Monday, November 26, 2012

Championship Event Recap

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

There were no turkey's at this final table, just a bunch of "sicko's," and in the end it's Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) who won the Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship event early Thanksgiving morning.

Parker beat Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) heads up and outlasted Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) after a marathon session of three-handed play.

"I was lucky considering where I started," said Parker who was 26th out 27 returning players with only 14 big blinds. "I didn't expect to stay very long, but I was lucky enough to get two double-ups and then took it from there."

On the final hand, Parker held K♠ K against Baumstein's K♣ 9 on a 9-high flop to claim the title, the trophy and the $372,568 first prize.

"I'm happy with how I played," said Baumstein, who earned $209,480, the largest cash of his career. "It was some of the best poker of my life."

And added, "This was the toughest final table in the history of Borgata Poker. It was a bunch of sickos."

The final 10 featured two Borgata trophy winners Vinny Pahuja, who finished 4th, and Jeff Papola (5th), as well as Michael Esposito (6th), the 7th place finisher in 2012 WSOP Main Event.

Also at the final table was Matt Stout (7th), who has more than $1 million in career tournament earnings, and local grinder and good guy Tony Behbahani (9th). But it was the final three that stole the show.

After Pahuja was knocked out 4th, Parker, Baumstein and Chan played three-handed for more than four hours.

"It was a really tough final table," said Pahuja, "whoever wins, deserves it."

Chan was finally knocked out by Parker in third place.

"He (Baumstein) should've been gone a couple of times," said Chan. "He got a chop with ace-king to ace-seven, but whatever I'll take it," he added after earning $131,895 for finishing third.

And it wasn't just the final table that was tough, many of the players who returned for Day 3 were loaded with talent.

Other Borgata trophy winners included Christian Harder, who just missed the final table with an 11th place finish, Brian O'Donohue (13th), Abraham Korotki (19th) and Allen "Chainsaw" Kessler (20th).
 
And the accolades don't stop there, as four WSOP bracelet holders were at the final three tables.

Parker has two bracelets, 15th place finisher Matt Matros has three, while Papola and Lemke (27th) have one each.

The tournament began with 644 entries for a total buy-in of $1,610,000 which smashed the $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool.

This is Parker's best finish at Borgata and pushed him over the $2 million mark in live career tournament earnings. 

"It was a really good final table," said Parker. "A lot of talented players."

Final Table Results

1st Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) $372,568
2nd Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) $209,480
3rd Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) $131,895 
4th Vinny Pahuja (Hicksville, NY) $107,067 
5th Jeff Papola (Monmouth Beach, NJ) $85,344 
6th Michael Esposito (Seaford, NY) $70,602 
7th Matt Stout (Las Vegas, NV) $56,637
8th Ravi Raghavan (Northbrook, IL) $42,672
9th Kambiz 'Tony' Behbahani (Fairfax Station, VA) $29,482
10th Lou Crispino (Amityville, NY) $20,172 

FINAL RESULTS

Borgata Fall Poker Open Leaderboard Results

Borgata Fall Poker Open Leaderboard
By participating in any Borgata Fall Poker Open event (November 8-21, 2012), players earned points based upon Borgata's poker tournament leaderboard formula, which takes into consideration these criteria:
  • Participation
  • Tournament Buy-In Amount
  • Total Event Entries
  • Place Finished
Players earned points for participating in tournaments and earned bonus points based on cashing in tournaments.

WINNERS OF THE  2012 BORGATA FALL POKER OPEN LEADERBOARD:
$3,500 entry into WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open Championship event 
            (January 27 - February 1, 2013)
  • 670: WILL FAILLA 
$300 entry into $25,000 Guaranteed Friday poker tournament
  • 590: JEDIAL PIRES 
$150 entry into $7,500 Guaranteed Bounty Monday poker tournament
  • 448: PAUL VACCHIO
  • 430: DILIP RAVINDRAN
$120 entry into $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday poker tournament
  • 420:  DANIEL WALSH
  • 384:  DWYTE PILGRIM
  • 347:  ROBERT GOTTFRIED
  • 346:  KHALED ALWAN
  • 344:  ANDREW KLEIN
  • 339:  BROCK PARKER

* All prizes must be used towards tournament entry. All prizes are non-transferable and have no cash value. Prizes must be redeemed for tournament entry by December 28, 2012 ($3,500 entry by January 28, 2013).

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Championship Event Recap

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

There were no turkey's at this final table, just a bunch of "sicko's," and in the end it's Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) who won the Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship event early Thanksgiving morning.

Parker beat Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) heads up and outlasted Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) after a marathon session of three-handed play.

"I was lucky considering where I started," said Parker who was 26th out 27 returning players with only 14 big blinds. "I didn't expect to stay very long, but I was lucky enough to get two double-ups and then took it from there."

On the final hand, Parker held K♠ K against Baumstein's K♣ 9 on a 9-high flop to claim the title, the trophy and the $372,568 first prize.

"I'm happy with how I played," said Baumstein, who earned $209,480, the largest cash of his career. "It was some of the best poker of my life."

And added, "This was the toughest final table in the history of Borgata Poker. It was a bunch of sickos."

The final 10 featured two Borgata trophy winners Vinny Pahuja, who finished 4th, and Jeff Papola (5th), as well as Michael Esposito (6th), the 7th place finisher in 2012 WSOP Main Event.

Also at the final table was Matt Stout (7th), who has more than $1 million in career tournament earnings, and local grinder and good guy Tony Behbahani (9th). But it was the final three that stole the show.

