Championship: Big Stacks

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

 Pahuja Picking Up Chips

 
With 2 1/2 levels to go,  the $5,000 worth of bonus is becoming a reality.

Vinny Pahuja (300k) and Matt Stout (240k) continue to be the big stacks, with a handful of players in the low 200s.

The end of night chip leader takes home $3,000, while second place gets $2,000.

"A lot can happen on the last two levels," says Pahuja who picked up a lot of chips early and has been slow and steady every since.

Stout Sticking Around

Event 17: 3rd Place - Volpe

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

                                                                                   Paul Volpe (Westchester Pa.)
                                                                                                $26,656

Dilip Ravindran pushed all in for the sixth time, finally getting a taker when Paul Volpe called. Volpe had seen his stack steadily shrinking, and then saw Ravindran's ace hold up over his king.

Fialla, with a massive chip lead and Ravindran, at about 2 million, are left.

Championship: Back in Action

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 
 
95 player remain with and average stack of 68k (68 bb) with the big stacks still in the 230k-250k range.

Some of those still playing include:

Vinny Pahjua
Jonus Wexler
Dwyte Pilgrim
Robert Stan
Matthew Burnnitz
Peter Ippolito
Christian Harder
Jeff Papola
John Dibella
Aaron Massey
Mike Sica
Matt Brady
Mike Summers
Todd Terry
Jenny So
Shawn Busse
Darren Elias
Jamie Kerstetter
Gordon Eng
Barry Leventhal
Allen Kessler
Jason Evans
Matt Stout
Brock Parker
Al Wasserberger
Adam Gerber
Travis Greenawalt

Recent Busts

Mike Dental
Anthony Caruso

Championship: Twitter Counts

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

Players checking in on Twitter with their chip counts include:

Al Wasserberger 125k
James Tedrow 93k
Rep Porter 88k
Todd Terry 64k
Kevin McColgan 43k
Gordon Eng 25k
Lee Childs 30k

Busted

Chris Grove

This is a 15 minute color-up break as the green (25) chips are removed from play.  Blinds going up to 500/1k/100 ante.

Event 17: Notes From the Grind

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

In what could be the biggest chip exchange of the last hour, Will Failla bet about $50,000 at Paul Volpe on a board showing jack, six, deuce, ace , nine. Volpe called each bet, but checked the river even though he held jack, nine, rivering two pair and taking the pot.

Meanwhile, Dilip Ravindran has pushed all in twice, both times for about 800K, but has gotten no takers, forcing both Volpe and Fialla to fold, respectively.

And Fialla, after remarking that a Ravindran raise of 110,000 was "awkward," has apparently adopted the figure as his own standard raise. He's raised 110,000 at least a half a dozen times since.

And the grind continues.

Championship: Tough Table

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

(l-r) Kessler & Eng

Sitting at the head of one of the toughest tables in the Signature Room is Allen Kessler.

"Chainsaw" is joined by Lee Childs, Jason "Gorilla Fish" Evans, Gordon Eng, Barry Leventhal and Stephanie Hubbard.  The field is down to 99 players with an average stack of 65k (82 bb) with blinds at 400/800/75 ante.

Championship: Queens Good to Pilgrim

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

Blinds 400/800/75 ante

 Pilgrim Picks Up Queens, then Chips

Vinny Pahuja opens to 1700 from middle position.
Next to act makes it 4k
Dwyte Pilgrim 4-bets to 9,600 and Pahuja folds
The remaining player moves all in for 40k and Pilgrim calls.

Pilgrim: QQ
Opponent: KJ

Flop: Q 9 4 (Pilgrim set, opponent gutshot straight draw)

Pilgrim dodges the turn and river to knock out his opponent, while the 2010 Borgata Poker Open Champion takes his stack to 90k.

Championship: Rail Birds

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

Kyle Burnside, Amanda Musemeci, Ari Engel and Jonathan Little are some of the post dinner bustouts.  Level 10 (400/800/75) is underway.

Event 17: Tight Play

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Will Failla has better than 4 million in chips, Paul Volpe better than 2 million and Dilip Ravindran better than 1 Million. Yet the three are holding it close to the vest, with few hands breaking 300K pots.

