No Cashes, No Problem: Nathan Trenkamp Wins MSPT Meskwaki

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Mar 26, 2018 3 min read

Nathan Trenkamp didn't let a lack of live poker results stop him on Sunday night.

He made his first live cash a big one, taking down Mid-States Poker Tour Meskwaki in Central Iowa for $88,018. The Iowa native did not have a recorded live cash according to The Hendon Mob database, but now he's got 88,000 reasons to keep going after taking down a final table that included MSPT Team Pro Blake Bohn, who was trying to win his second MSPT event in the venue and third overall.

While Bohn did not secure first place, he did inch within $10,000 of old-time legend Lyle Berman for tops in another list and a long-time goal: the all-time money lead in Minnesota.

Official Final Table Results

While numbers were a bit depressed by an unseasonably fierce snow storm that hit the region, 414 players still showed up for the $1,100 event. Among the 45 who cashed: Craig Trost, Josh Reichard, Mike Lang, and 2016 WSOP Main Event 12th-place finisher Mike Shin.

Final Table Action

Bohn was the clear favorite coming in second in chips with about 80 big blinds after winning kings over jacks just before the final table, according to the live updates. However, he ran into some big hands early and short stacks would repeatedly double, resulting in effective stacks continuing to shorten.

With nine players left, Trenkamp got in a raising war with chip leader and longtime MSPT regular Reg Powell after flopping top two with A?10?. Powell wouldn't let go of his A?Q? and paid for it when a ten hit the turn to lock it in for Trenkamp with a boat, and Trenkamp doubled into the lead with 2 million at 20,000/40,000/5,000.

Bohn had been reduced to the shortest stack but did find a double for his last six big blinds with 9?8? against the ace-queen of Josh Smith, who busted his last few crumbs in ninth.

Theodore Lee made a big call for nearly all of his chips against former leader Powell, who tried pushing Lee off pocket fours on a 3?10?5?10? board. Powell held merely A?2? but hit a miracle ace on the river to double and see Lee reduced to a short stack that he'd soon lose.

Steve Pike then had a chance to take a commanding lead when he found aces and got stacks in preflop against John Orfanos' queens. However, a queen-high flop saw Orfanos instead move into the lead while Pike had to settle for sixth in short order.

Bohn, meanwhile, tried to build it back, but the cards simply wouldn't cooperate. He lost two flips in a row, the second to Trenkamp when sevens didn't hold against A?9?. At that point left gambling with peanuts, he bowed out in fifth.

Trenkamp then got a fortunate runout when he opened Q?J? and flopped zilch against Powell, who defended his big blind and flopped top pair of kings. Running two pair gave Trenkamp a disguised hand that he barreled off though, and Powell couldn't find the fold button on the river.

Shem Yusuf came into the final table under 10 big blinds and never really got significantly above that but made a short stack work with a number of timely doubles. The end of the line came when he got it in dominated against Orfanos, though, flopping a leading pair only to fall to a runner royal flush.

Orfanos still didn't have many chips though and busted in third when he lost a flip to Powell.

With only about 70 blinds in play heads up, it seemed things were destined to end early. Powell and Trenkamp did joust for a bit but Powell tried setting a trap limping A?8? and inducing a raise from Trenkamp. The subsequent all-in shove received a quick call though as Trenkamp had A?J?. He held on to make his first cash double as his first win, while Powell had to settle for $54,416, still over double his previous best cash.

_{Photo courtesy of MSPT}

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