After a year and a half hiatus due to the world-changing pandemic, the reigning Mid-Major Poker Tour of the Year returned to much fanfare. The latest RunGood Poker Series All Stars stop took place at Jamul Casino in San Diego, California.
It was there 65-year-old retired Navy veteran Armando Mesina, who a month earlier won the MSPT Sycuan $360 Regional Event for $33,329, finished on top of a field of 558 entries to win the RGPS All Stars Jamul Casino $575 Main Event for $25,175.
The final table featured a rare nine-player deal which left $5,000 in prize money, the $550 invite-only Pro-AM seat in Las Vegas, and the coveted All-Star Ring left on the line for the winner.
Despite winning the extra $5,000 and the title, fourth-place finisher Matt Bradford walked home with an even bigger prize of $26,250 thanks to having a chip edge when the deal was agreed.
Mesina sealed the deal for the title after his ace-four held against the eight-six suited held by Farid Karimi (second - $18,808) in a drama hand where Karimi flopped a pair only to lose his stack after an ace spiked the river to give Mesina a better pair.
RGPS All Stars Jamul Casino $575 Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Original Payout | Payout After Deal |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Armando Mesina | $53,545 | $25,175 |
| 2 | Farid Karimi | $37,555 | $18,808 |
| 3 | Kyle Miholich | $24,150 | $20,290 |
| 4 | Matt Bradford | $17,065 | $26,250 |
| 5 | Allen Zoura | $13,100 | $14,921 |
| 6 | Stephen O'Dwyer | $10,805 | $21,864 |
| 7 | Chris Stallkamp | $8,960 | $21,332 |
| 8 | Jason Tang | $7,140 | $14,709 |
| 9 | Aaron Knapp | $5,360 | $14,331 |
Tai Reyes-Purpero Wins Casino Champ
Congratulations to Tai Reyes-Purpero for winning himself a Pro-Am qualifier seat to the filmed event to be hosted by PokerGO this December!
Reyes-Purpero started Sunday with one point with a cash in the $185 DeepStack event earlier this week. The Casino Champion point race was wide open, with each side event winner at the top spots holding 25 points each.
At the end of Sunday, Mark Feinberg seemed to be the only threat that could top Tai if he had placed third or better in the closing event, but ultimately ended up tying with Reyes-Purpero for points but generated less total cash earned to determine the tie-breaker.
None of the other Main Event final tablists were in contention with Reyes-Purpero, as none had cashed in any events earlier this week, leaving the second-place Main Event finisher with 25 points, just shy of the 26 points that Tai had collected.
Here's a look at all those who captured titles during the RGPS Jamul stop:
| Tournament | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $135 Opening Event | 234 | $24,570 | Daniel Cronin | $4,432 |
| $185 RG DeepStack | 387 | $56,115 | Ryan Leonis | $11,660 |
| $200 RG Double Green Chip Bounty | 157 | $18,055 | Timothy Vu | $2,426 |
| $125 RG Seniors NLH | 87 | $8,700 | Mona Najimy | $2,203 |
| $575 Main Event | 559 | $279,000 | Armando Mesina | $25,175 |
| $240 RG Black Chip Bounty Closer | 144 | $15,120 | Tai Reyes-Purpero | $4,540 |
| $300 RG PLO | 91 | $23,660 | Alphonso Estrada | $6,605 |
Next Stop for RGPS
The RGPS All Stars Comeback Tour continued June 22-27 at Horseshoe Casino Council Bluffs in Iowa, just across the border from Omaha. Players can expect to enjoy giveaway items, ring events, and two paid-for seats to the invitation-only All-Stars ProAM filmed event at the PokerGO Studio in December during the series.
The stop will offer a full schedule of satellites and side events culminating with a $575 buy-in, $100K GTD Main Event, which PokerNews will live report.
Click here for more information on the RGPS Horseshoe Council Bluffs.
