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$800 Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2026 The Gateway Poker Classic
$800 Main Event
Day: 1a
Players Left 73 / 284
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Chip Counts
Chip Counts
Level 18
: Blinds 8,000/16,000, 16,000 ante
Stephen Martines doubled up during the first level of the day, but that was just foreshadowing what was to come for him on Day 1a of the RunGood Poker Series Gateway Poker Classic $800 Main Event.
Martines bagged up the chip lead as 13 players survived the event’s opening flight. He finished with 615,000, narrowly ahead of Cameron Dugan’s 611,000. Martines got off to a great start, hitting trip tens to double up just a few minutes into the day. He then won a big pot off Jeffrey Copeland when he rivered a set of aces to overcome Copeland’s two pair.
Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stephen Martines | United States | 615,000 | 38 |
| 2 | Cameron Dugan | United States | 611,000 | 38 |
| 3 | Jeremy Drewery | United States | 462,000 | 29 |
| 4 | Casey Blakeley | United States | 413,000 | 26 |
| 5 | Muharem Dulic | United States | 399,000 | 25 |
| 6 | Brad Johnson | United States | 340,000 | 21 |
| 7 | Mike Chilton | United States | 298,000 | 19 |
| 8 | Jeffrey Copeland | United States | 260,000 | 16 |
| 9 | Travis Burch | United States | 247,000 | 15 |
| 10 | Brandon Butler | United States | 216,000 | 14 |
Dugan made a rapid charge up the leaderboard as the field slowly crawled down to the money bubble. He first woke up with kings to double off Justin Coliny, and then picked up aces in another big pot against Jeremy Drewery to join Martines as the only two players above 500,000.
Drewery (462,000), Casey Blakeley (413,000), and Muharem Dulic (399,000) round out the top five. Drewery brought the night to a close when his kings beat the ace-king of newly crowned WSOP bracelet winner Brent Gregory to bust Gregory on the money bubble. Copeland rebounded from the beat against Martines by winning a big flip with deuces against ace-king as the RunGood ambassador finished the day with 260,000, while Coliny ended up with 130,000. Among those to fall short of the money today were Chris Audrain and Mark Lafata.
A total of 105 players came to the Hollywood Casino & Hotel in St. Louis today for the first starting flight. Day 1b is tomorrow at 5 p.m. local time, while there are two more flights on Saturday, August 8. All surviving players from the four starting flights then combine for Day 2 on August 9 to play down to a champion. Day 2 begins on the earliest finishing level from one of the opening flights. Day 1a ended with 25 minutes remaining in Level 18 with blinds of 8,000/16,000 and a 16,000 big blind ante.
Any of the 13 players who bagged today can still play a subsequent flight. If a player bags two flights, only their best stack will be carried over to Day 2, and their smaller stacks will be taken out of place in exchange for a min-cash.
PokerNews will be back tomorrow following all the action on Day 1b, so be sure to tune in for live updates.
Level 18
: Blinds 8,000/16,000, 16,000 ante
Level 18
: Blinds 8,000/16,000, 16,000 ante
Brent Gregory moved all in for 150,000 from middle position and Jeremy Drewery took another shot at bursting the bubble as he called in the small blind.
Brent Gregory: A♠K♣ 
Jeremy Drewery: K♦K♥
Gregory had run right into Drewery's kings and needed an ace to survive, but he missed the 9♣8♣8♦7♠5♣ board and was eliminated on the bubble.
The remaining 13 players are bagging up their chips for the night.
Level 18
: Blinds 8,000/16,000, 16,000 ante
Justin Coliny moved all in for 53,000 in the cutoff and Jeremy Drewery called in the big blind.
Justin Coliny: 2♥2♦
Jeremy Drewery: K♥J♠
Drewery picked up more outs on the 7♥7♣4♠, but Coliny spiked the 2♠ on the turn to make a full house. The river was the 4♦, and Coliny doubled up.
"Boo! Do your job," Travis Burch cried out from the other table.
Level 18
: Blinds 8,000/16,000, 16,000 ante
Brandon Butler moved all in for 96,000 under the gun and Justin Coliny put him at risk in the small blind.
Brandon Butler: A♠Q♠
Justin Coliny: A♣4♥
The 4♦ fell in the window for Coliny, but it was followed by Q♠Q♦ as Butler made trips. The rest of the board came J♣K♦, and Butler doubled up. "I waited two hours," Butler said.
Ralph Gardiner was eliminated at the other table to bring the field down to the money bubble. Action is going hand-for-hand until there is one more elimination.
Level: 18
Blinds: 8,000/16,000
Ante: 16,000
Level 17
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Jeffrey Copeland moved all in for 124,000 in the cutoff and Ralph Gardiner called on the button, having Copeland barely covered.
Jeffrey Copeland: 2♠2♥
Ralph Gardiner: A♣K♦
The 3♥J♠4♠ flop kept Copeland in the lead, while Gardiner picked up more outs on the Q♠ turn with a straight draw. The river was the 8♥, and Copeland held on to double up and leave Gardiner on an extreme short stack.
"Sorry about the river, man," Stephen Martines said to Copeland, apologizing for their previous hand.
"What are you going to do?" Copeland replied.
Level 17
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Heads-up on a board of 7♥6♥4♠8♣, Jeffrey Copeland bet 25,000 from the big blind and Stephen Martines called in the hijack.
The river was the A♥ and Copeland bet 45,000. "I have to call you. I have a set," Martines said as he turned over A♠A♣.
"So stupid. F**k this game," Copeland cried out as he mucked 8♦7♠.
Level 17
: Blinds 6,000/12,000, 12,000 ante
Brad Johnson raised to 25,000 in middle position and Travis Burch three-bet to 100,000 on the button. Johnson then moved all in, and Burch called for 10,000 more.
Travis Burch: A♣10♠
Brad Johnson: A♠5♠
Burch had Johnson dominated, and the board ran out Q♦4♦7♣J♥2♠ to keep him in the lead with his ten-kicker and secure the double up.
At the other table, Jeremy Drewery doubled up for 140,000 when his K♣7♣ held against Cameron Dugan's 10♦5♦ on a board of J♦2♥4♣Q♥J♠ in a blind versus blind battle.
