Day 1b of the MSPT Season 17 JACK Cleveland $1,100 Main Event is set to get underway at 12:15 p.m. local time and is the second of three starting flights.

Another strong showing is expected today after Day 1a drew 163 total entries, with just 19 players punching their way into Sunday's Day 2.

Last February’s runner-up finisher Mike Valore found himself atop the chip counts after yesterday’s starting flight, bagging 477,000 after the hard stop was reached with 29:31 remaining in Level 15 (3,000/6,000/6,000), edging out Milton Thomas (469,000) and Thomas Della Volpe (465,000) for the top spot.

Today, another group of players will try to challenge that mark and add their names to the likes of Brad Rogoff (326,000), two-time Player of the Year Umut Ozturk (341,000), DJ Swartz (321,000), 2019 runner-up finisher Anthony Carbonel (274,000), and three-time bracelet winner Sean Troha (153,000), who have already found a Day 2 berth.

Day 1A Chip Counts

Day 1B Outlook

Today’s second starting flight will be similar to yesterday's action as players will start with 30,000 in chips, blinds will begin at 100/200/200, and players will receive 15-minute breaks every two hours of play.

The difference toady will be an extended 40-minute dinner break after Level 9, while registration and unlimited reentry will remain open until the start of Level 13 (9:40 p.m.).

Once 11% of the field is reached, all remaining players will bag up for the night and will combine with the 19 Day 1a survivors for Day 2 action on Sunday, August 23^rd at 11:15 a.m. local time.

Those unable to find a bag at the end of today will have one final opportunity tomorrow, Saturday, August 22^nd, starting at 12:15 p.m.

This is a best-stack forward event: If a player qualifies for Day 2 more than once, they may only play the higher chip stack; any lower stack(s) will be removed from play at the start of Day 2 and receive the lowest Day 2 payout.

Player of the Year points will only be awarded for the higher stack. Players will only receive credit for a single MSPT Main Event cash finish.

A new addition to this season is that each Main Event winner will be awarded a $3,500 seat into the ROCK ‘N’ ROLL POKER OPEN MSPT Championship at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, FL, while the top 64 World Ranked MSPT Players as of December 2, 2026 will compete in a HEADS UP FREEROLL tournament at the 2026 MSPT Winter Poker Classic at Running Aces Poker Tournaments for $20,000!

Race for Player of the Year

The midway point of Season 17 has passed, and the race for Player of the Year is a nail-biter. Sitting atop the tight leaderboard is WSOP bracelet winner Mike Wilklow, who had two back-to-back final table appearances to start the season and added his fifth and sixth cashes on the season earlier this month at the Venetian to climb atop the leaderboard with 5,669 points.

Sitting in a close second is none other than MSPT Hall of Famer Josh Reichard, who catapulted himself into the top three after he claimed the 2026 Iowa Poker State Championship for his third career title last week at Riverside.

Two-time MSPT Champ Mike Estes is the only other player with over 5,000 POY points so far, with the bulk of his them coming after claiming his second State Championship earlier this year in Missouri.

MSPT Season 17 JACK Cleveland Remaining Schedule

We hope you’ll join us as we take another step closer to crowning our newest MSPT Champion here at JACK Cleveland Casino