$1,650 Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2020 Heartland Poker Tour Hollywood St. Louis
$1,650 Main Event
Days: 1a
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1a
2020 Heartland Poker Tour Hollywood St. Louis
Buy-in
$1,650
Players
392
Level
31
Blinds
80,000 / 160,000
Ante
160,000
Players Left
5
Entries
41
Tepen Bags Heaps as Five Advance From Day 1a of HPT St. Louis
Level 14
: 1,500-3,000, 3,000 ante
Day 1a of the HPT Hollywood Casino St. Louis $1,650 Main Event saw 41 entrants take to the felt, and after nearly fourteen levels of play, only five players managed to find a bag, with Ryan Tepen and his 402,000 chip stack leading the way.
Tepen, a two-time WSOPC ring winner with nearly $1 million in live tournament earnings according to Hendon Mob, was a late arrival to the Day 1a flight, but made his presence known quickly when he busted Mark Koeln after finding a full house on the river. This pot brought Tepen's stack to nearly 200 big blinds just after the dinner break, and he eventually pushed near the half-million chip marker before his stack eventually settled around 400,000 for the last few levels of the evening.
Igor Holdaiy (295,000) had a swingy day on the felt, as his stack was under ten big blinds during Level 12 (1,000/2,000/2,000), but he managed to quickly spin up his stack to end the night. WSOP Bracelet winner Brett Apter (270,000) closed the night at his peak when his aces sent John Thornton and his straight draw home one spot shy of a bag, while Thomas Rennier (175,000) and Season XV HPT $2,500 Championship Event runner-up Christopher Audrain (88,000) round out the five players who bagged up for the evening.
HPT Season XV Player of the Year Nick Pupillo never got any traction today and found himself eliminated before the dinner break. Gerald Claunch started the day off hot as the first player to hit six-figures, but cooled off considerably to also fall short of a bag. Other notables unable to make it through include Michael Esquivel, Josh Tucker, Ian Nelson, and Vincent Moscati.
The next opportunity for players to find a bag for Day 2 will be tomorrow's Day 1b flight, which will kick off at 2 p.m. local time. A third and final flight starts at Noon on Saturday, and all players that manage to bag up chips will return on Sunday at 11 a.m. to play down to the televised final table of nine. Expected to be in the field are Keith Heine, James Pupillo, and Maurice Hawkins, amongst a host of both new and familiar faces.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for continuing coverage as we get one step closer to crowning our latest HPT champion!
End Of Day 1a Chip Counts
Level 14
: 1,500-3,000, 3,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
402,000 | 12,000 |
 |
||
|
295,000 | 30,000 |
|
|
||
|
270,000 | 90,000 |
 |
||
|
175,000 | 11,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
88,000 | -5,000 |
|
|
||
Thornton Last to Go in Day 1a
Level 14
: 1,500-3,000, 3,000 ante
Brett Apter raised to 6,000 from the cutoff, and John Thornton called in the big blind.
Thornton checked the 
flop to Apter, who bet 12,500. Thornton check-raised to 25,000 and Apter called.
Thornton jammed for 50,000 on the 
turn, and Apter called.
John Thornton: 
Brett Apter: 
Thornton pinned his tournament life to an open-ended straight draw, but he would be left wanting on the 
river to leave him as the last player to fall before bagging and tagging for the evening.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Busted | |
|
|
||
Tepen Can't Trap Apter
Level 14
: 1,500-3,000, 3,000 ante
Igor Holdaiy raised to 7,500 from under the gun, and was called by Ryan Tepen in the small blind and Brett Apter in the big blind.
Tepen led out for 10,000 on the 
flop, and only Apter called.
Both players checked the 
turn and river, and Apter showed 
for queens-up. Tepen shot Apter a look as he rolled his 
over for a rivered full house before taking down the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
390,000 | 30,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
180,000 | -30,000 |
|
|
||
Apter Takes From Chip Leader Tepen
Level 14
: 1,500-3,000, 3,000 ante
Ryan Tepen raised to 8,500 on the button, and Brett Apter called in the small blind.
Apter check-called a bet of 10,000 from Tepen on a 
flop, and the 
fell on the turn. Apter checked, and Tepen bet 20,000. Apter check-raised to 43,000, and Tepen called.
Both players checked the 
river, and Apter tabled for tens full of sevens. Tepen mucked.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
400,000 | -60,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
210,000 | 75,000 |
|
|
||
Updated Chip Counts
Level 14
: 1,500-3,000, 3,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
460,000 | 35,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
265,000 | -13,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
164,000 | -16,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
135,000 | 5,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
108,000 | -42,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
93,000 | 3,000 |
|
|
||
Level: 14
Blinds: 1,500/3,000
Ante: 3,000
Rennier Steals One
Level 13
: 1,000-2,500, 2,500 ante
Brett Apter raised to 5,500 from the hijack, and was called by Christopher Audrain on the button and Thomas Rennier in the big blind.
Action checked through the 
flop, and the fell on the turn. Rennier bet 17,000, and both Apter and Audrain folded.
"You have anything?" Apter asked Rennier. Rennier responded by flipping over an airball with 
and said, "Nah, gotta get away with one once in a while!"
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
180,000 | 10,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
130,000 | -28,500 |
|
|
||
|
|
90,000 | -25,000 |
|
|
||
Dobrinich Felted by Rennier
Level 13
: 1,000-2,500, 2,500 ante
Thomas Rennier raised to 8,500 from middle position, then snapped off a three-bet shove for 48,500 from Jody Dobrinich on the button.
Jody Dobrinich: 
Thomas Rennier: 
Dobrinich was in a world of hurt against Rennier's rockets, and the 
flop brought little help. The turn gave Dobrinich a gutshot, but the river bricked off to send Dobrinich out the door just shy of bagging up for the evening.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
170,000 | 60,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
Busted | |
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