The Venetian

Carson Richards Leads 14 Advancing Players After Day 1B

Another full day of action occurred during Day 1b of the MSPT $1,100 Main Event Season 16 Opener at the Venetian Resort with almost 15 full levels coming to completion as just 6:47 remained in the level when the hard stop was reached.

The second of three flights drew 126 runners, bringing the two-day total to 196 thus far with one flight remaining.

Of those 126 entries, just 14 players remained when pens went to slips, and it was Carson Richards who put a healthy 817,000 in his bag to end the night.

Richards sat atop the chip counts for most of the later levels and will bring the top stack thus far into Day 2.

Following behind Richards was MSPT Hall of Famer Aaron Massey, who ended the night by cracking a pair of aces to put 477,000 in his bag while Dustin Tragethon (309,000), Bojan Gledovic (289,000), and Ben Palmer (239,000) rounded out the top five stacks.

Much like Day 1a, the final levels of the night saw an onslaught of casualties, with players such as Jamie Dwan and Dan Stavila among those to be eliminated before play concluded for the night.

Others who will be joining the aforementioned five include Vanessa Kade (230,000), MSPT Hall of Famer Rodger Johnson (122,000), MSPT champ Matthew Schulte (114,00), Hal Marcus (82,000), and David Thomas (58,000), as they are just a few more of the players to add their names to the Day 2 roster along with the eight to have already advanced from Day 1a.

Among those not as lucky at the felt included Matt Affleck, MSPT champ Ron West, Dalton Jones, WSOP bracelet winner Ryan Laplante, 2022 WSOP Main Event sixth-place finisher Jeffrey Farnes, and Lily Kiletto with at least a few if not all of them likely to be seen back in action for the final flight.

The final starting flight for the Main Event is tomorrow starting at 11:10 a.m. local time.

Everyone who makes Day 2 will return on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. to play for the first MSPT Season 16 $1,110 Main Event Title.

Congratulations to everyone who advanced to Day 2.

We will be back tomorrow for coverage of the Day 1c right here on MSPTPoker.com from the Venetian Las Vegas!

MSPT Venetian Season 16 Opener Remaining Schedule

End Day 1B Chip Counts

Player Name	Chip Count	Previous	Progress
Carson Richards	817,000	695,000
Aaron Massey	477,000	445,000
Dustin Tragethon	309,000	284,000
Bojan Gledovic	289,000	151,000
Ben Palmer	239,000	200,000
Vanessa Kade	230,000	190,000
Louis Haeick	219,000	203,000
Kai Yang (NV)	131,000	244,000
Rodger Johnson	122,000	175,000
Robenito Roxas	116,000	135,000
Matthew Schulte	114,000	65,000
Hal Marcus	82,000	78,000
Anthony Rocco	59,000	97,000
David Thomas	58,000	61,000

Dan Stavila Bubbles Day 1B

Dan Stavila moved his 42,000 stack in the middle from the hijack and Ben Palmer snap called from the big blind.

Dan Stavila:
Ben Palmer:

Stavila didn’t like seeing Palmer roll over two ladies and for good reason as the runout made him the final elimination of the evening.

Ben Palmer - 239,000
Dan Stavila - 0

Marcus Turns Two-Outer to Stay Alive

Hal Marcus raised all in for 36,000 from late position and Bojan Gledovic looked him up from the small blind.

Hal Marcus:
Bojan Gledovic:

Marcus rolled over a dominated ace and lost an out after the flop gave Gledovic the nut flush draw.

Luckily for Marcus, he still held two outs, and the that the dealer turned was one of them as he took the lead with one card to go.

Marcus’ good fortune continued as he faded the river to keep his Main Event hopes alive.

Bojan Gledovic - 284,000
Hal Marcus - 74,000

The MSPT Heads Back to Sin City for the Season 16 Venetian Poker Bowl February 5th - 10th!

The MSPT is making its way back to the Venetian Las Vegas February 5th - 10th for the infamous Poker Bowl IX!

The ninth edition of this year's Poker Bowl will feature a $1,600 buy-in and, boasts a massive $1,000,000 guarantee.

Each player will start with 30,000 in chips and blinds will increase every 40 minutes. Late registration for each flight will remain open until approximately 5:55 p.m. local time.

