Monday, November 12, 2012

Event 9: Vataru Doubles Thru Failla

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

Multi-way limped pot.  Flop was Q 5 4 -- all diamonds.

Will Failla bet 10k, Bruce Yamron called, and Eddy Vataru called. 

Turn was an offsuit 8.  Will bet the pot (55k) and Eddy called. 

River was another 5.  Will shoved and Eddy called all-in.

Will had flopped the flush, but Eddy had QQ97 and had rivered a full house.  He doubled up to ~280k.

Will was left with less than 10k.

Event 8: Blinds Up, Players Down

$350 + $50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

70 players remain with an average stack of 145k (36 bb) as blinds are now 2k/4k/400 ante.

With the top 45 making the money, play is tightening up.  The plan is to play until around 2 am depending on when the bubble breaks.

Event 9: 9th Place - Drabot

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha 

Michael Drabot (Riverside, NJ)
$540

On the turn, the board read K 5 5 A and Michael Drabot got all his chips in the middle against Roger Souse.

Michael:  K 9 5 3 (flopped 5s full of Kings)
Roger:  A 9 5 4 (turned 5s full of Aces)

Michael was drawing dead.  River was an inconsequential 4.

Michael busted out in 9th place, earning $540.  Roger chipped up to ~280k.

Event 8: Steinman Feeling Ilya

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Vasserman (right) Doubles Through Steinman (left) as Andy Andrejevic Watches

It's nearly a half million chip pot and Ilya Vasserman (Huntingdon Valley, PA) is the new chip leader after doubling through former chip leader James Steinman (New York, NY).

On a board of 5♣ 4♣ 3, Vasserman bets 20k, Steinman makes it 70k and Vasserman moves all in.  After going in the tank, Steinman makes the call.

Vasserman: 6♠ 7♠ (straight)
Steinman: 6♣ 5♠ (top pair, OE straight draw)

Turn: J♠ (Steinman drawing to a chop)

River: K

Vasserman hauls in 475k chips and was glad to see Steinman wasn't on a flush draw. Despite the big hit, Steinman is still an average stack at ~100k after shipping more than 200k across the table.

Event 9: Final Table Chip Counts

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha 

End of level and the final nine are taking a break.

Here are some rough chip counts:

Bruce Yamron - 335k
Darius Studdard - 260k
Eddy Vataru - 207k
Roger Souse - 160k
Will Failla - 130k
Chris Gow - 90k
Bruce Frank - 68k
Jordan Diamond - 59k
Michael Drabot - 46k

Average is 147k.

Play resumed after the break with

Level 16:  Blinds 2,500/5,000.

Event 9: Filippi Bubbles

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha    

Amnon Filippi - Bubble Boy

Amnon Filippi (New York, NY) busted out in 10th place and is today's bubble boy.

The remaining nine players agreed to continue play instead of bagging their chips and coming back for day two tomorrow.

Bruce Frank was all-in against Jordan Diamond.

Bruce had AA72 (hearts) against Jordan's QQJT.

The board ran out T T 9 6 K with three hearts and Bruce took the pot with a flush, more than doubling up.

Event 8: Breaking it Down

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

On the last hand before break, Eric Siegel (Melville, NY) runs his flopped two pair against middle set. Siegel picks up a boat on the river to double his 75k all-in bet.

A player at the table says he folded an aces, meaning Siegel hit a one outer to stay alive.

Play is now 9-handed as 85 players remain on 10 tables.  The average stack is 119k (40 bb) as blinds
are now 1.5k/3k/400 ante.

Event 9: Final Table

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

 Level 15:  Blinds 2k/4k.

Gabriel "orange man" Ohana has busted out along with another player.

That leaves ten and they've draw for seats and moved to the final table.

Here's the new lineup:

Seat - Player
  1. Bruce Frank
  2. Eddy Vataru
  3. Jordan Diamond
  4. Darius Studdard
  5. Amnon Filippi
  6. Will 'the Thrill' Failla
  7. Roger Souse
  8. Michael Drabot
  9. Bruce Yamron
  10. Chris Gow
One more player must go to reach the money, so it's bubble time!

Event 8: Catching Cards

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

We've seen a couple of sick beats the last hour including Tony Sinishtaj flopping boat over boat to bust a player, while Mike Murphy spikes a set of fives on the river after his opponent's AK flops a king.

Goners:

Lisa Pickell
Bob Hwang
Mike Linster
Alex Rocha

Event 8: Top 100

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Table 11 is down leaving us with 10 tables, 10 players each.

The average stack is 101k (34 BB) as blinds are now 1.5k/3k/400 ante.

Event 9: Studdard Retakes Lead

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

Dan Horam (Huntington, NY) has busted out, leaving an even dozen Omaha-lics in the mix.

Big stacks tangled again:

On a flop of T 9 6 rainbow, Roger Souse bet 10k and Darius Studdard raised pot (~67k).  After giving it some thought,  Roger called.

Turn was a Queen.  Darius led out for 100k.   Roger tanked, counting out his chips.  He had 112k left.

After a few minutes, he folded, showing J8xx for the second nuts.

Darius chipped up to ~375k, good for the chip lead.

Bruce Yamron has dropped to ~270k.

