$200 Tag Team Championship
Day 1 Completed
2025 FPN Desert Dash-for-Cash National Championship
$200 Tag Team Championship
Day: 1
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1
2025 FPN Desert Dash-for-Cash National Championship
Buy-in
$200
Entries
149
Level
15
Blinds
15,000 / 30,000
Ante
30,000
Entries
149
Players Left
1
Level 15
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
The $200 Tag Team Championship at the 2025 Free Poker Network (FPN) Desert Dash-for-Cash National Championship reached its conclusion with the father and son team of Brett and Austin Emerick of Indiana taking home $1,000 and the coveted Tag Team Belts.
The Greazy Pickle representatives also won entry into Sunday's Desert Dash-For-Cash Championship Main Event, where participants will spar for a piece of the $100,000 cash prize and $10,000 in Mystery Bounties.
Brett Emerick, who owns the Indiana bar and told PokerNews he taught his son poker, started things off before letting Austin navigate the final table, culminating with flopping the nut flush against heads-up opponent David Batzler.
"He's never won an event like this so I (figured) I'd give him a chance," the elder Emerick said in a winner's interview.
The event was a family affair as the final table also included the mother-son duo of Lester Hauglid and Susan Hauglid.
2025 FPN Tag Team Championship Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Poker Club | Prize (In USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brett Emerick - Austin Emerick | Greazy Pickle | $1,000 |
| 2 | David Batzler - Michael Webb | Putters Vegas | $500 |
| 3 | Darin Murphy - Brad Bornburg | Cedar Inn | $300 |
| 4 | Lester Hauglid - Susan Hauglid | Billy Club/Shorewood Bar | $200 |
| 5 | Andrew Vossen - Clyde Johnson | Muddy Cow | $200 |
| 6 | Richard Hoag - Emily Niehaus | Mayfield | $200 |
| 7 | Magdiel Reyes - Daniel Kummrow | N/A | $200 |
| 8 | Ryan Herr - Brandon Timok | N/A | $200 |
| 9 | Luc Ciaranca - Deborah Kinney | N/A | $200 |
Father & Son I Want to Teach Him Right from Wrong
The FPN Tag Team Championship drew 149 teams or 298 total players. That's an increase from the 123 teams who played the May 2024 Tag Team edition that saw the duo of Noel Batres and Paul Hamann winning the $1,200 prize.
The duos in the FPN Tag Team event Saturday included fathers and sons, mothers and sons, couples and friends, and everything in between. Players swapped in and out regularly and anyone who wasn't at the table was close by drinking, chatting and sweating the action.
Action moved so quickly that the blinds were adjusted to 30 minutes. As the event reached the final two tables, one player revealed that he "took out some friends," including "the guy I'm rooming with."
There was a rapid-fire bubble as the teams of Hideki Takafuji and Ayaka Muraishi and Kenneth and Lori were eliminated in a dramatic double knockout.
Before the clocks could pause, the team of Luc Ciaranca and Deborah Kinney went out in ninth place as the Hauglid made a full house to head to the streamed final table in fashionable style.
The pairings of Ryan Herr - Brandon Timok, Magdiel Reyes - Daniel Kummrow and Richard Hoag - Emily Niehaus were the first to go at the final table followed by Andrew Vossen and Clyde Johnson representing the Muddy Cow.
Team Hauglid followed suit before Darin Murphy and Brad Bornburg bowed out to make way for a short heads-up battle that saw the Emericks coming out on top.
That wraps up PokerNews coverage of the $200 Tag Team Championship. We'll be back on-site in the morning for the long-awaited Desert Dash-For-Cash Championship Main Event.
*Photo courtesy Free Poker Network
Level 15
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
David Batzler was all in for 1,110,000 against Austin Emerick.
David Batzler - Michael Webb: 6?6? 
Brett Emerick - Austin Emerick: A?8?
There was no sweat for Team Emerick as the flop landed 2?4?9? to give them the nut flush as the board finished out 10?8? to earn them the Tag Team title as Batzler and Michael Webb went out in second place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,975,000
1,175,000
|
1,175,000 |
|
Busted |
Level 15
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
David Batzler was all in for 555,000 against Austin Emerick.
David Batzler - Michael Webb: A?3?
Brett Emerick - Austin Emerick: A?K?
It seemed like the end for Batzler before the board ran out 6?4?5?J?7? to give him a straight and keep him alive.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,800,000
-620,000
|
-620,000 |
|
|
1,100,000
553,000
|
553,000 |
Level 15
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Darin Murphy was all in for around a million in chips against Austin Emerick in a blind versus blind confrontation.
Darin Murphy - Brad Bornburg: Q?J?
Brett Emerick - Austin Emerick: K?Q?
Murphy was dominated and the cowboy with a stack couldn't improve as the board ran out 6?K?2?4?4? to mark his elimination in third place.
After a counting of the stacks, Murphy shook his opponent's hands and headed to the payout counter.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,420,000
1,744,000
|
1,744,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Level 15
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
In the 872nd episode of the PokerNews Podcast, which kicks off the New Year and Season 16, Chad Holloway, Kyna England and Mike Holtz are all at Level 9 Studio in Las Vegas to recap some of the biggest stories from the poker world in 2024.
That includes GGPoker purchasing the World Series of Poker (WSOP), both Daniel Negreanu and Phil Ivey capturing WSOP gold bracelets, poker bots, and Kristen Foxen's remarkable year, which included a deep run in the WSOP Main Event and being inducted into the Women in Poker Hall of Fame. Other stories they touch upon include Nick Vertucci's departure from Hustler Casino Live (HCL), the summer of Scott Seiver, and Triton Poker hitting it out of the park.
Chad then shares a special one-on-one interview he did with 1983 WSOP Main Event champ and Poker Hall of Famer Tom McEvoy to talk about his autobiography Poker Pioneer. McEvoy talks about the biggest moments of his storied career, shows off his extensive poker collection, and shares stories of some of the biggest names in poker including Doyle Brunson, Stu Ungar, and Phil Ivey, just to name a few. When it comes to poker history, few have as much experience as McEvoy, and this is your chance to hear from someone who actually lived it.
A new PokerNews Podcast will drop weekly every Friday at 8a PT / 11a ET / 4p UK time. Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you do not miss an episode!
Level 15
: 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
In a heads-up pot on a flop of 4?A?2?, Darin Murphy moved all in from the small blind as Lester Hauglid called off with a stack of 727,000.
Lester Hauglid - Susan Hauglid: A?Q?
Darin Murphy - Brad Bornburg: K?10?
Hauglid couldn't stay ahead as the board finished out 3?6? to mark the mother-son duo's elimination.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,826,000
632,000
|
632,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Level: 15
Blinds: 15,000/30,000
Ante: 30,000
Level 14
: Blinds 10,000/20,000, 20,000 ante
Andrew Vossen was all in for 32,000 against Austin Emerick and David Batzler.
Batzler moved all in on the flop of K?10?A? to get things heads up.
Andrew Vossen - Clyde Johnson: 7?3?
David Batzler - Michael Webb: A?Q?
The board finished out 4?A? and the team of Andrew Vossen - Clyde Johnson was sent to the rail in fifth place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
676,000
448,000
|
448,000 |
|
|
547,000
239,000
|
239,000 |
|
Busted |
Level 14
: Blinds 10,000/20,000, 20,000 ante
Brett Emerick was all in for 338,000 in the cutoff against Andrew Vossen in early position.
Brett Emerick - Austin Emerick: A?J?
Andrew Vossen - Clyde Johnson: 6?6?
The board ran out K?3?2?A?4? to earn Team Emerick a double as Vossen was left with crumbs.