After Pahuja was knocked out 4th, Parker, Baumstein and Chan played three-handed for more than four hours.

"It was a really tough final table," said Pahuja, "whoever wins, deserves it."

Chan was finally knocked out by Parker in third place.

"He (Baumstein) should've been gone a couple of times," said Chan. "He got a chop with ace-king to ace-seven, but whatever I'll take it," he added after earning $131,895 for finishing third.

And it wasn't just the final table that was tough, many of the players who returned for Day 3 were loaded with talent.

Other Borgata trophy winners included Christian Harder, who just missed the final table with an 11th place finish, Brian O'Donohue (13th), Abraham Korotki (19th) and Allen "Chainsaw" Kessler (20th).
 
And the accolades don't stop there, as four WSOP bracelet holders were at the final three tables.

Parker has two bracelets, 15th place finisher Matt Matros has three, while Papola and Lemke (27th) have one each.

The tournament began with 644 entries for a total buy-in of $1,610,000 which smashed the $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool.

This is Parker's best finish at Borgata and pushed him over the $2 million mark in live career tournament earnings. 

"It was a really good final table," said Parker. "A lot of talented players."

Final Table Results

1st Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) $372,568
2nd Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) $209,480
3rd Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) $131,895 
4th Vinny Pahuja (Hicksville, NY) $107,067 
5th Jeff Papola (Monmouth Beach, NJ) $85,344 
6th Michael Esposito (Seaford, NY) $70,602 
7th Matt Stout (Las Vegas, NV) $56,637
8th Ravi Raghavan (Northbrook, IL) $42,672
9th Kambiz 'Tony' Behbahani (Fairfax Station, VA) $29,482
10th Lou Crispino (Amityville, NY) $20,172 

FINAL RESULTS

Championship Event Winner - Parker

 $2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) 
$372,568

Blinds 100k/200k/20k ante

Brock Parker raises the button and Scott Baumstein calls.

Flop: 9♠ 5♠ 3♣

Baumstein checks,
Parker bets 525k
Baumstein raises to 1.2 million
Parker is all in
Baumstein calls and puts his 5.5 million at risk

Baumstein: K♣ 9 (top pair)
Parker: K♠ K (91% favorite)

Turn: 3 (no change)

River: K

Baumstein misses his two outer on the river and wins the Borgata Fall Poker Open for $372,568.
"I was lucky considering where I started," said Parker who was 26th out 27 returning players with only 14 big blinds. "I didn't expect to stay very long, but I was lucky enough to get two double-ups and then took it from there."

This is Parker's best finish at Borgata and pushes him over the $2 million mark in live career tournament earnings.

The Borgata trophy adds to a resume that features two WSOP bracelets.

Championship 2nd Place - Baumstein

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) 
$209,480

Scott Baumstein finishes runner up to Brock Parker when he flops top pair on a 9-high board against Parker's pocket kings.

"It's a cooler," says Baumstein who earns $209,480, the largest cash of his career , "I'm never, not getting it in there, top pair, king kicker."

This was Baumstein's second Borgata final table of 2012 and adds, "I'm happy with how I played, it was some of the best poker of my life." 

Championship: Heads Up!

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

 (l-r) Parker & Baumstein
 
Brock Parker (13.1 million) vs Scott Baumstein (6.2 million) for the $372,568 top prize.

Blinds are now 100k/200k/20k ante.

 Championship Trophy

Championship: 3rd Place - Chan

 $2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) 
$131,895

Blinds 80k/160k/20k ante

Patrick Chan is all in for his last 3.5 million and is up against Brock Parker.

Chan: A♣ 9
Parker: A 10

Flop: 10♠ 3 7 (Parker pair of 10s, flush draw)

Turn: K (Chan drawing dead)

River: K♠

Parker wins the hand with two pair, kings and tens, ending the three-handed four hour marathon.

Chan finishes in third place, earning the largest cash of his career.

"He should've been gone a couple of times," he says, referring to Scott Baumstein who is now heads up with Parker, "He got a chop with ace-king to ace-seven, but whatever I'll take it."

Parker now has 15.1 vs Baumstein's 4.2 million.

Championship: Baumstein Doubles Through Parker

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 


Brock Parker has been his big stack to raise a lot of pot, but this time he gets caught with his hand in the cookie joar.

Parker puts Scott Baumstein all in and Baumstein snap calls.

Baumstein: KJ
Parker: 8 5

Baumstein flops trip kings to double 2.2 million, Parker is still the chip leader

Championship: Chop it Up!

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Blinds 80k/160k/20k ante

Patrick Chan raises to 450k, Scott Baumstein moves all in, Chan snap calls.

Chan: A♣ K♣
Baumstein: A 7

Flop: J 3♣ J♣ (Chan flush draw)

Turn: 9♠

River: 3

Two pair on the board makes it a chopped pot with both aces playing.

Baumstein has been as low as 15 big blinds, but remains active and continues to chip up.

Championship: Three Hours, Three Handed

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

The final three players have completed three hours of three handed play.  Blinds moving up to 80k/160k/20k ante

Chip Counts (in millions)

Brock Parker 11 (69 bb)
Patrick Chan 5.5 (34 bb)
Scott Baumstein 2.8 (18 bb)

Championship: Chan Doubles Through Parker

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Blinds 60k/120k/10k ante

Patrick Chan and Brock Parker are all in preflop

Chan: A♣ 7♣
Parker:  9 9

Flop: A 10 K (Chan pair of aces)

Turn: 5

River: 2

"Let's go we're back in it," says Chan to his rail birds as he doubles 2.77 million, Parker drops to 11 million.

