button in SafariBrad Stevens leads 9 players from Day 1a of Oklahoma State Poker Championship
Day 1a of the 2026 Oklahoma State Championship $800 Main Event has concluded. The first of two starting flights drew 146 entries, contributing $102,200 to the prize pool. After just over 15 levels, nine players managed to put chips in a bag and advance to Day 2.
Brad Stevens finished the night with the Day 1a chip lead at 888,000. Stevens is most closely followed by Arturo Toscano with 677,000, while Justin Barclay rounds out the top three with 605,000
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brad Stevens | United States | 888,000 | 111 |
| 2 | Arturo Toscano | United States | 667,000 | 83 |
| 3 | Justin Barclay | United States | 605,000 | 76 |
| 4 | Michael Varnell | United States | 559,000 | 70 |
| 5 | Stephen Culpepper | United States | 558,000 | 70 |
| 6 | Kyle Michael | United States | 308,000 | 39 |
| 7 | Charles Stafford | United States | 299,000 | 37 |
| 8 | Justin Brevik | United States | 296,000 | 37 |
| 9 | Raymond Whitley | United States | 199,000 | 25 |
Day 1a Action
The day began with 49 entries, and the field size grew to 146 after nine levels of late registration, with roughly a third of the field remaining after registration closed. Among the players who joined Day 1a but fell before the money were John Reynolds, Bryce Laymance, and Todd Tucker. Tucker was on the wrong side of a bad beat early in the day after Stephen Culpepper hit running diamonds to make a flush, cracking Tucker’s flopped trips. Culpepper later spiked a three-outer to eliminate Eric Bunch three spots away from the money, and ultimately he finished the night with a top-five stack.
Daniel Hughes brought the Day 1a field into the money after getting the chips in with pocket sixes against pocket jacks on a ten-high flop, only to turn a six to eliminate his opponent. Hughes was among the bigger stacks following the bubble, before running his ace-jack into Stevens' ace-king in a huge pot that saw Stevens take the chip lead, which he held for the rest of the night.
The final elimination of the night came after Daniel Lowery was on the wrong side of two coolers. First, Arturo Toscano doubled through Lowery with top set against Lowery's top pair, leaving Lowery short. Not long after, Lowery got the rest of his chips in with pocket aces against Justin Brevik's pocket sevens, but a seven on the turn sent Lowery to the rail, bringing an end to Day 1a.
Play concluded with 00:15:21 left on Level 16, and the blinds at 4,000/8,000 (8,000). Day 1b, the second and final starting flight, is scheduled tomorrow at 11:00 a.m., before the fields combine for Day 2 on Sunday, May 24 at noon. Stay tuned to PokerNews as we bring you all the updates and action here at the 2026 Oklahoma State Championship of Poker.