On September 8 the US Commerce Department announced up to $100M in CHIPS Act funding for RGTI and other quantum companies (executed as an equity stake). The moment the news landed, the whole quantum sector exploded: RGTI ran +12% intraday at one point, with IONQ, QBTS and QUBT rallying right behind it.
That day my account happened to be covered in red lines. I did not chase the rally; instead, I used this wave of liquidity to complete three moves:
- Closed the 15.5P expiring 9/11 at $0.20 — locking +$38.74 and defusing an assignment crisis
- Hung an 18C (9/25) ×2 against my 200 shares at IV 105% — collecting $92 in premium
- Covered the NOK LEAP 10C ×6 with a 12C (9/25) ×6 — collecting $114 in premium
This review is about why the combination of an all-red account and an exploding ticker was, oddly, one of my most comfortable days in recent memory.
1. Background: A Put Stuck Underwater for Two Weeks
First, where this 15.5P came from.
On RGTI I hold 200 shares (cost $17.86) — note, that is the blended cost from the May 2026 entry and a July add-on. The quantum sector drifted lower from its June high of $27, and this position stayed underwater the whole way down. To blend it and collect rent, in late August I sold a single 15.5P (9/11 expiry), collecting $0.61 in premium.
The problem: RGTI kept hugging $15.2 — that put barely left ITM from the day it was sold. A $15.5 strike against a $15.2 spot: one step away from assignment.
And assignment was the one thing I could least afford:
- Cash in the account was negative (-$871); taking delivery would require $1,550
- RGTI concentration was already 38%, more than double the 15% high_risk cap
- From 9/8 this put entered its final-3-trading-days window: by discipline a written decision was due by 9/9 at the latest, and assignment was forbidden outright
In plain words: this was a time bomb expiring 9/11, and I had no money to defuse it. The pre-market briefing had already set the handling plan: buy back with a limit of ≤ $0.20.
2. The Surge Arrives: The Bomb Defused Itself
At the 9/8 open, the quantum complex rioted on the Commerce Department funding. RGTI launched straight up from $15.20 and touched $17.05 (+12%) intraday.
In that moment my 15.5P flipped from ITM to deep OTM — the market defused the bomb for me with a single big green candle.
But I did not celebrate; I immediately did one thing: bought it back, as planned.
Why not wait for expiry and keep the $0.61 for free? Two reasons:
- Inside a three-day window, anything can happen. A name like RGTI can go from +12% to -8% in a single day. There is only a 4% buffer above $15.5; if the news tide recedes tomorrow and the stock falls back, I face the assignment crisis again — and at a more expensive buyback price.
- Buying back at $0.20 = locking $0.41/contract of gross profit (net +$38.74 after fees). I gave up the last $0.20 of tail in exchange for a certain banked gain — the math works.
So I bought back at $0.20, locking +$38.74 (sold at $0.61, closed at $0.20, fees included). Bomb defused, assignment crisis over.
The easiest mistake on a big-up day is thinking “wait a little longer, let it expire for free money.” But an OTM put is not cash — it is luck that has not been banked yet. Luck: cash it in while it is still around.
3. The Other Side of the Same Moment: Hanging CCs at the Highs
With the put closed, my position became 200 RGTI shares with zero option coverage — running naked.
And what state was RGTI in at that point?
- News: $100M of government funding — a hard catalyst
- Volatility: IV Rank 105% (beyond its one-year range; market sentiment wildly inflated)
- Spot: $16+, one step from my $17.86 cost
This is a textbook CC-selling window: high IV + near the breakeven price + stock in hand. In the high zone of the intraday range I sold 2× 18C (9/25) @ $0.46, collecting $92.
Why 18C and not 17C or 20C?
- 18C > the $17.86 cost: if assigned on 9/25, I sell 200 shares at the breakeven price and keep the $92 for free — the position that had been stuck for two years walks out with a profit
- About +12% from spot (at $16), Δ around 0.3, roughly a 1-in-3 chance of assignment — the “collect the rent while keeping most of the upside” spot
- Too close (17C) sells the rebound away; too far (20C) leaves premium too thin to be meaningful
A stuck stock plus a call at the breakeven price = handing the market a business card that says “I am ready.” If it does not come, I collect rent; if it comes, I leave with dignity. Both ends are wins — the only question is by how much.
4. Along the Way: Covering the NOK PMCC
The third move was NOK — my main PMCC position.
NOK closed the day +6.2% at $10.65, and my LEAP 10C (2027-06) ×6 flipped from the edge of deep ITM into the green. A LEAP turning ITM means the Delta exposure grows and the unrealized gain expands — but it is also running naked: any pullback, and the profit bleeds back.
The standard PMCC move: hang a short-dated call over the LEAP that just turned positive. I sold 6× 12C (9/25) @ $0.19, collecting $114.
The 12C sits +12.7% from spot with 16 days to expiry. Assigned = I sell at $12 (LEAP intrinsic value +$2/share); not assigned = I keep the $114 and roll on. Either way, this is an operation of “holding someone else’s money while waiting for the outcome.”
5. The Ledger
📒 Ledger detail (click to expand)
| Item | Action | Price | Cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| RGTI 15.5P (9/11) ×1 | Buyback close | sold $0.61 → bought back $0.20 | +$38.74 (realized) |
| RGTI 18C (9/25) ×2 | Sell-to-open | @ $0.46 | +$92 |
| NOK 12C (9/25) ×6 | Sell-to-open | @ $0.19 | +$114 |
| Day total | +$244.74 |
Close of day: RGTI $15.81 (+4.0%, off the +12% high), NOK $10.65 (+6.2%). None of the three moves chased price — all of them used the liquidity the market was offering to subtract or optimise.
Note: the RGTI 15.5P realized +$38.74; the two CC premiums (+$206) are carrying liabilities (fully converted to profit if they expire OTM, or delivered at the strike if assigned). Realized profit is per the fills.
6. Three Takeaways
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A surge day is a window to work off stuck positions — not a signal to add. A news-driven spike creates an exit that illiquid, deeply stuck names never get on ordinary days: a put flipping from ITM to OTM lets you defuse the bomb cheaply, and IV pushing past 100% doubles CC premium. The job on a day like this is “settling old accounts,” not “opening new positions.” My account being RED (new positions forbidden) actually helped me keep that line — CC coverage insures positions you already hold; it does not open new risk.
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An OTM put is not cash — it is luck that has not been banked. A last-3-days window + a deeply stuck underlying + negative cash: any one of those is reason enough to drop the greed of “let it expire for free.” Buying back at $0.20 gave up the last $0.20 of tail in exchange for certainty. Faced with assignment risk, cashing luck in always beats gambling luck to the end.
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A call at the breakeven price is a “dignified exit” for a stuck position. Being stuck is not the scary part; having no exit plan is. What the 18C strike means: it turns the vague wish of “I will leave when the stock reaches some price” into a specific number above the $17.86 cost. Market reaches 18 — I exit with grace; it does not — I collect rent and keep waiting. Giving a position a price matters far more than giving it a fantasy.
Current status: RGTI 200 shares + 18C ×2 (9/25) on the book; NOK LEAP 10C ×6 + 12C ×6 + 11P ×2 (9/18) on the book. The account is still RED (concentration and cash both out of bounds); REDUCE_ONLY discipline continues: reduce, never add. The two short puts — QUBT 8P (9/18) and NOK 11P (9/18) — are on watch until their last-3-days windows for a decision.