Championship: Getting Sleepy

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Playing three-handed for nearly three hours is getting so monotonous, Brock Parker folds his big blind option.

Scott Baumstein limps from the button and as Patrick Chan folds his small blind, Parker pushes in his big blind.

After a few seconds Chan says, "you folded your option?"

Parker confirms that Baumstein merely limped and Baumstein turns to Chan and says with a smile, "why would you tell him that. It's so ridiculous."

Parker is pulling away with the chip lead as he now has 13 million, the other two players are roughly even at 3 million (~28 bb) each.

Championship: Big Pot to Brock

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Blinds 60k/120k/10k ante

Scott Baumstein and Brock Parker both begin the hand with ~8 million

Scott Baumstein raises the button to 240
Parker 3-bets the BB to 700, Baumstein calls

Flop: 4♠ K♠ J♣
Parker bets 450k, Baumstein calls

Turn: 5
Parker bets 1.525, Baumstein calls

River: 8
check, check

Parker turns over A K for a pair of kings, Baumstein mucks.

Parker wins the 5.4 million chip pot and is now the clear chip leader with 10.7 million. Baumstein drops to 5.3 million, while Patrick Chan is the short stack with 3.3 million.

Championship: Break Time Counts

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Player-Chip Count (in millions)

Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) 8.2
Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) 3.8
Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) 7.3

Blinds moving up to 60k/120k/10k ante

Championship: Chan Climbing

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

After getting his double-up Patrick Chan keeps chipping up.

Blinds 50k/100k/10k ante

Scott Baumstein raises the button to 200k
Chan makes it 500k, Baumstein calls

Flop: A 4 K♣
check, check

Turn: J
check, check

River: 4
Chan bets 400k
Baumstein makes it 980k (with 4 million behind)
Chan calls

Chan: A J
Baumstein A 8

Chan wins the hand with two pairs.

Two hands later Chan beats Brock Parker in a pot with pocket 10s and is now up to 8 million, while Baumstein drops to 4 million

Championship: Chan Doubles Through Baumstein

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Blinds 50k/100k/10k ante

Scott Baumstein raises the button to 200k
Patrick Chan makes it 650 from the SB
Brock Parker folds
Baumstein moves all in, Chan calls and is at risk

Chan: 5 5♣
Baumstein: A Q

Flop: 7♣ 3♠ 4♣

Turn: 2

River 2♣

Chan wins the hand with two pairs and doubles to 6.5 million while Baumstein drops to 6 mill.

Brock Parker makes it a three horse race at 7 million. And round and round it goes.

Event 21 - Recap

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)


Frank DiRe, a tough local competitor who was a favorite to get HU, ran into the nitroll-slowroll combination of Richard Caplan, and it had the same affect as a 1-2 punch for the Colombus, NJ native... He was unable to regain his balance & busted in 5th place, surprising many local railbirds.

But Thanksgiving is all about the accomplishments of the Pilgrims, and this one is no exception.

Long time local favorite, Dwyte Pilgrim, table talked his way to a 1st place win in honor of his namesake holiday... he came back from being a 5 to 1 dog going into heads up, to regain the chip lead and eventually steamroll his amateur opponent, Eugene Borokov, who had never played in a live event before today.

The action in this tourney was fairly nondescript until HU action began, at which point Pilgrim kicked his psychological strategy into full swing. Anyone watching the live action could see Borokov unravelling more and more with each comment thrown out by Pilgrim. It wasn't long before the shy noobie from DC was just handing his chips to Pilgrim.

These two players are polar opposites; one shy and timid, the other boisterous and flamboyant... but they still sat and had pleasant conversation over a cocktail after it was all said and done. 


This tournament began with 371 entries, for a total buyin of $74,200.


Final Table Results
Place-Name-Amount

1 Dwyte Pilgrim (Brooklyn, NY) $19,430
2 Eugene Borukhov (Washington, DC) $10,794
3 Richard Caplan (Fairhaven, NJ) $6,694
4 Byung Yoo (Norwood, NJ) $5,398
5 Frank DiRe (Colombus, NJ) $4,174
6 Rick Zorn (Lafayette, NJ) $3,527

7 Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ) $2,843
8 David Semless (Voorhees, NJ) $2,123

9 Neville Darrell (Sarasota, FL) $1,439
10 Torrie Fogg (New Providence, NJ) $936

Results

Event 21: 1st Place - Pilgrim

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)



Dwyte Pilgrim (Brooklyn, NY)
    $19,430


It is with much pomp and circumstance that Dwyte Pilgrim, of Brooklyn NY, locks up another 1st place win.

He was a 5 to 1 dog going into heads up, and managed to turn it all around, showing what separates the pros from the fish.

He ordered shots for everyone, and even sat and tipped on back with 2nd place finisher, Eugene Borokov, showing the uber-noobie that off the felt, he's just a regular guy, and that the aggressive bullying was just all part of the game.

As he walked away from the table, Dwyte hollered "I DID THIS FOR BORGATA!!"

Well, thank you, sir... We appreciate the gesture, for sure! And because you gave so much to us, here's a cool nearly $19.4K for your trouble!! Enjoy. 


Heard At Heads Up

"The first step is getting even. The second step is getting thrown out of this joint!"

"You finish college yet? Always keep two parachutes, son" 

"What's the prop bet how old he is?" 