Event 8: Tables 6-11

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

More familiar faces:

Table 6

Matt O'Flynn

Table 7

James Steinman
Andy Andrejevic
Mike Linster
Jedial Pires
Mike Murphy

Table 8

Max Amjadi

Table 9

Matt Iles
Mike Dentale
Bob Hwang

Table 10

Dave Zeitlin
Lana O'Brien

Table 11

Leonardo Palermo

Event 9: Big Stacks Collide

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

Level 14: Blinds 1,500/3,000.

On a flop of 8 3 2 rainbow, Darius Studdard bet 20k and Roger Souse raised.  Everyone else go out of the pot and Darius called.

Turn was an Ace and both checked.

River was a Queen and both checked.

Darius showed A8xx for two pair.  Roger mucked.  Darius chipped up to about 300k.

Event 8: Tables 1-5

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Recognizable faces still in the running for the $35,137 top prize:

Table 1

Cuong Phung
Alex Rocha
Daniel Chan
Luke Vrabel
David Kim

Table 2

Paul Vacchio
Alik Sitnyakovsky

Table 3

Joe Nieman
Joe Loguidice
Michael Buttacavoli

Table 4

Lisa Pickell
John Allan Hinds
Leo G

Table 5

Tony Sinishtaj
Eric Siegel
Steve Eyzerovich

Event 9: New Chip Leader

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

Bruce Yamron


Bruce Yamron has pulled ahead of the field.  He's up to ~340k.

13 players remain.  Average stack is 102k.

Event 8: Big Stacks on Table 7

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

 Steinman & Andrejevic

James Steinman (New York, NY via Latvia) is the big stack with 270k and has company at his table.

Immediately to his left is Andy Andrejevic (Miami, FL) who has 180k as does Mike Murphy (Philadelphia) who is at the other end of the table.

120 players remain with an average stack of 85k (43 bb) with blinds at 1k/2k/300 ante.

Mike Murphy

Event 9: Three Chip Leaders

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

Roger Souse

On a flop of A K T, a player was all-in against big stack Roger Souse.

The all-in player had AAxx for a set of Aces, but Roger had QJxx for Broadway.

The board failed to pair as the last two cards fell 5 9.  Roger took the pot, sending his opponent to the rail.

Roger chipped up to ~230k, putting him in a virtual three-way tie for the chip lead.

Both Bruce Yamron and Darius Studdard are sitting behind about 230k each.

15 players remain.  Average stack is 83k.

Event 8: Aces v Kings, Set v Set

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Mad Max Doubles-up with Set of Aces

The button and SB end up all in and Max Amjadi (Ocean City, NJ) has the better of it with pocket aces to the button's KK.

Amjadi flops a set of aces, while his opponent turns a set of kings, but doesn't hit quads on the river.

Amjadi picks up a 70k double-up, while the other player busts one hand later.  And adding insult to injury, his opponent has pocket kings.

Event 9: Back From Dinner

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha   

Level 13:  Blinds 1k/2k.

PLO players are back to the felt and back in action.

16 players remain.  They'll continue playing tonight until they get to the money (final nine) or until 2am.

Event 8: Back in Action

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em 

Level 12:  Blinds 800/1,600, 200 ante

Number of Entries:  405
Players Remaining: 139
Chips in Play: 10.125 million

Average Stack: 73k (46 BB)

Total Buy-In: $141,750
First Prize: $35,137
Places Paid: 45

Event 8: Twitter Counts

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

These players reported their chip counts via Twitter:

Daniel Chan 127k
Luke Vrabel 97k
John Allan Hinds 87k
Dave Zeitlin 80k
Matt Iles 53k

Event 9: Dinner Time Numbers

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha  

At the end of level 12, the remaining players were rewarded with a one hour dinner break.

Play will resume at 9pm.

Number of Entries:  53
Players Remaining:  16
Chips in Play:  1.325 million

Average Stack:  83k (41 BB)
Big Stack:  210k (105 BB)

Total Buy-In:  $18,550
First Place:  $6,298
Places Paid: 9

Returning Blinds:  1k/2k

Event 9: Two Tables

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha  

At 18 players they drew for seats and moved to the final two tables.

Amnon Filippi and Will Failla landed next to each other at the same table.

These two also landed next to each other, showing off their flashy colors:

Darius Studdard & Gabriel Ohana

Darius is still the chip leader - he's up to ~210k.

Roger Souse (Durham, NC) is catching up.  He's got about 195k.

Event 8: Chow Time

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

140 players are on a one hour dinner break.

The average stack is 72k (45 bb) with blinds going to 800/1,600/200 ante when play resumes at 8:30 pm.

Event 8: Tough Table

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Table one is a tough draw that includes heavy hitters Cuong Phung, Luke Vrabel, Alex Rocha and
David Kim.

Just before dinner break Kim knocks out Rob "Rizzi" Aronowitz with the nut flush and had a royal draw on the turn.

Aronowitz seems pleased with a true min cash as he grabs a dinner voucher before heading out the door.

Event 9: Filippi v. Failla

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha  

Level 12:  Blinds 800/1,500.

Will 'the Thrill' Failla and Amnon Filippi got all the chips in the middle.

Both players had AAxx.

They chopped the pot.

Amnon Filippi (far left) and Will Failla (far right)


A short while later, the same two players got to the turn with a board of A K J A (two clubs).

Will Failla bet the pot (18k) and flipped up two of his cards, QT, which gave him the Broadway straight.