It's a game of patience.

Satellites: Grinding Away, Last Chance 10 am

3 pm & 7 pm Championship Qualifiers

 McKenna (2nd from left) Playing the Bounty Satellite

The first of three Sunday satellites is in the books, but two more play on.

The 3 pm still has two tables, with the final table earning seats into the Championship. Meanwhile, the 7 pm has a long way to go, and players are loving the format.

"I think this is the best decision for a qualifier ever," says Jeremiah McKenna (Norwalk, CT), "when I saw it, I said 'I have to play.'"

The satellite is $270 +  $30 + $100 bounty, where ~1 in 10 players earn seats into Day 1B. A player collecting four bounties covers their qualifier entry fee.

"400 in bounties pays for this tournament so you can truly free roll your way into the Main, it's great" figures McKenna. "They should call this the $270 + $30 + bounty free roll." Of course free rolling into the Championship event means you have to be one of the survivors.

The last chance for players to get into the Championship at a discount is 10 am Monday.

While not a true qualifier, the $270 + $30 Super Turbo Survivor has ~1 in 10 winning $2,700, which coincidentally is the same amount as the $2,700 Day 1B entry fee.

Championship: Pajuha Gets Company

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

Vinny Pajuha is the first player to crack 200k and he's up to 230k, but now has company in Jason "Gorilla Fish" Evans and Matt Stout both are in the 200k range.

There's a long night of play ahead of the ~120 players and there's already chatter about the bonuses for the end of night chip leaders.

Mike Melkersen shows his stack of 10k and says, "see this, I'm going to be the end of leader."

The Day 1A chip leader earns  $3,000, while second overall gets $2,000.

On a side note, Pahuja tweeted this gem after building his stack

Vinny Pahuja ‏@vinpahuja

I WILL NOT PUNT I WILL NOT PUNT I WILL NOT PUNT I WILL NOT PUNT I WILL NOT PUNT I WILL NOT PUNT 

Event 17: 4th Place - Bowker

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

                                                                                   Kyle Bowker (Walton NY)
                                                                                                  $21,102
Bowker was all in with 375,000 and queen, four. Fialla calls with king, four. No help comes and we're down to three.  

20,000/40,000/ 4,000 ante                                                                                            

Event 17: 5th Place - Del Rossi

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

                                                                                John Del Rossi (Manuta NJ)

                                                                                              $16,660

Disaster strikes as DeL Rossi poushes all in for 600K with pocket jacks. Will Failla has pocket queens. The flop - ace,ace, queen. Failla flops the boat and Del Rossi is done.

Four players left.

Championship: Level 9

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

Ten players were out by the end of level 8. Level 9 starts with 125 players.

$300/$600/$75 ante

Event 17: Off and Running

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em

With the player's fed, this marathon event is off to a quick evening start. Kyle Bowker of Walton N\Y, just bet his way into a 900K pot, mostly at the expense of Will Failla.

With a board showing two pair, 3s and 7s, Bowker had the seven to fill it out against a better two pair for Fialla.

Event 17: 6th Place - Searing

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em

                                                             Ian Searing (Smithtown NY)
                                                                         $12,217

First off, Event 17 is back from dinner break. And one hand in, Ian Searing of of Smithtown NY is out.

Searing pushed all in from the small blind for 260K with pocket fives, and looked good when he hit a set on the flop. But Dilip Ravindran got a needed ace on the river and hit the high straight.

Five players remain.

Championship: Back From Dinner

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

Players are back at the tables, cards are in the air, and the Championship event is back underway with 135 players remaining

Vinny Pahuja is the chip leader with 306k.

250/500/50 ante

Event 17: Dinner Break

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

The six remaining players are on dinner break until 8:45 pm.

The average stack is 954k (32 bb) with blinds going to 15k/30k/4k ante. 

