The win was the second of the year for the California poker pro
Ian Steinman added another highlight to his already impressive poker résumé by taking down the RunGood Poker Series (RGPS) Bay Area Main Event at Graton Resort and Casino in Northern California. The $800 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament drew 643 entries, creating a prize pool of over $450,000—well above the $300,000 guarantee. Steinman emerged on top to win $67,540 and his second RGPS title of the year.
A native of Mountain View, California, Steinman has been on a solid run in 2025. He previously claimed the RGPS Main Event title in Reno back in March. This latest victory continues a strong career that includes a 2020 WSOP Online bracelet and eight WSOP Circuit rings. With this win, Steinman edges closer to the $2.4 million mark in career tournament earnings.
Steinman started Day 2 of the event in seventh chip position among the 82 players who made the money. He remained steady for most of the day until the field narrowed to the final table. A key hand came when Steinman was dealt pocket aces and doubled through Denis Lee’s pocket queens, giving him a major boost in chips.
From there, he started building momentum. He eliminated Scott Sanders in eighth place after flopping top pair with ace-ten and later knocked out Noel Rodriguez in fifth with ace-nine, which held up against king-queen. With each elimination, his stack grew and his control of the table tightened.
In three-handed play, Steinman extended his lead even further. He sent Michael Lin to the rail in third place with ace-eight over ace-six, then closed it out heads-up by beating Feiyue Wu with pocket tens against ace-five. It was a strong performance from start to finish, continuing a successful year for the 35-year-old poker pro.
