$600 Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2024 RGPS Destination RunGood Tunica
$600 Main Event
Day: 1a
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1a
2024 RGPS Destination RunGood Tunica
Buy-in
$600
Prize Pool
$337,620
Entries
662
Level
29
Blinds
100,000 / 200,000
Ante
200,000
Entries
186
Players Left
23
Smith, Reid, and Todhunter Lead the Way After Day 1a of the $600 Main Event at Destination RunGood Tunica
Level 16
: Blinds 5,000/10,000, 10,000 ante
Day 1 of the $600 Main Event at Destination RunGood Tunica has come to an end and Stephen Smith is the leader after just under 16 full levels of play. A total of 186 players turned out for the opening flight and 23 moved on to Day 2.
Smith is followed by Terrance Reid in second and Andrew Todhunter in third. Adam Fields and Michael Cordell round out the top five. It was a surge in the late levels that gave Smith the lead after several other players held their share at one time or another.
Destination RunGood Tunica Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stephen Smith | 458,000 |
| 2 | Terrance Reid | 381,000 |
| 3 | Andrew Todhunter | 376,000 |
| 4 | Adam Fields | 376,000 |
| 5 | Michael Cordell | 373,000 |
| 6 | Sanh Vuong | 371,000 |
| 7 | Jess Roberts | 351,000 |
| 8 | Justin Kelley | 338,000 |
| 9 | BJ McBrayer | 319,000 |
| 10 | Erik Miller | 314,000 |
Day 1a Highlights
Reid, an esteemed member of the poker media, was among the early movers on the day. He built an early stack on a flush in Level 5 and he later bet big to fold out a suspicious Papa Karn. At one point in the later levels, Reid appeared to have eclipsed the half-million mark before he came back to the pack. He returns on Day 2 with the second-biggest stack from the opening flight and he will look to improve on his career-best podium finish for $46,600 from the RGPS Main Event in Graton last October.
Following Reid in third is Todhunter, who had the pleasure of bursting the bubble at the end of the evening when he used Big Slick to eliminate James West and his pocket tens. His previous best RGPS Main Event finish was a run to 15th place at the Tulsa stop in January of 2023. Todhunter will return on Day 2 with a big chance to improve on his career-high score of $12,138 for a second-place finish in a side event at WSOPC Tulsa.
The rest of the field includes red hot Day 1b players like BJ McBrayer and Erik Miller. Miller was one of the early chip leaders and he fell off the top of the leaderboard early, only to charge right back to the top 10 in the late levels. A native of Memphis, Miller won a RGPS ring in the $250 Black Chip Bounty tournament at the Tunica stop in September of 2023.
McBrayer is one of the most accomplished players in the field with over $1.5 million in career live earnings, according to The Hendon Mob. His record dates back to 2005, and he sports a consistent string of cashes with a career-high of $98,874 for a win at the Venetian in 2001. McBrayer’s best RGPS Main Event finish was a run to fourth place right here in Tunica in October of 2022.
Other players returning on Day include Jess Roberts, Justin Kelley, Kaleb Dunn, Trent Johnson, and Sanh Vuong.
Day 1a ended with just under two minutes remaining in Level 16. Day 1b will kick off on Saturday at 11 a.m. and a second flight is available at 6 p.m. Both flights will have open registration until the beginning of Level 9.
Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team for live coverage from the floor of the $600 Main Event of Destination RunGood Tunica.
Day 1a Chip Counts (full)
Level 16
: Blinds 5,000/10,000, 10,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
458,000
458,000
|
458,000 |
|
381,000
-139,000
|
-139,000 |
|
376,000
-1,000
|
-1,000 |
|
376,000
36,000
|
36,000 |
|
373,000
238,000
|
238,000 |
|
371,000
-19,000
|
-19,000 |
|
|
351,000
6,000
|
6,000 |
|
338,000
338,000
|
338,000 |
|
319,000
7,000
|
7,000 |
|
314,000
44,000
|
44,000 |
|
298,000
273,000
|
273,000 |
|
240,000
240,000
|
240,000 |
|
229,000
229,000
|
229,000 |
|
229,000
-99,000
|
-99,000 |
|
189,000
189,000
|
189,000 |
|
|
162,000
162,000
|
162,000 |
|
|
137,000
137,000
|
137,000 |
|
|
136,000
136,000
|
136,000 |
|
80,000
80,000
|
80,000 |
|
|
73,000
73,000
|
73,000 |
|
73,000
73,000
|
73,000 |
|
|
22,000
-83,000
|
-83,000 |
|
|
15,000
15,000
|
15,000 |
Big Slick Ends the Evening
Level 16
: Blinds 5,000/10,000, 10,000 ante
James West was all in for his last 57,000 and Andrew Todhunter was the one to put him at risk. The other two tables finished up and both players tabled their hands.
James West: 10♠10♥
Andrew Todhunter: A♦K♠
The board ran out 6♠2♠4♠5♠9♥ and Todhunter turned a flush to end the evening.
Stay tuned for a recap from the PokerNews team.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
377,000
347,000
|
347,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Hand-for-Hand Play Begins
Level 16
: Blinds 5,000/10,000, 10,000 ante
The tournament is down to 24 players and play will continue hand-for-hand until one more person is knocked out.
Level: 16
Blinds: 5,000/10,000
Ante: 10,000
A Few More Late Night Chip Counts
Level 15
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
520,000
313,000
|
313,000 |
|
|
390,000
265,000
|
265,000 |
|
|
340,000
-40,000
|
-40,000 |
|
|
328,000
48,000
|
48,000 |
|
|
312,000
112,000
|
112,000 |
|
|
270,000
160,000
|
160,000 |
|
|
135,000 |
Roberts Turns a Late Night Double
Level 15
: Blinds 4,000/8,000, 8,000 ante
Actoin was heads up with 60,000 in the middle and 2♠A♣6♣ on the board when Jess Roberts checked and a player in the next seat over bet 75,000. Roberts responded with a shove for 133,000 and her opponent called.
Jess Roberts: A♦3♥
Opponent: AxJx
Roberts was behind but the 3♦ turn gave her two pair and the 7♦ river secured the double.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
345,000
345,000
|
345,000 |
Level: 15
Blinds: 4,000/8,000
Ante: 8,000
Derrick Yamada Defends RGPS San Diego Title for $41,550!
Level 14
: Blinds 3,000/6,000, 6,000 ante
Last week’s Destination RunGood stop in San Diego saw Derrick Yamada navigate his way through a field of 415 entries to successfully defended his RunGood Poker Series $600 Main Event title at Jamul Casino.
The Main Event generated a total prize pool of $215,800, with Yamada earning $41,550 along with the RGPS ring and a package to the Dream Seat Invitational in Thunder Valley later this year.
RGPS San Diego $600 Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Derrick Yamada | $41,550 |
| 2 | Michael Holmes | $31,200 |
| 3 | Kenneth Douglas | $20,056 |
| 4 | Edward Liu | $13,304 |
| 5 | Andrew Whitmer | $10,240 |
| 6 | Lirio Fontamillas | $8,481 |
| 7 | Luis Pedro | $7,111 |
| 8 | Seth Harmes | $5,781 |
| 9 | Tavish Margers | $4,454 |