MSPT Sycuan $360 Regional Event Day 1c | 2021 MSPT Showdown Series

05-02-2021 00:05 UTC-7

Tiffany Nguyen Bags Overall Chip Lead on Day 1c of MSPT Sycuan $360 Regional Event

Chad Holloway

Level 15 : 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante

The MSPT Sycuan $360 Regional Event proved to be a massive affair. On Friday, 305 runners competed on Day 1a, and on Saturday an additional 275 partook. For Saturday's third and final flight, 467 entrants entered Day 1c to bring the total field up to 1,047 entries.

After 15 levels of play on Day 1c, 59 players remained with Tiffany Nguyen and her stack of 825,000 leading the way. That is ahead of both Day 1a chip leader Happy Spaulding (786,000) and Day 1b chip leader Benjamin Moon (560,000)

Others to make it through Day 1c were Robert Fortuno (548,000), Anthony Nguyen (489,000), Sarah Smart (385,000), and Ben Brown (374,000), who round out the top five stacks.

Of course, not everyone was so fortunate. Among those to fire and fall on Day 1c were popular poker vlogger Johnnie “Vibes” Moreno, CardPlayer Cruises co-owner Mark Napolitano, former Jeopardy! contestant Jeff Grimes, Marty Gorenc, one-time chip leaders Valentin Navarro and Ramon Reyes, and PLON founder Lena Evans, who will now help host tomorrow’s Ladies Event.

Day 2 will begin at 11 a.m. local time on Sunday. PokerNews will be on-hand bringing you all the updates from start to finish, so be sure to join us then.

Tags: Tiffany Nguyen

05-01-2021 21:16 UTC-7

Nguyen Sets Up Navarro to Double Into the Chip Lead

Chad Holloway

Level 14 : 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante

Just before the level went up, Valentin Navarro had been playing an aggressive game, often over-betting pots by moving all in, and for a while it was working like a charm. That all came to a sudden halt however at the hands of Tiffany Nguyen.

There was around 30,000 in the pot and a flop of when Nguyen checked from the big blind. Another player did the same before Navarro bet 25,000. Nguyen called and the other player got out of the way.

Nguyen then checked for the second time on the turn. Navarro went for his patented over-bet shove but this time Nguyen snapped him off putting in her remaining 281,000.

Tiffany Nguyen:
Navarro:

Nguyen had flopped bottom set and was guaranteed to double as Navarro was drawing dead with ace high. The river made it official, and Nguyen pulled in a chip-leading pot worth 645,000.

Navarro was left with 120,000 after the hand but went bust a short time later.

Player	Chips	Progress
Tiffany Nguyen	640,000	320,000
Valentin Navarro	Busted

Tags: Tiffany Nguyen Valentin Navarro

05-01-2021 19:56 UTC-7

Josh Vlahos Adds to Chip Lead

Chad Holloway

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

Josh Vlahos appears to be the chip leader as Level 12 approaches.

In a recent hand, a short-stacked player moved all in and was looked up by Vlahos.

Josh Vlahos:
Opponent:

The at-risk player was a heavy favorite and paired up on the flop, which also gave Vlahos an up-and-down straight draw.

Well, when you're running good, you are running good. That was evidenced by the that spiked on the turn to give Vlahos his straight.

The meaningless was run out on the river and Vlahos was pushed the pot.

Player	Chips	Progress
Josh Vlahos	320,000	20,000

Tags: Josh Vlahos

05-01-2021 17:11 UTC-7

Industry Veteran Mark Napolitano Looks to Cruise to Victory

Chad Holloway

Level 6 : 300/600, 600 ante

When it comes to poker experience, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone in today's field with more of it than Mark Napolitano, who along with his wife, Tina Napolitano, are veterans of the poker world.

They broke into the industry after establishing one of the game’s first successful sites in PokerPages.com, helped grow the game through various endeavors, and nowadays find themselves sailing around the world (pre-pandemic of course) running CardPlayer Cruises alongside Linda Johnson and Jan Fisher.

As for poker, it’s been a lifelong love affair for Mark after he was first exposed to 7-Card Stud in his younger days.

