After four days of play, excitement, and good vibes, players gathered at Resorts World once more for the final day of Mixed Game Festival XII. Stealing the spotlight was the $300 T.O.R.S.E. tournament, which ended up attracting a decent number of 26 entries and awarding $2,485 to Ronald Schiffman, the eventual winner, but there was plenty more action on the sidelines.
It was a slightly quieter day on the cash game front, with two $4/$8 tables running since noon… but not breaking until well after midnight, just like every other day of the festival. If past festivals are anything to go by, at least one table would likely have been going until the sun rises over Las Vegas.
There are always mixed feelings heading into the final day, for players and yours truly alike, because, on one hand, there are some great memories to take back home, but, on the other, there is the knowledge that the magic is over and it’s back to the usual routine. Just the cycle of life – and poker.
📢🎙️ A MGFXII attendee talks about his experience of playing with @NormanChad! 👍🥳
👉 Come join that fun at @PokerRoomRWLV as you never know who will be at the table! 🚨
📽️https://t.co/UZgaiZBK8Z
♠️♥️♣️♦️#PokerLifeMedia #MGFXII #NotAnAdForNormanChad pic.twitter.com/ZTgWDrf9It— Cardplayer Lifestyle (@PokerLifeMedia) November 20, 2025
First-Ever T.O.R.S.E. Event at the Resorts World
Wrapping up the official MGF XII activities was $300 T.O.R.S.E. tournament, the first event featuring this particular mix to ever take place at Resorts World. That was a bit of an accomplishment on its own and another nice first for the festival.
The event ended up attracting 26 entries, a decent increase compared to the O/E tournament earlier this week, generating a prize pool of $6,500 to be divided among the top four finishers. With four hours of late registration and accounting for the breaks, it took just over 12 hours for the event to reach its conclusion.
When it was all said and done, it was Ron Schiffman claiming the title and the accompanying prize of $2,485. Ron and his last remaining opponent, Jacob Nepom, actually made a heads-up deal, which saw Nepom lock up a very solid $2,000.
Congratulations to Ron Schiffman, winner of the first ever ($300) TORSE event at @PokerRoomRWLV for $2,485 (after a heads-up deal).
Thanks to all who came out to play with us at Mixed Game Festival XII ❤️
Until next time 😁 pic.twitter.com/BbABfO5eaP
— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) November 21, 2025
Also getting some return on their $300 investment were the third-place finisher, Darren Johnson ($1,124), and Yifan Tang in fourth ($891).
Adding some spice to the battle at the tables was PokerCoaching.com last-longer competition, open to all players wearing the patch. Though he missed the final table, Mike Miller was able to outlast all other qualified participants to ensure he didn’t go home empty-handed, earning himself a 1-year PokerCoaching.com Premium membership.
Congrats to @profmikeimo, winner of the patch last-longer competition as part of our $300 TORSE tournament.
He wins a 1-year membership to @PokerCoaching_ Premium 🎉 pic.twitter.com/TmEXLRtlSl
— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) November 21, 2025
Mixing It Up Again With “Omaha Second Best”
While players in the tournament were chasing accolades, those at the two cash game tables were looking for ways to get the most fun out of the last day of the festival. And what’s a better way to do it than adding yet another new poker variant to the mix?
Earlier during Mixed Game Festival XII, we saw the introduction of Razz 49, an interesting split-pot variation that combines standard Razz rules and card point totals. Last night, the game called “Omaha Second Best” made an appearance.
The game is played like a regular Omaha High in all of its aspects, i.e., dealing, betting, and hand rankings. However, at the showdown, the second-best hand scoops the pot.
It’s certainly an interesting variation that involves a lot of thinking, because you don’t want to have the best hand, but you also need to ensure you don’t end up with the third-best if there’s a multi-way showdown when cards are turned face-up.
Just trying to think about the best poker strategy for this game makes my head hurt a little bit, because I’m coming up with all sorts of scenarios with paired boards containing flushes that would be hell to navigate, so I’ll leave it at that. Maybe give it a try at your next home game and see how you like it?
PokerCoaching.com Player of the Day: Eric Wu
Our final pick for the PokerCoaching.com player of the day, at least for this particular festival, is Eric Wu from South California. Like a few others, Eric came over to Sin City for the F1 spectacle, but the “Mixed Game Poker in Las Vegas” Facebook group alerted him that the festival was happening, and he simply had to come over and play for at least a few hours.
A big poker fan, Eric says that it’s the strategic aspect of the game that attracts him the most, knowing that, although there is some gambling added to the mix, skill will always prevail in the long run.
Eric got into mixed games a few years back as he started to feel Texas Hold’em became a bit stale and boring, so he wanted to broaden his perspective. As our player of the day, he receives one month free of the PokerCoaching.com Premium membership, which he intends to use to brush up on his Hold’em skills, but is also looking forward to mixed game content from Alex Livingston.
Describing his experience at the Mixed Game Festival, Eric tells us he had a lot of fun, even though he admits that it was a bit tricky navigating his way through a bunch of games he’s never seen before.
As for his poker dreams, having picked up mixed games, Eric is hoping to eventually win a WSOP bracelet. He explains that he never really thought about it when he used to only play Hold’em, as fields are too big, but he feels that he has a much better chance in mixed game events.
If he could pick one tournament to win, it would be the $1,500 8-Game Mix. As someone who made a transition from Hold’em to mixed games, Eric’s advice to new players is to start with a game that has some similarities to Hold’em, like PLO, and take it from there. His own journey saw him pick up PLO first, dabble with double board bomb pots next, and then journey into the world of split pot games like Stud 8 and Omaha 8.
RunGoodGear Dealer of the Day: Stella Bray
The honor of closing out our Dealer of the Day section for MGF XII goes to Stella Bray, a full-time poker dealer and a licensed real estate agent.
Stella moved to Las Vegas from California back in 2002. She used to visit the city a few times a month, and when she saw the real estate market in Vegas moving in the right direction, she decided to move permanently.
In 2008, however, the market crashed, and Stella also had a lot going on in her personal life. Given that she’s always loved poker and played the game as a hobby, she decided to pick up a job as a dealer.
Over nearly two decades, she had jobs as a dealer, supervisor, and shift manager, gathering a lot of experience. She took all that experience to Resorts World, where she’s been working since the casino’s opening, four and a half years ago.
What she enjoys the most about the job is the fact that, despite it being a large casino, the poker room at Resorts World has that feeling of a small, local cardroom. And, as a true fan of poker, Stella says that dealing cards has never really felt like work.
Over the years, she has gotten to meet many people and hear many interesting stories. She’s also dealt at a number of Mixed Game Festivals, and what she particularly enjoys about that aspect is just seeing people get in the mix and trying to learn new games on the fly, making an effort and having fun in the process.
Farewell, but not a Goodbye
As the most “degen” players are still grinding away at the tables, squeezing every last bit out of the time left, we say farewell to yet another successful Mixed Game Festival.
No millionaires were made, and you won’t see any big headlines about it, but those who keep coming back know that the festival isn’t about all that. It’s about spending a few days playing some different poker, getting together with old friends, meeting some new ones, and taking home awesome memories.
That’s a wrap for now, but don’t you worry, the Mixed Game Festival will be back for its lucky thirteenth iteration before you know it. We don’t yet know when or where exactly, but, Cardplayer Lifestyle founder Robbie Strazynski told us that he’s “literally working on the next THREE festivals… and as soon as I have dates and locations locked in, I’ll be letting everyone know.” Be sure to follow Cardplayer Lifestyle on X and subscribe to the newsletter to be the first to know!
