Noticeboard & Leaderboard

Well I’ll be hornswoggled — another championship’s been settled, and this time the crown’s sittin’ squarely atop Smiley’s head! 🎉 WTG Smiley!

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When the cards needed fallin’, they fell his way. When the heat was on at the final table, he stood his ground. His bettin’ ways were questioned, the deck had its say, and darn near two championships were almost dragged back to the same hitchin’ post. In the end, Smiley faced off against DanK (about the only other soul in these parts known by just one name) and wrapped up a short, sharp heads-up duel. Smiley rides home with the trophy and the first-place prize. What a day on the trail!

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Here’s how the final table shook out:

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1st: Smiley
2nd: DanK
3rd: Ron Haynes
4th: Jeremy Paczuski
5th: Annie Bodner
6th: Arash Yadollahi
7th: Kevin Adams
8th: Scott Smith
9th: Tom Whattam
10th: Jim Whattam

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We also carried on the fine frontier tradition of the Bubble Shirt, and this year it landed on Mike Newell, who finished 11th and walked away with the prize. Now, it wasn’t too ugly — gotta leave room for future seasons — but it proudly reads:

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“I BUBBLED THE 2026 HARVEST MOON SHOWDOWN CHAMPIONSHIP AND ALL I GOT WAS THIS LOUSY T-SHIRT AND DOUBLE REWARD CARDS.”

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Every time Mike wears that beauty to poker this season, he’ll earn double reward cards. WTG Mike! A truly coveted prize around these parts.

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Earlier in the day, we held the Stay & Play Championship, and the winner was Chris Higham! WTG Chris! He earned himself a private chef experience with our very own Shai Mohindra, valued at $250. Sounds like Chris and his crew are settin’ themselves up for some fine eatin’ on an upcoming NFL playoff Sunday. Runner-up was… checks notes …Smiley?! Holy frijole, what a day for that cowboy.

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Seasonal awards were also handed out, and after comin’ up empty last season, Amit Jhamb stormed back to the top and hauled in a wagonload of gift cards. Here’s the full roundup:

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Amit Jhamb
• Points Leader – 10,997
• Most Bounties – 105
• Most Bounties per Entry (30+ appearances) – 2.06

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Judy Webster
• Most Final Tables – 19
• Highest Final Table % per Entry – 59%
• Highest Final Table % per Entry (30+ appearances) – 59%
• Highest Points per Entry (30+ appearances) – 239

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Arash Yadollahi
• Most Wins – 4
• Receipt Draw Winner

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Smiley
• Highest Attendance – 55

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Dan Rapp
• Most Bounties Redeemed for Reward Cards – 68

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Dan O’Neill
• Highest Points per Entry – 311

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Mike Hall
• Most Bounties per Entry – 3.15

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Matt Clayman & Lesli Gladstone
• Receipt Draw Winners

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Pat Butera
• Receipt Draw Winner

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Draw Winner
• Ariel Rogers — donation to be made to St. Matthew’s House

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And a big ol’ tip of the hat to everyone who helped make this season run smooth as a well-oiled six-shooter:

• Matt Clayman — thanks as always for helpin’ run the show and dealin’ the Stay & Play Championship.

• Lesli Gladstone — thanks for shufflin’ for the Stay & Play Championship, much appreciated.

• Norm Gaudette — thanks again for lettin’ me use your poker chips.

• Owen & Dave — thank you for the generous gift card donations.

• Shai Mohindra — thank you for the generous prize donation.

• Rob Gracie — thank you for takin’ professional-quality championship photos and helpin’ us capture the moment proper-like.

• Nancie McAuley — thank you for helpin’ sell draw tickets and keepin’ things movin’ all day long.

• Rachele, Mel, and the Brown Barrel kitchen staff — another smooth ride, it gets better every time.

 

And last but not least (dropping the Wild West schtick): a heartfelt shout-out to last season’s champion and the love of my life, Lesley Webb. Thank you for all your ongoing help and support — I honestly could not do this without you. You listen to every new idea I have, your feedback is invaluable, and you help me see the whole picture when something’s in my blind spot. Also, thank you for not winning again — that could actually help the business 😂 Not that you didn’t try; a 21st-place finish is a very respectable title defense. You’ll always have last season’s trophy, and no one can take that away from you. Please keep calling yourself “champ” as much as you like — you’ll always be my champion. ❤️🏆❤️

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Now saddle up — it’s time to hit the felt for The Cabin Fever Months and start the long ride toward the next championship!