Jordan Townsend of Grand Rapids, Mich., beat a field of 300 players to win the Mid-States Poker Tour Main Event at Firekeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Mich., for $76,975. Adam Lamphere of Lansing, Mich., was runner-up for a second time, earning $42,118. Lamphere won $39,351 in March at MSPT’s first stop at Firekeepers.
This also was a repeat final table for Patrick Steele of Chelsea, Mich. The Heartland Poker Tour champ came in fourth for the second time this year, winning $18,880, collecting 1,000 points to put him in first place in the Player of the Year race. Lamphere is in third place (2,200).
Also in the field with his first cash in an MSPT event was Jason “icufish” Smith, who finished 15th ($4,067). Smith is a pro from Ferndale, who had more than $1.67 million in earnings online before Black Friday. He has been making the transition to live tournaments and said of the MSPT, “I like the structure. They skip a few levels, but the levels that they have are long enough to get a good amount of hands in.”
According to manager Kelley Bailey, Firekeepers hasn’t come to an agreement with the MSPT for a 2014 schedule yet, but they’re happy with their partnership this year.
— Email Frank Panama at anteupmichigan@gmail.com.
