After nearly 14 levels of full play, the 128 entrants of Day 1B came down to its final 15 players and bagged up for Sunday. With one more flight tomorrow, the players who did not find bags will have ample opportunity to play the and find a bag to carve out their place in MSPT history at Sycuan Resort and Casino.
Leading the way is Thomas Gabriel, who ended his day with 610,000. Gabriel began crushing the day early and never dropped out of the top five in chips as the day progressed. With over $600,000 in lifetime earnings, and scores that date back to 2008 on Hendon Mob, Gabriel’s massive stack looks to be a helpful tool to possibly propel him to take his first MSPT title.
Day 1B Chip Counts
Rank |
Player |
Chips |
1 |
Thomas Gabriel |
610,000 |
2 |
Kenneth Baime |
412,000 |
3 |
Robert Fortuno |
315,000 |
4 |
George Kalfayan |
301,000 |
5 |
Tyler Cormney |
239,000 |
6 |
Lance Winsaft |
212,000 |
7 |
DJ Buckley |
203,000 |
8 |
Thomas Difrancesco |
194,000 |
9 |
Josh Mok |
147,000 |
10 |
Alexei Racila |
136,000 |
11 |
Chase Norton |
119,000 |
12 |
Joseph Canez |
108,000 |
13 |
Bradford Lawn |
96,000 |
14 |
Brad Sailor |
62,000 |
15 |
L Maurice Thomas |
48,000 |
|
Two-time MSPT champion Ken Baime also ended the day strong with 412,000. Baime won his second title at this very casino not too long ago, defeating Miles Barnum heads up for a prize of $82,512. Can Baime enter himself into the very select group of three-time champions? Others who found bags included Robert Fortuno (315,000), DJ Buckley (203,000), last iteration’s runner up Alexei Racila (136,000), and Brad Sailor (62,000). Each will return on Sunday to play down until a winner is crowned.
Play ended with 1:00 left in Level 14 at the end of the night. Players will return on Sunday to this level with 8:20 left on the clock unless another flight ends earlier than this. Players who didn’t bag today can return tomorrow at 3 pm for the beginning of the next flight. Stay tuned to MSPT.com for all updates regarding the Sycuan Main Event.