After a long and hard-fought battle, Team MyofascialMe — managed by retired Professor of Turfgrass Management and poker enthusiast Michael Ventola — emerged as the winner of the 2025 PokerOrg Fantasy Freeroll. Ventola’s team stormed from behind to defeat the late favorites, Team Baldys Bandits, with two big late scores securing an impressive 59-point victory.
Poker is a mix of skill and luck, and Ventola’s sharp picks were helped by a stroke of fortune in the Main Event. Ike Haxton needed to finish in the top 99 to secure the crucial 97-point field bonus. Haxton ended up tanking for six minutes in his elimination hand, hoping to secure himself a pay jump and was criticized by Daniel Negreanu (another player from Ventola's winning side) in his WSOP vlog, who called his stalling tactics angle-shooting.
Haxton didn’t get his pay jump but he did secure 99th place and the massive bonus points that, in turn, were enough to give Team MyofascialMe the big win, after another player in his team, Sam Soverel, went on to win the $10K 6-Handed No-Limit Hold’em Championship.
Ventola wins a $10,000 Main Event package, which he can use for any tournament of his choice in Las Vegas over the next year. Team Baldys Bandits gets the consolation of a PokerOrg merch bag, along with the rest of the teams that finished in the top 10. The top PokerOrg team was managed by Sarah Herring — Team 2CardsChards finished 60th from a field of 1,773.
2025 Fantasy Freeroll final results
- 1st: Team MyofascialMe — 1521
- 2nd: Team Baldys Bandits — 1462
- 3rd: Team TY1823 — 1439
- 4th: Team sandman201 — 1430
- 5th: Team TGCcykeldavid — 1425
- 6th: Team Hammer — 1404
- 7th: Team Bedard — 1400
- 8th: Team Dimensionhopper — 1397
- 9th: Team YEG Allstars — 1388
- 10th: Team Mayberry Sheriffs Dept — 1381
Ventola’s winning team
- Isaac Haxton ($6) — 276
- Daniel Negreanu ($108) — 269
- Patrick Leonard ($30) — 256
- Ben Lamb ($15.00) — 228
- Sam Soverel ($4.00) — 214
- Dan Zack ($13.00) — 134
- Jared Bleznick ($6.00) — 83
- Erik Seidel ($15.00) — 61
The champion speaks
We spoke with Ventola to find out a little more about how he picked his side and what he plans to do with his first prize.
Congratulations, Michael! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I am a retired Professor of Turfgrass Management who has dabbled in poker tournaments since Moneymaker. Before poker I raced bicycles at a mini-tour level, placing 8th in the 1988 Olympic Trials. Since Retirement I have spent time in Las Vegas playing mostly mixed game tournaments. I was lucky enough to win a TORSE tournament at the Golden Nugget this summer and used a good chunk of the winnings to play the Main Event and get smashed by a bunch of very good Europeans at my day 1B table.
Your big budget buy was Daniel Negreanu and he delivered. What was your thinking behind picking him?
When Daniel drafted himself for his $25K fantasy team, I felt he would be playing hard for points and he did not disappoint.
Sam Soverel was your cheapest player and he came in really late with a critical bracelet win in Event 94 — was this purely a budget pick or strategic?
A bit of Both. Daniel had talked a bit about him. He seemed like a great value and delivered.
The other big hitter for you was Ike Haxton and he finished 99th in the Main Event to secure you the 97-point bonus.
I really think Ike is one of the smartest players and I love to listen to anything he has to say. Pads [Patrick Leonard] is another player who came through for me. He is really at the forefront of the smartest, most prolific players this year. My biggest letdown was Erik Seidel, who has always been my favorite player since Rounders. I am very envious of the coaching Maria Konnikova was able to get from him.
What are you going to use the prize for?
I want to say the WSOP Main Event next year, but after being spanked so hard by the Euros, I should play a $10K mixed tournament. I enjoy the mixed game players much more than the long-tanking current-day Main Event players. If the WSOP implements a shot clock, I will play the Main Event again next year. I want to thank PokerOrg for the great coverage and treatment of us mediocre players at the WSOP — the PokerOrg Lounge was a refuge for me during the WSOP.
