$2,500 Main Event
Day 1b Completed
2024 RGPS Destination RunGood Thunder Valley
$2,500 Main Event
Day: 1b
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
The air was abuzz this morning as players began entering the room around 10:30 and were greeted with a black tarmac experience found here at Thunder Valley. The staff was in full flight mode complete with pilot’s outfits while Jeff Platt and Hayley Hochstetler put on an incredible TV performance while Tana Karn and Ben Erwin joined in the commentary. The entire room was truly a spectacle to behold as the "Final Boarding" promo video was aired and it was a perfect fit to have defending champ Tyler Patterson (who bagged 163,500 in Day 1a) announce “Shuffle Up and Deal!”
After that, it was smooth sailing as 241 players took their seats throughout the day with 81 finding their way to a bag after ten 1-hour levels of play.
Leading the way for Day 1b after the dust settled is Toan Nguyen with 351,000 followed by Nic Decalo with 319,500. This puts them in third and fifth place overall when they return tomorrow for Day 2 and combine with Day 1a.
Day 1 Combined Top Ten Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrew Voor | United States | 390,000 | 156 |
| 2 | Yunkyu Song | United States | 367,500 | 147 |
| 3 | Toan Nguyen | United States | 351,000 | 140 |
| 4 | Daniel Rezaei | Austria | 350,000 | 140 |
| 5 | Niv Decalo | United States | 319,500 | 128 |
| 6 | Kyung Yoo | United States | 302,000 | 121 |
| 7 | Joshua Prager | United States | 281,000 | 112 |
| 8 | Jared Jaffee | United States | 278,000 | 111 |
| 9 | Andrew Ostapchenko | United States | 274,000 | 110 |
| 10 | Richard Green Jr | United States | 263,000 | 105 |
Some familiar names that also managed to find a bag include Thunder Valley favorite Brett Murray (107,000), Evan Sandberg, and Buffalo Hunter Extraordinaire Allen Kessler.
Those who didn’t make it through the day and have missed their chance to advance include Brek Schutten, JC Tran, Daniel Smiljkovic, Jamie Kerstetter, Michael ‘Murph’ Murphy, and Jeff Lennon who busted on the final hand of the night.
The Return for Day 2 Tomorrow
With both opening flights in the books, Day 2 will take place Sunday at 11 a.m. local time and will start at level 11 with blinds as 1,500/2,500 with a 2,500 big blind ante. The day will consist of another ten 60-minute levels of play before bagging up to return on Monday for Day 3.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for continued coverage from the beautiful Thunder Valley Casino Resort until a Destination Champion is crowned on Monday!
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
| Table | Seat | Player | United States | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | 1 | Lian Liu | United States | 49,000 | 20 |
| 17 | 2 | Daniel Lee | United States | 41,000 | 16 |
| 17 | 3 | David Olson | United States | 94,500 | 38 |
| 17 | 4 | Bradley Anderson | United States | 93,500 | 37 |
| 17 | 5 | Randy Gil | United States | 143,000 | 57 |
| 17 | 6 | Andrew Voor | United States | 390,000 | 156 |
| 17 | 7 | Idris Yonisi | United States | 73,000 | 29 |
| 17 | 8 | Steven Ritchie | United States | 121,500 | 49 |
| 17 | 9 | Richard Green Jr | United States | 263,000 | 105 |
| 18 | 1 | Dan Stavila | Moldova | 72,000 | 29 |
| 18 | 3 | Kenneth Jorgensen | United States | 115,000 | 46 |
| 18 | 4 | Wesley Haymond | United States | 146,000 | 58 |
| 18 | 5 | Matthew Betti | United States | 92,000 | 37 |
| 18 | 6 | Toan Nguyen | Netherlands | 351,000 | 140 |
| 18 | 7 | Dominico Rodriguez | United States | 68,500 | 27 |