Amnon gave it some thought, then made the call.  River was an offsuit Ten.

Will put the last of his chips in and Amnon called.

Will's other two cards were AJ giving him Aces-full.

Amnon rolled over AJ65 for the same full house and they chopped the pot, again.

Event 9: Miami Beached

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha  

'Miami' John Cernuto has busted out.

Gabriel Ohana (Baltimore, MD) is still in with about average stack.

19 players remain.  Average stack is ~70k.

Event 8: Girls Gotta Get Lucky

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Pickell (right) Waits for Opponent to Call

With the board showing 7♠ 3♠ J♣ 4♠ 7 Lisa Pickell (Brick, NJ) raises her opponent.

It's the last hand before the color-up break and the clock is ticking as the player is in the tank talking through the hand.

The player eventually calls 10k more and sees his nut flush was rivered by Pickell's full house who was playing 7♣ 4♣ from the button.

"I'm allowed to get lucky every once in awhile," says a sheepish Pickell while stacking the chips. "Everyone gets lucky on me."

After recounting all the hands she's folded earlier in the day she adds, "make sure you write that it was a six way limp pot and I had the button."

The green (25) chips are now out of play with blinds now 600/1,200/200 ante.

Event 9: Bruce v. Bruce

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha 

Bruce Frank (Montclair, NJ) and Bruce Yamron (Naples, FL) tangled in a pot.

Bruce Frank & Bruce Yamron

On the river the board showed A 7 6 9 9 (no flush possible).

Yamron bet and Frank called.

Yamron showed J665 for 6s-full.  Frank mucked his hand.

Yamron chipped up to 150k.  Frank dropped to ~35k.

Event 9: Filippi Felts One

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha 
 
Level 11:  Blinds 600/1,200.

Amnon Filippi (New York, NY) got a short-stack all-in on the flop.  His hand held up and he sent another one packing.

Down to 22 players now.

They're going to finish level 11, continue into level 12, then go to dinner at about 8pm for one hour.

Event 9: Studdard Leads

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha

Level 10:  Blinds 500/1,000.



Darius Studdard has distanced himself from the field.  He's up to 173k as of the break.

Down to 27 players now.  Average stack is ~49k.

Event 8: Another Big Stack

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Parks Picking Up Chips

Thomas Parks (Bridgewater, NJ) is one of the bigger stacks in the room with 170k.

Event 9: Stayin' Alive

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha

The re-entry/registration period was over at the end of level six and since then, the pace of departures has been brisk.

Only 28 players remain of the 53 who started.

Still in the hunt for a payout are:
'Grandpa' Jay Zimmet
Yuebin Guo
'Miami' John Cernuto
Roger Souse
Amnon Filippi
Will 'the Thrill' Failla
Bruce Frank
Bruce Yamron
Dan Horam
Jordan Diamond

They're now on a ten minute break at the end of level 9.


Event 8: Bluffing Into a Boat

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee) 

Matt Making Player Sweat

Matt O'Flynn (Reston, VA) check calls the turn and river with a full house against an overly aggressive player to win the hand and take the chip lead with 180k.

His opponent was bluffing with 7 high and ships his last 70k to O'Flynn on the river.

After checking the river, O'Flynn doesn't realize that the player had moved all in and made his opponent sweat for several minutes until the table threatened to call the clock.

"I had my headphones on and didn't hear him," says O'Flynn, "He didn't push any chips over the line and I didn't know. I felt bad for making him wait.

Level 10 (500/1k/100 ante) is underway.

Event 8: All in One Room

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee) 

The last remaining tables in the Poker Room have been moved across the hall to the Signature Room.

There are currently ~225 players on the remaining 23 tables.

The average stack is 45k (56 bb) with play underway at blinds of 400/800/75 ante.

Event 8: Break Time Tweet Counts

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Players checking in on Twitter with their chips counts include:

John Allan Grinds (aka Hinds) 84k (105 bb)
Lana O'Brien 70k
DJ MacKinnon 55k
Jeff Bicer 52k
Chris Bourassa 28k
James Tedrow 25k
Dave Zeitlin 23k
Kevin McColgan 13k (16 bb)

Play resumes at 400/800/75 ante.

Event 8: Taking A Break..Some By The Cage

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Players are on their way out of the Signature Room for a fifteen minute break, some of them making their final exit and walk to the cage.  There is a $200 + 30 Six Max event just starting in the main poker room, and these Event 8 players who bust are using that as their second chance.

Event 9 - Payouts

Borgata Fall Poker Open
Event 9: $350 + $50 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha High
November 12-13, 2012

Entries:  53
Total Buy-In:  $18,550

PAYOUTS:
1:     $6,298
2:     $3,418
3:     $2,159
4:     $1,619
5:     $1,260
6:     $1,080
7:       $900
8:       $720
9:       $540

*UNOFFICIAL:  Numbers subject to change based on final counts

Bad Beat Jackpot Hits Again!

120 Hits for $14,982,528

 Stolls (left) Wins the Hand, While Arora (right) Wins the Jackpot

Losing with quad 6s never felt so good for Alok Arora (Charlestown, WV), who is Borgata's latest Bad Beat Jackpot winner.