"Yo, the kid had me, 5 to 1... FIVE TO ONE, YO"

"I'm doing it for Borgata!" 

"I'm about to take this kid to the street, yo."

Dealer: You're small, you're big.
Pilgrim: No.. From now on, he's small EVERY time. 
You hear me, kid? From now on, you're ALWAYS small.
 I'M BIG; you're small."

"A pro always knows just the right time to hit the bathroom"

Event 21: 2nd Place - Borokhov

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)




Eugene Borokhov (Washington, DC) 
   $10,794


Going into heads up play with more than a 5 to 1 chip lead wasn't enough to make it a lock for this Washington DC native...  Eugene Borokhov's impressive 2nd place finish may be deemed even more respectable once you learn that this was the first live tournament he's ever played.

Mr. Borokhov has not-too-shabby online results, but never played live. He said he's always heard great things about the Borgata Poker Open, and wanted to see how'd he fare.

Eugene seemed fairly confident during heads up, but eventually allowed his opponent, Dwyte Pilgrim, to get in his head. Pilgrim's relentless alpha behavior and large fan base on the rail was intimidating enough to throw Eugene's focus off, and once Pilgrim regained the cL, it was pretty much over.

Eugene, a political science major, says he chose this tournament as his first because of all the great things he's heard about the Borgata Poker Open. (We're sure gald to hear that, and hope you come back for EVERY series!!)

The $10.8K he's taking home should buy lots of textbooks and Top Ramen.


Event 21: 3rd Place - Caplan

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)



 Richard Caplan (Fair Haven, NJ) 
$6,694


Would it surprise you if I said Richard Caplan hails from New Jersey? Yes, another local leaves the final table, with promises of a return for the Borgata Winter Poker Open in December.  

Mr. Caplan's 3rd place finish earned him just under $6.7K and a hi-five from Dwyte Pilgrim on his way out.

Event 21: 4th Place - Yoo

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)





Byung Yoo (Norwood, NJ)  
  $5,398


We say farewell for now to yet another New Jersey resident, Byung Yoo, who leaves Borgata with a 4th place finish and over $5K for his deep run in this event. Well done, Byung!

Championship: Dead Heat

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)  

 (l-r) Chan, Parker & Baumstein

 The final three players are all within 1.2 million of each other. Blinds are now 50k/100k/10k ante.

Scott Baumstein  7.2 million (72 bb)
Brock Parker 6.1 million (61 bb)
Patrick Chan 6 million (60 bb)

Event 21: 5th Place - DiRe

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
 


Frank DiRe (Columbus, NJ)    
$4,174

Frank DiRe, also known as "Frank The Tank", leaves with bragging rights to a fifth place finish worth $4K.

As a local regular player at Borgata, Frank is no stranger to deep tourney runs, and this one ended with KQ<KK, all in pre-flop.

He wanted to make sure to give a big shout out to #TeamOneTime and assures us that he & the rest of the team have big surprises in store for us really soon.

We love cliffhangers, Frank, but don't leave us in suspense for too long! GG, sir... GG.

Event 21: 6th Place - Zorn

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)




Rick Zorn (Lafayette, NJ) 
$3,527


Another Jersey resident, Rick Zorn, makes his way to the cage. A sixth place finish, worth around $3500, is well worth the walk! 

Great game, Rick!

Event 21: 7th Place - Zimmett

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)



                                               Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ) 
                                                                  $2,843


Jay Zimmet finishes in seventh place, a win worth nearly $3K.  Good game, Jay! See you in the winter!

Event 21: 8th Place - Semless

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)




David Semless (Vorhees, NJ)   
 $2,123



David Semless is our eighth place finisher and goes home with over $2K for the effort. 

As he left the table, he said "See you all at the Winter Open", and wished the remaining players luck.


 

Championship: 4th Place - Pahuja

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 
 

Vinny Pahuja (Hicksville, NY) 
$107,067

Blinds 40k/80k/5k ante

Scott Baumstein raises to 160k
Vinny Pahuja makes it 325k
Patrick Chan 4-bets to 800k, Baumstein folds
Pahuja moves all in for ~3 million, Chan calls

Chan: 10♠ 10
Pahuja: A J

Flop: 3 K 7♠ (no change)

Turn: 5 (Pahuja picks up flush draw)

River: 10
Pahuja misses his flush and finishes in 4th place.

"It was a really tough final table," says Pahuja, "whoever wins, deserves it."

Pahuja was the chip leader heading into Day 2, which earned him a $3,000 bonus.  He rode the big stack into Day 3, but was card dead heading towards the final table.

"I'm happy with fourth. I could've just as easily finished 18th."

Chan now has 6 million chips and is three handed with Brock Parker (5.5 million) and Baumstein the chip leader with 8 million.

Event 21: 11 am Final Table

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

They're blitzing through this field and are already at the final table.

