Main Event
Day 2 Completed
2015 Mid-States Poker Tour Golden Gates Casino
Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2015 Mid-States Poker Tour Golden Gates Casino
Buy-in
$1,000
Entries
409
Level
30
Blinds
50,000 / 100,000
Ante
10,000
Kane Lai Wins Mid-States Poker Tour Golden Gates Casino ($101,365)!
Level 30
: 50,000/100,000, 10,000 ante
Accomplished local player Kane Lai banked $101,365 for winning the 2015 Mid-States Poker Tour Golden Gates Main Event. Lai added to a career tournament résumé with a smidge under $400,000 in cashes and received his first six-figure score for topping a field of 409 entries.
Lai entered the final table with a hefty chip lead and completely dominated play, holding more than half of the chips when things got down to eight-handed action. His win came against a very tough final table that included Kevin "Phwap" Boudreau and MSPT Team Pro Nick Pupillo.
A sizable Day 2 field of 88 runners took to the felt after three Day 1 flights, with Lai sitting below average at 98,000 coming into Level 16 (2,000/4,000/500). A couple of heavy hitters, MSPT Team Pro Blake Bohn and World Series of Poker bracelet winner Will Givens, fell before the money was reached, as only the top 45 would be paid. Once the bubble burst, Boudreau began mounting his charge, surging to a 2 million-chip stack while other top stacks were barely clearing 1 million. Nothing would stop him navigating to a second straight final table at MSPT Golden Gates after his fourth-place finish in November.
Lots of notables collected payout tickets short of the final table. Bryan Devonshire, who has millions in live and online cashes and made a deep run in last year's WSOP Main Event, busted 36th. Current MSPT Player of the Year points leader Mark Hodge added yet another cash (his fourth of the season) when he finished 35th. Danny Gonzales (33rd), start-of-the-day leader Jay Robb (30th), and Travis Northrope (25th) also added to their bankrolls.
A turning point happened when Lai got all in and at risk for about 1.5 million in a four-bet pot with Boudreau during Level 26 (20,000/40,000/5,000). Lai held 
and managed to spike a jack on the turn against Boudreau's 
. When Gene Gioia and Andreas Ramadanis busted in simultaneous hands in that same level, a final table of nine headed for dinner break with Lai at 3.5 million and Boudreau his closest competitor with 2.3 million.
Lai kept it rolling by busting Wally Printz in ninth before another huge pot with Boudreau went his way. Lai called three barrels from Boudreau on a 
run out, who had raised under the gun and showed the 
for a pair and flush draw on the flop that didn't improve. Lai had the 
and about half of the chips in play eight-handed at that point.
Next to fall was Travis Maly in eighth, then Boudreau, who couldn't seem to win a key hand at the final table, called off 10 big blinds against a Pupillo small-blind shove. Pupillo's 
turned Boudreau's 
dead to finish him in seventh. Pupillo had climbed to second from a low point of less than five big blinds, but then he got picked off by Lai on a four-bet jam with the 
against the 
.
Tyler Corbett then busted Danny Dang in fifth with the when he rivered an ace against two black kings. When Lai outran Darek Spring to send him packing in fourth, he had about 10 million of the roughly 12.2 million in play, making the win look like a foregone conclusion. The short stacks then went to war as Jon Cohen jammed from the small blind with the 
only to have Corbett wake up with the 
and hold.
That set up one of the more lopsided recent heads-up matches on the tour, with Corbett outchipped about 10-1. A few hands in, he put in his five big-blind stack with the 
only to see Lai pick up the 
in the big blind. A run out of 
later and a new MSPT champ was crowned.
Corbett settled for $58,515.
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Tyler Corbett Eliminated in 2nd Place ($58,515)
Level 30
: 50,000/100,000, 10,000 ante
Tyler Corbett shoved his last 510,000, and Kane Lai called immediately.
Lai:
Corbett:
Corbett's rail seemed optimistic that he'd pull it off, but a flop brought little.
"Eight of hearts," Corbett said.
Instead, he got the , giving him many more river winners. The river card that emerged was a though, ending the tournament for Corbett and crowning Lai the champ.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted |
Level: 30
Blinds: 50,000/100,000
Ante: 10,000
Corbett Whittled Down
Level 29
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Both players look like they want to play small ball, but it's Tyler Corbett getting the worst of it so far. In one recent pot, he check-called 100,000 on a board of 
and had the river go check-check when the double-paired the board. Corbett was playing the board as he showed he'd been counterfeited with 
, and Kane Lai showed 
.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
900,000 | -670,000 |
Photos: MSPT Golden Gates Heads Up
Jon Cohen Eliminated in 3rd Place ($35,706)
Level 29
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Jon Cohen jammed from the small blind for just over 700,000, and Tyler Corbett snap-called off nearly all of his stack and turned up.
"You're good," Cohen said, showing .
The board read 
on fourth, leading Cohen to call for a jack. Instead, the came, leaving Corbett heads up and at a massive chip deficit.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,600,000 | 200,000 |
|
Busted |
Darek Spring Eliminated in 4th Place ($28,763)
Level 29
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Kane Lai opened on the button for 160,000 and then called Darek Spring, who shoved 560,000 in the big blind.
"Win the race," Spring urged as he turned over 
.
It was indeed a race as Lai held 
. Lai took a big lead as 
flopped, but a turn brought hope for Spring with a flush draw. A black 
arrived though, and Lai collected yet another scalp.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
10,000,000 | 2,400,000 |
|
Busted |
Cohen Doubles Through Spring
Level 29
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Jon Cohen shoved first two act for 500,000, and Darek Spring shoved as well. The blinds folded.
"Nice hand," Cohen said in resignation, turning 
.
He at least had live cards though as Spring tabled .
The 
brought little for Cohen, but runner and 
made him a flush.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,200,000 | -400,000 |
|
|
580,000 | -1,220,000 |
Lai Gets Corbett to Fold Again
Level 29
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Tyler Corbett opened in the cutoff, and Kane Lai wanted to play in position. Corbett continuation-bet 200,000 on the , and Lai called. Corbett checked the and called 350,000 from Lai. On the 
river, Corbett checked, and Lai jammed for 1.4 million effective. Corbett had been bluffed in the same spot before, but he elected to lay it down after some thought. Lai didn't show this time.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
7,600,000 | 800,000 |
|
|
1,400,000 | -400,000 |