MSPT Grand Falls $360 Regional Event

MSPT Grand Falls $360 Regional Event
Day: 1b
1a1b1c2
Event Info
MSPT Grand Falls $360 Regional Event
Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
99
Prize
$46,020
Event Info
Buy-in
$360
Prize Pool
$231,054
Entries
794
Level Info
Level
35
Blinds
250,000 / 500,000
Ante
50,000
Players Info - Day 1b
Entries
261
Players Left
38
Players Left 1 / 794
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Level: 14

Blinds: 2,000/4,000

Ante: 4,000

More Updated Chip Counts

Level 13 : 2,000/3,000, 3,000 ante
Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Andrew Henning us
Andrew Henning
215,400
25,700
25,700
Profile photo of Jeff Paulson us
Jeff Paulson
189,700
89,900
89,900
Profile photo of Taylor Howard us
Taylor Howard
170,900
145,900
145,900
Profile photo of Mark Fink us
Mark Fink
165,300
52,400
52,400
Profile photo of Josh Nieman us
Josh Nieman
156,900
98,200
98,200
Profile photo of Lawrence Vigil us
Lawrence Vigil
142,300
126,100
126,100
Profile photo of Jeff Grimes us
Jeff Grimes
110,800
29,700
29,700
Profile photo of Mark Larson us
Mark Larson
110,000
28,300
28,300
Profile photo of Cy Church us
Cy Church
96,500
35,300
35,300
Profile photo of Bryan Skreens us
Bryan Skreens
82,300
32,900
32,900
Profile photo of Bob Van Syckle us
Bob Van Syckle
45,600
4,400
4,400
Profile photo of Alex Wheeler us
Alex Wheeler
31,200
16,000
16,000

A Look at the MSPT Hall of Fame

Level 13 : 2,000/3,000, 3,000 ante

The MSPT Hall of Fame, established in 2017, is proud to recognize those individuals who have shown superior skill and achieved specific long-term accomplishments.

The criteria to earn a spot on the MSPT Hall of Fame is as follows:

  • Achieve a minimum of 25 MSPT Main Event Cashes and 1 MSPT Win OR 1 MSPT Player of the Year; or
  • Achieve a minimum of 10 MSPT Main Event Final Tables and 1 MSPT Win OR 1 MSPT Player of the Year

To see which players are close to achieving HOF status, refer to the comprehensive MSPT Stats page.

As of today, seven players are currently enshrined in the MSPT Hall of Fame.

MSPT Hall of Fame
MSPT Hall of Fame

A Round of Chip Counts

Level 13 : 2,000/3,000, 3,000 ante
Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Curtis Vierstraete us
Curtis Vierstraete
285,000
30,000
30,000
Profile photo of Justin Rustvold us
Justin Rustvold
220,000
99,700
99,700
Profile photo of Joe Illingworth us
Joe Illingworth
180,000
35,000
35,000
Profile photo of Jeff Petronack us
Jeff Petronack
170,000
60,000
60,000
Profile photo of Dan Dykhouse us
Dan Dykhouse
110,000
72,200
72,200
Profile photo of Tom Dean us
Tom Dean
110,000
70,000
70,000
Profile photo of Jeff Bryan us
Jeff Bryan
105,000
5,000
5,000
Profile photo of Swadeep Mishra us
Swadeep Mishra
75,000
47,400
47,400
Profile photo of Brooke Peters us
Brooke Peters
75,000
57,400
57,400
Profile photo of Bridgette Field us
Bridgette Field
75,000
29,700
29,700
Profile photo of Jay Goughnour us
Jay Goughnour
58,000
18,000
18,000
Jaka Coaching
Profile photo of Ryan Svoboda us
Ryan Svoboda
48,000
76,500
76,500
Profile photo of Brady Roth us
Brady Roth
30,000
12,300
12,300

Level: 13

Blinds: 2,000/3,000

Ante: 3,000

Bryan Cracks Bergers Kings for Double Up

Level 12 : 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Jeff Bryan
Jeff Bryan

Action folded around to Dale Berger who raised to 7,500 from the hijack before calling Jeff Bryan's 54,100 three-bet jam from the cutoff.