The tournament will hold three starting flights with Day 1a getting started bright and early at 11:10 a.m. on Wednesday, February 5th.

Day 1b will then follow on Thursday, February 6th, with Day 1c being held on Friday, February 7th, with both having 11:10 a.m. start times.

The surviving players from the three starting flights will then return for Day 2 at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, February 8th, and will play until seven players remain.

The final seven will then have a days rest to enjoy Superbowl Sunday and will return to action on Monday, February 10th at Noon, to play down to a winner which will be live-streamed in the brand new streaming studio!

Past MSPT Venetian Poker Bowl winners include Zack Fuentes ($117,060), James Romero ($171,167), Ron West ($168,488), Johnny Oshana ($130,000), Brian Wilson (143,929), Kfir Nahum (108,410), Jordan Young (117,381), Sean Berman ($42,305 + Bounties), and "Scary" Terry Fleischer ($98,101).

Who will be next to add their names to the list of aforementioned Poker Bowl champions?

Come be a part of history at The Venetian Poker Room as they will unveil their brand-new streaming studio produced and distributed by PokerGO!

Richards Puts Stavila to the Test

Dan Stavila raised from late position and then called a three-bet from Carson Richards from the button to see a flop.

Stavila check-called a continuation bet from Richards, and then did the same for 55,000 after the was turned.

Once the completed the board on the river, Dan Stavila quickly checked his option to Richards only to be faced with an all in bet.

Stavila went deep into the tank as a call would be for his remaining stack and after some careful thought, he decided to pick a different spot.

Carson Richards - 695,000
Dan Stavila - 47,000

Day 1A Chip Counts

So far, just eight players have punched their ticket into Day 2 and another group of 14 hopefuls will look to add their names to that list tonight.

All who make it through until the end of play will return to action, Sunday, January 5^th at 11:00 a.m. for Day 2, where the remaining players from all starting flights will combine and play until a winner is declared.

Hand-for-Hand

With the elimination of Jamie Dwan, the hand-for-hand process has begun with 15 players remaining.

Massey Trips Up Goodman's Aces for a KO

There was heads-up action between MSPT Hall of Famer Aaron Massey from the button and David Goodman from the small blind with a completed board showing.

All the chips got into the middle with Goodman holding the effective stack.

Goodman rolled over for a pair of aces, but they were no good as Massey rolled over for trip sevens to send him on his way.

Aaron Massey - 380,000
David Goodman - 0

The MSPT Takes Flight to Potawatomi Casino for the 100 GRAND STACK FESTIVAL January 28th - February 2nd!

For the first time since 2019, the MSPT is headed back to the Potawatomi Hotel & Casino in Milwaukee, WI, to host the second-ever 100 GRAND STACK FESTIVAL, January 28th - February 2nd!

A total of 11 trophy events will take place during the six-day span with Day 1a of the second-ever $400 - 100 GRAND STACK NLH getting things started on Tuesday, January 28th at Noon.

The opening event offers Two starting flights which sees each player sit down with a whopping 100,000 chip stack to start, with blind levels increasing every 30 minutes.

Day 1b will then take place on Wednesday, January 29th with a noon start time as well, and the survivors from each starting flight will then reconvene for Day 2 on Thursday, January 30th at 11:00 a.m. and will play until a winner is crowned.

Also being held that Thursday is the headlined $1,110 - 100 GRAND STACK $500K guaranteed Main Event, which will see the first of THREE starting flights running from getting started at Noon.

The Main Event will give each player a whopping 100,000 chip stack to start, with blind levels increasing every 40 minutes.

Day 1b will then follow that Friday, January 31st with Day 1c being held Saturday, February 1st, both with noon start times.

The survivors from each starting flight will then combine for Day 2 on Sunday, February 2nd at 11:00 a.m. and will play until a winner is crowned.

Gerald Heath is the defending Potawatomi champ after taking down the last event back in 2019 for $130,935 while Dan Bekavac ($126,998), Brett Halan ($144,812), and Greg Himmelbrand ($125,958) are the other most recent Potawatomi champs.

Who will be next to add their names to the list of champions?

The MSPT live reporting crew will be on hand to provide live updates as the answer to that question is determined.