Welcome to Day 1a of Mid-States Poker Tour Golden Gates Casino
One week after circuit grinder Nick Jivkov snagged more than $100,000 for winning Mid-States Poker Tour Meskwaki, the tour is back in action for its second Colorado stop of the year at Golden Gates Casino in Black Hawk, just outside of Denver.
Last time the tour came through town, Dan Colpoys topped a field of 453 entrants to claim a $114,156 first-place prize, one of the bigger ones awarded this season by the MSPT. Colpoys has not made an appearance on the tour since, so we'll see if he comes back to defend his title. He bested a final table that included notable pros Will Givens and Kou Vang.
This stop features some slight tweaks that will be a bit different to those familiar with the tour. For one thing, we'll see three starting Day 1s instead of the usual two. Also, those starting flights will begin at noon rather than the usual 4 p.m. Furthermore, players may reenter multiple times rather than the usual once. Finally, starting stacks will be 30,000 instead of the usual 20,000. Other than that, the normal Allen Kessler-approved blind structure will be in place, with 40-minute levels starting at 50/100. Fifteen levels are scheduled today, so don't go anywhere as one of the bigger events on the tour this year should be on tap.