Smith, Reid, and Todhunter Lead the Way After Day 1a of the $600 Main Event at Destination RunGood Tunica
Day 1 of the $600 Main Event at Destination RunGood Tunica has come to an end and Stephen Smith is the leader after just under 16 full levels of play. A total of 186 players turned out for the opening flight and 23 moved on to Day 2.
Smith is followed by Terrance Reid in second and Andrew Todhunter in third. Adam Fields and Michael Cordell round out the top five. It was a surge in the late levels that gave Smith the lead after several other players held their share at one time or another.
Destination RunGood Tunica Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stephen Smith | 458,000 |
| 2 | Terrance Reid | 381,000 |
| 3 | Andrew Todhunter | 376,000 |
| 4 | Adam Fields | 376,000 |
| 5 | Michael Cordell | 373,000 |
| 6 | Sanh Vuong | 371,000 |
| 7 | Jess Roberts | 351,000 |
| 8 | Justin Kelley | 338,000 |
| 9 | BJ McBrayer | 319,000 |
| 10 | Erik Miller | 314,000 |
Day 1a Highlights
Reid, an esteemed member of the poker media, was among the early movers on the day. He built an early stack on a flush in Level 5 and he later bet big to fold out a suspicious Papa Karn. At one point in the later levels, Reid appeared to have eclipsed the half-million mark before he came back to the pack. He returns on Day 2 with the second-biggest stack from the opening flight and he will look to improve on his career-best podium finish for $46,600 from the RGPS Main Event in Graton last October.
Following Reid in third is Todhunter, who had the pleasure of bursting the bubble at the end of the evening when he used Big Slick to eliminate James West and his pocket tens. His previous best RGPS Main Event finish was a run to 15th place at the Tulsa stop in January of 2023. Todhunter will return on Day 2 with a big chance to improve on his career-high score of $12,138 for a second-place finish in a side event at WSOPC Tulsa.
The rest of the field includes red hot Day 1b players like BJ McBrayer and Erik Miller. Miller was one of the early chip leaders and he fell off the top of the leaderboard early, only to charge right back to the top 10 in the late levels. A native of Memphis, Miller won a RGPS ring in the $250 Black Chip Bounty tournament at the Tunica stop in September of 2023.
McBrayer is one of the most accomplished players in the field with over $1.5 million in career live earnings, according to The Hendon Mob. His record dates back to 2005, and he sports a consistent string of cashes with a career-high of $98,874 for a win at the Venetian in 2001. McBrayer’s best RGPS Main Event finish was a run to fourth place right here in Tunica in October of 2022.
Other players returning on Day include Jess Roberts, Justin Kelley, Kaleb Dunn, Trent Johnson, and Sanh Vuong.
Day 1a ended with just under two minutes remaining in Level 16. Day 1b will kick off on Saturday at 11 a.m. and a second flight is available at 6 p.m. Both flights will have open registration until the beginning of Level 9.
Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team for live coverage from the floor of the $600 Main Event of Destination RunGood Tunica.