Borgata Big, Big Series | Jeffrey Gibson rallies from a 3-1 deficit to win the 9-Game Championship and his second Borgata trophy.

On September 16, 2026, the Borgata Big, Big Series Mixed Game Grand Prix $2,500 E-Tay's Big, Big 9-Game Mix concluded at the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City. Jeffrey Gibson from Pennsylvania ultimately defeated Michael Falk in the Heads-Up, taking home $56,170 and his second Borgata championship trophy.

A total of 48 players participated in the event, and players had to switch between nine different poker variations. Gibson was down more than 1 to 3 when he entered heads-up play, but he eventually rallied in his favorite Stud Eight or Better round, extending his chip lead to about 6 to 1 and ending the game in the same round.

48 people competed for 9 variations of poker, and Gibson won $56,170.

This 9-Game Mix event lasted two days and recorded the following:

48 participants

At the start of Day 2, only:

10 contestants

Only the top 6 will make it into the prize pool.

Jeffrey Gibson successfully became the last player remaining at the table, winning:

$56,170

as well as:

My second Borgata championship trophy

This is also the largest non-No-Limit Hold'em tournament prize money of his career to date.

Final Table Results

Only 10 people remained on Day 2; after one level, they would advance to the Final Table.

Day 2 started at 12:15, with 10 players returning.

The competition only lasted for one level before the number of players on the field quickly dwindled to just seven.

Esther Taylor was the first to be eliminated, followed by Wayne Stock and Rolf Andersen.

The final seven players formed the final table, but only six actually made it into the money, so one more player had to be eliminated.

Aubrey Williams becomes a bubble in the rewards industry.

During the bubble phase, a No-Limit Hold'em approach is adopted.

Aubrey Williams only has:

6 Great Blinds

She holds:

K10

Select all.

Michael Dorff got the following in the BB position:

A4

Complete the call.

The community cards failed to help Williams complete the comeback, making her the last player to leave the event without winnings.

The remaining six have officially secured at least $9,680.

Bates AA suffered a reversal on the Omaha Hi-Lo river.

After entering the prize pool, Donovan Bates became the first player to be eliminated.

He had less than:

2 large bets

And put the final scoreboard in the Omaha Hi-Lo round.

Bates holds pocket aces, while Ryan Moriarty enters the duel with two wheel cards and a pair of eights.

Before the river, Bates' AA still had a chance to take down the pot.

But Moriarty ultimately finished on the river:

Sanjo 4

Having successfully taken the high cards, Bates thus won:

6th place

The game ended, and what I gained was:

$9,680

Philip Dedona wins career high prize money

Fifth-placed Philip Dedona was also eliminated due to a short streak.

After entering the Pot-Limit Omaha round, he had very few chips left and ultimately held:

Pocket 8s with suit cards

Put the final scoreboard in.

Gibson received:

Pocket A of Flush

And hit again on the community card:

Set

Dedona was unable to complete the comeback, ultimately finishing in 5th place:

$11,550

This also broke his personal record for the highest prize money in a live tournament.

Michael Dorff finished fourth in the Triple Draw.

Michael Dorff gradually ran out of chips after entering a four-player table.

In rounds 2-7 of the Triple Draw, he received:

9-8 low cards

And choose not to change cards for three rounds.

Ryan Moriarty succeeded:

8-6 low cards

Win the pot with a better low hand.

Dorff therefore concluded:

4th place

End of match, achieved:

$15,600

The three players with the highest score at the start of the game, Gibson, Falk, and Moriarty, ended up taking the top three spots.

Falk established a huge lead in 2-7 Single Draw.

In the first half of the three-person game, Michael Falk gradually took control of the match.

One of the key hands occurred in:

2-7 Single Draw

Falk received:

Pat 9

Gibson, on the other hand, is:

Pat 10

Both players chose not to change their cards, and Falk's 9-low ultimately won.

This large pot allowed Falk to further extend his lead, at one point holding approximately:

Two-thirds of the scoreboard

This also made him the closest competitor to the championship at the time.

Falk Stud Hi-Lo eliminates Moriarty

Before the three-person table ended, Falk faced Ryan Moriarty again at Stud Hi-Lo.

Falk ultimately completed the following:

Shunzi

as well as:

low cards

Defeating Moriarty:

A pair of A

Moriarty therefore:

3rd place

Takeaways:

$22,500

Falk, on the other hand, carries more than:

3 to 1

The scoreboard advantage goes into Heads-Up.

Heads-Up led the pack, changing hands multiple times.

Despite Falk's significant lead at the start of the 1v1 match, the game did not end quickly.

As the competition format continues:

• Limit

• No-Limit

• Pot-Limit

And the alternation between different mixed games, with the two sides exchanging chip king positions multiple times.

Gibson gradually closed the gap, which had been more than 3 to 1, and finally made a breakthrough in the game he was most familiar with.

Stud Eight or Better: The Turning Point for the Championship

After the game, Gibson stated that his favorite of the nine games was:

Stud Eight or Better

The reason is straightforward—this is the variant he believes he has mastered to the greatest extent.

And the champion was born in this very round.

Gibson first used Stud Hi-Lo with:

Sanjo 2

They won a huge pot and officially took the lead.

In the following hands, he further extended his advantage to:

Approximately 6 to 1

They completely turned the tide after initially trailing 1-3 at the head-up.

A final 6-high straight secured the championship.

The final decision to win the championship still hinges on Stud Eight or Better.

Gibson ultimately achieved the following:

6-high straight

Falk holds:

A pair of 8

It also retains an embedded straight draw.

However, the required replacement card never appeared.

Gibson successfully won the final pot, officially completing the comeback from a 3-1 deficit in heads-up play to win the championship.

Michael Falk ultimately received:

2nd place, $34,500

This is the second Borgata trophy, and both are from mixed games.

This is not the first time Gibson has won a mixed game in Borgata.

His first Borgata trophy came last summer:

$600 BEAST Mix

Coincidentally, BEAST Mix also includes his favorite Stud Eight or Better.

Now, with the addition of the 9-Game Mix championship, both of Gibson's Borgata championship trophies have come from mixed games.

He officially joined Mixed Games about a year and a half ago.

What's even more remarkable is that Gibson didn't specialize in hybrid games early in his career.

His championship record dates back to approximately:

20 years ago

However, he stated that although he had been exposed to some poker variations as a child, he only really started seriously participating in Mixed Games around that time:

One to one and a half years ago

In less than two years, he has already won two Borgata mixed game championships.

Gibson: Anyone has a chance to win at a four-player table.

Looking back at the Final Table, Gibson believes that once the game reached the four-player table, the competition became very close.

He stated that at the time, almost any player had a chance to win, and the overall strength and scoreboard distribution were quite even.

The final outcome was indeed gradually revealed as the game progressed through different rounds.

Falk once controlled two-thirds of the scoreboard, and Heads-Up led by more than 3 to 1, but Gibson eventually found a way to turn the tide in Stud Eight or Better.

From NLH regular to mixed game double champion

For Jeffrey Gibson, the $56,170 is certainly a significant gain, but what's truly noteworthy is the speed of his transformation.

Having only started seriously working on Mixed Games about a year and a half ago, it now boasts:

Two Borgata Mixed Game Championship Trophies

And this 9-Game Mix championship became his:

Biggest non-NLH tournament prize money of my career

From 48 participants and 9 different games, to a head-up deficit of over 3 to 1, Gibson ultimately pulled off a comeback in his strongest game, Stud Eight or Better, leaving the champion with a most representative ending in this mixed game.

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