Robert Chorlian Wins First Major Title at PGT PLO Series
The short-stack starter outlasted 106 entries and beat Lautaro Guerra heads-up for $135,150 in Las Vegas.
Robert Chorlian won event No. 2 of the 2026 PGT PLO Series, turning a short-stack start on day two into his first major tournament victory. He topped a 106-entry, $5,300 pot-limit Omaha event at the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas for $135,150 from a $530,000 prize pool.
The six-handed final table began shortly before noon and finished before 2 p.m. local time. Chorlian started the day alongside Cesar Garcia at the bottom of the counts, while Lautaro Guerra held the overnight lead ahead of Sean Rafael, Ky Nguyen and Taylor Paur, according to Card Player.
An early double gave Chorlian the route back into contention. He knocked out Paur in sixth after completing a runner-runner heart flush, then eliminated Rafael in third for $60,950 and Guerra heads-up for $84,800.
The final two opponents brought deep PLO résumés to the table. Rafael had nearly $6.6 million in career cashes, almost entirely in PLO, while Guerra’s PLO earnings had passed $11.6 million, placing him second to Eelis Parssinen’s reported $12.1 million. Guerra had also eliminated Nguyen in fourth place after making a nine-high straight.
Chorlian had previously reached two WSOP final tables, including a runner-up finish in a $600 PLO event at the 2025 WSOP. He also placed third in a $10,500 no-limit hold’em event at the 2023 U.S. Poker Open.
The win earned Chorlian 203 PGT points and 480 Card Player Player of the Year points, his first qualifying result in that race this year. The PGT’s top 40 at season’s end in January, along with other qualifiers, can enter the $1 million PGT Championship; the 40th-place points cutoff stood at 900 when the report was published.