Place-Name-Amount

9th Neville Darrell (Sarasota, FL) $1,439
10th Torrie Fogg (New Providence, NJ) $936

Seat-Name

1 David Seamless (Vorhees, NJ)
2
3 Richard Caplan (Fair Haven, NJ)
4
5 Frank DiRe (Columbus, NJ)
6 Eugene Borokhov (Washinton, DC)
7 Byung Yoo (Norwood, NJ)
8 Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ)
9 Dwyte Pilgrim (Brooklyn, NY)
10 Rick Zorn (Lafayette, NJ)
  
Remaining Prize Pool

1:         $19,430
2:         $10,794
3:           $6,694
4:           $5,398
5:           $4,174
6:           $3,527
7:           $2,843
8:           $2,123

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Championship: Final Four Chip Counts

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Scott Baumstein (New York, NY) 7.87 million
Vinny Pahuja (Hicksville, NY) 4.52 million
Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY) 3 million
Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) 3.98 million

Remaining Prize Pool

1st $372,568
2nd $209,480
3rd $131,895
4th $107,067

Championship: 5th Place - Papola

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

 Jeff Papola (Monmouth Beach, NJ) 
$85,344

Blinds 40k/80k/5k ante

Scott Baumstein opens to 160k, Jeff Papola calls from the SB, Vinny Pahuja is all in from the BB.

Baumstein folds, Papola calls and puts his last 1.6 million at risk.

Papola: A 2
Pahuja AK
 
Papola picks up a flush draw, but bricks the river and is out 5th place.

"You're never happy unless you get first place," says Papola, "but I'm happy."

Championship: 6th Place - Esposito

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)  

Michael Esposito (Seaford, NY) 
$70,602

Blinds 60/120/5k ante

On a board of A A 3, Scott Baumstein calls Michael Esposito's bet.

Turn: J

Esposito bets 350k, Baumstein calls,.

River: 9

Esposito bets 500k (leaving 1.1 million behind), Baumstein moves all in and Esposito calls.

Esposito: A 10 (trip aces)
Baumstein: A 9 (full house)

Baumstein is trailing the entire hand, but picks up a full house on the river to knock Esposito out in 6th place.

"I enjoyed everything," said Esposito, who finished in 7th place at this year's WSOP Main Event. "It was a well run tournament."

Esposito says he's never played in a re-entry tournament and took advantage of playing Day 1A and Day 1B.

"It was a good decision," he said. "I came here to play and didn't want to be left with 22 thousand."

Esposito said he took a horrible beat after flopping a set at the end of Day 1A when his opponent went runner-runner straight.  He went all in on the final hand looking for a double-up, but instead busted and re-entered.

It turned out to be a great decision as Esposito was the end of Day 1B chip leader, earning him a $3,000 bonus which propelled him to the final table and $70,602.

Championship: 7th Place - Stout

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

 Matt Stout (Las Vegas, NV) 
$56,637

Blinds 60k/120k/5k ante

Vinny Pahuja opens from the button to 125k, Matt Stout moves all in for 1.1 million, Pahuja calls.

Pahuja: A♣ K♠
Stout: A J♠

Flop: 7♠ K♣2 (Pahuja pair of kings)

"That's not a good flop for me," laments Stout.

Turn: 3 (Stout drawing dead)

River: 4♠

Pahuja wins the hand with a pair of kings and knocks out Stout in 7th place.

"Didn't even pick up a sweat on the turn," says Pahjua, who now has 2.7 million, "I figured I'd see a ten. That's the way it's been, I've never seen anything like it."

Championship: Esposito Doubles Through Chan

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Michael Esposito is all in for 1.2 million and Patrick Chan goes with him.

Esposito: 99
Chan: AQ

Board: 4 5 K 6 7

Esposito doubles to 2.5 million, while Chan drops to 3.2 million.

Event 21: 11 am Tournament Heading to Two Tables

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

23 players remain and nobody has a monster stack with the big stacks in the 500k-600k range. Recognizable faces still playing include Neville Darrell, Roman Valerstein and Jay Zimmet.

Championship: Pahuja Doubles Through Papola

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Blinds 60k/120k/5k ante

Jeff Papola raises from the SB, Vinny Pahuja moves all in from the BB for 880k and Papola calls.

Papola: 9 9♠
Pahuja: Q Q♠

A queen hits the flop and Pahuja gets a double-up to 1.8 million, Papola drops to 2.9 million

Championship: Level Down, Blinds Up

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Players are on a 10 minute color-up break as the orange (1k) chips are removed from play.

Scott Baumstein wins a river showdown with pocket 8s to take his stack to 5.4 million (45 bb), while Vinny Pahuja is still the short stack with 750k (6 bb).

The average stack is 2.76 million (23 bb) with blinds moving up to 60k/120k/5k ante.

Championship: 8th Place - Raghavan

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

 Ravi Raghavan (Northbrook, IL) 
$42,672

Blinds 25k/50k/4k ante

Ravi Raghavan shoves 850k (17 bb) with A 10 and is up against the AQ of Scott Baumstein.

Raghavan gets no help on the board and is out in 8th place for his first Borgata cash.

Baumstein adds to his chip lead and is up to 4.5 million.

Championship: Take Me to the River

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

After not seeing a flop for an entire orbit, Jeff Papola and Matt Stout play a pot to the river.

Blinds 25k/50k/4k ante

Papola (UTG + 1) raises to 100k, Stout calls from MP, Scott Baumstein calls from the SB

Flop: K♣ J♣ 4

Baumsteim checks, Papola bets 120k, Stout calls, Baumstein folds

Turn: 6

Papola checks, Stoudt bets 325k, Papola calls

River: 4♠

both players check

Papola turns over A J for a pair of jacks, Stout folds.

Papola wins the 1.3 million chip pot.

