Mike Shin Wins Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) Season 10 Player of the Year
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For the first time in tour history, the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) Player of the Year race was a foregone conclusion headed into the last stop at Canterbury Park. Mike Shin held such a big lead in the Player of the Year race after a tremendous 2019 that no one could mathematically catch him. His 5,475 points were well ahead of Adam Friedman, who at the time was his next closest competition with 3,500 points.
For finishing as MSPT Season 10 POY, Shin was awarded a $10,000 Las Vegas prize package and will be featured on the cover of MSPT Magazine.
Shin amassed a dozen MSPT cashes totaling $441,753 in 2019, which started with a win in the MSPT Majestic Star back in January for $68,593. He would later finish third in the summer’s MSPT Venetian for $334,000. That was the second-largest score of his career behind the $427,930 he received for finishing 12th in the 2016 World Series of Poker Main Event.
“Early on when I won the first one I just knew I had to go for it. I went to a couple of extra stops and it worked out for me.”
“It feels great. It’s something I was trying for,” Shin said on the PokerNews LFG Podcast after the win. “Early on when I won the first one I just knew I had to go for it. I went to a couple of extra stops and it worked out for me.”
He elaborated: “Anything could happen. I think when there were three or four Main Events left players had a chance to catch up with me. It wasn’t until there were two events left that I felt pretty good about it. I knew I was going to play both of them too, so then it felt great, but before that anything could happen. I was glad to lock it down.”
Mike Shin's MSPT Season 10 Cashes
| Event Dates | Location | Event | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12/05/19 - 12/08/19 | Shakopee, Minnesota | Canterbury Park | 35 | $3,416 |
| 11/14/19 - 11/17/19 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Potawatomi Hotel & Casino | 62 | $2,235 |
| 11/01/19 - 11/03/19 | Tama, Iowa | Meskwaki Casino | 9 | $7,509 |
| 10/10/19 - 10/13/19 | Battle Creek, Michigan | FireKeepers Casino | 95 | $2,817 |
| 09/12/19 - 09/15/19 | Shakopee, Minnesota | Canterbury Park | 41 | $2,236 |
| 08/16/19 - 08/18/19 | Chicago Area | Majestic Star Casino | 12 | $5,286 |
| 07/26/19 - 07/28/19 | Tama, Iowa | Meskwaki Casino | 40 | $2,131 |
| 06/17/19 - 06/21/19 | Las Vegas, Nevada | The Venetian | 3 | $334,000 |
| 06/03/19 - 06/08/19 | Las Vegas, Nevada | The Venetian | 173 | $4,787 |
| 04/04/19 - 04/07/19 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Potawatomi Hotel & Casino | 46 | $2,419 |
| 03/22/19 - 03/24/19 | Tama, Iowa | Meskwaki Casino | 12 | $6,324 |
| 01/25/19 - 01/27/19 | East Chicago | Majestic Star Casino | 1 | $68,593 |
While Shin was a force to be reckoned with on the MSPT, he also found time to do damage elsewhere in 2019, which proved to be a career year with more than $693K in tournament earnings. Back in August, Shin won another mid-major title when he took down the HPT St. Louis for $160,632, the third biggest score of his career.
It’s also worth noting that Aaron Johnson, the defending POY after having claimed the title in 2018, came close to doing it again. Thanks to taking third place in the season-ending MSPT Canterbury Park, he finished in second place on the points leaderboard behind Shin with 4,442 points.
Shin joins an exclusive club of MSPT POY winners dating back to 2011 – Johnson (2018), Chris Meyers (2017), Rich Alsup (2016), Mark Hodge (2015), Michael Deis (2014), Pat Steele (2013), Dan Sun (2012), and Nate Fair (2011).
Final MSPT Season 10 POY Standings
| Place | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Shin | 5,725 |
| 2 | Aaron Johnson | 4,442 |
| 3 | Adam Friedman | 3,500 |
| 4 | Andy Tran | 3,450 |
| 5 | Matt Kirby | 3,425 |
| 6 | Brian Wilson | 3,250 |
| 7 | Brian Hou | 3,000 |
| 8 | Steve Wilkie | 2,900 |
| 9 | Rich Alsup | 2,800 |
| 10 | Ian Matakis | 2,800 |
For more on the MSPT, visit the tour's website at msptpoker.com.
PR & Media Manager for PokerNews, Podcast host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.
