Welcome to Day 1b of 2014 Mid-States Poker Tour Majestic Star Casino
After Joel Casper (263,000) and Bob Chow (228,500) set the pace by bagging the top stacks in yesterday's Day 1a, we're set to watch Day 1b kick off here at Mid-States Poker Tour Majestic Star. Cards are scheduled to be in the air at 4 p.m. local time here in Gary, Ind.
Plenty of notables failed to bag stacks last night, including Nicholas Aranda, Zal Irani, Paul Bianchi, Mike Holm, Bryan Moon, Larry Ormson, Brett Kuznia, David Gutfreund and Leon Morford, who finished second at this event in March. Also, March champion Ken Baime has not yet made an appearance to defend his title. Plenty of MSPT regulars were also absent, so we hope to see a bigger crowd for today's flight.
All players will begin with 20,000 in chips today, with blinds beginning at 50/100 under the Allen Kessler-approved structure that's been adopted by the tour since its first stop here. Levels will last 40 minutes, with breaks given every three levels. The plan for today is to play 14 levels, and each player is allowed one reentry per starting day should things go awry during the first nine levels.
Everyone who makes it through today will join the 25 survivors of Day 1a for the championship race on Day 2. Stay tuned to PokerNews to find out whom that will be.