Andrew Chang pulled off one of the most dramatic comebacks in the 2026 Borgata, Big, Big Series, winning Event #2: $2,200 Big, Big Kick Off at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The event drew 456 entries across two starting flights, generating a $1,000,000 prize pool. After a long final day, Chang beat David Stefanski heads-up for $182,000, the largest live cash of his career and the biggest title of the Big Big Series so far.
Chang’s road to victory was full of close calls. With two tables left, he was sitting at the bottom of the chip counts. He made his way back to the final table with a bigger stack, but then his progress was interrupted when Nick Pupillo reduced him to just 5 big blinds. Even then, he kept surviving all-in spots so often that players started calling his escapes his nine lives.
Tamayo and McKeehen Fall Before the Final Table
Day 2 began at 1:15 pm with 58 players left, including several well known players. 2024 WSOP Main Event champion Jonathan Tamayo went out in 56th place, cashing for $4,825. BetMGM Ambassador Michael Lavin finished 53rd for $6,125, and Brock Wilson took 51st for the same payout.
2015 WSOP Main Event champion Joe McKeehen finished 32nd for $7,450. BetMGM Ambassador Darren Elias was eliminated in 28th for $8,880, and Mike Dentale became the last one out before the field reached the final three tables, finishing 25th for $8,880.
The eliminations kept coming as Kharlin Sued was 24th for $8,880, Justin Liberto took 23rd for $10,525, Aubrey Williams finished 22nd for $10,525, and Thomas Cannuli landed in 18th for $10,525. Bin Weng went out 12th for $12,275.
Nicholas Verderamo missed the final table after losing with two pair to Jeremy Becker’s full house. He finished 10th for $14,725.
Stefanski Flops Quads to Take a Commanding Lead
The final table opened with a huge cooler between David Stefanski and Michael Wang. Stefanski moved all in with pocket kings against Wang’s pocket aces. A king-high board let Stefanski win the pot, leaving Wang with just a few chips.
Wang soon moved all in with ace-ten against Namit Patel’s seven-six. Both made straights on the river, but Patel’s seven-high straight was best, and Wang took 9th for $18,200.
Dylan Lemery, who entered the final table as the shortest stack, was 8th for $22,050. He moved all in with king-eight from the button but ran into Chang’s queens in the big blind. A king hit the flop, but Chang completed a straight on the river.
Stefanski picked up a crucial pot against start-of-day chip leader Nick Pupillo. Stefanski flopped quads, Pupillo turned a full house, and the two got more than one-third of the chips in play in the middle. Stefanski’s victory moved him to more than half of the chips in play.
Chang Overturns a 5:1 Deficit Heads-Up
Chang was behind the next two eliminations. Early at the final table, Matthew Constanzo doubled Chang up twice, but the third big confrontation left Constanzo at risk. Constanzo’s ace-nine lost to Chang’s ace-jack, sending him out 7th for $26,425.
Jeremy Becker was next. With less than one big blind left, Becker moved all in with ace-seven from the button. Stefanski raised from the small blind, then folded when Chang went all in with ace-queen from the big blind. Becker picked up several straight and flush possibilities on the turn, but could not complete the comeback. He finished 6th for $32,625.
Stefanski kept piling up on the pressure with his big stack. Pupillo ended up calling off his stack with pocket sevens versus Stefanski’s ace-jack. The flop brought a jack, eliminating Pupillo in 5th for $40,950.
Dylan Gordon finished 4th for a career-best $58,425, moving all in with ace-eight and running into Patel’s ace-king.
Chang Turns the Match Around
When play was three-handed, Stefanski had more than double the combined stacks of Chang and Patel. He kept up the aggression, but both Chang and Patel found doubles against him and each other.
Patel eventually went all in with ace-three versus Stefanski’s ace-queen. Patel paired the wrong card and finished 3rd for $87,725.
Heads-up started with Stefanski in control, holding a 5:1 chip lead over Chang, who had just 10 big blinds. Over the next two levels, Chang closed the gap. He eventually took over, building a 2:1 advantage as the blinds went up.
The final hand saw Stefanski call off his last chips with ace-three against Chang’s king-jack. The board came J♠ 7♥ 7♦ 8♦ 9♥, giving Chang a pair of jacks and the win. Chang collected $182,000 for the win, with Stefanski taking $126,375.
Chang said he had played mostly cash games since 2018 or 2019 and had only focused on tournaments in the past two years. He credited his hard work, but also recognized how much luck played into his comeback.