| 18 | 8 | Paul Richardson | United States | 49,000 | 20 |
| 18 | 9 | Robert Duran | United States | 38,000 | 15 |
| 21 | 1 | Evan Sandberg | United States | 118,000 | 47 |
| 21 | 2 | Arish Nat | United States | 173,000 | 69 |
| 21 | 3 | Thomas Tran | United States | 123,000 | 49 |
| 21 | 4 | Yonghui Yu | United States | 78,500 | 31 |
| 21 | 5 | Joseph Arent | United States | 65,000 | 26 |
| 21 | 6 | Man Pham | United States | 148,500 | 59 |
| 21 | 7 | Rommel Damasco | United States | 178,000 | 71 |
| 21 | 8 | Jonathan Wang | United States | 107,000 | 43 |
| 21 | 9 | James Smith | United States | 19,000 | 8 |
| United States | |||||
| 22 | 1 | Phia Xiong | United States | 39,000 | 16 |
| 22 | 2 | Ron Fetsch | United States | 182,500 | 73 |
| 22 | 3 | Shahin Shojaeyan | United States | 129,000 | 52 |
| 22 | 4 | Mitchell Garshofsky | United States | 130,000 | 52 |
| 22 | 5 | Casey Mccarrel | United States | 88,500 | 35 |
| 22 | 6 | Bobby Poe | United States | 212,000 | 85 |
| 22 | 7 | Edward Lewis Jr | United States | 137,000 | 55 |
| 22 | 8 | Jared Smith | United States | 206,000 | 82 |
| 22 | 9 | Aruna Mallina | United States | 31,500 | 13 |
| 23 | 1 | Anthony Swift | United States | 188,500 | 75 |
| 23 | 2 | Tennyson Schaina | United States | 90,500 | 36 |
| 23 | 3 | Joshua Prager | United States | 281,000 | 112 |
| 23 | 4 | Lee Markholt | United States | 189,500 | 76 |
| 23 | 5 | Ratu Caucau | United States | 65,500 | 26 |
| 23 | 6 | Justo Avalos Palacios | United States | 67,000 | 27 |
| 23 | 7 | Naga Kakumanu | United States | 56,500 | 23 |
| 23 | 8 | Joshua Morrow | United States | 172,000 | 69 |
| 23 | 9 | Terrance Reid | United States | 230,000 | 92 |
| 24 | 1 | Vera Dong | United States | 153,000 | 61 |
| 24 | 2 | Martin Wong | United States | 55,500 | 22 |
| 24 | 3 | Joseph Bergh | United States | 94,000 | 38 |
| 24 | 4 | Jason Liu | United States | 144,000 | 58 |
| 24 | 5 | Adam Duong | United States | 215,500 | 86 |
| 24 | 6 | Mario Samareta | United States | 62,500 | 25 |
| 24 | 7 | Matthew Kramer | United States | 72,500 | 29 |
| 24 | 8 | Ramin Malekian | United States | 97,000 | 39 |
| 24 | 9 | Jared Jaffee | United States | 278,000 | 111 |
| 25 | 1 | Brent Francia | United States | 89,000 | 36 |
| 25 | 2 | Tyler Montoya | United States | 116,000 | 46 |
| 25 | 3 | Daniel Hatch | United States | 210,500 | 84 |
| 25 | 4 | Rajesh Melethbalakrishnan | United States | 42,000 | 17 |
| 25 | 5 | Kenneth Fitzgerald | United States | 251,000 | 100 |
| 25 | 6 | Nravi Shankar | United States | 114,000 | 46 |
| 25 | 7 | I-Le Wu | United States | 87,000 | 35 |
| 25 | 8 | Jeffrey Platt | United States | 29,500 | 12 |
| 25 | 9 | Fernando Mora | United States | 43,500 | 17 |
| 26 | 1 | Thomas Phillips | United States | 62,000 | 25 |
| 26 | 2 | Jackson Spencer | United States | 90,000 | 36 |
| 26 | 3 | Cody Golden | United States | 222,000 | 89 |
| 26 | 4 | Kao Saechao | United States | 55,000 | 22 |
| 26 | 5 | Ferenc Szuchopa | United States | 37,500 | 15 |
| 26 | 6 | Michael Cervantes | United States | 63,000 | 25 |
| 26 | 7 | Robert Grossglauser Iii | United States | 131,500 | 53 |
| 26 | 8 | Phillip Good | United States | 64,500 | 26 |
| 26 | 9 | Mario Lopez | United States | 60,000 | 24 |
| 27 | 1 | Antony Pereira | United States | 150,000 | 60 |
| 27 | 2 | Michael Noori | United States | 88,500 | 35 |
| 27 | 3 | Matthew Affleck | United States | 87,000 | 35 |
| 27 | 4 | Harlan Karnofsky | United States | 70,000 | 28 |
| 27 | 5 | Michael Persky | United States | 194,000 | 78 |
| 27 | 6 | Shyamsundar Challa | United States | 88,000 | 35 |
| 27 | 7 | Ari Katz | United States | 241,000 | 96 |
