Main Event
Day 2 Completed
2015 RunGood Poker Series Downstream Casino Resort
Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2015 RunGood Poker Series Downstream Casino Resort
Buy-in
$600
Entries
328
Level
25
Blinds
50,000 / 100,000
Ante
10,000
Saied Moradi Wins RunGood Poker Series Downstream Casino Main Event ($27,116)!
![[user272102]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
Level 25
: 50,000/100,000, 10,000 ante
It was a roller coaster day for Saied Moradi as he would move up and down the chip counts several times. The ride was worth it in the end though, as Moradi would emerge victorious in the 2015 RunGoodGear.com Poker Series Main Event at the Downstream Casino Resort located on the outskirts of Joplin, Missouri. Moradi took home the first-place prize, a custom-made RunGoodGear watch and medallion, and also won a seat into the 2015 World Series of Poker Main Event.
"It feels great to win, but I'm too exhausted to even think about it," said a smiling Moradi after defeating Joel Nimmo heads up shortly before the clock struck midnight. Moradi, a structural engineer from Kansas City, stated that this wasn't his biggest tournament score, but that he thought the RunGood Poker Series here was an "awesome tournament." He also added, "It's a great structure that gives you a chance to play some hands."
When the day started there were 55 players of the original 328 entrants with their eyes on the first-place prize. RunGoodGear Pro Jamie Kerstetter would be among the first eliminated, and one of the chip leaders coming into the day, Duy Nguyen, would be eliminated shortly after when he got it all in with the 
against Jeremy Gilmore's 
on the turn with the board showing 
. Nguyen's trips would fall when the 
came on the river. Gilmore would ride that pot all the way to a sixth-place finish ($7,746).
There would be no money bubble, as two players would be eliminated in quick succession once there were 38 players remaining. Rodney Spriggs would be the person falling just one short of the money when his nut flush draw was unable to improve against Terry Presley's second pair.
As is often the case in a poker tournament, the eliminations came fast after the players were in the money. Among those that would make the money but come up short of making the final table were Katherine Bowen (32nd - $1,417), the defending champion of this event Mark Martin (31st - $1,417), Randy Fikki (29th - $1,417), Ross Bybee (27th - $1,700), Chris Drake (20th - $1,700), Matt Newcombe (19th - $1,700), Ryan Koontz (13th - $2,740), John Reynolds (12th - $3,590), and the Day 1 chip leader Chadd Johnson (10th - $3,590). Suzanne Cooley would be eliminated in cruel fashion in 26th place for $1,700 when her kings were outdrawn by Heather Alcorn's queens. Alcorn would have some misfortune of her own when she ran her set of sevens into Terry Presley's set of nines. Alcorn would finish in 24th place for $1,700.
Mesgana Tesfalidet would make a deep run finishing in eighth place ($4,440). Her run was fueled by a "get lucky" type of hand when she moved all in with the 
on a 
flop only to see that she was in trouble against Jim Reynolds and his . The 
on the turn kept her alive though, and she would ride that momentum all the way to the final table where she lost all her chips on back-to-back hands. First she ran queens into kings and then lost the remainder of her stack with the 
to Terry Presley's 
.
Eventual runner-up Joel Nimmo would find good fortune as the tournament hit the final two tables when his 
outdrew Lou Barlow's 
. The final table, however, was the Saied Moradi show. The dinner break hit with Moradi the shortest stack of the eight remaining players. He doubled through Jeremy Gilmore with the against Gilmore's 
and doubled again when he picked up aces and got Dwight Farrell to commit his chips with the 
on a king-high flop.
RunGood Pro Ryan Tepen almost had a great story to tell. He entered play today with just 12,000 in chips and would move to the top of the chip counts at one point. He would pay off Moradi's quads at the final table, though, and could never regain traction after that and would be eliminated in fifth place ($9,635). The remaining four players would then make a deal that sped up the pace of play dramatically.
Heads-up play saw the chip lead exchange hands between Nimmo and Moradi several times before Moradi took command with top pair against Nimmo's middle pair. The final hand saw Moradi get a little lucky when his 
outdrew the 
of Nimmo when the board ran out 
.
That concludes PokerNews' coverage of the RunGood Poker Series Main Event at Downstream Casino Resort. Coming up next month is a stop at Horseshoe Council Bluffs, Iowa. PokerNews will be there to provide you coverage of the Main Event, and we hope to see you there!
Joel Nimmo Eliminated in 2nd Place ($25,000)
Level 25
: 50,000/100,000, 10,000 ante
With a deal made the chips were flying in the heads up match between Joel Nimmo and Saied Moradi. The chip lead exchanged hand several times but Moradi would get the best of Nimmo in the end. First he doubled up with against Nimmo's 
when the two got it all in on a flop of 
and the turn and river ran out 
.
The final hand saw Nimmo get his chips in with the best hand holding while Moradi had an over with his . He would hit that over when the flop came and Nimmo was drawing to the case deuce. The turn was the and the river was the and Nimmo was eliminated in second place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
6,560,000 | 4,900,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Matt Ellis Eliminated in 3rd Place ($25,000)
Level 25
: 50,000/100,000, 10,000 ante
Matt Ellis moved all in with and was called by Joel Nimmo and his 
.
The flop came 
giving both players a little something with Nimmo hitting a pair of aces and Ellis a flush draw. Ellis picked up a gutshot straight draw with the turn but the river was the to give Nimmo the pot. Ellis finished in third place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted |
Randy Murfin Eliminated in 4th Place ($25,000)
Level 25
: 50,000/100,000, 10,000 ante
Randy Murfin was all in for his last 680,000 with and racing against the 
of Saied Moradi. The race was over quick as the flop came . The turn and river came 
and Murfin was eliminated in fourth place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted |
Playing for the Seat
Level 25
: 25,000/50,000, 5,000 ante
The remaining four players have decided to chop the prize money four ways, each of them receiving $25,000. The winner will receive the remainder of the remaining prize money which is a little more than $2,000, the World Series of Poker Main Event seat, and the RunGoodGear.com watch and medallion.
Players have also agreed to speed up the play by doubling the blinds and reducing the length of the levels to 20 minutes. Blinds are now 50,000/100,000 with a 10,000 ante.
Level: 25
Blinds: 50,000/100,000
Ante: 10,000
Updated Chip Counts On The Break
Level 24
: 20,000/40,000, 5,000 ante
The chip counts are pretty even. Here's how they look on the break:
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,960,000 | 810,000 |
|
|
1,660,000 | -140,000 |
|
|
1,650,000 | 50,000 |
|
|
1,290,000 | -160,000 |
Nurfin Doubles Through Moradi, Players on Break
Level 24
: 20,000/40,000, 5,000 ante
With the board reading , Saied Moradi bet 250,000 and Randy Nurfin moved all in. Moradi made the call with for two pair but Nurfin had turned a straight with his 
. An ace or five would still win the pot for Moradi but the river was the .
Players are now on a 15-minute break. We'll have updated chip counts in a few minutes.
Ryan Tepen Eliminated in 5th Place ($9,635)
Level 24
: 20,000/40,000, 5,000 ante
A short-stacked Ryan Tepen moved all in first to act from the button for 520,000 and was called by Saied Moradi out of the big blind. Moradi held and Tepen . The board ran out 
and Tepen said "nice hand, good game" as he was eliminated in fifth place for $9,635.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted |