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Poker veteran JC Tran delivered a hometown victory at Thunder Valley Resort Casino, winning the RunGood Poker Series Passport Season Finale for the first time in his career. Tran outlasted 1,086 entries to claim the top prize of $163,700 from a total prize pool of $1,140,300.
The win marks Tran’s first live tournament title since 2020, a notable achievement given how his priorities have shifted in recent years. Tran told PokerNews that fatherhood now takes precedence over constant travel, explaining that coaching his son’s youth basketball team has become one of his most rewarding pursuits, even ranking above some of his tournament victories.
Despite stepping back from the grind, Tran showed he hadn’t lost his edge. He entered the final day with a healthy stack and built on it throughout, eliminating several players including Samuel Panzica and Michael Cervantes before reaching the final table third in chips.
A dramatic hand against Jason Smith proved pivotal, as Tran hit quads after getting his short stack in with a lesser pocket pair, ultimately sending Smith out in fourth place. Tran then eliminated Ricardo Bibat in third to enter heads-up play with a commanding chip lead over Rajat Paliwal.
The heads-up battle stretched over two and a half hours, with both players trading the chip lead. Tran dipped to as low as 15 big blinds before doubling up with ace-high, a turning point that helped him regain control of the match.
Tran closed out the tournament when his pocket kings held against Paliwal’s pocket nines. Reflecting afterward, Tran credited some favorable run-outs at the final table for sealing his championship victory.
