Created (8/9/2026 2:08:24 AM by Anthony Thompson)
Day 1c of the inaugural $1,100 Illinois Poker State Championship Main Event at Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, Illinois, attracted another 834 runners, which, along with 1a's 373 and 1b’s 600, brought the field total up to 1,807 entries.
The 1,807 total tally made it the largest Main Event ever held in the state of Illinois, and the $1,751,290 prize pool that was generated went down in the history books as well.
At the end of the third and final flight, just 92 players bagged and tagged, with late arrival Zara Eminova clipping the milly mark (1,047,000) to take the overall stack heading into Day 2.
Jason Crews
Iowa’s Jason Crews went on a late-night heater to bag second in chips with a healthy 883,000, while Matthew Levin (705,000), Brett Slezak (648,000), and Bhanuchandar Sadineni (605,000) rounded out the top stacks of the final flight.
Brett Slezak
Others who survived the third and final flight included Nic DiTrapani (585,000), Tony Olguin (483,000), Missy Bartelme (459,000), MSPT Champ Matt Porter (401,000), Sarah Stefan (129,000), and MSPT Hall of Famer Chris Moon(110,000).
Kyna England
Among those to try and fall on Day 1c included Season 12 Player of the Year Kyna England, Gabe Neighbors, two-time MSPT Champ Mark Sandness, Brian Berthiaume, Jill Bryant, James Grimes, and last MSPT Hall of Famer and two-time bracelet winner Rich Alsup, just to name a few.
Rich Alsup
Day 2 will get underway at 11:00 a.m. local time and play to a winner with 198 players (41 from Day 1a, 65 from 1b, and 92 from 1c) returning to the felt.
Each of the 198 remaining players is in the money and will receive at least $2,245, with the eventual winner walking away with a $280,573 first-place prize.
Congratulations to everyone who advanced to Day 2, and we’ll see you at 11:00 a.m. for final day coverage of the inaugural MSPT $1,110 Illinois Poker State Championship Main Event at Rivers Casino
MSPT Season 17 Illinois Poker State Championship Remaining Schedule
| Date |
Time |
Tournament |
Chips |
Blind Levels |
Gold Card Event |
| 9-Aug |
9:00 AM |
$400 Seniors (50+) Monster Stack NLH |
30,000 |
30 Minutes |
9 |
| 9-Aug |
11:00 AM |
$1,110 Illinois Poker State Championship NLH Day 2 (2-Day Event) |
- |
40 Minutes |
5 |
| 9-Aug |
12:00 PM |
$400 Black Chip Bounty Monster Stack NLH |
30,000 |
30 Minutes |
10 |
| 9-Aug |
3:00 PM |
$250 Last Chance NLH |
30,000 |
20 Minutes |
11 |