$1,110 Main Event | 2022 MSPT Michigan State Poker Championship

10-16-2022 14:54 UTC-4

The Orca Swims On

Liam Gannon

Level 20 : Blinds 10,000/15,000, 15,000 ante

Action was picked up after the flop between a player in the big blind, and Alex "TheOrca" Farcas from under the gun in a significantly sized pot.

The big blind moved all in for 400,000 effective on the and Farcas took one look at his hand and called.

Alex "TheOrca" Farcas:
Big blind:

"Nice hand," Farcas said as the turn peeled. The river gave Farcas a flush and he stood up, shaking his head in disbelief. The big blind paid the bet and Farcas sat back down still shaking his head at how fortunate the runout was for him.

Player	Chips	Progress
Alex Farcas	1,055,000 605,000	605,000

Tags: Alex Farcas

10-16-2022 14:13 UTC-4

Buckley On A Mission

Liam Gannon

Level 19 : Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante

DJ Buckley moved in his final 5,000 from early position and was called by a player in the hijack and John Dennehey in the cutoff. On the button, Joe Cada raised to 50,000 and both players called.

The flop of checked to the turn that saw Cada bet small and get two immediate folds, winning him the side pot.

DJ Buckley:
Joe Cada:

The river gave Buckley two pair and a much needed double to his stack.

The following hand, Buckley moved all in for 48,000 and was called by the big blind.

DJ Buckley:
Big Blind:

The board ran out and Buckley rivered a straight to double once more to a nearly 10 big blind stack.

Player	Chips	Progress
Joe Cada	360,000 135,000	135,000

John Dennehey	260,000 239,000	239,000
DJ Buckley	114,000 -44,000	-44,000

Tags: DJ Buckley Joe Cada John Dennehey

10-16-2022 13:33 UTC-4

Kapoor Bluffs Off Top Pair

Liam Gannon

Level 18 : Blinds 5,000/10,000, 10,000 ante

Jason "Clozer" Kapoor raised to 22,000 from the cutoff and was called by a player in the big blind.

The flop came out and the big blind checked to Kapoor who continued for 16,000. The big blind quickly raised to 35,000 and Kapoor clicked it back to 115,000 total.

The big blind debated on his decision for a some time, then flashed a as he tossed his hand into the muck. Kapoors' face broke into a grin as he flashed for a pair of jacks which was far behind the pair of queens as he raked in the pot.

Player	Chips	Progress
Jason Kapoor	535,000 50,000	50,000

Tags: Jason Kapoor

10-16-2022 12:56 UTC-4

Mario Arribas Bubbles MSPT Firekeepers

Liam Gannon

Level 17 : Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante

Mario Arribas raised to 16,000 from early position and in the small blind, Brekstyn Schutten three-bet to 67,000. Arribas moved all in for 275,000 and Schutten called to put him at risk.

Mario Arribas:
Brekstyn Schutten:

The board ran out and the ace-king was unable to improve against Schutten's queens and Arribas became the last player to leave the tournament without any payout.

The remaining 252 players all are guaranteed $2,569.

Player	Chips	Progress
Brekstyn Schutten	715,000 311,000	311,000

Mario Arribas	Busted

Tags: Brekstyn Schutten Mario Arribas

10-16-2022 11:52 UTC-4

Wieland Coolers Mulroy

Liam Gannon

Level 16 : Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante

Action was picked up with cards on their backs with players having gotten their entire stacks in for a pot worth about 600,000.

Timothy Mulroy:
Brady Wieland:

Wieland's aces held up against the kings and last spring's seventh place finisher was eliminated just short of the money.

At another table, Anthony Babic was also eliminated.

Player	Chips	Progress
Brady Wieland	775,000 579,000	579,000
Timothy Mulroy	Busted
Anthony Babic	Busted

Tags: Brady Wieland Timothy Mulroy

10-16-2022 11:46 UTC-4

Alsup Doubles Up

Liam Gannon

Level 16 : Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante

Action was picked up on the turn in a three way pot between Rich Alsup in second position, a player in early position, and a player in the big blind.

The board read and action checked to Alsup who bet 20,000. The early position player raised to 60,000, folding out the big blind, and Alsup moved all in for 97,000 total which was called.

Rich Alsup:
Opponent:

His opponent was drawing dead by the turn and the river did nothing to change the board, giving the MSPT hall of famer a double up.

Player	Chips	Progress
Rich Alsup	281,000 63,000	63,000

Tags: Rich Alsup

10-16-2022 11:09 UTC-4

Sundberg Eliminates Burbach

Liam Gannon

Level 15 : Blinds 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante

Matt Sundberg raised to 12,000 from the hijack and in the cutoff, Loren Burbach moved all in from the cutoff for 71,000. Action folded back around to Sundberg who called to put Burbach at risk.

Loren Burbach:
Matt Sundberg:

The board ran out and Sundberg flopped a pair of queens to take the lead and maintained it to knock out Burbach early into the day.

Player	Chips	Progress
Matt Sundberg	331,000 71,000	71,000
Loren Burbach	Busted

Tags: Loren Burbach Matt Sundberg

10-16-2022 10:11 UTC-4

Who Will Win MSPT Firekeepers Today?

Liam Gannon

A record breaking field of 2,409 entrants, came together in the Mid-States Poker Tour $1,100 Main Event at Firekeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan to create a prize pool worth $2,336,730. 303 players are returning to this final day with only 252 of them guaranteed to cash for $2,569, with all eyes on the giant first place prize of $344,446.

Leading the way is none other than defending champion Dan Bekavac, who bagged 1,128,000 after the dust settled. Bekavac is no stranger to MSPTs, having won four total which is more than any other player. Just like last spring, he bagged the chip lead of his respective flight and will be looking to be the first player to reach five total Main Event wins.

	Name	Chip Count	Table	Seat
1	Dan Bekavac	1,128,000	10	9
2	Antonio Ndoja	643,000	34	5
3	Arturas Astrauskas	628,000	32	1
4	Soheb Porbandarwala	611,000	24	4
5	KC Vaughan	533,000	31	3
6	Justin Pimpedly	530,000	41	4
7	Matt Morfitt	528,000	29	8
8	Jason Kapoor	516,000	38	8
9	De'andre Brown	499,000	37	5
10	Dominic Choma	490,000	22	5

Five others from last Spring’s final table ended up bagging for Day 2. Jonathan Johnson (458,000), Timothy Mulroy (240,000), Marquez Davis (97,000), Zinoviy Pelekh (80,000), and CJ Peake (78,000). Each are looking to make it back to the final table of the biggest poker tournament in the midwest for a better prize than last time. Other MSPT regulars found themselves finding bags as well, like Matt Morfitt (528,000), Jason “Clozer” Kapoor (516,000), Chris Moon (478,000), Craig Trost (456,000), Michael Berk (300,000) and many more. Each looking to take home the massive first place prize.

303 players will return at 11 a.m. on Sunday, October 16th, with 32 minutes left on level 15 with blinds at 3,000/5,000. The blinds will return to 40-minute levels and players will play down until an MSPT Firekeepers champion is crowned. Stay tuned to PokerNews for all of the updates on the biggest midwestern tournament of all time.

Tags: Antonio Ndoja Arturas Astrauskas CJ Peake Chris Moon Craig Trost Dan Bekavac Dominic Choma Jason Kapoor Jonathan Johnson Justin Pimpedly KC Vaughan Marquez Davis Matt Morfitt Michael Berk Soheb Porbandarwala Timothy Mulroy Zinoviy Pelekh