Home grown Jennifer Shahade led the list of winners in the return of PokerStars Live to Philadelphia, where the sophomore series wrapped up an eight-day event on Monday with its Main Event final table.
The series tossed out seven trophies along the way, including the $2,200 PS Open High Roller and the $1,100 Main Event with just over $860K in prizes.
Shahade checks women's field
The PokerStars Ambassador and Philly native was best in show in the Women's Event on Friday, where 53 entries turned out for the $300 event that shared a Friday with the second flight of the Main Event. Shahade beat Turiya Harris in heads-up play to win $3,790, the big share of a $10,000 prize pool.
It's the first "Official PokerStars Spade' for Shahade, though she did beat 193 entries to win the PokerStars Women's Summer Festival Main Event in London last August.
2026 PokerStars Philly Women's Event results
- Jennifer Shahade - $3,790
- Turiya Harris - $2,810
- Sandra Renauro - $1,500
- Tina Lugay - $1,100
- Sarah Wasch - $800
Meanwhile, the $2,200 High Roller drew 73 entries and it ended in a deal between Michael McNicholas and Michael Bohmerwald. The Michaels found common ground on a heads-up deal before McNicholas took the trophy and $42,483.
Familiar face wins Main Event
Elsewhere, a crowd of 896 entries worked their way down to a final table for Monday's finale, where Michael Linster closed the deal for $126,705. Linster added to a career total of more than $2.3 million, topped by a World Poker Tour win in Jacksonville for $296K that earned him a spot on the Mike Sexton Cup in 2013.
Other big scores for the old school grinder include a $188K third-place finish in the 2013 Full Tilt Poker Festival in Montreal and a 47th-place finish in the 2017 WSOP Main Event for $145K. Linster had taken his foot off the gas in the past few years to spend more time with family, but his return to the game has been a lucrative one.
2026 PokerStars Open Philly Main Event final table results
- Michael Linster - $125,705
- Michael Klein - $80,705
- Jason Raber - $56,400
- Thilbaud Martin - $41,400
- Jean Brillant - $41,400
- Arlie Shaban - $25,400
- Jason Rivkin - $20,400
- Abel Gebeyehu - $15,900
- Troy Laypo - $12,400
The PokerStars Open tour now jumps back over the Atlantic for a trip to Namur from May 27 through June 7 and then Malaga from June 22 to 28.
Images courtesy of Rachel Kay Winter/Philly Live/Rational Intellectual Holdings, Ltd.
