Ameristar East Chicago

Frederick Ginther Leads 11 Advancing Players After Day 1A of the MSPT Season 16 Indiana Poker State Championship

Day 1a of the MSPT Season 16 Indiana Poker State Championship at the Ameristar Casino in East Chicago is officially in the books with 96 total entries tallied during the first flight.

With action needing to play down to 11% of the field, 14 levels were required, as there was 10:56 remaining on the clock once the hard stop was reached with Frederick Ginther and his stack of 796,000 leading the charge of the 11 advancing players by a wide margin.

Sitting second in chips was Maxwell Sheridan, who caught some late-night steam to put 488,000 in his bag to end the night, while Rudy Vegh finished behind him with 351,000.

MSPT Hall of Famer Josh Reichard was able to find himself a top-five sack as well, bagging 346,000, while Justin Gutierrez (222,000), rounded out the top stacks of the first flight.

Others who found a Day 2 berth after the first starting flight included Christopher Weber (206,000), Ben Stuart (172,000), Jeff Halcomb (111,000), and Hal Kilgore (71,000).

Among those to try and fall on Day 1a included Dan Meyers, Jamin Stokes, Jospeh Hartstein, Jennifer Mandel, and Brad Sailor, among others.

Those players, as well as any newcomers, have two more starting flights to jump back into action.

Day 1b will kick off at noon local time on Friday, while the third and final flight, Day 1c, will take place at the same time on Saturday.

The surviving players from each flight will then return at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday to play down to a winner.

MSPT Season 16 Ameristar East Chicago Remaining Schedule

Join us tomorrow as we continue to bring you all the action and eliminations straight from the tournament floor of Ameristar Casino!

End Day 1A Chip Counts

Player Name	Chip Count	Previous	Progress
Frederick Ginther	796,000	715,000
Maxwell Sheridan	488,000	348,000
Rudy Vegh	351,000	290,000
Josh Reichard	346,000	285,000
Justin Gutierrez	222,000	114,000
Christopher Weber	206,000	125,000
Benjamin Stuart	172,000	30,000
Timothy Kelly	163,000	164,000
Hal Kilgore	71,000	58,000
Timothy Heng	46,000	65,000
Todd Stanich	14,000	32,000

The MSPT Heads to JACK Cleveland August 26th - September 1st!

Don't miss this upcoming MSPT Festival at JACK Cleveland Casino featuring $1M in total Guarantees, a $750K GTD Main Event & 6 Gold Cards to be awarded

: JACK Cleveland Poker Room - Cleveland, OH

: Aug. 26 - Sept. 1, 2025

: 6 Gold Card Events

: Main Event 293

: $1M in Guarantees / $750,000 GTD Main Event

: Senior Tour Event Included

msptpoker.com

Play Has Ended

After three quick knockouts, just 11 players remain meaning, play has ended with 10:56 remaining in Level 14.

Weber Calls Correctly for His Tournament Life

There was heads-up action between Christopher Weber from the small blind and MSPT Hall of Famer Josh Reichard from the big blind, with a completed board showing.

Weber led out with a 25,000 bet into a 65,000 pot, and Reichard put him to the test with an all-in raise.

Only a few moments passed before Weber decided to risk his 89,000 stack, and both hands were tabled.

Reichard rolled over for a pair of nines, and Weber was happy to show to collect his double-up after rivering top pair.

Christopher Weber - 233,000
Josh Reichard - 165,000

Chip Collectors & Givers

Player Name	Chip Count	Previous	Progress
Frederick Ginther	715,000	600,000
Maxwell Sheridan	348,000	367,000
Rudy Vegh	290,000	100,000
Josh Reichard	285,000	140,000
Aaron Phelps	165,000	100,000
Timothy Kelly	164,000	133,000
Christopher Weber	125,000	71,000
Justin Gutierrez	114,000	108,000
Jeff Halcomb	111,000	135,000
Umut Ozturk	86,000	37,000
Hal Kilgore	58,000	100,000
Timothy Heng	42,000	65,000
Todd Stanich	32,000	65,000
Christie Yau	0	141,000
Jesse Green	0	72,000

Michael Holm Secures an Ultimate Victory!

For the second time this season, the MSPT made its way to East Chicago, IN, and players have been duking it out over the past week inside the Ameristar Casino for its 13-Gold Card Event Series!

In Event #4: $300 Ultimate Stack NLH, 195 ultimate players took to the tables and created a $47,775 prize pool, reserved for the top 21 players.

Among those to take a piece of the prize pool but fall before the final table were MSPT champ Matt Porter (11^th Place - $908), Jennifer Mandel (12^th Place - $908), Shawn Quinn (15^th Place - $717), Dustin Ethridge (17^th Place - $621), and Joseph Saltanovitz (20^th Place - $573).

Walking away with the ultimate victory was Michael Holm, who was able to claim the lion's share of the prize pool along with his first Gold Card!

Final Table Results

Updated Stacks & Bust Outs

Player Name	Chip Count	Previous	Progress
Maxwell Sheridan	367,000	265,000
Aaron Phelps	165,000	85,000
Christie Yau	141,000	167,000
Josh Reichard	140,000	91,000
Jeff Halcomb	135,000	62,000
Timothy Kelly	133,000	46,000
Justin Gutierrez	108,000	101,000
Hal Kilgore	100,000	145,000
Rudy Vegh	100,000	95,000
Jeffrey Lutes	98,000	108,000
Jesse Green	72,000	115,000
Christopher Weber	71,000	33,000
Todd Stanich	65,000	55,500
Timothy Heng	65,000	110,000
Umut Ozturk	37,000	30,000
Jacob Long	0	30,000
James Carr	0	150,000
John Haas	0	41,000
Dan Meyers	0	30,000
Brad Sailor	0	82,000

Registration Closed

Level 13 has started, meaning registration for Day 1a of the MSPT Season 16 Indiana Poker State Championship at Ameristar Casino is officially closed, with 96 entrants tallied for the first flight.

The plan is to play until 11% of the field, rounded up (11 players), is reached, with the tournament clock reading 19 players remaining.

Ginther Rivers Broadway to Drop Stuart

Fred Ginther (pictured above) went heads-up to a flop, and led out with a continuation bet, only to call a 30,000 raise from Ben Stuart.

Once the hit the turn, Ginther called Stuart’s 60,000 all-in bet, and both hands were tabled.

Ben Stuart:
Fred Ginther:

“Oh, you’re good, I need a ten”, Ginther said to Stuart just before the dealer dropped the on the river, giving him the nuts to send Stuart packing.

Fred Ginther - 600,000
Ben Stuart - 30,000