Teco Bird is seen with his poker winnings. (Image Credit: Facebook/Teco Bird)

By Derek Cornet

winner

Local man claims $102K poker prize in Regina

Mar 24, 2026 | 12:34 PM

Lac La Ronge Indian Band’s Teco Bird is $102,000 richer after winning the annual Station Poker Classic at Casino Regina over the weekend.  

It marks the largest win ever for Bird, who has been playing poker for more than 25 years. The entire tournament lasted about 17 hours, having started at noon on Saturday and lasting until about 5:15 a.m. on Sunday.  

It cost Bird $1,800 to buy-in and there were 243 competitors, not counting those who were rebuying during the first four hours of play.  

“My winning hand was ace-three. The guy who placed second, he had won the tournament the day before. This guy is a professional,” Bird explained. 

“He offered me a deal, but he wanted the championship. He wanted to win three in a row and I was like ‘no, I’m not playing for the money, I’m playing for the title.’ He offered it to me twice.” 

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Bird noted it was quite exciting to play his winning hand. Days later, he’s still feeling the rush. 

“When you get ace heads up, it’s a good hand. It’s pretty good, it’s just you and him. It’s very good getting an ace, so I had ace-three, so I pushed it and he called. He had ace-jack, so he was ahead of me,” Bird reminisced.     

“I think it was ace, five, 10 or something like that, so he’s still ahead of me and the turn ended up being a deuce, so that left me with an extra four out, so I could hit any four or any of the two remaining threes, so I had six outs and the river was a three and I kicked him out.”

The win also came with a championship ring. (Image Credit: Facebook/Taco Bird)

Bird has big plans for his winnings. He plans to attend the 2026 World Series of Pokers this summer in Las Vegas, which has a $10,000 buy-in. Bird also wants to do some home renovations, travel to Vancouver for an upcoming NHL game, as well as donate $5,000 to the La Ronge long-term care facility fundraiser campaign. 

“I was taught by my grandparents, what you give away you get back 10 times in return, so that’s what I will be doing,” he said.  

“I talked to my kids about it already. They’re the first ones who I took care of. I promised them a trip, so I got that all planned.” 

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com