diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.compact-ports-hover-independence.test.tsx b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.compact-ports-hover-independence.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ca6064518
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.compact-ports-hover-independence.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,258 @@
+// @vitest-environment happy-dom
+
+import { act, type ReactNode } from 'react'
+import React from 'react'
+import { createRoot, type Root } from 'react-dom/client'
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+import type { DashboardAgentRow as DashboardAgentRowData } from '@/components/dashboard/useDashboardData'
+import type { GlobalSettings, Repo, Worktree, WorktreeCardProperty } from '../../../../shared/types'
+import type { WorkspacePortScanResult } from '../../../../shared/workspace-ports'
+
+const fetchHostedReviewForBranch = vi.fn()
+const fetchIssue = vi.fn()
+const fetchLinearIssue = vi.fn()
+const setWorkspacePortScan = vi.fn()
+const setWorkspacePortScanRefreshing = vi.fn()
+const cacheTimerMocks = vi.hoisted(() => ({
+  usePromptCacheCountdownStartedAt: vi.fn()
+}))
+
+let worktreeCardProperties: WorktreeCardProperty[] = ['status', 'ports']
+let settings: Partial<GlobalSettings> | null = { compactWorktreeCards: true }
+
+vi.mock('@/store', () => ({
+  useAppStore: (selector: (state: unknown) => unknown) =>
+    selector({
+      browserTabsByWorktree: {},
+      agentActivityDisplayMode: undefined,
+      createBrowserTab: vi.fn(),
+      deleteStateByWorktreeId: {},
+      fetchHostedReviewForBranch,
+      fetchIssue,
+      fetchLinearIssue,
+      gitConflictOperationByWorktree: {},
+      hostedReviewCache: {},
+      issueCache: {},
+      linearIssueCache: {},
+      openModal: vi.fn(),
+      openTaskPage: vi.fn(),
+      projectGroups: [],
+      ptyIdsByTabId: {},
+      recordFeatureInteraction: vi.fn(),
+      remoteBranchConflictByWorktreeId: {},
+      setRemoteBrowserPageHandle: vi.fn(),
+      setWorkspacePortScan,
+      setWorkspacePortScanRefreshing,
+      settings,
+      sshConnectionStates: new Map(),
+      sshTargetLabels: new Map(),
+      tabsByWorktree: {},
+      updateWorktreeMeta: vi.fn(),
+      workspacePortScan,
+      worktreeCardProperties
+    })
+}))
+
+// Why: the real Radix HoverCard is controlled by each root's `open`/`onOpenChange`; expose them so the test can
+// prove the compact title root and the ports root track independent open-state controllers.
+const openChangeByRoot = new Map<HTMLElement, (open: boolean) => void>()
+vi.mock('@/components/ui/hover-card', () => ({
+  HoverCard: ({
+    children,
+    open,
+    onOpenChange,
+    openDelay
+  }: {
+    children: ReactNode
+    open?: boolean
+    onOpenChange?: (open: boolean) => void
+    openDelay?: number
+  }) => (
+    <div
+      data-hovercard-root=""
+      data-open={String(Boolean(open))}
+      data-hover-open-delay={openDelay}
+      ref={(el) => {
+        if (el && onOpenChange) {
+          openChangeByRoot.set(el, onOpenChange)
+        }
+      }}
+    >
+      {children}
+    </div>
+  ),
+  HoverCardContent: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => (
+    <div data-hover-card-content="">{children}</div>
+  ),
+  HoverCardTrigger: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) =>
+    React.isValidElement(children) ? (
+      React.cloneElement(children as React.ReactElement<Record<string, unknown>>, {
+        'data-hover-card-trigger': ''
+      })
+    ) : (
+      <>{children}</>
+    )
+}))
+
+vi.mock('@/components/ui/tooltip', () => ({
+  Tooltip: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => <>{children}</>,
+  TooltipContent: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => <>{children}</>,
+  TooltipTrigger: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => <>{children}</>
+}))
+
+vi.mock('@/lib/sidebar-worktree-activation', () => ({
+  activateWorktreeFromSidebar: vi.fn()
+}))
+
+vi.mock('@/runtime/runtime-rpc-client', () => ({
+  getActiveRuntimeTarget: () => ({ kind: 'local' })
+}))
+
+vi.mock('./use-worktree-activity-status', () => ({
+  useWorktreeActivityStatus: () => 'active'
+}))
+
+vi.mock('./CacheTimer', () => ({
+  default: () => null,
+  usePromptCacheCountdownStartedAt: cacheTimerMocks.usePromptCacheCountdownStartedAt
+}))
+
+vi.mock('./useWorktreeAgentRows', () => ({
+  useWorktreeAgentRows: vi.fn(() => [] as DashboardAgentRowData[])
+}))
+
+vi.mock('./WorktreeCardAgents', () => ({
+  default: () => <div data-worktree-agents="" />
+}))
+
+vi.mock('./SshDisconnectedDialog', () => ({
+  SshDisconnectedDialog: () => null
+}))
+
+vi.mock('./WorktreeContextMenu', () => ({
+  default: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => <>{children}</>,
+  CLOSE_ALL_CONTEXT_MENUS_EVENT: 'orca:test-close-context-menus',
+  WORKTREE_CONTEXT_MENU_SCOPE_ATTR: 'data-orca-context-menu-scope',
+  WORKTREE_NATIVE_CONTEXT_MENU_ATTR: 'data-worktree-native-context-menu'
+}))
+
+let workspacePortScan: { key: string; result: WorkspacePortScanResult } | null = null
+
+function makeRepo(): Repo {
+  return { id: 'repo-1', path: '/repo', displayName: 'orca', badgeColor: '#999999', addedAt: 1 }
+}
+
+function makeWorktree(overrides: Partial<Worktree> = {}): Worktree {
+  return {
+    id: 'repo-1::/repo/worktrees/pr-456',
+    repoId: 'repo-1',
+    path: '/repo/worktrees/pr-456',
+    displayName: 'Fix stale GH PR',
+    branch: 'feature/local-branch',
+    head: 'abc123',
+    isBare: false,
+    isMainWorktree: false,
+    comment: '',
+    linkedIssue: null,
+    linkedPR: null,
+    linkedLinearIssue: null,
+    isArchived: false,
+    isUnread: false,
+    isPinned: false,
+    sortOrder: 0,
+    lastActivityAt: 1,
+    ...overrides
+  }
+}
+
+function makePortScan(worktree: Worktree): { key: string; result: WorkspacePortScanResult } {
+  return {
+    key: 'repo-1',
+    result: {
+      platform: 'darwin',
+      scannedAt: 1,
+      ports: [
+        {
+          id: '127.0.0.1:58941:1234',
+          bindHost: '127.0.0.1',
+          connectHost: '127.0.0.1',
+          port: 58941,
+          pid: 1234,
+          processName: 'node',
+          protocol: 'http',
+          kind: 'workspace',
+          owner: {
+            worktreeId: worktree.id,
+            repoId: worktree.repoId,
+            displayName: worktree.displayName,
+            path: worktree.path,
+            confidence: 'cwd'
+          }
+        }
+      ]
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+function rootContaining(selector: string): HTMLElement {
+  const el = document.querySelector(selector)
+  if (!el) {
+    throw new Error(`No element matched ${selector}`)
+  }
+  const root = el.closest('[data-hovercard-root]')
+  if (!(root instanceof HTMLElement)) {
+    throw new Error(`No hover-card root ancestor for ${selector}`)
+  }
+  return root
+}
+
+describe('WorktreeCard compact ports hover independence', () => {
+  let container: HTMLDivElement
+  let root: Root
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.clearAllMocks()
+    openChangeByRoot.clear()
+    worktreeCardProperties = ['status', 'ports']
+    settings = { compactWorktreeCards: true }
+    cacheTimerMocks.usePromptCacheCountdownStartedAt.mockReturnValue(null)
+    container = document.createElement('div')
+    document.body.appendChild(container)
+    root = createRoot(container)
+  })
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    act(() => {
+      root.unmount()
+    })
+    container.remove()
+  })
+
+  it('does not force the compact title hover open when the live-ports hover opens', async () => {
+    const worktree = makeWorktree()
+    workspacePortScan = makePortScan(worktree)
+    const { default: WorktreeCard } = await import('./WorktreeCard')
+
+    act(() => {
+      root.render(<WorktreeCard worktree={worktree} repo={makeRepo()} isActive={false} />)
+    })
+
+    // Compact mode renders two hover roots: the title-wrapper root and the plug/ports root.
+    const titleRoot = rootContaining('[data-worktree-title-inline-rename]')
+    const portsRoot = rootContaining('[aria-label="1 live port"]')
+    expect(titleRoot).not.toBe(portsRoot)
+    expect(titleRoot.dataset.open).toBe('false')
+    expect(portsRoot.dataset.open).toBe('false')
+
+    // Opening the ports hover must not drag the (separately anchored, wider) title card open — that cross-root
+    // force-open was the flicker loop in #9304.
+    const openPorts = openChangeByRoot.get(portsRoot)
+    expect(openPorts).toBeTypeOf('function')
+    act(() => {
+      openPorts?.(true)
+    })
+
+    expect(portsRoot.dataset.open).toBe('true')
+    expect(titleRoot.dataset.open).toBe('false')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.tsx b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.tsx
index cabb1f3b0..c8bc83be0 100644
--- a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.tsx
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeCard.tsx
@@ -1205,7 +1205,8 @@ const WorktreeCard = React.memo(function WorktreeCard({
             identityOrder="branch-first"
             detailsAfter={hasPorts ? <WorktreeCardPortsDetails ports={workspacePorts} /> : null}
             openDelay={100}
-            hoverControl={detailsHoverControl}
+            // Why: compact mode also renders the plug/badge hover root; sharing one open-state made hovering the
+            // plug force-open the wider title card and race it closed (#9304), so let this title hover own its state.
             onEditIssue={affiliateListMode ? undefined : handleEditIssue}
             onEditComment={affiliateListMode ? undefined : handleEditComment}
             onOpenGitHubIssueInOrca={