$1,100 Main Event
Day 1b Completed
2021 MSPT South Dakota State Poker Championship
$1,100 Main Event
Day: 1b
Dale Belden Takes Overall Chip Lead Into Day 2 as 46 Players Survive Day 1b
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
The second and final starting flight of the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) 2021 MSPT South Dakota State Poker Championship is in the books. Day 1b attracted 320 runners during Saturday's action, bringing the grand total to 585 entries (265 from Day 1a; 320 from 1b), making it the largest major ($1,100+ buy-in) in Deadwood history.
After the completion of Level 15, just 46 players bagged and tagged with Dale Belden and his stack of 548,000 leading the way. Belden was seen atop the counts for majority of the evening but the final hand of the night catapulted him into the top spot.
Belden was the only player to eclipse 500,000, with John Schroer (474,000), Phil Mader (435,000), Michael Baker (367,000), and defending champ Sergio Mireles (321,000) round out the top five stacks.
Others to punch their tickets to Day 2 were Tom Hammers (292,000), Travis Gant (230,000), three-time bracelet winner Adam Friedman (185,000), three-time MSPT champ Matt Kirby (117,000), and 2018 MSPT Player of the Year Aaron Johnson (92,000).
Of course, not everyone was fortunate enough to make it through the night. Among those to fire and fall in Saturday's flight were Mikiyo Aoki, Cory Nordstrand, Kyna England, MSPT Regional Champ Eric Atchison, Umut Ozturk and Ben Keeline, just to name a few.
Day 2 will get underway at 11 a.m. local time and play to a winner with 82 players returning to the felt. The top 63 finishers will get paid with the eventual winner walking away with coveted Deadwood custom trophy and the first-place prize.
PokerNews will be on hand to capture all the action, so be sure to join us then.
End of Day 1b Chip Counts (full)
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
548,000 | -12,000 |
|
474,000 | 249,000 |
|
435,000 | 85,000 |
|
367,000 | 222,000 |
|
321,000 | -4,000 |
|
295,000 | -10,000 |
|
293,000 | 151,000 |
|
292,000 | 247,000 |
|
230,000 | 60,000 |
|
217,000 | 116,000 |
|
|
217,000 | 37,000 |
|
|
191,000 | -9,000 |
|
185,000 | -115,000 |
|
182,000 | -1,000 |
|
175,000 | 25,000 |
|
175,000 | 53,000 |
|
172,000 | 12,000 |
|
167,000 | 32,000 |
|
166,000 | 166,000 |
|
161,000 | -39,000 |
|
150,000 | -31,000 |
|
|
137,000 | 137,000 |
|
|
133,000 | 133,000 |
|
128,000 | 103,000 |
|
123,000 | 123,000 |
Dale Belden Cracks Eric Sorensen's Aces to Take Chip Lead
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Eric Sorensen raised from under the gun and Dale Belden three-bet from middle. Action folded back around to Sorensen who four-bet to 65,000 and then called Belden's 279,000 all in jam.
Dale Belden: 
Eric Sorensen: 
Sorensen got the action he wanted having Belden crushed and nothing changed after the 
flop. However, the dealer dropped the on the turn giving Beldun a set of tens and the 
river secured him the massive double-up for the chip lead.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
560,000 | 305,000 |
|
|
120,000 | -280,000 |
Keeline Left With Crumbs After Losing Race to James Curl
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
James Curl open-jammed for 98,000 and action folded to Ben Keeline who called from the big blind.
James Curl: 
Ben Keeline: 
It was a race with Keeline looking to stay ahead but it was Curl who came out in front after the 
flop although, Keeline did pick-up a gut shot straight draw.
Unfortunately for Keeline, neither the 
turn nor the 
river were any help to his hand and he doubled-up Curl.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
180,000 | |
|
20,000 | -70,000 |
Late Night Photos
MSPT Season 12 Race for Player of the Year
Level 15
: 3,000/5,000, 5,000 ante
Since its inception in 2009, the MSPT has done a great job keeping track of player stats. As a result, 12 years on they have one of the best player databases in the industry.
On their "Leaderboards" page, the MSPT tracks such things as Career Earnings, Main Event Cashes, Main Event Final Tables, Main Event Titles, Total Cashes, Most Cashes/Final Tables in a Season, Most Final Tables All-Time, and much more.
Here's a look at the top ten point leaders of this season:
| Place | Player | Hometown | Season 12 Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Sepiol | Michigan City, Indiana | 2,100 |
| 2 | Kyna England | Northbrook, Illinois | 2,050 |
| 3 | Kfir Nahum | Henderson, Nevada | 2,000 |
| 4 | Cory Nordstrand | International Falls, Minnesota | 1,800 |
| 5 | Jason Crews | Clive, Iowa | 1,750 |
| 6 | James Carroll | Las Vegas, Nevada | 1,700 |
| 7 | Alesandro Jauregui | Salinas, California | 1,700 |
| 8 | William Cho | El Sobrante, California | 1,700 |
| 9 | Chad Bjorkman | Stillwater, Minnesota | 1,600 |
| 10 | Dan Jones | Kingwood, Texas | 1,600 |
Level: 15
Blinds: 3,000/5,000
Ante: 5,000
Fink Gets Big Blind Special
Level 14
: 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
The player in middle position raised to 10,000 and they were called by Wesley Ismay on the button before Mark Fink three-bet jammed for 46,000 from the big blind. The initial raiser mucked their hand while Ismay called and the two players tabled their hands.
Mark Fink: 
Wesley Ismay: 
Fink had Ismay crushed and nothing changed after the 
runout.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
130,000 | -40,000 |
|
100,000 | 50,000 |
Lopez Eliminates Opponent With Sixes
Level 14
: 2,000/4,000, 4,000 ante
A Player from early position open-jammed for 21,000 and Joey Lopez looked them up from the big blind.
Joey Lopez: 
Opponent:
Lopez was a slight favorite with his pocket pair and didn't have much of a sweat as the 
runout secured him the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
135,000 | 15,000 |