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Robert Woodward Nabs $1,000 Bonus for Finishing as Chip Leader Among 45 Survivors

Day 1B of the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) bestbet Jacksonville drew 228 entrants, which along with Day 1A’s 164 brought the total field up to 392 runners. That crushed the advertised guarantee by creating a $380,240 prize pool that will be distributed to the top 36 players with the eventual winner taking home $94,310.

After 14 levels of play on Saturday, just 45 players remained with Robert Woodward and his stack of 230,00 leading the pack. For finishing as the flight’s chip leader, Woodward earned himself a $1,000 bonus, just barely edging out Jose Delacruz, who bagged 229,500.

Others who advanced from Day 1B were Chris Fabozzi (217,000), Nick Raio (196,000), Henry Hull (184,000), Chad Baker (178,500), Anthony Astarita (171,000), Andrew Dykeman (143,500), and Jermaine “Lion” Gerlin (50,000), who last year finished fourth in this very event.

Among those to fall over the course of the day were MSPT regulars Jim Boone, Jason Bender, and Alex Smith; eight-time World Series of Poker Circuit ring winner Maurice Hawkins; MSPT Season 6 Player of the Year Mark Hodge; and the notorious Sam Grizzle.

The surviving 45 players from Day 1B will join the 29 from Day 1B on Sunday at 11 a.m. With 74 coming back to action, more than half the field will leave empty handed before the money is made the top 36 are guaranteed a min-cash of $2,377. Join us then as we bring you all the action and eliminations leading up to the final table, which will be live streamed with hole cards on a 30-minute delay.

Three More Hands

The tournament staff just announced the remaining players will play three more hands before bagging and tagging for the night. Stay tuned for a list of survivors with chip counts, a Day 1B recap, and the Day 2 seat draw.

Daren Wooten Comes Out on Top in Wild Hand

We missed a lot of the details, but we do know that on a flop, Daren Wooten and Brandon Barron got the chips in with the latter being at risk.

Barron:
Wooten:

Wooten was ahead, but not when the gave Barron a bigger two pair. Wooten was drawing to a two outer, and much to the surprise of the entire table, it came when the spiked on the river to fill him up!

Daren Wooten - 100,000
Brandon Barron - Busted

"Praise the Lord, Pass the Ammunition"

Action folded to Moses Clepper on the button, and he raised to 15,000, which left him less than 20,000 behind. Phillip Pompper responded by moving all in from the big blind, and Clepper called off.

Pompper:
Clepper:

It was a bad spot for Clepper, and he got up out of his seat in anticipation of his elimination. The flop brought him one step closer to the exit, but the gave him pause with a pair of nines.

However, he needed either another nine or a king on the river to stay alive. The dealer burned one last time and put out the .

“Oh baby,” Clepper shouted. “Praise the lord, pass the ammunition.”

Phillip Pompper - 150,000
Moses Clepper - 75,000

Some of the Big Stacks

James Anderson - 210,000
Chris Fabozzi - 200,000
Phillip Pompper - 190,000
Anthony Astarita - 180,000
Jack Sumner - 180,000
Richard Grant - 160,000
Henry Hull - 160,000

Bennie Plays a big pot

On the last level of the night, Juan Cortes raised to 5,500 and got two callers. On the flop, Bennie Pettis led for 8,500, Cortes called and the other player folded.

The turn was a . This time, Pettis bet 13,000 and got a call. On the river, Pettis announced “all in”, Cortes went in the tank, asked for a count and finally folded face up. Pettis said, “I’ll show you my one pair...” revealing

Bennie Pettis - 110,000

Thad McNulty Doubles Through Joseph Mandia

In the last hand of Level 13, Joseph Mandia raised to 6,000 from the button only to have Thad McNulty three-bet jam for 27,500 from the small blind. Mandia thought long and hard before making the call.

McNulty:
Mandia:

It was a flip, but McNulty needed to improve to stay alive. He didn’t do it on the flop, nor the turn. McNulty needed to hit the river, and much to the dismay of Mandia, he did just that when the spiked.

