As the man would say, "Dim the Lights!" Jeff Platt has turned the lights out on the MSPT Venetian $1,100 Main Event by defeating a field of 470 entries en route to his first-ever poker tournament trophy and $100,804 to go along with it. In an epic heads-up battle with Russel McClean, Platt came out on top in a thriller to claim the title.
Widely known for being on the other side of the table doing interviews for PokerGO or in the commentary booth, Platt is starting to make a name for himself on the felt as well. A deep run in a 2021 WSOP event grabbed much of the poker community's attention but Platt just fell short in fourth place. However, he wasn't to be denied the title today as he put on a clinical performance when it mattered most.
"It's awesome, I'm thrilled!" Platt expressed after his victory. "It's hard to beat the feeling of winning a poker tournament. The money is fantastic but to win a poker tournament just means the absolute world to me."
The Las Vegas native came into the day with an above-average chip stack but had to compete against some of the best players to get the job done today. "I saw a lot of pretty big names and I started on a table with Christina Gollins, Bryan Piccioli, ran into Stanley (Lee) later. Sergei Kislinski, I think is one of the best players in Vegas when he plays live tournaments. The challenge was at a high level and I love that, I love poker because it allows me to express that competitive level."
One of the biggest turning points for Platt in his heads-up match came near the end when he opted for a massive over-bet on the river after making two pair. McClean decided to pay him off and Platt had the goods, taking a commanding chip lead that he wouldn't look back on. He credits a lot of his poker knowledge and could say that his success stems from being in the poker industry.
"My job allows me to study while I'm at work. I get to sit next to a good analyst, yes I will compliment Brent Hanks or Maria Ho or Jamie Kerstetter, and all we're doing is watching the very best players in the world play poker tournaments. I like to study, and it helps me become a better broadcaster, and being a better broadcaster helps me become a better player. I'm invested in poker, it's not just a job or a career."
MSPT Venetian Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Jeff Platt | United States | $100,804 |
| 2nd | Russel McClean | United States | $68,535 |
| 3rd | Sergei Kislinski | Russia | $48,491 |
| 4th | Michael Lydon | United States | $34,673 |
| 5th | Cody Wiegmann | United States | $26,130 |
| 6th | Scott Sisler | United States | $19,598 |
| 7th | David Yokoyama | United States | $14,573 |
| 8th | Trey Bartlett | United States | $11,055 |
| 9th | Carl Oman | United States | $9,045 |
Final Day Action
There were 53 players who returned to the felt for Day 2 of the tournament and each of them had locked up at least a min-cash of $2,513. Joshua Reichard actually recorded his 26th MSPT cash and is one of the most recent to earn MSPT Hall of Fame status. Despite an early pot for Reichard, he was sidelined shortly after in the opening level of the day.
Some other notables to fall by the wayside as the day unfolded include Jared Jaffee (42nd place), Dan Bekavac (28th place), Gollins (24th place), Lee (18th place), and Tyler Patterson (13th place).
It only took a mere six hours to reach the official final table of nine but then the pace of play gradually slowed down as the pay jumps became more meaningful. They played eight-handed for nearly an hour before Trey Bartlett and David Yokoyama hit the rail in eighth and seventh place respectively.
Scott Sisler entered the final table as the chip leader and continued to run over his opponent with some aggressive play. However, a cold deck got the best of Sisler as he ran his pocket queens into the kings of McClean. Moments later, Sisler was eliminated in sixth place. On the next hand, Cody Wiegmann joined him at the payout desk as the start-of-day chip leader saw his tournament end in fifth place.
Chips were being passed around among the final four players but it was Michael Lydon who saw his pocket fives go up in flames when Kislinsk tabled pocket kings. Kislinski rolled out to a dominant chip lead for the second time at the final table but was unable to hold on after an ill-timed bluff against McClean.
That left Platt and McClean to battle it out for the trophy and Platt began the match with a slight chip lead. However, McClean got three streets of value with top set and put Platt in a compromising position. The PokerGO broadcaster wasn't going to be denied though as he continued to battle back with large value bets over and over again. Platt eventually got paid off and would not relinquish the lead en route to his victory.