Name-Chip Count

Paul Volpe (West Chester, PA) 1.9 million (63 bb)
Kyle Bowker (Walton, NY) 1.2 million
Will Failla (Smithtown, NY) 1.2 million
Dilip Ravindran (Jersey City, NJ) 490k
John DelRossi (Manuta, NJ) 480k 
Ian Searing (Smithtown, NY) 245k (8 bb)

Remaining Prize Pool 

Place-Amount

1:          $58,865
2:          $34,985
3:          $26,656
4:          $21,102
5:          $16,660
6:          $12,217

Event 17: Ravindaran Doubles Through Searing

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Blinds 12k/24k/3k ante

Dilip Ravindran is all in for 364k against Ian Searing.

Ravindran: A♥ J♣
Searing: 5♠ 4♦

Flop: Q♠ A♣ J♠ (Ravindran pair of jacks)
Turn: 6♠ (Searing flush draw)
River: 3♠

Searing hits his flush on the river and gets a huge double-up and leaves Searing with just 125k.

Championship: Dinner Time

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

About 135 players have taken off for their 75 minute dinner break.

Play will resume at about 8:45pm.

Average stack is ~48k.

Vinny Pahuja is the chip leader with 206k.

After dinner, they will finish level 8 and play five more (through level 13) before calling it a night.

Event 17: Still Grinding

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

 Final Table

The final 6 players have an average stack of 954k (40 bb) with blinds at 12k/24k/3k ante.

There's still a long way to go to hand out the 6 max trophy.

Remaining Prize Pool

Place-Amount

1:          $58,865
2:          $34,985
3:          $26,656
4:          $21,102
5:          $16,660
6:          $12,217

Championship: Latest Departures

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

Jason 'Gorilla Fish' Evans (Woodbridge, VA) had a shortie all-in on a Queen-high flop.  Jason's AQ was dominating his opponent's QT.  The last two bricked and Jason busted another one.

135 players remain of the 216 entries today.


Out:

Stephen Reynolds (again)
Esther Taylor
Mike Borovetz
Saad Ghanem
Maruti Yarlapati
Dan Wach
Dan Buzgon
Neville Darrell (again)
Wade Woelfel

Championship: Badecker Begins Title Defense

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

 BFPO Defending Champion Andrew Badecker

Jake Schwartz (New York, NY) busted out on table two and now his seat has been filled by Andrew Badecker, (Vernon, CT) who won this event last year.

Now table two looks like this:

Andrew Badecker
Gary Ackerman
Niall Farrell
Christian Harder
Jeff Papola
Matt Deluca
Amanda Musumeci
Irv Gotti

Event 17: 7th Place - Inselberg

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Dave "Coldstone" Inselberg (Long Beach, NY) 

$9,441

Dave Inselberg loses a chunk of his stack before the final table when he folded to Paul Volpe's 300k river bet.  He drops to 210k and moves all in with K9 against Volpe's pocket 3s, but doesn't improve.

"Paul just had my number today," Inselberg says. "If it's not him, it'll be Kyle," he adds while handicapping the remaining six players.

This is Inselberg's second 7th place finish in the Borgata Fall Poker Open after earning $6,546 in the Event 12 big stack tournament.

Championship: New Chip Leader

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

Vinny Pahuja - Also Gunning for Chip Lead Bonus

Vinny Pahuja has usurped the chip lead.  He's up to ~190k.

He Tweeted:

Had way more than my fair share of sets today. Just won a huge one w 444 on KT4 against KT lol.

Event 17: 6 Max Final Table of 7

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)


If there's one quirk in this tournament, it's that there are 7 players at the final table.  It's structured that way so that one of the final two tables doesn't drop to three players.

Blinds 10k/20k/3k ante

Seat-Name-Chip Count

1 Dilip Ravindran (Jersey City, NJ) 607k
2 Kyle Bowker (Walton, NY) 1.3 million
3 Ian Searing (Smithtown, NY) 550k
4 Paul Volpe (West Chester, PA) 1.2 million
5 Will Failla (Smithtown, NY) 1.6 million
6 Dave Inselberg (Long Beach, NY) 210k
7 John DelRossi (Manuta, NJ) 300k

Event 17: 8th Place - Smith

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Chip Smith (Lumberton, NJ)

$6,664

Blinds 10k/20k/3k ante

Chip Smith sends in his last 5 big blinds with 10 7 against the A 6 of Kyle Bowker.

