Major Events & Competitions

WTT Returns: Pegula, Fritz, Shapovalov Headline Reimagined Tennis League

New York – September 14, 2026 -- World Team Tennis (WTT) tickets go on sale September 15 at 10am ET on WTT.com for the league's relaunched 47th season, featuring three city-based clubs stacked with top-ranked singles stars this December.

Three clubs draw from tennis's current elite

The Toronto North Racquet Club rosters Victoria Mboko, Leylah Fernandez, Denis Shapovalov, and Gabriel Diallo. New York Empire Racquet Club counters with Jessica Pegula, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, and Camila Osorio. The Florida Flamingos Racquet Club adds Learner Tien, Iva Jovic, and Tommy Paul, with the league set to name additional players in coming weeks.

Poker CEO Cashes $88,800 as New Tool Reveals Every Hole Card

San Jose, Costa Rica – September 13, 2026 -- Americas Cardroom CEO Phil Nagy collected $88,800 across two tournaments on Sunday, September 6, while the site's new Final Table Replayer let players scrutinize every hand from the action.

Playing under the name Justsomefish72, Nagy finished second in the $10,300 Phil's Thrill for $78,000, drawn from a $260,000 prize pool. He also placed fifth in the $2,650 Mini Phil's Thrill for $10,800, from a $90,000 prize pool.

A new weekly PLO event drew 54 entries

Sunday marked the debut of Mini Phil's Thrill PLO, a $2,650 Pot-Limit Omaha tournament that attracted 54 entries and built a $135,000 prize pool. Americas Cardroom plans to run the event weekly. Nagy created the Phil's Thrill series so he could regularly compete against high-stakes players on the platform.

Shooting Survivor Wins $10,000 in Amped Fitness Creator Contest

St. Petersburg – September 13, 2026 -- Amped Fitness named Joel "J.D." Valdez the $10,000 Grand Prize winner of its first Amped Summer Creator Challenge, a three-month contest that drew more than 2,000 creators competing for a $25,000 total prize pool.

Over 100 million views flooded in from thousands of submitted videos

Launched in June as the debut activation of the Amped Creator Program, the challenge invited members to document their personal experiences with the gym brand. Content ranged from transformations and training milestones to friendships and setbacks, collectively racking up more than 100 million views across social media. Amped Fitness distributed the $25,000 prize pool across 12 winners over the course of the summer.

LA Fitness Launches 9/11 Stair Climb Honoring First Responders

Irvine, Calif. – September 12, 2026 -- LA Fitness will host its first-ever 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb from September 11-13 at select clubs nationwide, inviting participants to climb 110 flights of stairs on StairMaster machines in tribute to the World Trade Center's 110 stories.

The event, organized by operator Fitness International, LLC, is open to members, guests, local first responders, and community members. Some locations may feature firefighter appearances, special fitness classes, live DJs, and local vendors alongside the stair-climb challenge.

First responders get a free 30-day guest pass

Fitness International will offer a complimentary 30-day guest pass exclusively for first responders, giving them access to LA Fitness amenities and equipment. The pass must be redeemed between September 11 and September 13, 2026 at participating clubs.

Shenyang Marathon Draws 22,000 Runners With Local Dialect Cheers

Shenyang – September 11, 2026 -- The Shengjing Bank Shenyang Marathon 2026 kicked off Sunday morning, drawing roughly 22,000 domestic and international runners to the northeastern Chinese city.

Two race distances started from the Shenyang Olympic Sports Center

The full marathon attracted 10,000 runners while the half marathon drew 12,000, with both races beginning early on September 6 at the Shenyang Olympic Sports Center.

A Kenyan runner topped the men's full marathon field

A Kenyan athlete won the men's full marathon title, while an Ethiopian runner took first place in the women's full marathon. In the half marathon, Chinese runners Zhang Xiaorui and Zhao Na won the men's and women's titles respectively.

Poker Player Misclicks Into Wrong Tournament, Wins $250,000 Bounty

San Jose, Costa Rica – September 11, 2026 -- An online poker player known as "R88P" accidentally registered for the wrong tournament on Americas Cardroom and walked away with a $250,000 Mystery Bounty payout.