| 27 | 8 | Joshua Steinberg | United States | 42,000 | 17 |
| 27 | 9 | Peter Shekeloff | United States | 100,000 | 40 |
| 28 | 1 | Torn Saelee | United States | 148,500 | 59 |
| 28 | 2 | Jason White | United States | 178,500 | 71 |
| 28 | 3 | Mark Bansemer | United States | 21,000 | 8 |
| 28 | 4 | Yunkyu Song | United States | 367,500 | 147 |
| 28 | 5 | Alfred Ugaitafa | United States | 76,000 | 30 |
| 28 | 6 | Francis Anderson | United States | 55,500 | 22 |
| 28 | 7 | Shijia Liu | United States | 77,500 | 31 |
| 28 | 8 | Michael Riddle | United States | 125,500 | 50 |
| 28 | 9 | Ashley Frank | United States | 190,500 | 76 |
| 29 | 1 | Brett Murray | United States | 242,500 | 97 |
| 29 | 2 | Gregory Kolo | United States | 129,000 | 52 |
| 29 | 3 | Allen Kessler | United States | 127,000 | 51 |
| 29 | 4 | David Park | United States | 41,000 | 16 |
| 29 | 5 | Benjamin Primus | United States | 79,500 | 32 |
| 29 | 6 | Matthew Salsberg | United States | 239,500 | 96 |
| 29 | 7 | Ian Steinman | United States | 141,500 | 57 |
| 29 | 8 | Martin Bates | United States | 78,500 | 31 |
| 29 | 9 | Kyle Kitagawa | United States | 61,000 | 24 |
| 30 | 1 | Daniel Mcgee | United States | 46,000 | 18 |
| 30 | 2 | Curtis Kowalk | United States | 137,500 | 55 |
| 30 | 3 | Darren Rabinowitz | United States | 68,000 | 27 |
| 30 | 4 | Andrew Greenawalt | United States | 168,000 | 67 |
| 30 | 5 | Jedidiah Hoffman | United States | 124,500 | 50 |
| 30 | 6 | Thomas Morris | United States | 59,500 | 24 |
| 30 | 7 | Anthony An | United States | 185,500 | 74 |
| 30 | 8 | Eric Matulis | United States | 204,000 | 82 |
| 30 | 9 | Quinn Do | United States | 41,500 | 17 |
| 31 | 1 | Antonio Ma | United States | 89,000 | 36 |
| 31 | 2 | Dawson Dvorak | United States | 251,500 | 101 |
| 31 | 3 | Tracy Oto | United States | 58,500 | 23 |
| 31 | 4 | Daniel Rezaei | Austria | 350,000 | 140 |
| 31 | 5 | Nick Shkolnik | United States | 116,000 | 46 |
| 31 | 6 | Nguyen Tran | United States | 49,000 | 20 |
| 31 | 7 | Brandy Savage | United States | 70,000 | 28 |
| 31 | 8 | Sasha Sabbaghian | United States | 164,500 | 66 |
| 31 | 9 | Victor Campana | United States | 61,000 | 24 |
| 33 | 1 | Kyung Yoo | United States | 302,000 | 121 |
| 33 | 2 | James Minghini | United States | 208,000 | 83 |
| 33 | 3 | Roman Shainiuk | United States | 114,000 | 46 |
| 33 | 4 | Rudy Cervantes | United States | 171,500 | 69 |
| 33 | 5 | Xiong Thao | United States | 208,000 | 83 |
| 33 | 6 | Yang Lu | China | 165,500 | 66 |
| 33 | 7 | Justin Stewart | United States | 62,500 | 25 |
| 33 | 8 | Aaron Overton | United States | 148,500 | 59 |
| 33 | 9 | Wilson Tolon | United States | 94,500 | 38 |
| 34 | 1 | Andrew Ostapchenko | United States | 274,000 | 110 |
| 34 | 2 | Yongqing Yuan | United States | 128,000 | 51 |
| 34 | 3 | Jonathan Epstein | United States | 59,500 | 24 |
| 34 | 4 | Rhian Fineis | United States | 81,000 | 32 |
| 34 | 5 | Taylor Black | United States | 124,000 | 50 |
| 34 | 6 | Vy Nguyen | United States | 152,500 | 61 |
| 34 | 7 | Benjamin Underwood | Canada | 25,500 | 10 |
| 34 | 8 | Huihan Wu | United States | 82,500 | 33 |
| 34 | 9 | Steve Kim | United States | 53,500 | 21 |
| 37 | 1 | Richard Troendly | United States | 164,000 | 66 |
| 37 | 2 | Tyler Patterson | United States | 163,500 | 65 |
| 37 | 3 | James Prager | United States | 15,500 | 6 |
| 37 | 4 | Niv Decalo | United States | 319,500 | 128 |
| 37 | 5 | Matthew Wantman | United States | 141,500 | 57 |
| 37 | 6 | Andrew Moser | United States | 230,500 | 92 |
| 37 | 7 | Ryan O'Grady | United States | 108,000 | 43 |