Championship: Back to the Grind

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)  

The 8 remaining players are back in action with blinds at 25k/50k/4k ante

Michael Esposito (Seaford, NY)
Jeff Papola (Monmouth Beach, NJ)
Vinny Pahuja (Hicksville, NY)
Matt Stout (Las Vegas, NV
Patrick Chan (Brooklyn, NY)
Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD)
Ravi Raghavan (Northbrook, IL)
Scott Baumstein (New York, NY)

Event 21: 11 am Numbers Game

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Number of Entries: 371 
Players Remaining:  36
Chips in Play:  7.42 million

Average Stack:  206k

Next Blinds: 4k/8k/1k ante
Play Resumes: 8:40 pm

Total Buy-In: $74,200
First Prize: $19,430
Places Paid: 36

Championship: Numbers Game

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Number of Entries:  644
Players Remaining:  8
Chips in Play:  19.32 million

Big Stack:  3.9 million (78 bb)
Average Stack:  2.4 million (48 bb)

Next Blinds: 25k/50k/4k ante
Play Resumes: 8:25 pm

Remaining Prize Pool:

1st $372,568
2nd $209,480
3rd $131,895
4th $107,067
5th $85,344
6th $70,602
7th $56,637
8th $42,672

Event 21: 11 am Tournament Breaks Bubble

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

 Paden Breaks Bubble, then Breaks Bread

On a flop of A 6 7 all the chips are in the middle and Larry Paden (Chester Springs, PA) has a set of 6s, but needs to dodge straight and flush draws.

Another 7 hits the turn and it's game over for Paden's opponent who's knocked out by the full house.

The elimination sends the remaining 36 players into the money and off to a one hour dinner break.

The field is guaranteed $432 as they play for the $19,430 top prize.


Championship: Dinner Break Chip Counts

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)       

Dinnertime!  The final eight players have taken off for a one hour dinner break. 

Play will resume at about 8:25pm.

Here are the chip counts:

Scott Baumstein - 3.9 million
Brock Parker - 3.6 million
Patrick Chan - 3.25 million
Jeff Papola - 2.787 million
Matt Stout - 2.723 million
Michael Esposito - 1.5 million
Vinny Pahuja - 832k
Ravi Raghavan - 782k

Championship: 8 Hands, 1 Orbit

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

In the last orbit we saw three flops, one all in, one walk and lots of folding.

Blinds 20k/40k/4k

Hand 1 - Parker button: Stout raises to 90k from HJ, Chan 3-bets to 215k, Stout folds

Hand 2 - Raghavan button: Papola UTG raises to 90k, Raghavan calls.
Flop: 10 3♣ 7♠
Papola c-bets 85k, Raghavan folds

Hand 3 - Baumstein button: folds to Baumstein who raises to 80k, Esposito calls from the SB
Flop: 9 8♠ Q
both players check
Turn: A
Esposito checks, Baumstein bets 85k, Esposito folds

Hand 4 -  Esposito button: Baumstein raises to 80k from CO, Papola calls
Flop: J♣ A♠ 9♠
both players check
Turn: 6♠
both player check
River: 8♠
Papola 120k, Baumstein tank folds

The table eggs on Papola to show a card, but mucks.  Baumstein says, "I might of had the best hand without a spade." 

Hand 5 - Papola button: Stout gets a walk in the BB, wins blinds and antes

Hand 6 - Pahuja button: Papola raises to 80k from the CO, Pahuja all in for 800k, Papola folds

Hand 7 - Stout button: Raghavan raies to 90k UTG, wins blinds and antes

Hand 8 - Chan button: Stout raises to 90k from the CO, wins blinds and antes

Championship: Pahuja's All in Not Called

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Blinds 20k/40k/4k ante

Jeff Papola raises to 80k from the cutoff, Vinny Pahuja moves all from the button for 800k, Papola folds.

There's five minutes left on the clock before dinner break.

Championship: Baumstein Chips Up

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Most hands don't see a flop as single raises take down most pots, so going to the river without an all-in bet is uncommon.

In blind vs blind, Ravi Raghanvan completes from the SB and Scott Baumstein checks.

Blinds 20k/40k/4k ante

Flop: K♣ 4 9♠

Raghanvan bets 40k, Baumstein calls

Turn: A

Raghanvan bets 80k, Baumstein calls

River: 6♣

Raghanvan bets 215k, Baumstein calls

Raghanvan: K♠ Q(pair of kings)
Baumstein: A 5♣ (pair of aces)

Baumstein takes his stack to 3.75 million, Raghanvan drops to 975k.

Championship: Stuck At Eight

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)      

In just six hours they have sent 19 players home for Thanksgiving turkey, leaving eight in the hunt for the top prize of  $372,568.

These eight appear to have settled in for some serious poker, so it might be a while before we see another departure.

Here's a reminder of what's at stake:

1:          $372,568
2:          $209,480
3:          $131,895
4:          $107,067
5:            $85,344
6:            $70,602
7:            $56,637
8:            $42,672

Event 21: 11 am Tournament Down to 54

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
They're less than 20 spots from the money and play is now 9-handed on six tables
 
Still playing for the $432 min cash and the $19,430 top prize:

Dwyte Pilgrim
Roman Valerstein
Neville Darrell
Jason Evans
Jay Zimmet
Mike Lydon
David Johnston

The average stack is 137k (27 bb); blinds are 2,500/5k/500 ante.

Championship: Final 8 Chip Counts

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)      

They finished up the level and took a break.

Here are some approximate chip counts:

Brock Parker - 3.245 million
Patrick Chan - 3.24 million
Scott Baumstein - 2.94 million
Jeff Papola - 2.6 million
Matt Stout - 2.0 million
Ravi Raghavan - 1.875 million
Vinny Pahuja - 1.4 million
Michael Esposito - 948k

Play resumed with blinds of 20k/40k with 4k ante.

