Ameristar East Chicago

Day 1c was the final starting flight of the MSPT Season 16 $1,110 Main Event at the Ameristar Casino in East Chicago, and attracted a final 259 runners, which, along with the 255 totals from the previous two flights, brought the total field up to 514 entries, shattering the $300k guarantee.

The impressive field generated a $497,080 prize pool, paying out a minimum of $2,197, while the eventual winner will walk away with a $104,983 first-place prize and the final MSPT 2025 Main Event trophy!

At the end of the third and final flight, just 29 players bagged and tagged with Perrin Hendrick (666,000), edging out Yoon Kim (615,000) for the top stack of the final flight.

Rounding out the big stacks were Arnestas Armonas (565,000), Andy Tran (493,000), and Charlie Reichard (474,000).

Others who survived the third and final flight included Mike Reisner (370,000), Angel Saurez (317,000), MSPT Hall of Famer Aaron Johnson (305,000), Mike Suggs(290,000), George Dietz (115,000), and Marius Toderici (46,000).

Among those to try and fall on Day 1c included MSPT champ Matthew Eng, Sarah Stefan, DJ Buckley, Jill Bryant, Angela Gambino, and MSPT champ Matt Porter, just to name a few.

The surviving players from all three flights – 59 in total (9 from Day 1a, 20 from 1b, and 29 from 1c) – will return at 11:00 a.m. local time on Sunday, November 23^rd, to play down to a winner.

The MSPT live reporting crew will be on the floor throughout the remainder of the tournament to provide updates, so keep it here to catch the action!

MSPT Season 16 Indiana Poker State Championship Schedule

Photo: John Gordon

Action on the table folded to Yoon Kim, who raised to 80,000 from the small blind, and John Gordon called off his 22,000 stack from the big blind.

John Gordon:
Yoon Kim:

Gordon rolled over a dominated hand, with nothing changing after the flop hit the felt.

However, the dealer would then turn the , giving Kim top pair, leaving Gordon drawing dead to the rver.

Yoon Kim - 615,000
John Gordon - Eliminated

Photo: Nikolay Kirev

Greg Koutelidakis raised from middle position and then called Nikolay Kirev’s 60,000 three-bet jam from the hijack.

Nikolay Kirev:
Greg Koutelidakis:

Kirev rolled over a dominating hand, but the flop came with a sweat as it gave Koutelidakis some more outs with a gutshot straight draw.

Fortunately for Nikolay Kirev, both the turn and river kept him in the lead, securing his double-up.

Greg Koutelidakis - 340,000
Nikolay Kirev - 130,000

Mark your calendars for the 2026 Golden State Poker Championship Series at Sycuan Casino, featuring 19 Gold Card Events and a $300,000 GTD Main Event

: THREE (3) $1,110 Main Event Seat Drawings
: ONE (1) Flip & Go FREEROLL Seat giveaway to the $3,500 MSPT Championship in 2026

: Sycuan Casino Resort - San Diego, CA
: January 8-19, 2026
: Golden State Poker Championship
: $400 / $100,000 GTD Mini Main Event (Jan. 8-11)
: $1,110 / $300,000 GTD Main Event (Jan. 15-28)
: 19 Gold Card Events

: https://msptpoker.com/.../book-today-for-the-golden-state...

Event Schedule: https://msptpoker.com/showpdf.aspx?eventID=577msptpoker.com

Photo: Joseph Saltanovitz

Joseph Saltanovitz was all in preflop for 75,000 from under the gun, and Charlie Reichard called from middle position.

Joseph Saltanovitz:
Charlie Reichard:

Saltanovitz rolled over the better-made hand and faded a seven on the runout to stay alive.

On another table, Michael VanderWoude lost with against Clarence Philipneri’s , leaving 30 players reamining and starting the hand-for-hand process.

Charlie Reichard - 310,000
Joseph Saltanovitz - 150,000

So far, 29 players have punched their ticket into Day 2, and the final group of 29 hopefuls will look to add their names to that list tonight.

All who make it through until the end of play will return tomorrow, Sunday, November 23^rd, at 11:00 a.m. for Day 2, where the remaining players from all starting flights will combine and play until a winner is declared.

Photo: Alin Cotolan

There was all in action preflop between Nikolay Kirev from the cutoff and Alin Cotolan from the big blind, with Cotolan holding 87,000 effective.

Alin Cotolan:
Nikolay Kirev:

Cotolan rolled over the superior made hand, and faded a seven on the runout to collect a double-up.

Alin Cotolan - 170,000
Nikolay Kirev - 60,000

After securing his third win here at the Ameristar Casino, Jake Long has now jumped ahead of Michael Starek with five Gold Cards to sit atop the leaderboard.