Arora takes home $20,001 because his 6 6♠ was beaten by Herbert Stolls (Jamaica, NY) who hit a straight flush holding 7 8 on a board of 7♣ 9 10 6 6♣

"A miracle just happened," says Stolls, while on the phone with family.  "I just won $10,000," his share of the $50,000 mini Bad Beat Jackpot for winning the hand.

The other seven players in the hand split $20,000 and earn the table share of $2,857.

Norman Michalek  (Westfield, NJ), one of the lucky seven and usually a tournament player, debated about playing in today's 11 am event, but decided to play in the $2-$5 cash game instead.

The main jackpot resets to $164,859 and the next next time the jackpot hits the all time total paid out will top $15,000,000.

Bad Beat Jackpot Winners

Alok Arora (Charlestown, WV) $20,001 (Losing Hand/Jackpot Winner)
Herbert Stolls (Jamaica, NY) $10,000 (Winning Hand)

Table Share

Norman Michalek  (Westfield, NJ) $2,857
Alex Welch (Brooklyn, NY) $2,857
Frank Gisondi (Manahawkin, NJ) $2,857
Nick Pino (Moorestown, NJ) $2,857
Ruslan Klimanov (Staten Island, NY) $2,857
Kien Ping Kwan (Seattle, WA) $2,857
Drew Sullivan (Malaga, NJ) $2,857

Event 8 Payouts

Borgata Fall Poker Open
Event 8: $350 + $50 Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em
November 12-13, 2012

Entries:  405
Total Buy-In:  $141,750

PAYOUTS

1:         $35,137
2:         $20,287
3:         $12,375
4:           $9,970
5:           $7,837
6:           $6,531
7:           $5,225
8:           $3,987
9:           $2,750
10 - 12:  $1,787
13 - 15:  $1,375
16 - 18:  $1,086
19 - 27:     $852
28 - 36:     $756
37 - 45:     $687


*UNOFFICIAL:  Numbers subject to change based on final counts

Event 8: Tweet Tweet

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)


Event 9: Another Tough Table

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha

There are always notables in all of our events, but when three of the five we mentioned end up at the same table, you have to feel for the others who join them:

Jordan Diamond
Amnon Filippi
Chris Reslock

Event 8: Triple Threats

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

We have a ton of tables with great players, but here are a few close to media row that stand out:

Table 1:

Cuong Phung
David Kim
Brian Lemke

Table 4:

Cathy Devers
John Allan "Grinds"
Mike "Little Man" Sica

Event 8: Put To A Decision

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

David Kim (Holding Sandwich)

On the flop, David Kim puts his opponent to a decision as a crowd of people gather, just as the break start.  Kim's all-in could have tons a reasoning behind it, whether he has a hand or is maybe just trying to dump chips to re-enter.  Whatever the reasoning was, his opponent folded and Kim is up to 60,000.

Event 8: Re-entry Tickets

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Several players have been seen with either a re-entry ticket or a fresh 25k stack.

"Third re-entry, fourth overall," says Mike Borovetz (Pittsburgh, PA) as he grabs another new seat.

Others recently rejoining the field include:

Brian Lemke
Austen Johnson
Paul Vacchio

Johnson (2nd / $10,735) and Vacchio (3rd / $6,181) are fresh off their top three finishes in the Event 5 Deepstack semi-turbo.

Event 8: Time Is Ticking Away

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

The last seconds are ticking away off of Level 6, and people are hurrying to either double up, or get themselves a re-entry card.  They have through the 10 minute break after this level, and we've seen an influx of players running to the cage.

When they return it will be last chance saloon, for there will be no more re-entries, if you bustout...you bustout.  Level 7 will be coming back with blinds 250/500/50.

Event 8: Lucky 2-4

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Rizzi Rides 2-4 Sooooooted

Rob "Rizzi" Aronowitz (N. Merrick, NY) avoids re-entry when his 2 4 gets him a triple up to 27k.

"24 is my lucky number," says Aronowitz. "I figured I'll trip-up or re-buy."

Aronowitz says he's been on a hot streak lately, which began when he won $48 in Borgata's Pick the Pros football promotion.  He used it as roulette seed money and walked away with more than $2,000 when a spin landed on....you guessed it 24.

"It's my baseball number," says the former Queens College player, "it means a lot to me.

PPI Perspective



The founders of Poker Players International (Gene Castro, Randy Kasper, and Eric Siegel) all have deep family and friend roots within the communities affected by Hurricane Sandy.  The PPI organization, players and management alike are deeply saddened by the horrific losses so many have endured as a result of this disaster.

Please join PPI in our our relief effort during the Borgata Fall Poker Open tournament series

All donations will go directly to Newsday's Hurricane Sandy Long Island Disaster Relief.

There are three (3) ways you can contribute to this relief effort:

  1. For those participating in the Borgata Fall Poker Open, you can pledge a % of your Borgata Fall Poker Open tournament earnings to this cause.
  2. Make a direct donation on this Donation Page.
  3. Go to the Newsday Hurricane Sandy Long Island Disaster Relief Fund  and make a pledge.

It is important to recognize and support relief efforts for the thousands in our communities that remain without power, heat and the comforts of home.

The International Poker Community is a strong and unified group, with a voice and the resources to make a difference to those in need.  Let's help these victims within the common bond we all share as Poker Players.

And don't forget to join us at Borgata on Wednesday, November 14 at 4PM for the Hurricane Relief Charity poker tournament.

