William Joyner Tops 127-Entry Day 1c at Mississippi State Poker Championship
Joyner bagged 607,000 as 15 players advanced from the largest opening flight at Horseshoe Tunica.
William Joyner led the largest opening flight so far in the inaugural $400 Mississippi State Poker Championship at Horseshoe Casino Tunica, bagging 607,000 from Day 1c’s 127 entries.
Fifteen players advanced from the third of four starting flights, putting Joyner ahead of runner-up Bill Onley, who finished with 515,000. Andrea Hizer completed the top three in chips, according to PokerNews’ live coverage.
Joyner’s surge began with a runner-runner flush against Colin Heaton that took him to roughly 250,000 chips. He also eliminated Paul Stewart on the money bubble: with 16 players left and 15 Day 2 spots available, Joyner called Stewart’s 54,000-chip shove and won an ace-versus-ace hand when his kicker played.
The event carries a $50,000 guaranteed prize pool and started players with 30,000 chips. Each Day 1 flight used 30-minute levels, and the top 12.5%, rounded down, qualified for Day 2. Players could enter multiple flights and re-enter without limit; anyone who qualified more than once retained their largest stack, forfeited the smaller stack or stacks, and received the lowest Day 2 payout.
Day 1c was a clear jump from the 73 entries recorded in Day 1b, which sent nine players through. Kerry Dawson led that flight with 431,000, followed by Jesse Lott with 362,000 and Benjamin Ridge with 338,000.
The final Day 1d flight was underway when the Day 1c report was published. Day 2 is scheduled to begin at noon local time on Sunday, Sept. 20, with 35-minute levels before they increase to 40 minutes at the final table.
