No-limit Texas hold’em dominates tournament poker, but Phenom Poker is making a different bet. Its inaugural Phenom Series of Poker (PSOP) will crown a nine-game mixed champion rather than build towards a traditional hold’em Main Event.
Running from October 23 to November 15, 2026, the festival features 92 tournaments, including 34 mixed-game events. That is an unusually prominent role for formats that often struggle for space on major online schedules.
A Nine-Game Main Event With 50,000 CHIP Guaranteed
The PSOP advertises 706,500 CHIP in tournament guarantees. Phenom says its CHIP playing currency is backed one-to-one by US dollars, making the total equivalent to $706,500 under the site’s stated arrangement.
The headline 9-Game Mix Masters High Roller takes place on November 15. Its 5,000 CHIP buy-in and 50,000 CHIP guarantee reward players comfortable switching between several disciplines, rather than relying on one familiar strategy.
Selected PSOP Tournaments
| Date | Event | Buy-in | Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 23 | PLO Championship | 500 CHIP | 20,000 CHIP |
| Oct. 24 | 2-7 Triple Draw Championship | 500 CHIP | 20,000 CHIP |
| Nov. 1 | 8-Game Mix Championship | 500 CHIP | 15,000 CHIP |
| Nov. 15 | 9-Game Mix Masters High Roller | 5,000 CHIP | 50,000 CHIP |
The official PSOP schedule also features more conventional hold’em competitions. Phenom is not abandoning the game’s most popular format; it is challenging the assumption that hold’em must headline every festival.
What Is Phenom Poker?
Launched in late 2024, Phenom Poker is a cryptocurrency-focused online room that has deliberately targeted mixed-game enthusiasts. The business operates through Phenom Poker S.A. in Panama, while the Phenom Foundation owns the website and related assets.
Players use CHIP for games and tournaments, while a separate PHNM token underpins the site’s community-ownership and governance ambitions. Those are different products: tournament guarantees are denominated in CHIP, and promotional PHNM rewards should not be treated as guaranteed cash.
The operator has also experimented with blockchain infrastructure and an extensive selection of unusual games. Tournament director Andrew Yeh won the 2022 WSOP $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship, providing some genuine mixed-game expertise behind the schedule.
Beyond Hold’em: Games You Rarely See Online
Phenom’s appeal comes partly from variants that larger poker rooms seldom offer together. Some change the meaning of a strong hand entirely; others divide pots between competing objectives.
- Dramaha: Combines Omaha with five-card draw, using separate hand evaluations.
- Badugi: Rewards four low cards of different ranks and suits.
- Badeucy: Splits the pot between deuce-to-seven lowball and Badugi.
- Big O: Five-card Omaha Hi-Lo, where high and qualifying low hands can share the pot.
- 2-7 Triple Draw: Players draw up to three times, chasing the best low hand.
The room also spreads H.O.R.S.E., eight-game rotations and more elaborate combinations. Learning Badugi or other mixed poker games gives players a different set of strategic problems from preflop ranges and continuation bets.
Famous Names, Deep Mixed-Game History
Phenom’s associated professionals include Brian Rast, Dan “Jungleman” Cates, Viktor Blom, Phil Laak and Huck Seed. Rast has won the WSOP $50,000 Poker Players Championship three times, while Cates won it consecutively in 2021 and 2022. Blom, better known as Isildur1, built his reputation in spectacular online high-stakes battles.
Mixed-game prestige is hardly new. Chip Reese won the inaugural $50,000 WSOP H.O.R.S.E. event in 2006, and the Poker Players Championship later evolved into a broader test of poker versatility. Phenom is applying that established idea to an online series.
Satellites, Freerolls and Token Rewards
The PSOP includes 428 satellites and 156 freerolls, giving lower-stakes players routes into selected tournaments. Separately, leaderboard and participation promotions offer PHNM tokens, with restrictions including a one-year lock-up. The site’s promotional material also advertises WSOP Paradise packages.
Those incentives need to be distinguished from the published tournament guarantees. Players should examine eligibility, token conditions and local legal restrictions before entering.
Can Mixed Games Challenge Hold’em?
Hold’em remains easier for newcomers to learn and far better supported by major tournament fields. A nine-game championship is unlikely to change that overnight.
But Phenom does not need mixed games to replace hold’em. If the PSOP attracts a loyal community that wants stud, draw and split-pot poker alongside familiar formats, it could demonstrate that a successful online festival need not finish with another no-limit hold’em Main Event.