Thank you for your support,

Eric Siegel

Event 8/9: Twitter Updates



Event 8: Last Level of Fireworks

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

The final level (Level 6 - 200/400/50 ante) to re-enter is underway and the short stacks are itching to double-up or head to the registration window for a fresh 25k.

Eric "Pools" Siegel (Melville, NY) is one player who's contemplating on waiting to re-enter. 

Jumping back in now exposes a player's stack to this volatile level. Waiting until the break means play will be more calm and a 25k stack still has 50 BB.

Registration is open until ~3:30 pm.

Event 9: Omaha Break and Level Up

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Players are taking their first break of the day, and when they return the blinds will be 75/150.  The field looks to be sizable, considering it's going up against the 11:00 am event.

Event 8: Johnson Splits Pot with No Cards

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Mantini (left) States his Case to (l-r) Tom, Tab & Byron

Controversy erupts on Table 8 when Austen Johnson (Woodsboro, MD) mucks his cards, but is still in the tournament when the river makes the hand a split pot.

"But he doesn't have any cards," says an incredulous Brian Mantini (New Brunswick, NJ) who can't believe a player with no hand is given half the pot.

On a board of 9♣ 7♠ 7 9 Mantini moves all in for 25k and has Johnson slightly covered.  Johnson calls and is drawing dead to a chop and shows AK against Mantini's full house (A♣ 7♣)

After exposing his hand, Johnson turns the cards face down into the muck, but is stunned when the 9 hits the river.

The table immediately explodes into controversy as a boat on the board, 9s full of 7s, is higher than Mantini's full house.

"This is crazy, you guys are cheating me, he doesn't have any cards," screams Mantini who argues with two poker officials. Tournament Director Tab Duchateau explains that Johnson's chips commit him to the pot and that a player doesn't need cards when the board plays.

"That's new, I've never seen anything like it," says one player as everyone at the player has an opinion on what the ruling should be.

After the pot is split and Johnson is still alive, Duchateau further explains that the rule is in place to prevent collusion.

Rare occasions have seen players dump chips by calling all ins and then mucking, even while holding the winner.  Hence the reason all in cards are turned face up.

"Why does this always happen to me," says Johnson, who was runner-up in the Event 5 Deepstack semi-turbu for $10,735.

Level 5 (150/300/25 ante) continues.

Mantini & Johnson

Event 8: They Keep Coming In

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

We continue to see more people file into the tournament, whether it's the signature room or the main poker room:

Abe Faroni
Joseph Liberta
Felix Ly
Aaron Freese

Event 8: Will Gracing Us With His "Thrill"

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Will "The Thrill" Failla (Commack, NY) is one of the top players in the world currently, and is no stranger at all the going deep at the Borgata.  Will most recently won the inaugural event of the 2012 Borgata Winter Open (Event 1 - $500 NL), taking home $168,000.  

Failla has over $3 million in earning over his lifetime, and has won numerous titles (WPT, Heartland Poker Tour, PCA) over the past ten years.  He's taken his seat in this event on two days after finishing fourth two days ago, in Event 1 - $500 + 60 ($500 Guarantee).

Event 9: PLO Notables

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)

The tables are starting to fill up, and we are seeing a handful of players choose this over today's earlier option:

Amnon Fillipi
Chris Reslock
Jordan Diamond
Pete Ippolito

Event 8: Level 4 Begins

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Players return from break to Level 4 with blinds at 100/200, and we continue to see some late entries arrive:

Brian Lemke
David Kim
Tony Shurilla

Event 8: Break Tweets

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)


Event 9: Omaha-lics Ready To Go

$350 + 50 Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)

Players are just taking their seats for this event, as the tournament with a four card variation is underway.  This tournament is a re-entry one, and it's usually needed in PLO.  You will see a lot of action under this format, and a ton of big pots.

We'll take a look in the main room shortly to see whose chosen this tournament of the many to play in today.

Event 8: Almost Break

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

We have about eight minutes left in the level (3), and players will then be going on their first break of the day.  When they do we usually see an influx of twitter posts, updating us on chips counts and such. Tables started to open in the main poker room, where we saw about 40 more entrants, including Jamie Kerstetter.

Event 8: John Allan Grinds?

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)



This may be the John Allan Hinds that many Borgata tournament regulars know.  Hinds has over $150,000 in career earnings, most recently winning this same event in the 2012 Borgata Poker Open ($68,000).  Hinds mostly does it in the standard t-shirt and hat (mostly worn backwards), but we saw today on Twitter:


John Allan Grinds

And after some searching and retweeting, we found this new alter ego, John Allan Grinds.  Normally easily spotted in the crowd, "Bistro" now is using this look to blend in and chip up.  He's off to a good start today, and we'll see what the new look brings.


Event 8: More Notables

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

As we scan the room, it's not hard to notice people we once missed. Event 3 (H.O.R.S.E.) winner Khaled Alwan (Wayne, NJ) was seen leaving the room for a moment.  There were also some ladies in the field we missed, including:

Jennifer Shahade
Nancy Martin
Tiffany Williamson

Event 8: Returning For More

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

Two players to walk in late are returning after some nice showings earlier in this series.  Paul Vacchio (Inwood, NY) didn't take long to return to action, after busted third (Event 5: $300 DS Turbo) in the wee hours of the morning today.  Vacchio was bested by Austen Johnson and eventual winner Sean Hu, but took home $6,181 for his efforts.

