The MSPT traveled across the country to JACK Cleveland Casino for the Season 17 Ohio Poker State Championship, and it was another one for the memory books.
A total of 801 entries were tallied after three starting flights, and on Sunday, 89 players returned to Day 2 action to take their stab at the $775,470 prize pool.
Of those 89 players, it was none other than MSPT Hall of Famer Umut Ozturk, who walked away with the top prize, along with his second career MSPT title!
“Feels great,” Ozturk said after his victory,” I was very fortunate today, after I got lucky against Josh (Reichard) with ace-king against his queens, I knew I had a shot,” he continued, “Anytime you get a chance to knock out the best player on the tour, then you have a chance.”
Ozturk went on to say, “As the day went on, I saw players like Jake (Bazeley) and Frank (Lagodich) get eliminated, and once that happened, I felt like I was the most experienced player left in the field and said, lets go.”
With over 70 Main Event cashes and over $970,000 lifetime earnings on the tour, Ozturk was undoubtedly the most experienced player left in the field after Lagodich’s 11th place exit, and he was able to seize the moment enroute to a second career State Championship title.
“Three years ago, I won the Missouri State Championship, and I said that win was for all the Minnesota grinders, and this one is for all the Minnesota players who are undaunted.”
While the victories may have been almost three-years apart, Ozturk’s reign on the tour since then has been nothing short of remarkable.
He’s the #1 ranked MSPT player to date, and the only one to win the Player of the Year award in back-to-back seasons.
His final table appearance today marked his 18th since 2023, and the victory shot him into the #4 spot on the all-time earnings list.
Day 2 Action
The final day came back with all 89 players already in the money, so action kicked right into gear Nicole Bartko finding a pair of tens to double in the first hand of the day, while short-stack Jon Hoellein was the first elimination of the day.
After Hoellein’s departure, 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 Chase Hounshell (78th Place – $2,118), MSPT Champ Veerab Zakarian (61st Place - $2,421), MSPT Hall of Famer Josh Reichard (46th Place – $2,572), and 2023 runner-up finisher Ray Ezzie (42nd Place - $2,799).
The fast paced action continued with Jake Bazeley (34th Place - $3,328), two-time WPT Champ Tony Tran (25th Place - $4,312), Dave Berman (21st Place - $6,354), Milton Thomas (17th Place - $7,564), and Frank Lagodich (11th Place – $11,270), all hitting the rail to set the stage for the final table.
Final Table Action
Once the final table was set, Kris Davis sat down with the shortest stack and was flushed out on the river by Joseph Saltanovitz to become the first final table elimination, while 2023 JACK Cleveland Champ Jonathan Lewis lost a flip shortly after to Saltanovitz, and followed Davis to the payout table in eighth place.
Saltanovitz would then continue with his spree of eliminations after he sent Ben Skelley home in seventh place, while Dane Miller locked up his second career MSPT cash for $29,500 after he took a sixth-place exit.
After Miller’s elimination, chips started shuffling around, and after a few double-ups, an ICM deal was brought up by Ozturk, which was agreed upon by the final five players.
The agreement saw Harold Perez take a fifth-place finish for $70,357, Ryan Rebman take home a fourth-place finish for $77,394, Antonio Ndoja take home a third-place finish for $79,807, Saltanovitz a second-place finish for $85,549, and Ozturk take home the $89,638 top prize, along with his second career MSPT title!
This wraps up our coverage of another eventful tournament, so make sure you join us when we make our way to Potawatomi Casino in Milwaukee, WI, for the inaugural Club Poker Championship Series, February 17th - 22nd, and as always, the MSPT live reporting team will be on hand providing updates for that event, so make sure to come back!