Mid-States Poker Tour

What Mid-States Poker Tour does

Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) is a privately held, Minneapolis-based regional poker tournament circuit founded in 2009. The company organizes affordable deepstack no-limit hold'em poker tournament series across more than 15 U.S. states and Canada, hosting Main Events, Regional Events, Major Events, and Senior Events at partner casino properties. Entry buy-ins range from $350 (Regional) to $5,000 (High Roller/Specialty), with guaranteed prize pools spanning $100,000 to $2,000,000 per event. MSPT monetizes through tournament entry fees, retaining a portion of each buy-in as rake or tournament fees while passing the balance into the prize pool; the company also accepts counterparty risk on guarantees, managing this via venue partnerships and player pool accumulation.

The tour's underlying platform is a live poker tournament management system that handles event scheduling, player registration, season-long points tracking, Player of the Year (POY) standings, and a three-tier Hall of Fame (Hall of Fame, Legends Club, HOF God Mode) introduced in 2017. Supporting infrastructure includes a public website (msptpoker.com), a YouTube podcast playlist, a photo gallery, and per-event landing pages. Players qualify through direct buy-in at events; participation requires physical attendance at the host casino.

Commercially, MSPT operates an event-driven go-to-market motion, with no mobile app, no public API, and no disclosed funding or institutional backing. Headcount is reported at 1–10 employees, reflecting a lean operator model that leverages casino partner infrastructure for floor operations and dealers. The customer base is segmented into competitive poker players (primary), senior players aged 50+, and regional/state-championship participants. As of Season 17 (2025–2027), the tour has conducted over 332 Main Events across its history, with flagship stops at The Venetian Las Vegas, Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood ($2,000,000 RRPO guarantee), Potawatomi Casino, and FireKeepers Casino.

Name

Mid-States Poker Tour

Legal name

Mid-States Poker Tour

Website

https://msptpoker.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Mid-States Poker Tour is a privately held, Minneapolis-based regional poker tournament circuit founded in 2009 that organizes live no-limit hold'em events across 15+ U.S. states and Canada, with guaranteed prize pools from $100,000 to $2,000,000 at partner casino venues.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Poker Tournament Operations

NAICS

Gambling Industries (7132), Other Gambling Industries (71329)

akta.pro primary industry

Poker Tournaments & Tours (Live/Hybrid) (MPAEAEAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Poker Live Events & Venue Services (Staffing, Dealers, Logistics) (MPAEAEAK)

Keywords

• Live poker tournaments
• Poker tournament circuit
• Guaranteed prize pools
• No-limit hold'em tournaments
• Regional poker tour

Headquarters

HQ city

Minneapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices15 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Tournament Entry Fees: MSPT generates revenue through tournament buy-ins at various price points ($350-$5,000). The tour retains a portion of entry fees as rake/tournament fees while the remainder goes into the prize pool.
2. Guaranteed Prize Pool Structure: MSPT guarantees minimum prize pools (e.g., $100,000-$2,000,000) regardless of actual entries, creating player incentives while managing risk through insurance or player pool accumulation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) organizes a live poker tournament circuit that travels to partner casino properties across the United States and Canada. The tour hosts Main Events, Regional Events, Major Events, and Senior Events with guaranteed prize pools ranging from $100,000 to $2,000,000. Players qualify through direct buy-in at events, with the tour managing tournament operations, payouts, and Player of the Year standings across 17+ seasons.

