Mid-States Poker Tour FireKeepers Casino Kicks Off this Week in Battle Creek, Michigan
Season 5 of the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) continues this Friday with the start of the MSPT FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan. From May 9-14, the stop will offer daily $260 qualifiers, and then from May 15-18 the $1,100 Main Event, which features a $200,000 guarantee, will play out.
“The MSPT is looking forward to returning to FireKeepers for the third time,” said MSPT owner and operator Bryan Mileski. “The stop has proven tremendously successful, and we’re looking forward to continuing the Season 5 trend of setting new records. Michigan has a strong poker presence, and we expect many of the state’s best to come compete against players who make the trip throughout the Midwest.”
Remember, if you’re a player who plans to travel to Battle Creek, the MSPT has formed a partnership with Delta Air Lines to provide players with discounted airfare from MSPT tournament. The Delta discount ranges from 2% to 10% based on the Delta Booking Class purchased. More information on the discounted airfaire can be found at MSPT.com.
"As the tour is growing — both in the number of venues and the number of players at each stop — we wanted to be able to offer the players the option of discounted airfare," Judd Greenagel, director of operations at the MSPT, previously told PokerNews. "For the venues it shows that we are doing everything we can to get players to travel to their casino. Delta is a great fit as they can get you anywhere you need to be and at a very fair rate, and their SkyMiles Program is second to none."
Flying into the area is easy, with big airports in Lansing, Detroit, and Chicago, as well as a fine airport in Battle Creek itself. Located right off Exit 104 from Highway I-94, driving to FireKeepers is also simple and fast from anywhere in the area.
FireKeepers Casino, which opened in August 2009, is nearly equidistant from Chicago and Detroit and features a hotel, six restaurants, a huge gaming floor, a bingo room, and a very busy poker room. The most common game in the poker room is $1/$2 no-limit hold'em, with multiple tables running 24 hours a day.
As Mileski said, this is the third time the MSPT will visit the property. The first time was in March 2013, and 272 entrants created a prize pool of $272,000. Thomas Midena ultimately emerged victorious to win a $73,456 first-place prize. In August 2013, the MSPT returned and the field grew to 301 entrants, which created a prize pool of $301,000. Jordan Townsend defeated Adam Lamphere in heads-up play to win that tournament for $76,975.
For a look at the entire MSPT FireKeepers schedule, click here. Remember, the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be on hand to live report the Main Event, so when the time comes, be sure to check out our Live Reporting Section for updates.
*Lead photo courtesy of FireKeepers Casino Hotel.
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