Vacchio walked in with Dalip Ravindran (Jersey City, NJ), who also took third place, but it was in Event 1 ($500 Deepstack NL $500,000 Guar.).  Ravindran played at marathon hours, and took home over $50,000 when it was all said and done.

Both are looking to best their third place finishes, and walk home with the coveted trophy (as is everyone else in the room).

Event 8: Level 2 Begins

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

The first level of the day has ended, and we are going up to blinds of 50/100.  The levels last 40 minutes in this event, and registration (re-entry) period lasts through the break after Level 6.

Event 8: Twitter Introduction

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)


Event 8: A Room With A View

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee)

A Full Signature Room

Players continue to file in, and the Signature Room begins to hit its' capacity.  The are tons of familiar faces in the crowd today, one of those days where the list is almost too long (have to cut it off somewhere):

Mike "Little Man" Sica
Brian O' Donaghue
Cathy Devers
Mike Dentale
Lisa Pickell
Nick Frangos
Eric Siegel
Steve Danneman
Howard Wolper

.....and more to be continued.

Event 8: Case Of The Mondays?

$350 + 50 Deepstack NL Hold'em ($100,000 Guarantee) (Re-Entry)

No case of the Monday here at the Borgata, as the Signature Room fills up for another one of our "signature" guaranteed tournaments.  This event carries a guarantee of $100,000, and also offers the option for re-entry.  The remaining players at 2:00 am will bag their chips, and come back tomorrow for the finale.

It's also another busy day for players, with a total of four events available for everyone to choose from.  If it's PLO (Pot Limit Omaha) that peaks your interest (1:00 pm), or maybe it's the 6-Max format (4:00 pm), or possibly a bounty hunter (7:00 pm)?

Borgata Tournament Leaderboard Update (11/12)

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 events: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)


371.250:  DANIEL WALSH
236.250:  HYON KO
221.250:  MATTHEW ILES
219.813:  KHALED ALWAN
202.500:  DILIP RAVINDRAN
202.488:  XIAOFENG HU
200.675:  ROBERT GOTTFRIED
198.238:  WARREN WIGGINS
184.125:  JOHN TAVSS
183.375:  AUSTEN JOHNSON
171.600:  JEDIAL PIRES
165.375:  EMANUEL FAILLA
163.800:  AMIR HOSSEIN MOUSAVI NASAB
161.000:  DONAL DRIL
145.163:  DOUGLAS MACKINNON
141.160:  ANTONIO PAYNE
138.950:  DYLAN GANG
136.875:  CHERISH ANDREWS
131.505:  STEVEN POLIMENI
130.000:  DAMIAN ALONSO
129.250:  ROBIN LEE
128.250:  TAISIYA KUZNETSOVA
122.425:  PAUL VACCHIO
121.288:  MICHAEL DENTALE
120.500:  MICHAEL ORY
120.000:  JOSEPH MARTTINE

Monday, November 12

TODAY'S EVENTS (Poker Room & The Signature Room) 

11AM: Event 8 - $350 + $50 Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
             $100,000 GUARANTEED 
  • Players start with 25,000 in tournament chips 
  • Levels will last 40 minutes each 
  • Players may Re-Enter through Level 6 
  • 2-Day event with two starting days.  Day 2 begins Tuesday at 1PM


1 PM: Event 9 - $350 + $50 Deep Stack Pot Limt Omaha High (Re-Entry) 
  • Players start with 25,000 in tournament chips 
  • Levels 1-10: will last 30 minutes each | Levels 11+: will last 40 minutes each 
  • Players may Re-Enter through Level 6 
  • 2-Day event with two starting days.  Day 2 begins Tuesday at 1PM



4 PM: Event 28 - $200 + $30 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo  Six-Max No Limit Hold'em
  • Players start with 25,000 in tournament chips 
  • Levels 1-15: will last 15 minutes each | Levels 16+: will last 25 minutes each
  • Players may Re-Enter through Level 6 
  • 1-Day event


7 PM: Event 29 - $100 + $20 + $50 Double Green Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry) 
  • Players start with 12,000 in tournament chips 
  • This is a Bounty tournament. Players must have their Bounty chips clearly displayed on table in order to remain active in tournament 
  • Levels 1-10: will last 20 minutes each | Levels 11+: will last 25 minutes each
  • Players may Re-Enter through Level 6 
  • 1-Day event

Event 6 Recap

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH      

For the first time ever, the Borgata Open Ladies event featured a Yellow Chip Bounty, with a $20 price tag on the head of every player.  It took about 15 hours for Robin Lee (Norwich, CT) to accumulate all 16.7 million chips in play, first place, and $5,914.  Lee is a recreational player and this is her first win in a live tournament.  She also collected 5 bounties on her way to the finish, including the bounty on the lone male who entered the event.

Second place and $3,210 went to Borgata regular Leanne Rosenblatt (Brigantine, NJ).  She has been living at Borgata since the superstorm damaged the roof of her home.  In between dealing with insurance companies and FEMA, she's trying to enjoy some time on the felt.

Retired CPA Rona Reis (Selbyville, DE) fought her way back from being short-stacked several times during the tournament and actually held the chip lead briefly when down to the final three, but a key hand where she held the second-nut-flush and was up against the nuts cost her that lead.  Despite another valiant attempt to come back, she finished third for $2,028.