| 37 | 8 | Nissar Quraishi | United States | 230,500 | 92 |
| 37 | 9 | Annette Hurst | United States | 61,500 | 25 |
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
390,000 | |
|
||
|
367,500 | |
|
351,000 | |
|
350,000 | |
|
319,500 | |
|
302,000 | |
|
281,000 | |
|
278,000 | |
|
||
|
274,000 | |
|
263,000 | |
|
251,500 | |
|
251,000 | |
|
242,500 | |
|
241,000 | |
|
239,500 | |
|
||
|
230,500 | |
|
230,500 | |
|
230,000 | |
|
222,000 | |
|
215,500 | |
|
212,000 | |
|
210,500 | |
|
208,000 | |
|
208,000 | |
|
|
206,000 | |
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
351,000
67,500
|
67,500 |
|
|
319,500
175,500
|
175,500 |
|
|
302,000
-23,000
|
-23,000 |
|
|
281,000
96,000
|
96,000 |
|
|
278,000 | |
|
|
||
|
|
263,000
138,500
|
138,500 |
|
|
251,000
189,000
|
189,000 |
|
|
242,500
135,500
|
135,500 |
|
|
230,000
41,000
|
41,000 |
|
|
212,000
136,500
|
136,500 |
|
|
210,500
28,500
|
28,500 |
|
|
208,000
133,000
|
133,000 |
|
|
208,000
84,000
|
84,000 |
|
|
206,000
17,000
|
17,000 |
|
194,000
95,500
|
95,500 |
|
193,000 | |
|
189,500
99,500
|
99,500 |
|
|
||
|
|
188,500
131,100
|
131,100 |
|
178,000
-16,000
|
-16,000 |
|
173,000
32,000
|
32,000 |
|
|
172,000
3,500
|
3,500 |
|
171,500
55,500
|
55,500 |
|
||
|
164,000
116,500
|
116,500 |
|
|
153,000
94,800
|
94,800 |
|
144,000
23,500
|
23,500 |
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
Play has ended for the day and the 81 surviving players from Day 1b have bagged up to return tomorrow at 11 a.m. for Day 2.
Official chip counts and seat draws while be posted shortly along with the recap of today's events so stay tuned!
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
On the final hand of the night, Jeff Lennon opened to 7,000 and Jared Jaffee three-bet to 17,000.
"The whole enchilada," Lennon announced as he slid the rest of his stack across the line, but was snap-called by Jaffee who then flipped over A♦A♥.
"Wow, what a setup!" Lennon sighed as he flipped over Q♦Q♠ for a massive cooler.
The runout of 4♥J♥2♠9♦6♦ failed to save Lennon and he was eliminated as the other players began the bagging process.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
278,000
194,500
|
194,500 |
|
|
||
|
Busted | |
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
The play clock has reached 10:00 remaining so the Tournament Director has announced that 5 more hands will be played before players bag up for the night.
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
Before the flop, Kyung Yoo opened from the cutoff, I-Le Wu three-bet to 13,000 from the button, and then Yoo four-bet to 35,000.
Wu made the call and the two players went to the flop of 6♥4♥8♠, which saw a bet of 25,000 from Yoo and a call from Wu.
When the turn fell the J♠, Yoo moved all in, covering Wu, who went into the tank.
After around thirty seconds, he slid his cards to the dealer and the pot was pushed to Yoo to extend his chip lead.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
325,000
-17,000
|
-17,000 |
|
|
140,000
39,000
|
39,000 |
Level 10
: Blinds 1,000/2,000, 2,000 ante
On a flop of K♣2♣J♠, Edward Lewis Jr led for 5,000 and was called by Kao Saechao, but then Nam Le moved all in for his last 18,000. Lewis Jr responded by moving all in himself for 52,000 and Saechao decided to ket it go after some serious consideration.
Nam Le: K♥3♥
Edward Lewis Jr: A♣K♠
Le would need some serious help to stay alive, but the runout of A♥5♠ only improved Lewis Jr to top two pair and he was sent to the rail.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
90,000
11,000
|
11,000 |
|
55,000
-35,000
|
-35,000 |
|
Busted | |
|
|
||