$1,100 Main Event Day 1b | MSPT Venetian Poker Bowl IV

01-31-2020 08:51 UTC

Bob Whalen Leads After Day 1b of MSPT Venetian Poker Bowl IV Main Event

Jesse Fullen

Level 15 : 2,500/5,000, 5,000 ante

Day 1b of the Season 11 MSPT Poker Bowl IV in The Venetian ended with a total of 361 entrants and of those 43 moved on to Saturday's Day 2. Bob Whalen pulled ahead as the chip leader with 721,000 going into the bag.

Some notable players who didn't make it through Day 1b include Scott Clements, Matt Affleck, Chance Kornuth, Freddy Deeb, and Justin Young.

Kathy Liebert and Ryan Laplante were the only World Series of Poker bracelet winners to make it through Day 1b with a day to rest before Day 2 begins on Saturday. There is only one more flight left in the $1,100 Main Event, which features a hefty $1,000,000 guarantee.

Day 1c starts at 12:10 p.m. PT on Friday and PokerNews will be there to cover the action as the field grows and we get closer to Day 2 and an eventual winner.

Tags: Bob Whalen Chance Kornuth Freddy Deeb Justin Young Kathy Liebert Matt Affleck Ryan Laplante Scott Clements

01-31-2020 05:24 UTC

Revah Tries a Hand Blind

Jesse Fullen

Level 13 : 1,500/2,500, 2,500 ante

Just before the break, a player in the hijack position raised to 4,500. The small blind folded and Eyal Al Revah, who was in the big blind, called and stated, "I'm calling blind. I haven't looked yet."

With the flop, both players checked their option. After the turn, Revah began speaking again.

"You checked the flop. I haven't looked at my hand but I know I hit that and you didn't."

Revah bet 10,000 into the growing pot. Revah's opponent considered calling or raising for a brief moment but decided to fold.

"Pick a card. Let's see what I had," continued Revah as he was obviously having a fun time.

Revah's opponent chose a card and it was turned over to reveal the .

"I looked. I had a really good hand," said Revah as he pulled in the pot.

Player	Chips	Progress
Eyal Al Revah	160,000

Tags: Eyal Al Revah

01-31-2020 04:27 UTC

Matheson Pushes Out the Competition

Jesse Fullen

Level 12 : 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante

Former MSPT champ Joe Matheson was in middle position and raised to 4,000. Action folded around to the small blind who called while the player in the big blind folded their hand.

Flop:

Matheson's opponent led out for a bet of 4,000 and Matheson found the call.

The turn was a third spade leading Matheson's opponent to check. Without hesitating, Matheson shoved all in with a pot-size bet of 16,000. The player in the small blind considered the call for quite some time before finally throwing his cards into the muck.

Player	Chips	Progress
Joseph Matheson	33,000	8,000

Tags: Joseph Matheson

01-31-2020 00:54 UTC

Willie Doubles Up

Jesse Fullen

Level 7 : 300/600, 600 ante

Dale Willie, in the small blind with only a single call before him, announced a raise to 3,800 before the flop. Willie's opponent in the big blind folded but his opponent in middle position chose this moment to reraise. The opponent pushed forward a stack of about 48,000, leaving a few 500 chips behind but covering Willie with the bet.

Willie went into the tank considering his options and how he wished to proceed. After a minute or two of consideration, Willie made the call.

"Just a pair of treys," announced the middle-position player. Without verbally responding, Willie turned over his hand.

Dale Willie:
Opponent:

The board ran out and Willie chose this moment to speak, "You could have had Ace-King! I was really worried about that!"

Willie pulled in the pot for a full double up.

Player	Chips	Progress
Dale Willie	49,200	49,200

Tags: Dale Willie

01-30-2020 23:19 UTC

Borick Takes Another Shot

Jesse Fullen

Level 5 : 200/400, 400 ante

Robert Borick made a deep run in Day 1a of the MSPT Venetian Poker Bowl IV but fell short of bagging chips. Borick is back in action today and recently took a pot of nearly 65,000.

Borick raised from early position to 1,000 and was snap re-raised by the player on his direct left to 3,500. Borick didn't hesitate to call and the flop came .

Borick checked his action to his neighbor, who again put out a bet of 3,500.

Borick shook his head, not liking what came on the flop, and slowly folded his cards.