Championship: Break Time

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

20th Place Finisher Allen Kessler Watches the Final Table

Level 26 (15k/30k/3k ante) is in the books, players are on a 10 minute break.  They'll play one more level before dinner.

Championship: 9th Place - Behbahani

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)      

Kambiz 'Tony' Behbahani (Fairfax Station, VA)
$29,482

Tony Behbahani got his last chips in with K9 suited, but was dominated by Brock Parker's AK suited.

The board changed nothing and Brock chipped up to ~3.7 million.

Tony finished in 9th place, earning $29,482.

Championship: 10th Place - Crispino

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Lou Crispino (Amityville, NY)
$20,172

Lou Crispino got his last chips in with T9 suited against Scott Baumstein's KJ. 

The board bricked out and Scott took the pot with King-high.

Lou took 10th place and $20,172.

Championship: Final Table Lineup & Chip Counts

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Play resumed.  Still playing 15k/30k with 3k ante.


Here's the new lineup with some rough chip counts as of the break:
  1. Michael Esposito - 900k
  2. Jeff Papola - 2.1 million
  3. Vinny Pahuja - 1.6 million
  4. Matt Stout - 3 million
  5. Tony Behbahani - 700k
  6. Patrick Chan - 3.3 million
  7. Brock Parker - 3 million
  8. Ravi Raghavan - 1.9 million
  9. Scott Baumstein - 2.6 million
  10. Lou Crispino - 316k

Championship: 11th Place - Harder

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Christian Harder (Annapolis, MD)
$20,172

Christian Harder got his chips in with pocket Queens and was racing against Matt Stout's AK.  An Ace in the window made it a short race.

Christian busted out in 11th place, earning $20,172.

The final ten drew for seats and moved to the final table, then took a ten minute break.

Championship: 12th Place - Hoglund

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Thomas Hoglund (New Bedford, MA)
$20,182

Thomas Hoglund was short-stack and moved in with T7 suited.  Jeff Papola looked him up with A6.

The board changed nothing and Jeff took the pot.

Thomas busted out in 12th place, earning $20,182.

Championship: Raghavan Doubles

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Ravi Raghavan was all-in pre-flop for 732k against Scott Baumstein.

Ravi:  66
Scott: 22

Board: J 7 3 4 9

Ravi doubled up to ~1.5 million.

Championship: 13th Place - O'Donoghue

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    


Brian O'Donoghue (Bayside, NY)
$14,741

Two big stacks clash in a battle of the blinds.  After several raises, all the chips went in.

Brian O'Donoghue (sb) had pocket 9s.

Brock Parker (bb) had pocket Queens.

Board:  K Q 8 8 J

Brian made Queens-full to take the pot.  The stacks were close, but Brian's 1.5 million was covered by Brock's 1.6 million.  Brock's now over 3.1 million.

Brian finished in 13th place, earning $14,741.

Championship: Baumstein Doubles

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Scott Baumstein doubled up through Tony Behbahani when he caught a gutshot straight to beat Tony's two pair.

Scott's up to ~2.7 million.  Tony's down to ~400k.

Level 26:  Blinds 15k/30k with 3k ante.

Event 21 - Payouts

Borgata Fall Poker Open
Event 21: $200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em
November 21, 2012

Entries:  371
Total Buy-In:  $74,200


PAYOUTS:
1:         $19,430
2:         $10,794
3:           $6,694
4:           $5,398
5:           $4,174
6:           $3,527
7:           $2,843
8:           $2,123
9:           $1,439
10 - 12:    $936
13 - 15:    $720
16 - 18:    $612
19 - 27:    $540
28 - 36:    $432

Championship: 14th Place - Morgan

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Brian Morgan (Gansevoort, NY)
$14,741

On a flop of 9 8 8, Brian Morgan shoved and got looked up by chip leader Patrick Chan.  Brian had pocket 3s.  Patrick had pocket Tens.

The last two were bricks and Patrick took the pot.  He's up to over 4 million.

Brian busted out in 14th place, earning $14,741.

Championship: Hard Call from Harder

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Brian Morgan (bb) and Christian Harder (utg) get to the river with a board of T 6 6 K 2 (no flush possible). 

Brian bet 235k, sending Christian into the tank for a minute.

Christian called to see Brian's QJ (Queen-high).  Christian showed pocket 3s to take the pot.

He chipped up to over 1.7 million.  Brian was left with  ~800k.

Event 21: Latest Numbers

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Registration is closed and the unofficial entry count is 371.

About 202 of those are still in the mix.  Average stack is 37k.

They're on a break after level 11 and will return to

Level 12:  Blinds 1k/2k with 300 ante.

Checking out via Twitter:

Lana O'Brien ‏@lanaob22
obv out of the best field i've seen in ages. AT < 99. 


Championship: Chip Counts

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Level 25:  Blinds 12k/24k with 3k ante.

Play has resumed.  Here are the approximate chip counts from the break:

Patrick Chan - 3.0 million
Jeff Papola - 2.1 million
Tony Behbahani - 2.0 million
Brian Morgan - 1.7 million
Brian O'Donoghue - 1.6 million
Christian Harder - 1.4 million
Vinny Pahuja - 1.2 million
Michael Esposito - 1.2 million
Scott Baumstein - 1.2 million
Ravi Raghavan - 1.0 million
Brock Parker - 860k
Lou Crispino - 725k
Matt Stout - 720k
Thomas Hoglund - 600k

Borgata Tournament Leaderboard Update (11/21)

Borgata Fall Poker Open Leaderboard
By participating in any Borgata Fall Poker Open event (November 8-21, 2012), players earn points based upon the Borgata Fall Poker Tournament Leaderboard Formula.

