencies,” McEwen explained, and it showed as he dominated the final table with an air of comfort and confidence.
Grateful for the support of his family, McEwen shared his excitement about celebrating the victory back home. “Thanks to my kids, and especially my wife, for letting me get out on the road to do this. I woke her up out of her sleep, and she was super happy.”
McEwen also acknowledged his heads-up opponent, John Holley, and the unique connection they shared. “I had a really cool conversation with John at the end of Day 1. We’ve both been through a lot in poker. We have weird intuitions and shared stories about premonitions we’ve had in poker, so it’s weird that we ended up getting heads-up.”
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Preston McEwen | $57,206 |
| 2 | John Holley | $38,137 |
| 3 | Jonathan Turner | $28,133 |
| 4 | Donnie Phan | $20,980 |
| 5 | Ryan Garren | $15,819 |
| 6 | Todd Tucker | $12,060 |
| 7 | William Latta | $9,299 |
| 8 | Jacob Foley | $7,252 |
| 9 | Tim Garles | $5,721 |
The Day’s Action
Seventy-one players returned for Day 2, all in the money and guaranteed a minimum cash of $937. As expected, the bustouts came quickly at the start of the day, as the tournament was reduced to four tables in just a couple of hours.
Many notable players made deep runs but failed to reach the final table. Some of these include WPT Champion Mark Davis (32nd-$1,769), Rungood Ambassadors Maggie Fox (23rd-$2,087) and Cody Stanford (14th-$3,687), and ten-time WSOPC ring winner Robert Hankins (11th-$4,566)
Final Table Action
With the elimination of Stephen Cleghorn in tenth place, the stage was set for the final nine to combine at the final table shortly before dinner.
After dinner, the first to fall was Tim Garles in ninth. He lost a close spot to double another player, then got the rest of his chips in with ace-nine against ace-queen. Garles would flop a nine but fell when a queen came in on the river.
Jacob Foley departed in eighth. He opened with aces off a short stack and was all-in on the flop against a flush draw. The flush completed on the river and Foley had to settle for eighth.
Next, there was a double elimination. Todd Tucker shoved ten big blinds from under the gun with pocket tens and William Latta called off for slightly less from the small blind with ace-king suited. In the big blind, Holley woke up with queens and held to oust both players in seventh and sixth.
The final five played for some time before another elimination. Ryan Garren was the next to fall. He jammed king-eight suited for ten big blinds over a button open and was called by McEwen in the big blind with ace-ten suited which held to end Garren’s night in fifth.
After coming into the final table as the short stack, Donnie Phan laddered up to fourth. He would eventually move in his his short stack with ace-eight and fell to ace-queen as he hit the exit after a valiant effort.
After another break, McEwen and Holley were deadlocked in chips, with Jonathan Turner lagging in third. However, Turner would flop quads against Holley and double to switch places on the leaderboard.
McEwen would start to pull away through his aggression before Turner called all-in with pocket queens against McEwen’s ace-jack. McEwen spiked an ace on the turn to send Turner out in third in brutal fashion.
Heads-up play would last a single hand. Holley’s final 22 big blinds found their way into the middle with king-seven suited against the pocket threes of McEwen which held as the players shook hands and McEwen captured another title at his home casino.
0
20
20
