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Preston McEwen Leads Day 1b as Saturday Hosts Two Additional Flights
Hopefuls will have one last day to attempt to qualify for Day 2 as the RunGood Poker Series Golden Expedition New Orleans $800 Main Event will host two final starting flights at Caesars New Orleans.
Day 1b concluded last evening. The second flight of the main event hosted a total of 38 players, which permitted four players to advance to Day 2. Preston McEwen (442,000) topped the chip counts for Day 1b. Michael Sepanik (343,000), Sidney Johnson (175,000), and Trent Marcelle (175,000) rounded out the four players to advance to Day 2 from the second flight.
McEwen is one of the most successful players in RunGood history with 11 RGPS rings to his name. His last ring came at the RGPS Horseshoe Tunica Grand Prix when he took down the $200 Guest Bounty event. His biggest RunGood score came in 2024 when he was crowned champion in the $600 Main Event at Tunica for $58,143. He has tallied over three million in earnings according to his The Hendon Mob profile.
Sepanik has one cash this series, when he made the money in the $600 Kickoff event. He will look to continue his momentum as he enters Day 2 on Sunday.
Johnson will aim to add a second RGPS ring to his name this series after he won the $600 Monster Stack event earlier this week. Johnson has tallied nearly eighty thousand in live career earnings per The Hendon Mob and has two RunGood rings to his name in total.
Marcelle is still searching for his first RGPS title and will have an opportunity to make a big splash should he make a run on Day 2.
Saturday will host Day 1c at 12:15 p.m. Day 1d is slated to start at 6:15 p.m. All times are local.
Main Event Schedule
| Date | Time | Event |
|---|---|---|
| Sat, Sept. 12 | 12:15 p.m. | $800 Main Event Flight 1c |
| Sat, Sept. 12 | 6:15 p.m. | $800 Main Event Flight 1d |
| Sun, Sept. 13 | 12:15 p.m. | $800 Main Event Day 2 |
Entrants will begin with a starting stack of 30,000. Blind levels are scheduled for 30 minutes on Day 1. They will increase to 40-minute blind levels on Day 2. Breaks are scheduled every two hours.
Players are entitled to unlimited reentries. Players who qualify for Day 2 more than once will be permitted to advance with their largest stack and forfeit their other stack(s) and receive a Day 2 minimum payout per forfeited stack. Players may also forfeit their stack at the end of Level 8 and re-enter for $800 and receive a fresh starting stack at the beginning of Level 9.
A total of 12.5% of the field from each starting flight, rounded down, will advance to Day 2.
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Stay tuned here at PokerNews for coverage of all the action on Day 1c of the RGPS Golden Expedition New Orleans $800 Main Event.