Below are the top scores for the 2012 Borgata Fall Poker Open Leaderboard*
(Final Results from Main events: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20 
 Secondary events: 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44)


669.580:  EMANUEL "WILL" FAILLA
580.450:  JEDIAL PIRES
428.950:  PAUL VACCHIO
420.550:  DILIP RAVINDRAN
410.975:  DANIEL WALSH
346.775:  ROBERT GOTTFRIED
346.450:  KHALED ALWAN
335.850:  MATTHEW ILES
302.700:  ILYA DYMENT
271.213:  HARRY KOROTKI
268.425:  ELLIOTT ZAYDMAN
267.200:  MOHAMMAD AMJADI
266.313:  KEVIN MCCOLGAN
260.775:  BRUCE YAMRON
260.325:  TOBY KASSER
259.588:  TONY TRAN
256.695:  LEANNE ROSENBLATT
253.800:  ASHER CONNIFF
253.063:  WARREN WIGGINS
252.900:  AUSTEN JOHNSON
236.250:  HYON KO
235.825:  CHERISH ANDREWS
230.375:  TAISIYA KUZNETSOVA
229.338:  DOUGLAS MACKINNON
222.475:  DAVID SANDERS
219.100:  JEFFREY PAPOLA
218.575:  SHIMON TRAKHTENBERG
216.388:  ROMAN VALERSTEIN
216.300:  DANIEL CHAN
213.850:  ANDREW KLEIN
213.375:  KYLE BOWKER
212.525:  IBRAIM IBRAIMOVIC
212.475:  DAVID INSELBERG
210.383:  ANDJELKO ANDREJEVIC
210.075:  JOHN DELROSSI
208.975:  JOHN DIBELLA
208.460:  ANTONIO PAYNE
206.950:  HENRY MICHAEL BOROVETZ

Championship: 15th Place - Matros

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Matt Matros (Brooklyn, NY)
$14,741

Brian O'Donoghue (bb) and Matt Matros (utg) got to the river with a board of 7 6 3 7 T and all the chips went in.  Matt had 54 for the flopped straight.  Brian had pocket 3s for the turned full house.

Matt Matros was busted in 15th place, earning $14,741.

That was the last hand of the level and players took off for a break.

Championship: 16th Place - Atkins

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Jerry Atkins (New York, NY)
$10,862

On the turn with a board of A J 9 3 with two hearts, Jerry Atkins shoved and was looked up by Vinny Pahuja.

Jerry had QT of hearts for an open-ended straight-draw and flush draw.  Vinny had A3 for Aces-up.

River was a brick and Vinny took the pot, chipping up to ~1.4 million.

Championship: 18th - Ackerman; 17th - Pearsall

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Gary Ackerman (Collegeville, PA) & Chris Peaersall (Oceanside, NY)
$10,862

Brian Morgan opened for 60k, Chris Pearsall called, Patrick Chan raised to 160k on the button.  Gary Ackerman (sb) shoved for ~455k.  Brian folded, Chris shoved, and Patrick shoved.

Gary:  88
Chris:  AK suited
Patrick:  KK

The board changed nothing and Patrick Chan scooped the main and side pots with his Kings.  He's now the new chip leader with over 2.8 million.

Gary Ackerman finished 18th.  Chris Pearsall finished 17th.  Both earned $10,862 for their efforts.

Championship: Chip Leaders & Lineup

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Tony Behbahani was the chip leader with just over 2.0 million.

Jeff Papola has edged him out for the lead with 2.1 million.

These two big stacks are side-by-side at table 1:

  1. Thomas Hoglund
  2. Michael Esposito
  3. Lou Crispino
  4. Christian Harder
  5. Brock Parker
  6. Jeff Papola
  7. Tony Behbahani
  8. Ravi Raghavan
  9. Scott Baumstein
Table 2:
  1. Patrick Chan
  2. Gary Ackerman
  3. Brian O'Donoghue
  4. Matt Matros
  5. Vinny Pahuja
  6. Matt Stout
  7. Brian Morgan
  8. Chris Pearsall
  9. Jerry Atkins

Championship: 19th Place - A. Korotki

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Abraham Korotki (Bethany Beach, DE)
$8,534

Abraham Korotki had pocket 6s and was all-in on the turn against Lou Crispino, who had AK.

Unfortunately for Abraham, there was an Ace on the flop.  He busted out in 19th place, earning $8,534.

The table 3 players drew for seats and moved to the empty seats at the other two.

Championship: 20th Place - Kessler

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 


 
Allen 'Chainsaw' Kessler (Las Vegas, NV)
$8,534

On the turn with a board of 6 6 4 x, Abraham Korotki and Allen Kessler got their chips in.

Allen had pocket 4s for the flopped full house.

Abraham had A6 for trips sixes -- then an Ace came on the river to give Abraham the bigger boat.

Allen busted out in 20th place, earning $8,534.

Championship: 21st Place - Franco

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Rick Franco (Philadelphia, PA)
$8,534

Rick Franco also got his chips in with pocket Kings.  Vinny Pahuja looked him up with AJ.

Vinny caught both an Ace and a Jack on the board to take the pot.

Rick took 21st place and $8,534.

"Shout-out to Team Voltron!" from Rick.