Successful a Participant of the 12 months (POY) title on a serious poker tour is a prestigious factor to do. Going back-to-back is an extremely uncommon feat, and successful POY three years in a row is unprecedented. Nevertheless, it may very properly occur this weekend on the remaining cease of the Main Sequence of Poker: The Tour (MSPT) Season 16 as Umut Ozturk has a sensible shot at it.
Ozturk, who gained POY in each Season 14 (2023) and 15 (2024), at present sits with 9,732 POY factors behind solely Jake Lengthy, who has 10,172 factors. That could be a slim margin of simply 440 factors, that means issues will actually come right down to the wire as PokerNews has confirmed each gamers plan to play a full slate on the season-ending cease at Minnesota’s Operating Aces On line casino, which sits simply exterior the Twin Cities.
Lengthy was truly a visitor on the newest episode of the MSPT Podcast Introduced By PokerNews to speak about main the POY race headed into the final cease, in addition to Ozturk doubtlessly successful a 3rd POY (which Lengthy affectionately calls the “Ozturkey”).
The Winter Poker Basic, the twenty ninth and remaining cease of 2025, options 18 Gold Card occasions from December 2-14 and marks the final alternative for gamers to earn coveted Participant of the 12 months Factors. On Thursday, the $1,110 buy-in, $500K GTD Fundamental Occasion will get underway and PokerNews will probably be on-site all weekend lengthy to keep watch over the POY race.
MSPT Season 16 POY Standings
Click on right here to see the present MSPT Season 16 Participant of the 12 months standings
Again-and-Forth Battle
Ozturk and Lengthy have been going shot-for-shot all season with every taking turns atop the leaderboard. Ozturk began out scorching, ending fourth and second in back-to-back Fundamental Occasions at Bally’s Black Hawk and Milwaukee’s Potawatomi On line casino, respectively. He then completed third at Grand Falls On line casino in August, adopted by one other third-place end at JACK Cleveland a month later. In between, he completed fifth on the MSPT Hollywood St. Louis.
For Lengthy, he’s made two Fundamental Occasion remaining tables, putting second within the 2025 Iowa Poker State Championship at Riverside On line casino and a month later fourth within the aforementioned MSPT Hollywood St. Louis, the place Ozturk completed fifth. Nevertheless, the place Lengthy has made a reputation for himself is within the aspect occasions – gamers get a Gold Card for every victory in an MSPT occasion with a $200 buy-in or increased.
Lengthy acquired his first aspect occasion win in October and since then has ripped off a MSPT-high seven Gold Playing cards, properly forward of Michael Starek and John “Farmboy” Kurfman, who sit with 4 and three Gold Playing cards respectively. Solely 4 different gamers have two Gold Playing cards to their identify.
Ozturk was on high of the leaderboard going into the penultimate cease at Ameristar East Chicago; nevertheless, Lengthy captured an astounding 4 aspect occasion titles on the cease. When the mud settled, Lengthy had amassed 642 POY factors in aspect occasions, which put him within the lead with 9,732 factors forward of Ozturk, who had 9,467, with one cease to go.
Since then, each gamers have added factors, particularly Lengthy, who gained MSPT Operating Aces Occasion #2: $250 Monster Stack NLH for $9,463 and 240 POY factors, after which the next day completed second in Occasion #4: $300 PLO for $5,298 200 POY factors.
Jake Lengthy’s MSPT Aspect Occasion Wins
Comply with dwell updates from the MSPT Operating Aces Fundamental Occasion right here!
MSPT Operating Aces Schedule
The $1,110 buy-in, $500K GTD Fundamental Occasion will happen towards the beginning of the pageant (in order to not battle with WSOP Paradise and WPT World Championship) from December 4-7. The primary of three beginning flights will happen at 2 p.m. CT on Thursday, December 4, with Day 1B happening on the similar time on Friday, December 5. Day 1C will then be held at Midday native time on Saturday, December 6, earlier than the surviving gamers from all flights return within the cash at 11 a.m. on Sunday, December 7, to play right down to a winner.
Whereas the Fundamental Occasion will award essentially the most POY factors, the entire aspect occasions have some obtainable. That features Occasion #4: $300 Pot-Restrict Omaha Monster Stack, Occasion #13: $300 Epic Stack NLH, and Occasion #15: $400 Mini Fundamental Occasion.
Right here’s a have a look at the total MSPT Winter Poker Basic schedule:
Chad Holloway
PR & Media Supervisor