Jeff Bryan: {a-Diamonds}{k-Diamonds}
Dale Berger: {k-Clubs}{k-Hearts}

Berger was ahead with his made hand until an ace appeared in the window on the {8-Spades}{9-Hearts}{a-Spades} flop. The {7-Diamonds} turn left Berger drawing to the case king but the {10-Hearts} dropped on the river and secured Bryan's double-up.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Jeff Bryan us
Jeff Bryan
110,000
Profile photo of Dale Berger us
Dale Berger
7,500
108,100
108,100

Industry Insiders: Grand Falls Poker Room Manager Renee Thomas

Level 12 : 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante
Renee Thomas Grand Falls
Renee Thomas Grand Falls

Grand Falls Casino & Golf Resort was granted an operator's license for a casino in May of 2010, which followed the passage of a referendum approving a gaming structure by the citizens of Lyon County, Iowa in September of 2008. Since then, the property has won a number of awards including Midwest Gaming and Destination Magazine 2016 Readers’ Choice Awards for “Best Amenities,” “Best Golf Course,” and “Best Casino Personnel.”

It also ranked as the second-best overall property in Iowa, second-best for amenities in the entire Midwest, and having the best golf course in the entire Midwest! As far as poker at Grand Falls is concerned, Renee Thomas, a mother of three and grandmother of two (not to mention her 3 lbs. Chihuahua that she claims runs the show at her house), is the woman spearheading the team that makes the action happen.

“I’ve been in the casino industry for 26 years in three states,” Thomas tells MSPT Magazine. “I started out dealing
blackjack in South Dakota for a year before transferring to poker as a dealer. I became a supervisor there and then managed the room for three and a half years. After 10 years, I moved to Colorado and followed the same path of dealing, supervising and then managing the Lady Luck poker room for six years.”

After Lady Luck, a sister property to Golden Gates Poker Renee Thomas Parlour (another MSPT stop) just down the street, Thomas set her sights on returning to the Midwest.

“As much as I loved Colorado, I knew that I would eventually want to move back closer to my family,” Thomas explains. “A friend had told me about a casino possibly being built in Larchwood, Iowa so I started paying attention when the state was doing impact studies. When Grand Falls was hiring I came on board before the casino opened as a supervisor and assisted the poker manager in training poker dealers. I was promoted to poker room manager three and a half years ago.”

Once in the driver’s seat, Thomas helped bring one of the country’s premier poker tours to the property.

“Our players look forward to the $1,100 MSPT every year,” she says excitedly. “It’s a great way for our local players to have the opportunity to satellite into a large tournament without having to travel. Because of our location we bring in players from multiple states and because of our amenities, many of them treat it like a mini vacation with their spouse.”

Of course there’s a lot of poker action to be had even when the MSPT isn’t in town.

“Along with running the MSPT every August, our poker room runs three different tournament events each year as
well as low limit weekly tournaments,” says Thomas. “We have the Fall Poker Series in November, our Poker Championship in March and our Summer Poker Challenge in June. I know every manager says that their poker room is friendly but ours truly is! We have such a great staff of supervisors, duals and dealers here at Grand Falls and we do our very best to take care of our player’s needs from getting you a Resort Club card to calling the Big Drop to order your dinner.”

While a strong player base from nearby Sioux Falls and experienced staff help make poker at Grand Falls a success, Thomas is also quick to credit the resort itself.

“Grand Falls Casino and Golf Resort has so much to offer our guests and it’s a great destination for a mini vacation,” she says. “You can relax at the spa or pool, play golf, shop in our boutique and then have dinner at Ruthie’s, Robert’s Buffet or the Big Drop.”

*This post originally appeared in MSPT Magazine and is republished here with permission from the MSPT.

Level: 12

Blinds: 1,500/2,500

Ante: 2,500

Field Doubles With Rockets

Level 11 : 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
Bridgette Field
Bridgette Field

The under-the-gun player limped in and then called the 6,500 three-bet Bridgette Field made from the hijack.

The {10-Clubs}{7-Spades}{6-Clubs} flop was checked to Field who moved all in for 14,700 and her opponent called.

Bridgette Field: {a-Hearts}{a-Clubs}
Opponent: {10-Hearts}{9-Hearts}

Field was ahead with her pocket aces and neither the {j-Diamonds} turn nor the {2-Diamonds} river changed a thing.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Bridgette Field us
Bridgette Field
45,300
4,000
4,000

Tags: Bridgette Field