MSPT FireKeepers: Umut Ozturk Wins the Spade Poker Championship for $280,290
Updated on October 22, 2026.
Umut Ozturk won the MSPT FireKeepers Main Event, the Spade Poker Championship, last weekend at FireKeepers Casino in Michigan. The Minnesota lawyer beat a field of 2,442 entries and took $280,290 after a heads-up deal with Greg Wiggins. It is his third MSPT title, and it moved him to No. 1 on the tour’s all-time money list.
Quick summary
- Winner: Umut Ozturk of St. Paul, Minnesota, for $280,290, his best career score.
- Field: 2,442 entries at $1,110 each, for a $2,367,240 prize pool against a $1 million guarantee.
- Heads-up deal: Ozturk and Greg Wiggins of Elmira, Michigan, each took $280,290. Ozturk won the title with a slight chip lead.
- Money list: Ozturk now has $1,337,117 in career MSPT earnings, the most in tour history.
- Next stop: the MSPT Festival at Grand Falls Casino, near Sioux Falls, from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.
Umut Ozturk wins MSPT FireKeepers
The Major Series of Poker: The Tour (MSPT), formerly the Mid-States Poker Tour, brought its second Spade Poker Championship to FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan. The $1,110 buy-in Main Event drew 2,442 entries and more than doubled its $1 million guarantee, according to PokerNews.
Ozturk is one of the best-known names on the tour. He is an MSPT Hall of Famer and the only player to win Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons (2023 and 2024). Earlier this year, he won the Ohio Poker State Championship at JACK Cleveland for his second MSPT title.
His key hand came with eight players left. Ozturk raised from the cutoff, and Frank Lagodich moved all in from the button. Ozturk called for just over 5 million chips with pocket tens. Lagodich held ace-eight of spades and flopped a gutshot straight draw, but the turn and river missed. Ozturk doubled up, while Lagodich survived and later finished seventh.
Wiggins did much of the elimination work at the final table, and the last two players agreed to split the top two prizes evenly. In a heads-up deal, the players divide the remaining money and keep playing for the title. Ozturk had a slight chip lead and closed it out.
Ozturk dedicated the win to his mother, who died after a terminal cancer diagnosis. “Even though she wasn’t here with me physically, I felt her the entire weekend, so this one is dedicated to my mother,” he told PokerNews. He also said: “I told myself, when I come back to Michigan, I was going to ship it.”
MSPT FireKeepers final table results
Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Umut Ozturk | St. Paul, MN | $280,290* |
2 | Greg Wiggins | Elmira, MI | $280,290* |
3 | Gian Bencivenga | West Bloomfield, MI | $164,811 |
4 | Dan Sepiol | Michigan City, IN | $123,028 |
5 | Derek Gregory | Los Angeles, CA | $96,798 |
6 | Scott Bohlman | Chicago, IL | $74,235 |
7 | Frank Lagodich | Canton, OH | $58,032 |
8 | Jacob Long | Omaha, NE | $45,265 |
9 | Randy Froelich | Cincinnati, OH | $35,980 |
*Heads-up deal. Source: PokerNews.
Reigning Player of the Year Jacob Long finished eighth. Defending champion Merritt Kuhn, who won the first edition in 2025 for $339,115, cashed in 40th place for $6,685.
Top of the MSPT all-time money list
The win pushed Ozturk’s career MSPT earnings to $1,337,117, the top mark on the tour’s all-time money list, according to PokerNews. He is one of only five players in the “MSPT Millionaires” club. His first MSPT cash came in 2018.
The field was smaller than last year’s. The first Spade Poker Championship, in 2025, drew 2,773 entries for a $2,688,310 prize pool against a $1.5 million guarantee. This year’s guarantee was lower, and the event still beat it by more than $1.3 million.
What’s next on the MSPT
- MSPT Festival: Grand Falls Casino, near Sioux Falls, from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.
- Riverside Casino (Iowa): Nov. 3 to 8.
- Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open: the first MSPT event with Seminole Hard Rock, from Nov. 17 to Dec. 2.
A $1,110 buy-in is a big expense for most players. Before you enter an event like this, check how many buy-ins you can afford with our poker bankroll calculator. And if you reach a final table and someone proposes a deal, our ICM calculator shows what your stack is really worth.
What it means for players in the US
The MSPT is a live tour, so you play it in person at the host casino. Online, the rules depend on your state. Michigan is one of the few states that license online poker, along with Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Our guide to real money online poker in the USA explains how it works where you live.
Some US players also use international rooms to grind tournaments between live stops. These sites are not licensed by any US state, so state consumer protections don’t apply, and you should check your state’s law before you play. Players often deposit with crypto, such as Bitcoin, because some banks block card payments to poker sites.
If you sign up through the button in our Ignition Poker review and message us on Telegram, we register your account under our deal: 40% rakeback, paid monthly, plus Ignition’s 150% bonus up to $1,500 in Bitcoin (bonus terms apply). Ignition doesn’t accept players from Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey or New York. You can compare it with other rooms in our list of the best online poker sites.
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Frequently asked questions
Who won the MSPT FireKeepers Spade Poker Championship in 2026?
Umut Ozturk, a lawyer from St. Paul, Minnesota, won it. He made a heads-up deal with Greg Wiggins of Elmira, Michigan, and took the title with a slight chip lead. Each player received $280,290, according to PokerNews.
How many players entered MSPT FireKeepers 2026?
The $1,110 Main Event drew 2,442 entries and built a $2,367,240 prize pool, well above its $1 million guarantee. The first edition, in 2025, drew 2,773 entries.
Who is No. 1 on the MSPT all-time money list?
Umut Ozturk. The FireKeepers win took his career MSPT earnings to $1,337,117, the most in tour history, according to PokerNews. He is also a two-time MSPT Player of the Year.
When is the next MSPT event?
The next stop is the MSPT Festival at Grand Falls Casino, near Sioux Falls, from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1. Riverside Casino in Iowa follows from Nov. 3 to 8, then the Rock 'N' Roll Poker Open at Seminole Hard Rock from Nov. 17 to Dec. 2.
Sources
- PokerNews: Career-high win vaults Umut Ozturk to top of MSPT’s all-time money list
- PokerNews: First-ever champion crowned in MSPT Spade Poker Championship (2025)
- PokerNews: Umut Ozturk wins the 2026 MSPT Ohio Poker State Championship
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