Product overview

Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) is a regional poker tournament circuit operating across multiple U.S. states and Canada. The organization offers a portfolio of poker products including Main Events (the flagship tournaments with varying buy-ins and guaranteed prize pools), Regional Events (smaller-scale tournaments at local casinos), Senior Events (exclusively for players 50+), and the MSPT Championship (a premier $3,500 buy-in event). Supporting products include the Player of the Year competition, Hall of Fame recognition program, and Season Points/Leaderboards that track player performance throughout each season. The tour partners with casinos across the Midwest and beyond to host events with prize guarantees ranging from $100,000 to $2,000,000.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MSPT Main Events Flagship poker tournament events held at casinos across multiple U.S. states and Canada, with buy-ins ranging from $1,600 to $3,500 and guaranteed prize pools from $300,000 to $2,000,000. Open to individual poker players aged 21+ (or 18+ at certain venues).
• MSPT Regional Events Smaller-scale regional tournaments typically ranging from $350-$400 buy-ins with $100,000-$150,000 guarantees, held at local casino venues for poker players seeking accessible competitive events without extensive travel.
• MSPT Senior Events Tournaments specifically designed for senior poker players aged 50 and older, featuring a $1,100 buy-in and guaranteed prize pool of $250,000, providing age-appropriate competition in a dedicated tournament schedule.
• MSPT Championship Premier annual championship event featuring a $3,500 buy-in, with $3,500 Championship seats added to Main Event 1st Place winners. Championship Finals held at The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada, serving as the culminating event of the MSPT season.
• Player of the Year (POY) Program Season-long competitive points program rewarding poker players who accumulate the most points across MSPT Main Events. Top performers receive year-end honors and prizes based on season points accumulation.
• MSPT Hall of Fame Three-tier recognition program (Hall of Fame, Legends Club, HOF God Mode) established in 2017 honoring poker players who demonstrate superior skill and achieve long-term accomplishments across multiple MSPT seasons based on cashes, wins, and earnings.
• MSPT Season Points & Leaderboards Real-time tracking system for player performance across the season with publicly accessible online leaderboards showing cumulative rankings by points earned across all MSPT events.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 332 Main Events conducted across 17+ seasons
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Talking Stick ResortcoreOthers · 2 February 2026Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona hosts MSPT Diamond Poker Championship and CLUB POKER CHAMPIONSHIP with $1,000,000 guarantees each.
• Running Aces CasinocoreOthers · 1 December 2025Running Aces Casino in Columbus, Minnesota hosts MSPT Winter Poker Classic with $500,000 guarantee (Main Event 332).
• Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & CasinoflagshipOthers · 18 November 2025Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida hosts MSPT Rock 'N' Roll Poker Open (RRPO) with $2,000,000 guarantee (Main Event 331) - the largest guaranteed prize pool.
• Grand Falls CasinominorOthers · 27 October 2025Grand Falls Casino in Larchwood, Iowa hosts MSPT Main Event 329 with TBD guarantee.
• FireKeepers CasinocoreOthers · 13 October 2025FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan hosts MSPT SPADE POKER CHAMPIONSHIP with $1,000,000 guarantee (Main Event 328).
• Playground PokercoreOthers · 1 October 2025Playground Poker in Kahnawake (Montreal), Canada hosts MSPT Canadian Poker Championship with $1,000,000 guarantee (Main Event 327).
• Sycuan Casino ResortcoreOthers · 29 September 2025Sycuan Casino Resort in San Diego, California hosts MSPT 100 Grand Stack events with $100,000 guarantee (Main Event 326).
• Potawatomi CasinocoreOthers · 22 September 2025Potawatomi Casino in Milwaukee, Wisconsin hosts MSPT Wisconsin Poker State Championship with $1,000,000 guarantee (ME 325).
• The Venetian Las VegasflagshipOthers · 10 September 2025The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada hosts MSPT Nevada Poker State Championship and MSPT Championship Finals (November 27 - December 2) with $3,500 Championship seats.
• Ameristar Casino St. CharlescoreOthers · 1 September 2025Ameristar Casino St. Charles in St. Louis, Missouri hosts MSPT Ameristar Poker Open events with $300,000 guarantee.
• Ameristar East ChicagocoreOthers · 25 August 2025Ameristar East Chicago in East Chicago, Indiana hosts MSPT Indiana Poker State Championship events with $300,000 guarantee (Main Event 322).
• JACK Cleveland CasinocoreOthers · 18 August 2025JACK Cleveland Casino in Cleveland, Ohio hosts MSPT Main Event 321 with $500,000 guarantee.
• Rivers CasinocoreOthers · 4 August 2025Rivers Casino in Chicago, Illinois hosts MSPT Illinois Poker State Championship events with $750,000 guarantee (Event 320).
• Bally's Black Hawk CasinocoreOthers · 22 July 2025Bally's Black Hawk Casino in Black Hawk, Colorado hosts MSPT Colorado Poker State Championship events with $500,000 guarantee (ME 319).
• Riverside CasinocoreOthers · 21 July 2025Riverside Casino in Riverside, Iowa hosts MSPT Iowa Poker State Championship events with $300,000 guarantee. The venue has hosted multiple Main Events including Event 318.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• PokerGO: PokerGO is a subscription-based poker media and content platform that produces and streams live tournament coverage. Adjacent/ecosystem player to MSPT that monetizes poker content rather than running the underlying tournament operations.

Direct peers

• DeepStack Extravaganza: DeepStack runs multi-event live poker tournament series at US casino venues with deepstack structures and guaranteed prize pools. Operates the same event-driven live poker tour model as MSPT.
• World Poker Tour (WPT): WPT is the largest international poker tour operator, running live tournament circuits at casino venues worldwide with guaranteed prize pools and televised final tables. It is the closest analogue to MSPT in model, just at significantly larger scale and brand recognition.
• Heartland Poker Tour (HPT): HPT is a regional US poker tour that travels across states hosting live no-limit hold'em tournaments with guarantees at casino properties. Directly comparable regional tour competing in many of the same Midwest and heartland markets as MSPT.
• RUNGOOD Poker Series (RGPS): RUNGOOD is a regional-to-mid-major poker tour that travels across US casinos hosting live no-limit hold'em events with guarantees and player loyalty programs. Comparable in scope and target player to MSPT's circuit.
• WSOP Circuit: WSOP Circuit, run by Caesars Entertainment, hosts multi-state ringed-event poker tournaments at partner casinos with guaranteed prize pools. It directly competes with MSPT for the same mid-stakes tournament player pool and same casino venue partners.

Broad incumbents

• PokerStars LIVE: PokerStars (Flutter Entertainment) runs live tournament circuits globally as part of a much larger online poker franchise. Overlaps with MSPT on live events but has dramatically larger branding, online qualifier flywheel, and financial backing.
• partypoker LIVE: partypoker LIVE is the live events arm of partypoker, hosting major tournament circuits at casino venues worldwide as part of a broader online poker ecosystem. Comparable live tournament structure to MSPT but bundled with a global online platform.

Regional players

• Seminole Hard Rock Poker (SHRP): Seminole Hard Rock runs its own branded live poker tournament events (e.g., RRPO series) at Hollywood, FL. Comparable to MSPT on event structure and guarantees but anchored to a single venue; in fact an MSPT host venue partner.
• Wynn Poker Classic: Wynn/Encore hosts its own high-stakes live poker tournament series in Las Vegas with substantial guarantees. Comparable event format and player pool to MSPT's flagship Main Events, but primarily a single-venue series rather than a multi-state tour.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/playlist?list=PLGfKPmviroRscdvfhJsd7e3sl2D0vMAng
• Facebookfacebook.com/msptpoker
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/msptpoker

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mid-States Poker Tour