“I started in poker in 1975. I was 15 years old. I used to play a game of snooker in a snooker hall, and those places were full of gambling,” Napolitano explained. It was at that snooker hall that he discovered a game in the back, and before long he became an errand boy of sorts, fetching tea and sandwiches for tips.

According to HendonMob, Napolitano has nearly $200K in tournament earnings dating back to 1997, which was the first year he paid a visit to Las Vegas. While staying downtown at Golden Nugget, he walked across the street to Binion’s Horseshoe, which was hosting the World Series of Poker.

“They were playing 2-7 no-limit with big stacks of $100 bills,” Napolitano said of his first taste of poker in Sin City. “It turned out, I didn’t know at the time, it was Doyle Brunson, Erik Seidel, Steve Zolotow, they were playing six-handed. I stood on that rail for 12 hours and just watched it. I was fascinated.”

Napolitano made his way to San Diego from Las Vegas and plans to compete in MSPT Sycuan tournaments all week long. Time will tell if he has any success, perhaps starting here in the $360 Regional Event.

Learn More About Mark Napolitano Here

Mark and Tina Napolitano on a CardPlayer Cruise.

Player	Chips	Progress
Mark Napolitano	30,000	5,000

Tags: Mark Napolitano

05-01-2021 16:38 UTC-7

Aaron Wallace Wins MSPT Sycuan Event #2: $400 Pot-Limit Omaha

Chad Holloway

Level 5 : 300/500, 500 ante

In addition to the $360 Regional and $1,100 Main Events happening here at the MSPT Sycuan Casino, there are nine other side events awarding trophies.

One of them was Event #2: $400 Pot-Limit Omaha, which played out Friday night. The tournament attracted 75 entrants and offered up a $25,125 prize pool reserved for the final table of eight.

The local San Diego contingent comprised 75% of the final table, but one-by-one they fell to the wayside leaving two "out of towners" to battle heads-up.

After a long day of play, it was Aaron Wallace of North San Juan, California emerged victorious to win the tournament for $8,543 while Tristan Ziemann finished in second place for $5,301.

Event #2 Final Table Results

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	Aaron Wallace	North San Juan, California	$8,543
2	Tristan Ziemann	New Brighton, Minnesota	$5,301
3	Cobi Vu	San Diego, California	$3,467
4	Jon Bergston	San Diego, California	$2,437
5	Eric Bradford	San Diego, California	$1,809
6	Mike Souza	San Diego, California	$1,407
7	Mark Nguyen	San Diego, California	$1,156
8	Alphonso Herdeia III	San Diego, California	$1,005

Tags: Aaron Wallace

05-01-2021 16:29 UTC-7

Ramon Reyes on "Sick" Run, Up to 240K Already

Chad Holloway

Level 5 : 300/500, 500 ante

A clear chip leader has emerged here in the early levels of Day 1c, and that man is Ramon Reyes, who has worked a 25,000 starting stack all the way up to 240,000!

"Sick," was the simple response from Reyes when asked if he'd been on a run.

Another player at the table elaborated that for a while Reyes was basically eliminating an opponent in every orbit.

That would explain how he's already managed to amass nearly 10 starting stacks!

We'll be keeping an eye on Reyes as Day 1c progresses to see how he fares.

Player	Chips	Progress
Ramon Reyes	240,000

Tags: Ramon Reyes

05-01-2021 15:37 UTC-7

Aaron Knapp Gets Lucky to Score Knockout

Chad Holloway

Level 4 : 200/400, 400 ante

The preflop action escaped us, but we do know that a player got their stack all in and was at risk, albeit primed to double, through Aaron Knapp.

Aaron Knapp:
Opponent:

Knapp was on the wrong end of the cooler but got lucky when the flop came down to give him a set.

Neither the turn nor river changed a thing and Knapp collected the pot while sending an opponent to the rail.

Player	Chips	Progress
Aaron Knapp	30,000

Tags: Aaron Knapp

05-01-2021 15:14 UTC-7

Popular Poker Vlogger Johnnie "Vibes" Moreno Enters the Field

Chad Holloway

Level 3 : 200/300, 300 ante

If you're familiar with poker vlogs, you've no doubt heard of Johnnie Moreno, better known to many as “Johnnie Vibes."

