The Venetian

After an initial 1,200 raise and three callers, Farhad Davoudzadeh fired out a 5,800 three-bet from the big blind, and he got two suiters that saw a flop.

Davoudzadeh counted out his stack, moving out his remaining 20,600, and only the initial raiser looked him up.

Farhad Davoudzadeh:
Opponent:

Both players flopped top pair, but Davoudzadeh held the superior kicker, and he faded the turn and river to collect a double-up.

Farhad Davoudzadeh - 58,700

Photo: Paul Vang

There was heads-up action between Paul Vang from the small blind and Matthew Leecy from the big blind, with a completed board on the felt.

With just over 10,000 in the middle, Vang moved his remaining 10,400 stack, and Leecy spent some time in the tank before ultimately looking him up.

Vang then rolled over for two missed draws, and Leecy was happy to table to collect hid remaining chips.

Matthew Leecy - 55,800
Paul Vang - 0

MSPT Hall of Famer Kou Vang opened with a 1,000 raise from the hijack and was called by Mohamed Serry from the cutoff before Malo Berry squeezed his remaining 5,200 in the middle from the big blind.

With action back on Vang, he upped the bet to 16,000, and Serry thought for a few moments before ultimately releasing his hand into the muck.

Malo Berry:
Kou Vang:

Berry was ahead holding a pair of fives, and they held strong through the sweaty runout, securing his double-up.

Photo: Mitch Garshofsky

Miguel Balaguer Trigo raised to 1,000 only to have Mitch Garshofsky fire out a 3,000 three-bet to his left from the hijack.

Action quickly folded back to Balaguer Trigo, who clapped back with a 8,500 four-bet before snapping off Garshofsky’s 23,200 five-bet jam.

Mitch Garshofsky:
Miguel Balaguer Trigo:

Garshofsky was behind looking for some help, but none came on the runout as he found a new seat at a different table with a fresh stack.

Hall of Famer Umut Ozturk maintains his MSPT World #1 status after the first half of Season 17

The Top 64 will compete in the MSPT $20K Heads Up Freeroll Championship “Winner Take All” during the 2026 MSPT Winter Poker Classic at Running Aces Casino, Hotel & Racetrack in December (bracket format).

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Curtis Freeze opened under the gun for 900 and was called by Miguel Balaguer Trigo from the button, along with Michael Capener from the big blind.

The three players then watched a flop hit the felt, and action was checked to the turn.

Another knock on the table from Capener saw Freeze toss out a 1,000 bet, and only Balaguer Trigo called to see the complete the board on the river.

Both players quickly checked their options, and Freeze tabled for top pair, but it was no good as Balaguer Trigo rolled over a pair of tens for a turned Broadway to scoop the pot.

Donald Mathews raised under the gun and was called by Mohamed Serry from the hijack before Nate Zoller tossed out a 2,700 three-bet from the big blind.

Both Mathews and Serry called, bringing about a flop.

Action was then checked to the turn, and three more knocks on the table saw a complete the board on the river.

Zoller then took a stab at the pot with a 10,000 bet, and it did the trick as both of his opponents quickly released their hands into the muck.

: Riverside Casino & Golf Resort - Riverside, IA

: July 21-26, 2026

: Iowa Poker State Championship

: $1,110 Main Event / $300K GTD

$3,500 MSPT CHAMPIONSHIP SEAT ADDED TO MAIN EVENT 1ST PLACE

: 7 Gold Card Tournaments

: https://msptpoker.com/.../book-today-for-the-iowa-poker...

Event Schedule: https://msptpoker.com/showpdf.aspx?eventID=510