R88P intended to enter the $12 Million GTD No-Limit Hold'em Mystery Bounty Venom but instead confirmed registration for the separate $3 Million GTD Pot-Limit Omaha event. Both tournaments carried the same $2,650 buy-in and ran as distinct multi-day events.

The misclick locked the player into a different tournament

Unable to cancel the confirmed entry, R88P stayed in the PLO event and advanced to Day 2 last Monday. Mystery Bounties went active that day, with every remaining player already in the money and each knockout revealing the eliminated opponent's hidden bounty.

"Best part is I didn't mean to register PLO, misclicked only meant to play the no limit," R88P said.

Americas Cardroom Launches $50M+ OSS XL Poker Series With 336 Events

San Jose, Costa Rica – September 11, 2026 -- Americas Cardroom kicks off its Online Super Series XL this Sunday, Sept. 6, running 336 tournaments through Sept. 29 with more than $50 million in combined guarantees.

Opening day alone offers six-figure guarantees across multiple buy-ins

Sunday's lineup includes a $600,000 guaranteed event at a $630 buy-in, two $500,000 guaranteed tournaments priced at $2,650 and $1,050, the $400,000 guaranteed Moneymaker at $109, and a $150,000 guaranteed Mystery Bounty for $66. PKO, 6-max, PLO and PLO8 formats round out the day.

Americas Cardroom Pays Out $15M in Dual Venom Poker Tournaments

San Jose, Costa Rica – September 11, 2026 -- Americas Cardroom has crowned two champions in its Dual Mystery Bounty Venom series, with 6,030 combined entries generating $15.075 million in prize money and a $20,000 overlay pushing the total payout to $15.095 million.

Deltoid88 takes down the $12 million NLH event for $865,869.53

The No-Limit Hold'em tournament drew 4,792 entries, falling eight short of its guarantee and triggering the $20,000 overlay. Deltoid88 won $799,521.82 in regular prize money plus $66,347.71 in bounties. Runner-up Ivan Limeira, playing as chickenpastry, took home $779,154.41 after a heads-up deal adjusted the top two payouts. A total of 580 places were paid.

LavenderBrown lands the $500,000 top Mystery Bounty

Finishing 348th in the NLH event, LavenderBrown collected the tournament's largest bounty, ending with $508,220.48 overall.

Americas Cardroom's $50M OSS XL Kicks Off With $130K High Roller Win

San Jose, Costa Rica – September 11, 2026 -- Americas Cardroom's Online Super Series XL (OSS XL) launched Sunday with a $600,000 GTD High Roller that drew 1,118 entries, built a $670,800 prize pool and paid winner BADGERING $130,209.51.

The opening day generated over $1.8 million across six featured tournaments.
Those six events combined for $1,803,300 in prize pools from 9,689 entries, mixing No-Limit Hold'em and Omaha formats, including a $100,000 GTD 6-Max Mystery Bounty and a $50,000 GTD PLO 6-Max PKO.

A $2,650 buy-in event paid nearly $100,000 to its winner.
OSS XL #16, the $500,000 GTD tournament, built a $507,500 prize pool; a final-table deal saw NewYorkMidgets take first for $95,311.68.

The $109 buy-in Moneymaker drew 3,373 entries, with WilliamRed winning $62,933.20 from a $400,000 prize pool. The $16.50 Sunday Splash pulled in 4,752 entries, with lukewarmwater collecting $10,952.96.

Chicago River Swim Returns With 750 Swimmers and Olympic Stars

Chicago – September 11, 2026 -- The city of Chicago and Mayor Brandon Johnson are bringing back the Chicago River Swim for a second year, expanding the event from 500 to 750 qualified swimmers and reviving "The Big Jump" as part of a three-day weekend from September 18 to 20, 2026. Registration is open now at ChicagoRiverSwim.org for both the swim and the jump.

The Big Jump kicks off the weekend on September 18

The event gives registered participants a sanctioned chance to leap into the river while raising money for ALS research and youth swim education. Mayor Johnson will serve as master of ceremonies alongside Dutch Olympic gold medalist Maarten van der Weijden, Czech ice-swimming world champion Max Munson, Dublin Mayor Daryl Barron, former Chicago Bears player Charles Tillman, and Grammy-winning producer DJ White Shadow.