Running Aces Casino

Day 1a of the MSPT500 Series main Event at Running Aces Casino & Racetrack has come to a close after seeing 124 entrants kick things off.

A grueling day of action was played to completion, with the hard stop of 14 players reached at 4:30 remaining in Level 17 (5,000/10,000/10,000).

The final levels were full of double-ups, until chip leader Mikeal Love won a race to eliminate MSPT Hall of Famer Rob WazWaz on the bubble, ending the night with a whopping 952,000.

Love left the rest of the Day 1a pack in the dust, with Steve Belland the next biggest stack with 433,000, while Richard Stevens (351,000), 2023 Winter Poker Classic Champ Allan Secord (346,000), and two-time MSPT Champ Peixin Liu (270,000), rounded out the top five stacks of the flight.

Others to survive included Dedric Henderson (249,000), Chuck Kersey (206,000), MSPT Hall of Famer Kou Vang (168,000), fellow Hall of Famer Rich Alsup (146,000), and Daniel Kennedy (38,000).

Among those to try and fall on Day 1a included Bruce Fagan, 2025 Minnesota Poker State Champion Bee Yang, Gene Boyer, Eric Eelkema, John Mcnee, and Alan Baker, just to name a few.

Those players, as well as any newcomers, have two more starting flights to jump back into action. Day 1b will kick off at 2:00 p.m. local time on Friday, while the third and final flight, Day 1c, will take place at noon on Saturday.

The surviving players from each flight will then return at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday to play down to a winner.

Join us tomorrow as we continue to bring you all the action and eliminations straight from the tournament floor at Running Aces Casino & Racetrack!

MSPT500 Series Remaining Schedule

MSPT Hall of Famer Rob WazWaz raised all-in from under the gun, and Mikeal Love looked him up from the cutoff.

Rob WazWaz:
Mikeal Love:

WazWaz found himself in a race, only to fall way behind after the flop improved Love to a set of snowmen.

The wasn’t the card WazWaz wanted to see on the turn, as he was left drawing dead to the river, ending play for the night.

Mikeal Love - 952,000
Rob WazWaz - 0

Chuck Kersey raised all-in for 93,000 from the cutoff, and MSPT Hall of Famer Kou Vang went over the top from the small blind, giving him isolation.

Check Kersey:
Kou Vang:

Kersey rolled over a dominated hand, and the flop didn’t change a thing.

However, the dealer then peeled off the on the turn, giving Kersey the lead, and then followed with the on the river, securing his double-up.

Chuck Kersey - 190,000
Kou Vang - 150,000

These 14 Players have already earned a $3,500 Seat to the $2M GTD RRPO MSPT Championship Main Event

Matthew Wantman

Kevin Meyers

Zilong Zhang

Vincent Moscati

June 'Oh Geez' Kim

Alex Foxen

Umut Ozturk

Jorden Helstern

Aaron Johnson

Wesley Cannon

Michael Estes

Yuchen "Carson" Chen

Lee Rzentkowski

Hamid Izadi

ROCK ‘N’ ROLL POKER OPEN (RRPO)

MSPT Championship (MAJOR)

: Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino - Hollywood, FL

: Nov. 18 - Dec. 2, 2026

: $3,500 Main Event (1.5X POY) / $2M GTD (Nov. 27 - Dec. 2)

: MSPT will be ADDING a $3,500 RRPO MSPT Championship Seat to every Main Event 1st Place in 2026

Photo: Chuck Kersey

Action folded to MSPT Hall of Famer Rob WazWaz, who raised to 44,000 from the small blind, and then called Chuck Kersey’s 62,000 three-bet jam from the big blind.

Chuck Kersey:
Rob WazWaz:

Kersey was ahead holding a suited ace, and the flop paired his jack, giving him a commanding lead.

The pairing the board on the turn was a great sight for Kersey, as it secured his double before the completed the board on the river.

Rob WazWaz - 270,000
Check Kersey - 132,000

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 List: https://msptpoker.com/statistics/goatpoy.aspx

Photo: Daniel Kennedy

Action folded to two-time MSPT Champ Peixin Liu, who raised to 13,000 from the small blind before calling Daniel Kennedy’s 115,000 three-bet jam from the big blind.

Daniel Kennedy:
Peixin Liu:

It was a classic for all the marbles, and the flop gave Kennedy Liu’s outs with a Broadway draw.

The dealer then put Kennedy in the lead after they turned the pairing his ace, and then followed with the on the river to secure his double.

Daniel Kennedy - 230,000
Peixin Liu - 120,000

After the elimination of Yume Carr, just 15 players remain, meaning the hand-for-hand process has begun, as only 14 of them will be making Sunday’s Day 2.