$1,100 Main Event
Day 1a Completed
2021 MSPT South Dakota State Poker Championship
$1,100 Main Event
Day: 1a
Paul Jain and Nick Pupillo Hot On Howard Dion's Tail as 36 Players Survive Day 1a
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
For the third time, the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) has partnered with Silverado-Franklin Casino for the 2021 MSPT South Dakota State Poker Championship, a tournament that dates back to 2011 and if anyone predicted that the Day 1a turnout at Deadwood was going to compete with the record-breaking prize pool in state history in May of 2019, they were right. The first of two starting flights closed with 265 entries, which breezed past the 258 total entries back in May of 2019.
After 15 Levels, just 36 players bagged and tagged with Howard Dion and his stack of 476,000 leading the way. Hot on Dion's tail were Paul Jain and Nick Pupillo who both ended the tournament with 468,000. Rounding out the top five big stacks were Paul Camby (392,000), and Whitney Bell (268,000).
Others to punch their tickets to Day 2 were Matthew Mich (264,000), Taylor Howard (245,000), Jason Crews (209,000), DJ Buckley (158,000), Blake Whittington (131,000), and Dave Sanderson (124,000).
Of course, not everyone was fortunate enough to make it through the night. Among those to fire and fall in Friday’s flight were three-time WSOP bracelet winner and MSPT JACK Cleveland champ Adam Friedman, Kyna England, along with MSPT Champion's Matt Kirby, Eric Atchison and 2018 MSPT Player of the Year Aaron Johnson.
Day 1b will get underway at 3 p.m. on Saturday. Late registration and re-entries will remain open through Level 12 (approximately 11:40 p.m.). PokerNews will be on hand to capture all the action, so be sure to join us then.
End of Day 1a Chip Counts (full)
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
476,000 | 476,000 |
|
468,000 | 118,000 |
|
468,000 | 188,000 |
|
392,000 | 202,000 |
|
|
268,000 | 268,000 |
|
264,000 | -11,000 |
|
245,000 | 35,000 |
|
242,000 | 242,000 |
|
|
238,000 | 238,000 |
|
230,000 | 5,000 |
|
209,000 | 59,000 |
|
192,000 | 192,000 |
|
185,000 | -100,000 |
|
185,000 | -5,000 |
|
184,000 | 34,000 |
|
180,000 | 38,000 |
|
179,000 | -3,000 |
|
178,000 | -42,000 |
|
173,000 | -62,000 |
|
158,000 | 8,000 |
|
131,000 | 86,000 |
|
125,000 | 125,000 |
|
124,000 | -51,000 |
|
107,000 | 107,000 |
|
|
96,000 | 96,000 |
Final Four Hands
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
The tournament director just announced the final four hands of the evening.
Hartmann Secures Late Night Double
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Tony Hartmann open-jammed for 52,000 from under the gun and Taylor Howard looked him up from the big blind.
Tony Hartmann: 
Taylor Howard: 
Hartmann was behind holding live cards and the 
flop made things interesting as it paired Howard's five but it also gave Hartmann an open-ended straight draw.
The 
turn didn't complete Hartmann's straight but it did put him in the lead with a pair of tens and the 
river secured his double-up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
210,000 | -60,000 |
|
105,000 | 55,000 |
Final Day 1a Photo Shoot
A Look at the MSPT Hall of Fame
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 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.
Level: 15
Blinds: 3,000/5,000
Ante: 5,000
Mich Hooks Another
Level 14
: 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
The player under the gun open-jammed for 95,000 and Matthew Mich called from late position.
Opponent: 
Matthew Mich:
Mich was ahead with his made hand of jacks and the 
flop didn't change a thing. The turn made things interesting but the 
river secured Mich the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
275,000 | 75,000 |
Estes Dropped by Matthew Mich
Level 14
: 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
Action quickly folded around to Matthew Mich who raised on the button and then called Mike Estes three-bet jam from the big blind.
Mike Estes:
Matthew Mich: 
Estes was behind needing to spike an ace but the 
runout ended his tournament.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
200,000 | 70,000 |
|
Busted |