Joseph Mandia - 80,000
Thad McNulty - 62,000

Late Night Eliminations

The following players have been eliminated from the tournament here in Level 13:

Mark Smith

William Bowman

Jeffrey Hart

Rodney Rodrigue

MSPT Heads to Running Aces February 17-19

For the first time in Season 8, the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) is heading to Running Aces Casino in Columbus, Minnesota – which is less than 20 minutes north of the Twin Cities. From February 11-19, the MSPT will host a series of $65 and $250 qualifiers culminating in a $1,100 buy-in, $200,000 guarantee Main Event the weekend of February 17-19.

The Main Event, which requires players be just 18 years of age to participate, will run from Friday, February 17 through Sunday, February 19. The tournament features two starting flights beginning Friday evening with Day 1A at 4 p.m., followed by Day 1B at the same time on Saturday. The remaining players from each flight will combine on Sunday morning at 11:00 a.m. and play until a champion is crowned.

"This marks the 11^th time in eight seasons that the MSPT will visit Running Aces, which has been a staple on our schedule dating all the way back to Season 1," said MSPT President Bryan Mileski. "From great promotions to juicy cash games, Running Aces is one of the Midwest’s best places to play poker.”

The Main Event final table will be broadcast LIVE (15-minute delay) worldwide on msptpoker.com using RFID technology allowing all viewers to see the hole cards. In addition, the entirety of the Main Event will be live reported in the MSPT's brand new live blog, which can be found on msptpoker.com once the tournament begins. Simply look for the neon green button that reads "Live Updates."

In addition, there will be a slew of Running Aces Casino Bonus Events in the week leading up to the MSPT Main Event. They include $30 and $80 no-limit hold'em tournaments, a $75 Bounty event, and a Freeroll with two $1,100 Main Event seats added.

For a full look at the MSPT Running Aces schedule, click here.

Last season, the MSPT visited the property twice. In April, cash game pro Luke Arora topped a field of 347 entrants, including MSPT Pro Matt Alexander in heads-up play, to capture an $83,773 first-place prize. In September, Jeremy Dresch bested 344 entrants to win $83,045 and his second MSPT title.

Others who've captured titles at Running Aces over the years include Peixin Liu (Sept. 2015 for $85,498), Erv Bjerga (Feb. 2015 for $91,941), Ken Pates (Sept. 2014 for $87,698), Mark Sandness (Feb. 2014 for $90,913), David Gonia (Feb. 2013 for $93,940), Rodger Johnson (Feb. 2012 for $79,185), Jason Seitz (Feb. 2011 for $56,295), and Joe Matheson (April 2010 for $51,349).

Running Aces Casino is open 24/7 and offers multiple poker tournaments daily. Players can also find a variety of cash games. While you’re there, you can also have fun at Blackjack, Pai Gow, EZ Baccarat and more.

Though it won’t be ready in time for this upcoming MSPT event, Running Aces Casino & Racetrack has also announced plans to build a 74-room GrandStay Hotel on property.

The MSPT has also worked out rates with several nearby hotels, which you can learn about here. For those coming from the Twin Cities area, here are some helpful directions:

Directions From Minneapolis

- Interstate 35W North toward Forest Lake
- 1/4 miles after 35W merges with 35E, exit on Highway 97/Lake Drive, exit #129
- Turn left at top of exit ramp and proceed West on Lake Drive 1 mile to Running Aces Blvd
- Turn left on Running Aces Blvd
- After 1/4 mile on Running Aces Blvd, follow signs into Running Aces Casino & Racetrack

Directions From St. Paul

- Interstate 35E North toward Forest Lake
- 1/4 miles after 35E merges with 35W, exit on Highway 97/Lake Drive, exit #129
- Turn left at top of exit ramp and proceed West on Lake Drive 1 mile to Running Aces Blvd
- Turn left on Running Aces Blvd
- After 1/4 mile on Running Aces Blvd, follow signs into Running Aces Casino & Racetrack

Be sure to follow the Mid-States Poker Tour on Twitter @msptpoker, like us on Facebook here, and subscibe at Twitch.tv/mspt.

Aaron Lucas Stays Alive

Aaron Lucas got his last 25,000 all in preflop and Marv Karlins called him out of the blinds.

Lucas:
Karlins:

Lucas was way out in front thanks to his kicker, and he stayed right there as the board ran out a clean .

Marv Karlins - 70,000
Aaron Lucas - 60,0000