The MSPT returned to the beautiful Venetian Resort in Las Vegas for the third time this season to host a pair of $1,000,000 guaranteed Main Events, and after roughly 15 hours of play, a Champion has finally been crowned.
A total of 1,495 entries were tallied after three starting flights, and on Tuesday, just 167 players returned to action for the final day in hopes of securing the top prize from the $1,435,200 prize pool.
When the dust finally settled, it was Florida native Peter Walsworth, who found himself back in the winner’s circle after walking away with the incredible victory for a six-figure payday, along with the MSPT Season 17 Venetian trophy.
“Feels amazing,” Walswroth stated after his victory, “It seemed like I lost about every flip this summer, so it actually felt nice to hold in big spots.”
The win also secured Walsworth a $3,500 seat into the MSPT Championship Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open (RRPO), which will be held at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida, Nov. 18 – Dec. 2, boasting a $2,000,000 GTD Main Event, an event he’s excited to partake in.
“I’m from Florida, and I play at the Hard Rock quite a bit, so winning the seat is exciting, and I won’t have to travel that far to play.”
Day 2 Action
The final day came back with 167 players already in the money, so action kicked right into gear with six-time bracelet winner Brian Hastings being the first elimination of the day, while Jimmy Lee and Xiang Zou followed him to the payout cage shortly after.
After Zhang hit the deck, a flurry of “payouts” could be heard throughout the room, as handfuls of players were walking to the payout table which included the likes of Jeff Trudeau (138th Place – $2,420), WSOP bracelet winner Brian Altman (118th Place – $2,556), fellow bracelet winner Michael Jukich (95th Place - $2,797), the MSPT’s top casher DJ Buckley (84th Place - $3,259), and two-time bracelet winner Scott Bohlman (29th Place - $3,601).
The fast-paced action would continue as the likes of MSPT Champ Anthony Kastelic (61st Place - $4,525), WSOP bracelet winner Ian O’Hara 42nd Place - $5,190), Dan Stavila (31st Place - $6,825), Kieran Heller (23rd Place - $9,469), and fellow bracelet winner Mike Wilklow (13th Place - $16,594) all fell before the final table was set
Final Table Action
Once the final table was set, action kicked right back into gear with Dimitrios Anastasaki securing a double knockout of Ruslan Zakharchuk and Nan Zhang with a pair of ladies, taking command of the chip lead.
Final table short-stack Hon Cheong Lee was happy to receive a few pay jumps, only to be the next body to drop in seventh place, while Methavee Taveekitavtee waited patiently to make a move, only to have her aces get cracked to take a sixth-place finish for $49,570.
After a few levels had passed by, Gabriel Schroeder fell to the bottom of the chip counts and found a pair of ladies to roll with, only to have Shin turn a king to send him home in fifth place for $63,411.
A few levels later saw Minnesota’s Arlo Strozewski’s chip stack dwindle down to just four big blinds, and he made a move with a suited jack-ten, only to come up short against Walsworth to take fourth place exit for $81,806.
After Strozewski’s departure, an ICM deal was brought up, but Ari Kunuk Shin wanted to hoist the trophy for himself, and he put up a fair fight, only to be out-kicked by Walsworth in third place for $146,432.
From there, Walsworth held nearly a 2:1 chip advantage, and an ICM deal was brought up again, which led to Anastasaki taking home a second place for $156,000, while Walsworth secured $168,494 and his first career MSPT title.