Bally's Black Hawk Casino

A lengthy day of 16 levels has wrapped up during the MSPT Season 17 Colorado Poker State Championship at Bally’s Casino as Day 1b drew 240 entries to bring the two-day total thus far to 413, guaranteeing that the $500K GTD will be surpassed with tomorrow’s final flight still to go.

Of those 240 entries, only 27 players remained when chips went into bags, with Eddie Apodaca going on a late-night heater to take 572,000 into Day 2, edging out William Soscia (560,000) and Diego Rodriguez (504,000) for the top stack of the flight.

Brandon Boland sat in the same chair the whole day until the final four tables and collected 422,000 to put in his bag, while Brett Seubert (417,000) and MSPT Hall of Famer Umut Ozturk (415,000) were the only others to clip the 400k mark.

Others who survived the second starting flight included 2023 Black Hawk Champ Alex Cruz (339,000), WSOP bracelet winner Kevin Eyster (207,000), Sean Hoesing (143,000), Sherry Hammers (89,000), and DJ Buckley (34,000), as they were just a few more of the players to add their names to the Day 2 roster along with the 20 to have already advanced from Day 1a.

Among those to fire and fall on Day 1b included MSPT Champ Justin Lynch, Barb Visher, James Coca, Nader Wahdan, and fellow Black Hawk Champ and bracelet winner Faraz Jaka, to name a few.

Those players, as well as any newcomers, have one last starting flight to jump back into action with Day 1c starting tomorrow at Noon.

This is a best-stack forward event: If a player qualifies for Day 2 more than once, they may only play the higher chip stack; any lower stack(s) will be removed from play at the start of Day 2 and receive the lowest Day 2 payout.

Player of the Year points will only be awarded for the higher stack. Players will only receive credit for a single MSPT Main Event cash finish.

Late registration and re-entries will remain open through Level 12 (approximately 9:10 p.m.).

Congratulations to everyone who advanced to Day 2.

We will be back tomorrow for coverage of Day 1c on MSPTPoker.com, providing updates straight from the tournament floor at Bally’s Casino.

MSPT Season 17 Colorado Poker State Championship Schedule

Zach Gutierrez was all-in from the big blind, and William Sosica gave him isolation with a 15,000 raise from early position.

Zach Gutierrez:
William Sosica:

Gutierrez was behind needing help, but the flop left him needing running cards to stay alive.

The turn was a card Gutierrez wanted to see, as it gave him some hope with an open-ended straight draw, but the followed on the river and ended his night on the bubble.

William Sosica - 560,000
Zach Gutierrez - 0

Photo: Scott Horvath

Justin Dreiling raised all-in from the button, and Scott Horvath called off his 93,000 stack from the big blind.

Scott Horvath:
Justin Dreiling:

It was a classic flip, with Horvath calling the lucky side, as the runout paired his ace on the turn, securing his double on the bubble.

Scott Horvath - 255,000
Justin Dreiling - 145,000

With 28 players remaining, the hand-for-hand process has started, as only 27 of them will be making Sunday’s Day 2.

Photo: Alex Cruz

MSPT Champ Alex Cruz opened for 10,000 from middle position and was called by Brandon Boland from the small blind before fellow MSPT Black Hawk Champ Faraz Jaka fired out a 38,000 three-bet from the big blind.

With action back on Cruz, he decided to risk his 135,000 stack, and only Jaka called.

Alex Cruz:
Faraz Jaka:

Cruz was at risk needing help, and found it after the flop paired his king.

The dealer then dropped the on the turn, improving Cruz to trip kings, and the followed on the river, securing his double-up.

Alex Cruz - 280,000
Faraz Jaka - 120,000

Our MSPT GOAT Leaderboard tracks those who have amassed the most points ALL TIME (vs World Ranking = last 50 Main Events only, with a weighted multiplier favoring more recent)

Josh Reichard took over the #1 spot this season, surpassing Rob WazWaz, who had held it down since nearly the inception!

Full Leaderboard

Photo: Miguel Navarro

Miguel Navarro open-jammed 65,000 from middle position, and Brandon Elbercht went over the top from the small blind, giving him isolation.

Miguel Navarro:
Brandon Elbercht:

Navarro rolled over a dominated hand, but the flop did bring possible chop outs as it gave both players a wheel draw.

The dealer then turned the , keeping Elbercht in the lead, and just as Navarro was getting ready to make his exit, the fell on the river to secure his double-up.

Miguel Navarro - 140,000
Brandon Elbercht - 30,000

Playing Day 1b of the MSPT Season 17 $1,110 Colorado Poker State Championship at Bally’s Casino Black Hawk?

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Have a look through our Photo Gallery Tab to see if you can find their photo, courtesy of event photographer Jess Beck.