CPPT and MSPT Underway, Mathews wins HPO, WSOPC Sets Final Table

CPPT Foxwoods Main Event Thins Field

The second season of the Card Player Poker Tour took players to Foxwoods for a series of tournaments on February 8. And on February 14, the $1,650 NLHE Reentry Main Event got underway with its $300K guarantee.

The first of two starting days brought in 63 players but 79 total entries with the reentries included. Only 22 players finished the night, though, with Ronnie Pease in the lead with 336,800 chips.

Quite a few more players and reentries were tabulated for the second starting day, creating a total field of 340 entries and total prize pool of $494,700, far past the guarantee. The top 36 players were going to finish in the money with more than $113K for the winner. That night ended with 84 players remaining and Brad St. Vincent atop that night’s leaderboard with 268K chips.

MSPT Running Aces Sets Prize Pool

The Mid-States Poker Tour was in its fifth season and stopped at Running Aces Harness Club in Minnesota. The Main Event required a $1,100 buy-in for the NLHE players.

Day 1A attracted 128 players, and Day 1B added another 226, creating the largest field ever for an MSPT event to date. The total of 354 entries made for a prize pool of $355,200, out of which the top 36 would be paid and the winner would receive $91K.

Only 36 players made it through Day 1A, and Dustin Dirksen was on top with 254,800 chips. Day 1B saw 76 players survive the night, and Tyler Caspers overtook the chip lead for both days with a count of 259,800 chips.

Mathews Wins HPO Tunica

The Hollywood Poker Open Tunica Regional Championship event brought a group of players to the tables that included Chris Moneymaker. A total of 20 players entered the tournament for a $30,080 prize pool.

Day 1 played down to only four players, with Moneymaker in the lead with more than half of the chips at the table, though only the top three would be paid. In the end, Moneymaker took third place and Toby Mathews won more than $15K and a $2,500 seat to the championship event at the M Casino in Las Vegas this June.

1^st place: Toby Mathews ($15,040)

2^nd place: Jonathan Taylor ($9,024)

3^rd place: Chris Moneymaker ($6,016)

WSOPC Palm Beach Sets Final Table

The World Series of Poker Circuit started its $1,675 NLHE Main Event for the weekend at the Palm Beach Kennel Club in Florida.

The first starting day attracted 258 players, though only 43 of them finished the day with chips. Jorgen Rasmussen was the chip leader with 288K. Day 2 added another 400 players to bring the total to 658 players and the prize pool to $987K.

Day 2 started with 123 players still in action, and the money bubble burst in the afternoon hours when Erik Christensen and Raj Vohra both eliminated at the same time. They split 72^nd place money and each took $1,382. Others who cashed later included Phillip Hui, Jordan Cristos, Daniel Griggs, Josh Arieh, Aaron Massey, and Mukul Pahuja. Anthony Lombard then exited in tenth place around midnight for $15,220.

The final table was then set for February 17 as follows:

Vincent Maglio (3,225,000)

Ruslan Dykshteyn (2,100,000)

Ian Ohara (1,763,000)

Fadi Massaad (1,533,000)

Joseph McKeehen (1,300,000)

George Lampert (1,300,000)

Richard Kirsch (800,000)

Josh Kay (775,000)

Luke Graham (430,000)