The Ladies event drew 67 entries, which resulted in $17,420 in total buy-ins.  The final nine ladies earned a piece to go with the bounties they collected along the way.

Robin Lee said she was "playing tight" all day and it paid off just before the dinner break.  She had pocket Tens and tripled up, which gave her the boost she needed.  "After that, I made good calls and I was always ahead when I called...and they held up".  


Final Results
1 - Robin Lee (Norwich, CT)  $5,914
2 - Leanne Rosenblatt (Brigantine, NJ)  $3,210
3 - Rona Reis (Selbyville, DE)  $2,028
4 - Judy Bielan (Bayonne, NJ)  $1,521
5 - Kim Findura (Butler, NJ)  $1,183
6 - Esther 'E-Tay' Taylor (Haverford, PA)  $1,014
7 - Lisa Pickell (Brick, NJ)  $845
8 - Nancy Martin (Washington Crossing, PA)  $676
9 - Carolyn Mevorah (Staten Island, NY)  $507


FINAL RESULTS

Event 6: 1st Place - Lee

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH      

Robin Lee (Norwich, CT)
$5,914

Robin Lee topped the field of 66 Ladies (and one guy) to win her first live tournament and $5,914.

On her way to the win, Robin knocked out the lone male in the field and collected his $20 bounty, which made the victory even sweeter.

Event 6: 2nd Place - Rosenblatt

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH       


Leanne Rosenblatt (Brigantine, NJ)
$3,210

Leanne Rosenblatt is a frequent flyer here at Borgata and has numerous cashes and final tables on her resume, but is missing that first place finish.

She barely missed it again today, having to settle for second and $3,210.

Event 6: 3rd Place - Reis

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH    

Rona Reis (Selbyville, DE)
$2,028

Rona Reis was short-stacked a lot during this event, but kept climbing her way back into contention.

Her luck finally ran out and she finished 3rd for $2,028 (plus bounties).

Event 6: Chips Swirling Around

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

Blinds up! 

Level 24: 15k/30k with 4k ante.

Robin Lee surrendered the chip lead, briefly, to Rona Reis. 

They with a board of K 6 5 J 9 -- all hearts -- Robin was all-in against Rona. 

Robin had the nut flush with the Ace of hearts.   Rona had the second nuts with the Queen.

Robin doubled up and reclaimed the chip lead while Rona was crippled to about 60k.

Robin had over 1.2 million of the 1.675 million chips in play.

Then Rona doubled through Robin.

Rona was all-in again for 115k and Robin called.  Robin out-flopped Rona, but Rona caught a river card to stay alive, doubling up again to ~250k.

Event 6: Still Grinding Three Handed

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

On the turn with a board of Q Q 7 T, Leanne Rosenblatt bet 75k.  Robin Lee raised to 175k.  Leanne let it go. 

She got some back soon after when Robin raised to 62k from the button.  Leanne shoved from the big blind for another 273k and Robin surrendered.

Robin has climbed back up to ~745k.  Leanne is down to ~340k.

Event 6: Stuck at Three

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

The chips have redistributed around the felt.

Robin Lee still leads, but not by much. 

Robin Lee - 600k
Rona Reis - 530k
Leanne Rosenblatt - 500k

Level 23:  Blinds 12k/24k with 3k ante.

Play continues.

Event 6: Reis Raising

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH      

Leanne Rosenblatt had been making some headway, but then this happened:

In a battle of the blinds, Rona Reis (sb) raised to 60k and Leanne (bb) called.

The flop fell K 7 4 with two clubs.  Rona fired 60k and Leanne called.  Turn was an offsuit 4 and Rona shoved for 253k.

Leanne let it go, so Rona picked up 120k of Leanne's chips.

Still battling three-handed.

Event 5: Recap

$260 + $40 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit Hold'Em

Sean Hu and Austen Johnson battled all day, and heads up for an hour before Hu finally broke through with the win.

On the final hand, a late ace and a slight chip lead over Johnson - after at least three all -in hands - gave Hu the event trophy.

"Even a blind donkey finds a carrot," said Hu, after checking that donkeys do indeed eat carrots.

Johnson had dominated most of the final table, but Hu was always lurking  and took some of his biggest chip wins off Jackson. The two were determined to play out the the last hands.

Hu wins $18,216 and Johnson gets $10,735.

The event drew 258 with a total buy-in of $67,080.

Final Table Results:
1. XIAOFENG HU (DOYLESTOWN, PA):  $18,216
2. AUSTEN JOHNSON (GREENSBORO, NC):  $10,735
3. PAUL VACCHIO (INWOOD, NY):  $6,181
4. DON LOTANO (MATAWAN, NJ):  $5,010
5. DOUGLAS MACKINNON (EAST AMHERST, NY):  $3,904
6. DARYL BOATWRIGHT (WOODBURY, NJ):  $3,253
7. BARUCH THALER (BROOKLYN, NY):  $2,603
8. GARY ACKERMAN (COLLEGEVILLE, PA):  $1,952
9. BYUNG YOO (NORWOOD, NJ):  $1,301
10. DANIEL HAYDEN (STAFFORD, VA):  $846

FINAL RESULTS

Event 5: 1st Place - Hu

$260 + $40 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit Hold'Em

                                                           Sean Hu (NYC) $18,216



Event 6: Three Ladies Remain

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH      

The final three ladies continue to battle it out.

