Smith Takes a Monster Lead; Jaffrey and Green Among the Leaders of Day 1c
Today began the third of four starting flights of the RunGood Poker Series $600 Main Event at Horseshoe Hotel and Casino in Council Bluffs, Iowa. After nine hours of play, the field of 172 was whittled down to just 22 survivors, all of whom will return tomorrow at noon to play for the title, and a piece of the $200,000 guaranteed prize pool.
Leading the way is Nebraska native Kipp Smith, who bagged 877,000, many of those chips being acquired at the end of the night. Smith is a regular of most midwestern poker tournaments and boasts a lifetime hendon mob of $136,392. Despite this, a RGPS ring has eluded him and he looks to make right that wrong with the current overall tournament lead.
Top Ten Chip Counts Day 1c
| Rank | Name | Chip Counts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kipp Smith | 877,000 |
| 2 | Josh Green | 480,000 |
| 3 | Stacy Fee | 375,000 |
| 4 | Keith Jeffrey | 365,000 |
| 5 | Brad Miller | 362,000 |
| 6 | Erick Norvell | 320,000 |
| 7 | Shanda Myers | 269,000 |
| 8 | Adrian Griffith | 257,000 |
| 9 | Papa Karn | 204,000 |
| 10 | Keerat Bawa | 199,000 |
Yesterday’s bubble boy Josh Green (480,000) and Keith Jeffrey (365,000) also bagged healthy stacks that they grew slowly but surely throughout the course of the day. Others who found bags included Papa Karn (204,000), Deborah Phillips (151,000), Mark Van Keirsbilck (135,000), and former champion Nathan Steuer (145,000).
Those who were less fortunate this flight included Blair Hinkle, Duster Ellis, Ryan Ramsdell, and Stan Schrier. The final hand of the night saw Benjamin Stuart move all in with a set of twos, only to get called off by Kipp Smiths’ flopped flush, creating a pot of over 500,000. They will all have one final opportunity to bag in the form of tonight’s flight that began at 6 p.m.
Coverage of the event will pause until registration closes in Day 1d around 10 p.m. local time. Be sure to check in with PokerNews for all updates regarding The RunGood Poker Series.
was safe enough for the kings, but the turn 
gave Karn a set of queens and Steuer slammed the table in frustration and walked out of the tournament area before the river 
hit and he stood away from the table for about a minute while Karn raked in the pot.
gave Myers a pair of aces and she took down a massive pot to survive int he tournament as the field ticked down.
came out and Norvell called just barely having him covered. 
and Gonzalez was unable to improve against the top pair of Norvell and he exited the tournament. 
and the ace-queen held up as the best hand as Norvell eliminated another opponent.
, Stuart checked over to Karn who bet 23,000 which Stuart called. 
and the big blind checked to Steuer who bet 6,000 which the big blind called. 
and nines up was good enough for O'Dell to maintain the winning hand and Hinkle exited the tournament area.
saw the small blind check and Gatlin in the big blind moved all in for 52,500 which sent Ramsdell into the tank. He pondered his decision for a little longer before putting his hand into the muck with the small blind folding immediately behind him. 
and Ramsdell grabbed one of his cards from the muck to flash a 
as Gatlin took down the pot.
and Hinkle eliminated two players almost immediately after sitting down at his new table.