There's no help for Smith who finishes in 8th place.

Championship: Early Chip Leader

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

Matt Stout - Gunning for Chip Leader Bonus

Matt Stout has jumped into an early chip lead.  He's up to ~160k and well ahead of the field.

At the end of the day (end of level 13) the top two in chips will earn a bonus:

$3,000 will be awarded to the chip leader;

$2,000 will be awarded to the player finishing second in chips.

Event 17: 9th Place - Wertman

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

John Wertman (Dallas, PA)

$3,887

10k/20k/3k ante

Kyle Bowker opens to 40

John Wertman raises to 80k

Will Failla makes 120k, Bowker folds

Wertman moves all in for 525k total, Failla calls.

It's a classic cooler, Wertman's KK is up against Failla's AA.  An ace on the flop seals the deal and Wertman finishes in 9th place.

Failla adds 600k to his stack and is now the chip leader with 1.5 million. 

Championship: Break Time Tweets

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

Here's the latest news from the Twitter-verse:

chris grove ‏@cgrove24
12k on break. 400/50a next.

Jonathan Little ‏@JonathanLittle
At 16k at 200/400. I tried to bluff a guy off an obviously weak range. He called with middle pair. I'm such a fish.

Stephanie Hubbard ‏@StephHub31
62K.. Went set over set 99 vs 77 on a 967ss3 all in on turn :)

Joe Steur ‏@Poker_Gym_Coach
Just busted.. couple tough pots then got last 20 bigs all in from button over cutoff raise with A6dd vs 1010

Matt Matros ‏@Matt_Matros
@borgatapoker Third break. Back down to 21k.

Joe Verrecchia ‏@JoeDeertay
42550 at break 3. Table still sucks :(

Todd Terry ‏@toddbterry
48650. Guy squeezed for 5th time in 75 minutes, I 4bet shoved AQo, he had KK, he lost. #BFPOME

Amanda Musumeci ‏@TheReaLMander
40k on brk comin back to 200/400 w/ irv gotti, @Jake11291 @jeffpapola @charder30 n some euro reg type.

Ari Engel ‏@realAriEngel
41k going to 2/400. Watching @MattStoutPoker own the table. 

Lee Childs ‏@leechilds
39k at break. 200/400/50 coming up. End of re-entry @BorgataPoker

Event 17: All in 3-Bets Not Called

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Blinds 10k/20k/3k ante

The short stacks have been three-betting to add to their stacks.

Will Failla raises to 45k when Chip Smith moves all in for 179k more, Failla folds.

On the other table Paul Volpe makes a similar raise, John DelRossi moves all in for 300k total forcing Volpe to fold.

Volpe took a hit at the end of the previous level when he doubled-up Dave Inselberg's 350k when his AJ out raced Volpe's pocket 8s.

Championship: Another Tough One

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

 Lee Childs' re-entry land him at another tough table -- 14.  He's sharing the felt with:

Dan Wach
Jason Evans
Jon Turner
Todd Terry
Eric Panayiotou

End of level and time for another break. 

Play resumed with

Level 7:  Blinds 200/400 with 50 ante. 

No more entries for today.  Players busting out now will have to wait until tomorrow.

Championship: Table Two Got Harder

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

Table two just got Harder (both literally and figuratively).

Christian Harder arrived and was assigned to table two with

Jake Schwartz
Gary Ackerman
Micah Raskin
Jeff Papola
Amanda Musumeci
Irv Gotti

Mike Sica's re-entry landed him at table four with 

Anthony Caruso
Joe Verrecchia
Matt Brady
Matt Glantz

Event 17: 10th Place - Maglio

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

 Vinny Maglio (Revere, MA)

 $2,777

8k/16k/2k ante

After losing the one million chip pot to Will Failla, Will "the Thrill" gets Maglio's last 150k.

Maglio goes all in with K7, but is dominated by Failla's AK and doesn't get any help.

Maglio's looking forward to the Championship Event and is hoping for an early birthday present big cash as he turns 24 on Friday.

Championship: Latest Departures

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

Cherish Andrews ran her AK into Joe Verrecchia's pocket Aces.  The aces held and Joe's up to 52k.

Not sure if Cherish plans to re-enter.


'Action' Bob Hwang got his chips in with pocket 7s on a flop of T T 7.  His opponent had pocket Jacks and Bob was way ahead.  He still managed to lose when a Jack hit the board.

Bob's going to take the rest of the day off and try again tomorrow.

Event 17: Failla Takes One Million Chip Pot

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Vinny Maglio and Will Failla get into a preflop war and when the chips are in the middle it's a race for one million chips.

Maglio: 99
Failla: AJ

Flop: K Q Q (Failla gutshot straight draw, counterfeit outs)

Turn: J (Failla pair of jacks)

River: X

Failla gets a 499k double-up, while Maglio drops to 205k.

Players are on a 10 minute break.

Event 17: 11th Place - DeBarr

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Perry DeBarr (Falls Church, VA)

$2,777

Perry DeBarr lost a 500k chip pot to Dilip Ravindran, who eventually gets the rest of the chips.

DeBarr moves all in for 220k and Ravindran gets the knock out with pocket aces; DeBarr finishes in 11th place.

Coincidentally, we've seen pocket 8s lose to AA on each of the last two eliminations.

Championship: Tough Table Two

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

Jeff Papola & Mike Sica

WSOP bracelet holder Jeff Papola arrived late and was assigned to table two in the seat vacated by Charles Furey, next to fellow WSOP bracelet holder Mike 'Little Man' Sica.

Now at table two are:

Jake Schwartz
Gary Ackerman
Micah Raskin
Jeff Papola
Mike 'Little Man' Sica
Amanda Musumeci

Then before I got this posted, Mike Sica was all-in with pocket Kings against Gary Ackerman's AK.  Gary caught his Ace to take the pot and send Mike back to registration with a re-entry ticket.

This is the last level for late registration and re-entry today, but players can always enter again on day 1B tomorrow.

Event 17: 12th Place - Bienenfeld

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Harry Bienenfeld (Glen Head, NY)

 $2,777

Harry Bienenfeld is down to 60k when he makes his last stand with pocket 8s.  Will Failla finds aces in the big blind and knocks Bienenfeld in 12th place.

Championship: Wach In

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

Level 6:  Blinds 150/300 with 25 ante.

Dan Wach busted out of the $1k Six Max (14th for $2,221) a while ago and has now arrived in the Championship event.

He's seated at table 14 which is heavily loaded:

Jason 'Gorilla Fish' Evans
Jon Turner
Todd Terry
Eric Panayiotou

Event 17: Trading Chips

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Blinds 6k/12/2k ante

John Wertman and Chip Smith trade chips on back-to-back hands.

After picking up 100k, Smith ships it back and more on the next hand.

On a board of 3♣ 5♦ 2♦Smith checks, Wertman moves all in for 170k and after going in the tank Smith calls.

Wertman: A♠ A♥
Smith: 9♥ 9♣

Wertman gets the double-up with pocket aces, while Smith drops to 215k and is now the short stack along with Harry Bienenfeld.

Championship: Ins & Outs

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

Just spotted these folks in the field:

Micah Raskin
Saad Ghanem
Jon Turner
Peter Ippolito
Tim Reilly
Jennifer So
Niall Farrell

Out and In Again:

Al Wasserberger
Lee Childs

These folks have departed and not returned today (maybe we'll see them on day 1B tomorrow):

Sam Bernstein
Michael Esposito
Harry Korotki
Matt Iles
Rick Rossetti
Charles Furey
Orson Young

Event 17: Grinding to a Halt

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

After losing 5 players in the first hour, we've only seen one elimination in the last two hours.

Since the two table redraw, Kyle Bowker has bled chips and is down to 1 million, but is still the chip leader.  The two short stacks are on Table 2 in John Wertman and Harry Bienenfeld.

Wertman gets a 90k double-up through Vinny Maglio when he flops a set and turns a full house with pocket jacks.

Harry Bienenfeld was down to 50k, but has chipped up to more than 100k without having either of his recent all ins called.

The other nine players are all +/- 200k of the 475k chip average, which is 48 bb.