They've finished level 21 and are taking ten.

Robin Lee still leads with 835k.

Leanne Rosenblatt is second with 475k.

Rona Reis is third with 375k.

Average stack is 558k.

Level 22: Blinds 10k/20k with 3k ante.  Play will resume in a few minutes.

Event 5: 2nd Place- Austen Johnson

$260 + $40 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit Hold'Em


                                                            Austen Johnson $10,735

Event 7 Recap

$400 + 50 Seven Card Stud    

Joseph Marttine (Ridgefield, NJ) may be on disability, but his Stud-ability is working quite well.  He mowed down the final table, which included two previous Borgata Open Stud champions.  The professional poker player earned $6,809 for his first place finish.

William Ray (Harrisburg, PA) was the runner-up today, finishing second for $3,783.  He works full time for the government, supplying all branches of the military with the stuff they need.  He's one of the dwindling breed of pure Stud players, but stays true to the game.

Third place and $2,270 went to Vinny Condina (Egg Harbor City, NJ).  He's also a professional poker player, but this was his first tournament in a long time.

Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ) won this event one year ago during the inaugural Borgata Fall Poker Open ($7,225) but fell short of defending his title today.  His fourth place finish was good for $1,513.

Fitfh place and $757 went to Borgata tournament regular Peter Ippolito (E Meadow, NY).

Also at the final table was Bill 'Bumpereno' Munley (Throop, PA).  He won the Stud event during the 2012 Borgata Poker Open, under extreme circumstances.  He was hoping for a repeat performance today, but came up short, busting out in 7th place.

Seven card stud brought out 39 contenders today, generating total buy-ins of $15,600.  Only the final five players earned a piece of the pie.

On his way to winning today, Joseph Marttine recalled a key hand against WSOP bracelet holder Chris Reslock (Atlantic City, NJ).  Chris had rolled-up Aces, but Joseph made Kings-full to crack them.  Reslock was left short-stacked and busted out soon after.  That was the beginning of Marttine's heater that carried him to the win.


Final Results
1 -   Joseph Marttine (Ridgefield, NJ)  $6,809
2 -   William Ray (Harrisburg, PA)  $3,783
3 -   Vinny Condina (Egg Harbor City, NJ)  $2,270
4 -   'Grandpa' Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ)  $1,513
5 -   Peter Ippolito (E Meadow, NY)   $757

FINAL RESULTS

Event 6: 4th Place - Bielan

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

Judy Bielan (Bayonne, NJ)
$1,521

Judy Bielan had her last chips in the middle holding pocket 4s, but ran into Robin Lee's pocket 8s.

The better pair held up and Robin's big stack got bigger.

Judy finished in 4th place, earning $1,521.

Event 5: Head to Head

$260 + $40 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit Hold'Em

Austen Johnson and Sean Hu are battling it out.

Hu had cut deep into Johnson's stack, then came and all -in showdown.

Hu had ace, four - Johnson ace - 3.

Ace on the flop and three on the river. Johnson survives, but Hu takes a slight chip lead.

Next up, Johnson hits two pair on an all in call taking 2.3 million in chips off Hu.

Johnson now commands the chip lead

Event 6: 5th Place - Findura

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

Kim Findura (Butler, NJ)
$1,183

Kim Findura was the next Lady to report to the rail.  She finished 5th for $1,183.

Event 6: 6th Place - Taylor

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

Esther 'E-Tay' Taylor (Haverford, PA)
$1,014

Esther Taylor was working her short-stack hard all day and on the last hand, was hoping for a quadruple-up.

She was all-in for her last 17k and called by Kim Findura and Leanne Rosenblatt, then chip leader Robin Lee tanked before decided to move all-in to isolate.

Kim and Leanne folded (Leanne showed pocket 6s).

E-Tay was racing with KJ against Robin's pocket 8s.

The board bricked out 6 4 3 A A (Leanne would have made a full house to scoop).

Robin took the pot and E-Tay took 6th place and $1,014 (plus bounties).

Event 5: 3rd Place- Vacchio

$260 + $40 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit Hold'Em

                                                        Paul Vacchio (Long Island) $6,181

Johnson pulls an ace on the river, tripping up Vacchio's pair of eights. It's head to head between Hu and Johnson.

Event 6: 7th Place - Pickell

$260 + $40 + $20 Ladies Deep Stack Yellow Chip Bounty NLH     

Lisa Pickell (Brick, NJ)
$845

 Lisa Pickell was next to go.  She earned $845 for 7th place, along with the bounties she collected.

Event 5: 4th Place - Lotano

$260 + $40 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit Hold'Em

                                                       Don Lotano (Matawan NJ) $5,010

Event 7: 1st Place - Marttine

$400 + 50 Seven Card Stud   

Joseph Marttine (Ridgefield, NJ)
$6,809

Joseph Marttine was the last Stud sitting in today's 7-Card Stud event.  He outlasted the field of 39 to collect all the chips and first place money of $6,809.

Joseph is still on disability after coming back from a health scare and coma, which had him out of the game for seven years.  Looks like he's coming back strong. 

Event 7: 2nd Place - Ray

$400 + 50 Seven Card Stud   

William Ray (Harrisburg, PA)
$3,783

William Ray also fell prey to the big stack of Joseph Marttine.  William earned $3,783 for his third place finish.