Hall of Famer Aaron Johnson Wins MSPT Ameristar East Chicago; Jake Long Claims 4 Side Event Titles
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The penultimate stop of the Major Series of Poker: The Tour (MSPT) took place at Ameristar East Chicago and was comprised of a dozen events. That included the $1,110 buy-in, $300K GTD Main Event, which attracted 514 runners over a trio of side events and awarded a $497,080 prize pool.
On Sunday, 58 players returned to play down to a winner, and after 12 hours of play, it was Minnesota native and MSPT Hall of Famer Aaron Johnson claiming the title for $92,000 and his second MSPT title.
“Feels Amazing,” Johnson told MSPT reporter Anthony Thompson after his victory, which came a month after finishing runner-up to Anthony Kastelic in the MSPT Riverside. “That was painful. I haven’t won a tournament since 2019. Winning one is great, but the second is validation, it's vindication, and being able to get my second one after a half decade feels amazing.”
Johnson’s first win came back in November 2019 when he won the MSPT Meskwaki for $86,951.
MSPT Ameristar East Chicago Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aaron Johnson | Red Wing, MN | $92,000 |
| 2 | Michael Suggs | Carmel, IN | $77,483 |
| 3 | Xi Nguyen | Lansing, IL | $46,485 |
| 4 | Matt Miller | Naperville, IL | $35,157 |
| 5 | Lee Rzentkowski | Middleton, WI | $26,368 |
| 6 | Angel Saurez | Milwaukee, WI | $20,020 |
| 7 | Kojo Enu | East Landsing, MI | $15,625 |
| 8 | Jerry Miller | Nappanee, IN | $12,207 |
| 9 | Yoon Kim | Caledonia, WI | $9,278 |
Others to cash the tournament were Brett Reichard (11th - $7,324), Shiva Dudani (18th - $4,883), Jake Long (22nd - $3,760), Charlie Reichard (31st - $2,637), Josh Reichard (38th - $2,393), and Umut Ozturk (43rd - $2,393). For Long and Ozturk, their cashes had implications for the MSPT Season 16 Player of the Year race.
Ozturk, who won POY in both Season 14 and 15, was on top of the leaderboard coming into the stop, but he only received 75 POY points while Long got 200, meaning he gained 125 points. What’s more, Long captured an astounding four side event titles at the stop.
Jake Long’s MSPT Ameristar East Chicago Side Event Wins
| Date | Tournament | POY Points | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11/18/25 | Event #2: $300 PLO | 175 | $5,832 |
| 11/19/25 | Event #5: PLO NLH | 200 | $6,329 |
| 11/21/25 | Event #8: $250 Monster Stack NLH | 200 | $6,479 |
| 11/23/25 | Event #12: $200 Last Chance | 67 | $2,448 |
When the dust settled, Long had amassed 642 POY points in side events, which put him in the lead with 9,732 points ahead of Ozturk, who had 9,467, with one stop to go. Josh Reichard is lingering in third with 7,224, while DJ Buckley is in a distant fourth with 5,283.
Side Event Winners
While Long took down four of the dozen side events, there were still other big names who took down titles. MSPT Hall of Famer Gerald Cunniff topped a 168-entry field to win Event #1: $300 Epic Stack for $9,632, while O.G. MSPT grinder Jason Bender bested a 61-entry field to win Event #7: $250 Monster Stack NLH for $4,271 and his first Gold Card.
Another big winner was Dave Bashel, who overcame a 143-entry field to win Event #10: $300 Senior’s (50+) Monster Stack for $9,810.
MSPT Ameristar East Chicago Side Event Winners
| Tournament | Entries | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| Event #1: $300 Epic Stack | 168 | Gerald Cunniff | $9,632 |
| Event #2: $300 Monster Stack PLO | 68 | Jacob Long | $5,832 |
| Event #3: $250 Monster Stack NLH | 72 | Piotr Grubba | $1,975 |
| Event #4: $300 Ultimate Stack NLH | 157 | Joseph Saltanovitz | $9,039 |
| Event #5: $300 Monster Stack Mixed PLO/NLH | 76 | Jacob Long | $6,329 |
| Event #6: $1,110 MSPT Main Event | 514 | Aaron Johnson | $92,000 |
| Event #7: $250 Monster Stack NLH | 61 | Jason Bender | $4,271 |
| Event #8: $250 Monster Stack NLH | 108 | Jacob Long | $6,479 |
| Event #9: $250 Monster Stack NLH | 136 | Dean Stilson | $7,616 |
| Event #10: $300 Senior's (50+) Monster Stack | 143 | Dave Bashel | $9,810 |
| Event #11: $300 Ultimate Stack NLH | 121 | Raymond Xu | $8,298 |
| Event #12: $200 Last Chance Monster Stack NLH | 34 | Jacob Long | $2,448 |
Final Stop of the Season
The 29th and final stop of MSPT Season 16 will take place at Minnesota’s Running Aces Casino, which sits just outside the Twin Cities. The Winter Poker Classic features 18 Gold Card events from December 2-14 and marks the last opportunity for players to earn coveted Player of the Year Points.
The $1,110 buy-in, $500K GTD Main Event will take place toward the start of the festival (so as not to conflict with WSOP Paradise and WPT World Championship) from December 4-7. The first of three starting flights will take place at 2 p.m. CT on Thursday, December 4, with Day 1B taking place at the same time on Friday, December 5. Day 1C will then be held at Noon local time on Saturday, December 6, before the surviving players from all flights return in the money at 11 a.m. on Sunday, December 7, to play down to a winner.
While that tournament will award the most POY points, all of the side events have some available. That includes Event #4: $300 Pot-Limit Omaha Monster Stack, Event #13: $300 Epic Stack NLH, and Event #15: $400 Mini Main Event.
There will also be a $400 Tag Team Kickoff at 4 p.m. CT on Tuesday, December 2, and Event #8: $200 Ladies Monster Stack NLH at 5 p.m. CT on Sunday, December 7, though neither tournament offers POY points.
Here’s a look at the full MSPT Winter Poker Classic schedule:
*Images courtesy of MSPT / Tyler Abrams.