While he has been a full-time cash game poker pro for more than a decade, Johnnie Vibes has opted to try his hand in today's tournament.

Usually splitting time between Las Vegas and San Diego, Moreno has won more than $1 million grinding mid-stakes cash games. In addition, he's amassed $114,480 in live tournament winnings including a career-best $29,400 for finishing 385th in the 2014 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event.

For more on JohnnieVibes follow him on Twitter and YouTube @JohnnieVibes, and also check out his website JohnnVibes.com.

Here's a look at the most recent vlog from Johnnie Vibes:

Player	Chips	Progress
Johnnie Moreno	25,000	25,000

Tags: Johnnie Moreno

05-01-2021 14:29 UTC-7

Get to Know Poker Pro Bob Chow

Chad Holloway

Level 1 : 100/100, 100 ante

Did you know there’s a poker millionaire in today’s field?

Robert “Bob” Chow, originally from Illinois but now residing in Las Vegas, has more than $1.1 million in lifetime tournament winnings. That includes a career-best $393,584 for winning the 2011 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit Horseshoe Hammond $1,600 Main Event.

Not only is he a three-time WSOPC gold ring winner, he’s also both a Heartland Poker Tour (HPT) and America’s Poker Tour champion. Regarding the former, he won the 2013 HPT Gary for $171,534, and the latter he took down the 2016 America’s Poker Tour Chicagoland Event #1: $210 Deepstack for $24,310.

As for the MSPT, Chow has $22,440 in lifetime earnings from a pair of Main Event cashes. Of that, $17,017 came when he took fourth place in the 2014 MSPT Majestic Star.

Only time will tell if Chow can add a MSPT title to his impressive poker résumé.

Tags: Bob Chow

05-01-2021 14:08 UTC-7

MSPT & PLON Join Forces for Sunday's Ladies Event

Chad Holloway

Level 1 : 100/100, 100 ante

This Sunday at 4 p.m. local time, the MSPT Showdown Series at Sycuan Casino will play host to a $200 Ladies Event powered by Poker League of Nations (PLON).

PokerNews recently caught up with PLON founder Lena Evans, who will be in attendance to compete in the tournament as well as other MSPT tournaments.

PokerNews: How did the opportunity to host a ladies event at the MSPT Sycuan come about?

Lena Evans: The opportunity to host an MSPT PLON Powered Ladies Event at Sycuan in San Diego was originally suggested by PLON Executive Committee member Allen Kessler. Allen connected me with MSPT President Bryan Mileski. Bryan and I then organized the details of our partnership together, and the first MSPT PLON event was born! This will be PLON's first live event back since March 2020.

PokerNews: What is the female poker community like in San Diego?

Lena Evans: We have nine casinos located within San Diego County, and multiple card rooms, making the poker community in San Diego extremely dynamic. Being the founder of PLON, and living in San Diego, you can imagine our female poker community is very active. Pre-pandemic, we had a San Diego PLON League, which played for seats to the top tours in San Diego and Las Vegas, including $10k events. During the pandemic, we stayed in action online in friendly games.

PokerNews: What can participants expect from the upcoming event?

Lena Evans: Participants in our PLON Powered Ladies Only MSPT event will enjoy a pre-event meet-up at 2 p.m. with PLON hosted beverages and bites so our ladies from around the USA (including Florida, Minnesota, Illinois, and other states) can enjoy socializing and getting re-acquainted with one another. The $200 ladies event begins at 4 p.m., with 20-minute levels, and late registration through the ninth level.

The winner receives the beautiful MSPT trophy, along with the PLON signature Tiffany & Co. sterling bracelet valued at $400. All final tablists receive a PLON backpack with gifts including apparel from Flop the World (FTW) and PLON merchandise, "The Biggest Bluff" book signed by Maria Konnikova, Solar Rain Water, Spades Sunshades sunglasses, Poker Elephant chips, and other goodies!