Player	Chips	Progress
Robert Borick	61,500	61,500

Tags: Robert Borick

01-30-2020 22:43 UTC

Oskooi Brings Her Survival Drive to the Poker Table

Jesse Fullen

Level 4 : 200/300, 300 ante

You may already know Shirin Oskooi from her two times appearing on the hit CBS reality show Survivor. Oskooi was selected to be on both the Survivor: Worlds Apart and Survivor: Cambodia cast. Oskooi didn't win either season, but she still left a lasting impression with fans all over the world.

Oskooi has found early success while stepping into poker. With a Hendon Mob page showing over $22,000 in live earnings in less than a year, she has already felt the success of finishing an event in first place.

If you're here in the tournament and enjoy watching Survivor, make sure to chat with Shirin if you find an opportunity.

Tags: Shirin Oskooi

01-30-2020 21:58 UTC

Hung Hangs In There

Jesse Fullen

Level 3 : 100/300, 0 ante

American Idol alum William Hung, who was recently a guest on the PokerNews Podcast, suffered a big loss in the tournament early on and started the hand with around 12,000.

From under the gun, Hung raised preflop to 700. The player directly to his left and the player on the button made the call to see a flop of .

Hung immediately led out with a bet of 800. The player on his left folded but the button position player elected to call.

Turn:

Hung continued to show his aggressive side as he bet 2,000. The player on the button didn't like what he saw and decided to fold.

Hung pulled in his new chips as the threw his cards in the muck face down.

Tags: William Hung

01-30-2020 19:29 UTC

Welcome to Day 1b of the MSPT Poker Bowl IV at The Venetian

Jesse Fullen

For the fourth year in a row, the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) and The Venetian in Las Vegas have joined forces to offer a tournament over the NFL’s Super Bowl Weekend.

Day 1b of the $1,100 buy-in Poker Bowl IV starts today and features a $1,000,000 guarantee. Day 1b will take place at Noon local time while Day 1c will follow at the same time on Friday, January 31. The surviving players from all flights will then return for Day 2 at 11 a.m. on Saturday, February 1 and play down to a winner.

That ensures players will be free on Sunday so they can enjoy Super Bowl LIV, which will see the Kansas City Chiefs take on the San Francisco 49ers on February 2 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.

The entirety of the tournament, which will feature 40-minute levels and start players with 25,000 in chips, will be live reported here on PokerNews.

Here’s a look at the entire Poker Bowl IV schedule including satellites:

Date	Time	Event	GTD
Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020	11:00 AM	$200 NLH Mega Satellite to Event #6	3 Seats
Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020	12:00 PM	$1,100 NLH MSPT Day 1a	$1,000,000
Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020	11:00 AM	$200 NLH Mega Satellite to Event #6	3 Seats
Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020	12:00 PM	$1,100 NLH MSPT Day 1B	$1,000,000
Friday, Jan. 31, 2020	12:00 PM	$1,100 NLH MSPT Day 1C	$1,000,000
Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020	11:00 AM	$1,100 MSPT Day 2 Restart	$1,000,000

History of the MSPT Poker Bowl

In 2017, the inaugural MSPT Poker Bowl I attracted 695 entries and saw poker pro Jordan Young take home $117,381 after a heads-up deal with Ankush Mandavia, who earned $107,381. In 2018, it was Kfir Nahum besting an 827-entry field to win $108,410 after a four-way deal.

Last year’s event, which attracted 1,022 runners, it was Brian Wilson of Ontario, Canada, taking home $143,929 after a three-way deal.

“For the seventh year in a row, the MSPT will return to the Venetian Las Vegas,” said MSPT President Bryan Mileski. “Each year only seems to get bigger and better, and we’re expecting that to continue in Season 11 beginning with the Poker Bowl IV. Unless you’re at the game itself, there’s no better place to take in the Super Bowl than in Las Vegas.”

Dates	Edition	Entries	Prize Pool	Winner	Prize
February 2-4, 2017	Poker Bowl I	695	$681,100	Jordan Young	$117,381
February 1-3, 2018	Poker Bowl II	827	$806,325	Kfir Nahum	$108,410
January 31-February 2, 2019	Poker Bowl III	1,022	$996,450	Brian Wilson	$143,929

The MSPT Poker Bowl IV is a part of The Venetian’s 2020 Deepstack Extravaganza Poker Series, which runs from January 27 through March 1 and will offer $3.3 million in guaranteed tournament prize pools.

Check out msptpoker.com for special suite rates, view full schedule, structures and additional details.