Robert Strunk and Frank Lucarelli Lead Day 1c in the Great Lakes Poker Classic Main Event

61 entrants came out to play the third flight of the Great Lakes Poker Classic $1,200 Main Event at Firekeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan. The biggest flight yet brought the overall total for entrants up to 124. From those starting players, just 8 have survived this flight to join the 10 players from the other flights. All of these players can sleep easy knowing that the $300,000 guaranteed prize pool is a little bit closer to their wallets.

Leading the way is Robert Strunk, who bagged up 548,000. The past three years of tournament poker have seen the Michigan player add to his Hendon Mob resume just over $210,000 in live earnings. Among his accomplishments were a deep run in the 2024 WSOP Main Event, a third place finish in the MSPT Battle Creek Main Event, and a WSOP bracelet win for $116,708. Now sitting with the overall second biggest stack, he looks to further carve his name in Firekeepers history with a major title in the casino itself.

Frank Lucarelli (504,000) became the late night executioner as he eliminated more than half of the players falling at the final two tables. Having also came in third place in an MSPT Battle Creek Main Event for a career best $85,699, Lucarelli’s late night ascent came courtesy of the departure of players like Brady Wieland, Patrick Korty, and WSOP bracelet winner Jean “Prince” Gaspard. He now sits with one of the biggest stacks left to potentially take down his first recorded live title.

Third on the podium today is Andrew Olive (481,000), who started his day off by hopping into this morning’s satellite. After winning the satellite, he ended up knocking out Grant Henderson (163,000) in level 1 of the tournament and then knocked out Jennifer Williams shortly after in the same level. Holding the early day chip lead for multiple levels, he fell down the counts in the later levels of the night only to come roaring back by night’s end. The Wichita Kansas native sits chasing his biggest live score as he rounds out Day 1c’s top three.

Day 1c Chip Counts

Rank	Player	Hometown	Chip Count
1	Robert Strunk	Schoolcraft, MI	548,000
2	Frank Lucarelli	Woodhaven, MI	504,000
3	Andrew Olive	Wichita, KS	481,000
4	Zachary Matice	White Lake, MI	266,000
5	Shawn Rings	Grand Rapids, MI	261,000
6	Grant Henderson	Holt, MI	163,000
7	Steven Stout	Milford, MI	114,000
8	Alec Magdan*	Warren, MI	102,000

Not everyone was able to see their chips be put into a bag by the end of the night. Many of the Michigan regulars fell by the wayside, like Buck Bucceri, Henry Zou, Adam Lamphere, and Todd Estes. Dominic Choma became the final casualty of the night as he fell just shy of the bagging process. They will have ample opportunity in the last flight today and tomorrow's two flights to put chips in a bag.

Day 1d continues on the other side of the room with registration still open. Players who two times will receive a $3,000 bonus for their second bag and $5,000 for every additional bag they secure. Chip counts for the players advancing in that flight will be posted tomorrow morning. Currently only Alec Magdan has succeeded in that endeavor, bagging up three times to get $8,000 in bonuses so far.