Golden Gates Casino

Scott Stewart Bags Day 1a Chip Lead; Survivor's Jim Rice Advances

Day 1a of the Mid-States Poker Tour Golden Gates Main Event attracted 98 entries, but after 13 levels of play, just 13 survived the first of three starting flights. Scott Stewart and his stack of 351,400 led the pack, while others to bag included Bobby Garcia (296,300), Daniel Carrales (213,800), Caufman Talley (158,900), and Phil Mader (49,000).

Stewart is less than two months removed from topping a field of 408 entries to win the Commerce Poker Series $1,650 Main Event for $105,245. He’s also a four-time World Series of Poker Circuit ring winner. We’ll have to wait until Sunday to see if he can notch his first MSPT cash and maybe title.

Another player to bag was Denver’s Jim Rice, who some may remember from the hit TV show Survivor. When he was 35, Rice was a contestant on Survivor: South Pacific (Season 23) and wound up being the seventh player voted out (it happened on Day 24) and the first member of the jury.

Now 40, Rice operates a marijuana dispenser and likes to come to Golden Gates whenever the MSPT comes into town. His torch wasn’t snuffed on Day 1a as he bagged 92,200.

Of course not everyone was fortunate enough to make it through Day 1a. Among those to fire and fail were Travis Northrope, April’s MSPT Golden Gates runner-up Jason Vanstrom, 2016 MSPT Michigan State Poker Championship runner-up Cy Church, and MSPT Season 6 Golden Gates Regional and Main Event champs Bobby Sanoubane and Phanora Prom.

All of those players will have the opportunity to try again tomorrow if they so choose as Day1b will kick off at Noon local time. We’ve also been informed that a whole new crop of players are on their way to Colorado including MSPT Pro Matt Alexander, MSPT Running Aces champ Mark Sandness, and two-time MSPT champ Carl Carodenuto.

Be sure to join us then as we bring you updates straight from the tournament floor. Until then, goodnight from Black Hawk, Colorado!

End-of-Day 1a Chip Counts

Stopping at the End of the Level

Level 13 is about to expire, and with only 13 players remaining in the field, the decision has been made stop for the night. That means both the Day 1b and 1c fields will play 13 levels instead of the usual 14. Players will soon be bagging and tagging, so stay tuned for a list of chip counts as well as a full recap of the Day 1a action.

Ho Sung Park Straightened Out By Scott Stewart

Ho Sung Park got his stack of 49,000 all in on a flop and received a call from Scott Stewart.

Stewart:
Park:

Both players had flopped top pair, but Park’s kicker had him out in front. The turn gave Stewart an open-ended straight draw, and he hit it when the spiked on the river.

Scott Stewart - 380,000
Ho Sung Park - Busted

April's Runner-Up Jason Vanstrom Eliminated

Jason Vanstrom, who finished runner-up in this event for $61,745 back in April, ot his last 35,200 all in prelop and was at risk against both Albert Hart, who was also all in albeit or 43,700, and Eric Smith, who had them both covered.

Vanstrom:
Hart:
Smith:

The board ran out and Hart filled up to more than double while Vanstrom hit the rail.

Smith was left with just 5,000 after the hand, and that disappeared a short time later when he got it in with the and failed to get there against the of Jim Rice after the board ran out .

Albert Hart - 125,000
Jason Vanstrom - Busted
Marc Smith - Busted

Check Out CardsChat on YouTube!

Did you know CardsChat, a media partner of the MSPT, is on YouTube! They have new material and series of videos coming your way, so be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss a thing.

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Updated Chip Counts at the Break

We’ve been experiencing some technical difficulties here at Golden Gates Casino, but they seem to be resolved. We pick up action in Level 13 with 17 players remaining. Here’s a look at how things stacked up at the break:

Bobby Garcia Sets Up Travis Northrope

After two players had limped, including Bobby Garcia, Travis Northrope raised to 6,000 preflop.

Both his opponents called and then Garcia led out for 5,500 on the flop.

Northrope raised him to 15,000, the other player folded, and Garcia three-bet all in.

Northrope called off for around 35,000 total and discovered the bad news.

Northrope:
Garcia:

Garcia had flopped a set, and that left Northrope drawing to runner-runner.

The turn took away any chance of that happening, and Northrope headed for the exit after the was run out on the river.

Bobby Garcia - 200,000
Travis Northrope - Busted

Mid-States Poker Tour Season 7 Finale December 2-11 at Canterbury Park

Season 7 of the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) has been one for the record books, from our biggest events and prize pools to date, to memorable winners such as Thomas Boivin, Aaron Massey, and Jeremy Dresch. From December 2-11, the tour will wrap up the season with our traditional finale at Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minnesota.

The venue, which only requires players be 18 years old to participate, played host to the first-ever MSPT event way back in 2009, and this December it will hold a series of qualifiers and bonus events leading up to the $200,000 guaranteed, $1,100 buy-in Main Event.

The Main Event will feature two starting flights beginning with Day 1a at 4 p.m. on Friday, December 9. Then, on Saturday, December 10, Day 1b will take place at the same time. The surviving players will then return on Sunday, December 11 for Day 2 to play down to a winner.

The final table will be broadcast LIVE (15-minute delay) worldwide on msptpoker.com using RFID technology allowing all viewers to see the hole cards. In addition, the entire Main Event will be live reported in the MSPT live blog, which can be found on msptpoker.com once the tournament begins. Simply look for the neon green button that reads "Live Updates."

Last December in the Season 6 finale, 470 entrants took to the felt and created a $470,000 prize pool. Carl Carodenuto emerged victorious in that event and walked away with a $116,103 first-place prize. Amazingly, Carodenuto returned in April and defended his title against a field of 376 entries to win $90,805. It marked the first time in tour history a player successfully defended his title (a rare feat in the poker world indeed).

“What we witnessed earlier this season was truly remarkable,” said MSPT President Bryan Mileski. “Carodenuto’s title defense will go down in history, and I can’t wait to see if he can make it an unprecedented three wins in a row. We’re also looking forward to an exciting conclusion to the tightly contested MSPT Season 7 Player of the Year Race.”

The season-ending MSPT Canterbury Park is usually the final proving ground for POY contenders. Since its establishment in Season 4, the race has come down to the wire with implications involved in the last tournament of the season. This year is shaping up to be similar as players like Iowa State Poker champ John Sun, MSPT Potawatomi champ Travis Lauson, and MSPT regular Rodger Johnson are among those competing on the POY leaderboard, which you can view here.

In addition to the MSPT qualifiers and Main Event, Canterbury Park will be hosting a number of bonus events including a $100 No-Limit Hold'em on Sunday, December 4; $120 Green Chip Bounty on Monday, December 5; and $35 No-Limit Hold'em on Thursday, December 8.

Here’s a look at the MSPT Canterbury Park schedule: