The Venetian

The MSPT returned to the beautiful Venetian Resort in Las Vegas for the third time this season, hosting back-to-back $1,000,000 GTD events, and the final day of the Season 17 Heart Poker Championship has come to an end.

After tallying 878 and generating a $1,246,760 prize pool, just 99 players returned for Day 2 action in hopes of hoisting the trophy, and when the dust finally settled, it was local pro Adam Walton who was able to seize the moment and capture his first MSPT title along with the $185,966 first-place prize.

“It feels great,” Walton stated after securing his first MSPT title. “This is the reason why we play game, to close out tournaments, and it feels really good after coming so close a couple of times before.”

The close calls Walton was talking about were when he came in third place back in May of 2023, and then he followed that up with a runner-up finish in November of 2023.

That was a career year for Walton, as he not only had two deep runs on the tour, but he also finished third in the WSOP Main Event for $4,000,000, and he ranks this win right up there with his deep run.

“It’s definitely up there,” Walton stated when asked where this win ranks in his poker accolades, “This is one of the bigger wins of my career, so it’s definitely special and pretty exciting to say the least.”

The win also secured Walton 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.

MSPT Season 17 Heart Poker Championship Final Table Results

Day 2 Action

The final day came back with 99 players already in the money, so action kicked right into gear with Carlos Guerrero being eliminated in the first hand of the day while WSOP bracelet winners Anthony Marquez and Will Givens followed him to the payout cage shortly after.

After Givens 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 MSPT Champ Brad Gafford (83^rd Place – $3,602), WSOP bracelet winner’s Stephen Song (73^rd Place - $3,872) & Mike Wilklow (69^th Place – $4,215) five-time bracelet winner David Peters (35^th Place - $5,964), and Jeremy Becker (31^st Place - $5,889) as they all hit the deck before the three table redraw.

The final three tables were stacked with crushers, but two-time bracelet winner Justin Lapka (24^th Place - $7,722), fellow bracelet winners Joe Serock (23^rd Place - $9,029) & Ian O’Hara (19^th Place - $10,677), MSPT Hall of Famer Kou Vang (15^th Place - $12,769) and Josias Santos (11^th Place - $18,881), all fell before the final table.

Final Table Action

Once the final table was set, things kicked right into gear with long-time pro Justin Young running his ace-queen into Walton’s ace-king, making him the first final table elimination.

The fast-paced action would continue with Atanas Pavlov’s pair of aces getting tripped up by Raminder Singh’s queen-jack, while Elvyn Bello Santos got hooked by Walton to take a seventh-place finish.

Shortly after, short stack Richard Kellett found an ace-three to roll with, only to run into Singh’s superior ace-jack to take a sixth-place finish for $47,014, while Andre Abreu Miranda lost a battle of the blinds match-up against Craig Mason, as he went home with $60,637 for his fifth-place finish.

Mirandar's departure then left Singh sitting with the least amount of chips, and he got into a race with bracelet winner Anthony Reategui, only to lose the lead on the river to take home $79,022 for his fourth-place efforts.

Once Singh hit the deck, the chips were pretty evenly distributed between the three remaining players, with Walton holding the lead, and it took almost a level for Mason’s stack to dwindle down before he became the third-place finisher to take home a healthy $104,041.

The heads-up match started with Walton holding a slight edge over Reategui, but he was able to chip away at the former bracelet winner, sending him home with a second-place finish for $138,375 while Walton took home the $185,966 first-place prize, along with the coveted MSPT Season 17 Heart Poker Championship!

This wraps up our coverage of yet another amazing week at the Venetian Las Vegas. Make sure to join us next time when we make our trip back to Riverside, Iowa, for the Iowa Poker State Championship at the Riverside Casino from July 21^st - 26^th!

WSOP bracelet winner Anthony Reategui limped in, and Adam Walton checked his option to see a flop.

Action went check-check, and the dealer turned the

Walton then led out with a 400,000 bet and then called Reategui’s all-in raise.

Anthony Reategui:
Adam Walton:

Reategui was behind needing help, but the river improved Walton to trip jacks, giving Reategui a runner-up finish

Adam Walton - 35,120,000
Anthony Reategui - Eliminated

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).

Full Leaderboard

Craig Mason raised all-in from the button, and Adam Walton looked him up from the big blind.

Craig Mason:
Adam Walton:

Mason was at risk holding live suited connectors, but the flop left him needing running cards to stay alive.

Unfortunately for Mason, the paired the board on the turn, leaving him drawing dead to the river.

Adam Walton - 19,500,000
Anthony Reategui - 15,620,000

: Ameristar Casino East Chicago, IN

: August 25-30, 2026

: Indiana Poker State Championship

: $1,110 Main Event / $300,000 GTD
$3,500 MSPT CHAMPIONSHIP SEAT ADDED TO MAIN EVENT 1ST PLACE

: 11 Gold Card Tournaments

: https://msptpoker.com/.../reserve-today-for-the-mspt...

Event Schedule: https://msptpoker.com/showpdf.aspx?eventID=733

Raminder Singh raised all-in from the small blind and was called by WSOP bracelet winner Anthony Reategui from the big blind.

Raminder Singh:
Anthony Reategui:

Singh was ahead holding a pair of fours, and the flop didn’t change a thing.

The turn kept Singh in the lead, and just as he was looking good to score a double, the dealer dropped the on the river, ending his Main event run.

Anthony Reategui - 6,800,000
Raminder Singh - Eliminated

Andre Abreu Miranda raised all-in from the small blind, and Craig Mason looked him up from the big blind.

Andre Abreu Miranda:
Craig Mason:

Miranda was ahead holding an ace until the flop fell, giving Mason top pair.

The turn then left Miranda needing an ace on the river to stay alive, but the fell and ended his run.

Craig Mason - 9,000,000
Andre Abreu Miranda - Eliminated

Richard Kellett raised all-in from the hijack, and Raminder Singh gave him isolation from the button.

Richard Kellett:
Raminder Singh:

Kellett rolled over a dominated hand, and didn’t find any help on the runout, ending his Main Event.

Raminder Singh - 4,800,000
Richard Kellett - Eliminated

Elvyn Bello Santos raised all-in for 795,000 from under the gun and was called by Adam Walton from the hijack, along with Raminder Singh from the big blind.

Once the flop hit the felt, Singh check-folded to a 500,000 bet from Walton, leaving him heads-up with Santos.

Elvyn Bello Santos:
Adam Walton:

Santos was behind needing help, but neither the turn nor the river improved his hand, ending his Main Event run.

Adam Walton - 15,800,000
Elvyn Bello Santos - Eliminated

Atanas Pavlov raised from the cutoff, and Raminder Singh called from the small blind to see a flop.

Singh then moved all-in, and Pavlov snapped off his shorter stack.

Atanas Pavlov:
Raminder Singh:

Pavlov was ahead holding a pair of aces, but the dealer turned the , improving Singh to trip jacks, and then dropped the on the river, ending Pavlov’s tournament.

Raminder Singh - 6,700,000
Atanas Pavlov - Eliminated