Howard wins the South Dakota State Poker Championship to become a two-time MSPT champion
The MSPT South Dakota State Poker Championship appeared poised as a record-setting event in the making coming into the weekend. Booming attendance for live tournaments across the country, as well as the MSPT’s recent track record of success, pointed to big things happening at Deadwood’s Silverado-Franklin Casino.
To say that the MSPT’s latest South Dakota stop ended in success would be a gross understatement. The $1,100 buy-in Main Event offered a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool, but the final prize money awarded ended up at $567,450.
That massive prize pool figure came as a result of 585 entries registering for the South Dakota State Poker Championship. The event set a new record for the biggest attendance and prize pool for any live tournament in South Dakota history.
The eventual winner of the tournament is no stranger to MSPT success. Taylor Howard notched his second career MSPT title, clinching the win in the early hours of Monday morning and adding $119,165 to his career earnings.
MSPT South Dakota State Poker Championship final table results
| Place | Player Name | Prize |
| 1 | Taylor Howard | $119,165 |
| 2 | John Schroer | $73,201 |
| 3 | Cy Church | $53,340 |
| 4 | Paul Camby | $39,722 |
| 5 | Michael Kinzer | $30,075 |
| 6 | John Nidhiry | $22,698 |
| 7 | Wesley Ismay | $17,591 |
| 8 | Clint Lilienthal | $13,616 |
| 9 | Tim Dunse | $10,782 |
Howard adds second MSPT championship to the resume
The South Dakota State Poker Championship played out May 14-16 at the Silverado-Franklin Casino in Deadwood. While Deadwood marks one of the MSPT’s usual stops, the 2021 stop unfolded unlike any other live poker event in the history of South Dakota’s only legal gambling town.
The 585 entries more than doubled the previous attendance record for a Deadwood poker event. That previous benchmark came in a May 2019 MSPT stop, which marks the last time the tour ran a live event in South Dakota.
The scheduled 2020 MSPT Deadwood stop was canceled due to COVID-19. While the tour has conducted a pair of events in Larchwood, IA (near Sioux Falls, SD) in the past 12 months, the 2021 South Dakota State Championship marked the first MSPT stop in Deadwood proper in two years.
Players responded by turning out for the event in massive numbers. The $119,165 first-place prize alone topped the $100,000 guaranteed prize pool advertised for the tournament.
The win gives Howard the biggest payday of his career. His previous high mark came with his other MSPT title, won at a November 2018 MSPT Iowa stop.
Other top finishers included John Schroer (2nd - $73,201), Cy Church (3rd - $53,340), Paul Camby (4th - $39,722) and Michael Kinzer (5th - $30,075).
Rounding out the nine-handed final table were John Nidhiry (6th - $22,698), Wesley Ismay (7th - $17,591), Clint Lilienthal (8th - $13,616), and Tim Dunse (9th - $10,782).
Next up for the MSPT is a pair of events at the Venetian in Las Vegas, June 2-7 and June 10-14.
Featured image source: Twitter