Everyone is expecting a long hard fight for the $58,865 top prize.

Championship: Chip Chirps

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

Here are some chip counts Tweeted during the break:

Kevin McColgan - 48,500
Action Bob Hwang - 40k
Mike Dentale - 30k
Todd Terry - 28,275
Ari Engel - 28k
Joe Steur - 27,100
Jonathan Little - 23k
Amanda Musumeci - 22k
Chris Grove - 18k
Matt Iles - 16k
Lee Childs - 14k

Championship: Tough Table

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

Both Harrison Gimbel and Anthony Gregg landed at table 7 after busting out and re-entering.

This was already a tough table, and it got a lot tougher when these two arrived.  Already seated there were:

James Tedrow
Chad Batista
Jamie Kerstetter
Matt Matros
Darren Elias

Matt Matros agrees.  During the break, he tweeted:

@borgatapoker 35k now. Ours is easily the worst table in the room. Wish I had watched football. #jets 

They've complete level four, taken a break, and are back on the felt.

Level 5:  Blinds 100/200 with 25 ante.


***  Update:  Brian Haveson was moved into the empty 2 seat, between James Tedrow and Chad Batista, after the break.

Championship: Ins and Outs

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

Ari Albilia is in, landing at table 8 with Ari Engel and Matt Stout.

Matt Glantz is in, landing at late reg table 19 with Harry Korotki and Rick Rossetti.

Amnon Filippi is in, landing at table 12 with Ken Silberstein and Jonas Wexler.

Busting Out and Re-Entering:

Harrison Gimbel
Anthony Gregg
Neville Darrell

Out:

Collin Whyte
Mark Ketteringham

Borgata Leaderboard Update (11/18)

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, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)


533.475:  JEDIAL PIRES
440.630:  EMANUEL FAILLA
396.250:  DANIEL WALSH
343.525:  PAUL VACCHIO
318.675:  KHALED ALWAN
306.400:  MATTHEW ILES
284.225:  ROBERT GOTTFRIED
273.250:  ILYA DYMENT
269.325:  DILIP RAVINDRAN
256.488:  HARRY KOROTKI
253.800:  ASHER CONNIFF
253.063:  WARREN WIGGINS
252.900:  AUSTEN JOHNSON
251.588:  KEVIN MCCOLGAN
246.050:  BRUCE YAMRON
245.600:  TOBY KASSER
237.750:  MOHAMMAD AMJADI
236.250:  HYON KO
230.138:  TONY TRAN
229.338:  DOUGLAS MACKINNON
213.100:  ELLIOTT ZAYDMAN
208.460:  ANTONIO PAYNE
206.375:  CHERISH ANDREWS
204.375:  JEFFREY PAPOLA
202.488:  XIAOFENG HU
201.663:  ROMAN VALERSTEIN

Event 17: Dirty Dozen Redraw

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

The two table redraw has players landing in new seats, but there's no change in the chip lead with Kyle Bowker holding 1.3  million (130 bb) of the 5.7 million in play.

The average stack is 477k (48 bb) with blinds going up to 5k/10/1k ante after a ten minute break.

Table 1

Seat-Name

1 Dave Inselberg (Long Beach, NY)
2 Paul Volpe (West Chester, PA)
3 Dilip Ravindran (Jersey City, NJ)
4 Ian Searing (Smithtown, NY)
5 Perry DeBarr (Falls Church, VA)
6 John DelRossi (Manuta, NJ)

Table 2

Seat-Name

1 Harry Bienenfeld (Glen Head, NY)
2 Kyle Bowker (Walton, NY)
3 Chip Smith (Lumberton, NJ)
4 Vinny Maglio (Revere, MA)
5 John Wertman (Dallas, PA)
6 Will Failla (Smithtown, NY)

Championship: Having Fun at Table One

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

Jonathan Little & Dwyte Pilgrim

Table one happens to be the green felt home of two WPT Champions, seated side-by-side.

Jonthan Little has two WPT titles:

2007:  Mirage Poker Showdown WPT Championship ($1.06 million)
2008:  Foxwoods World Poker Finals WPT Championship ($1.12 million)

Dwyte Pilgrim has one WPT title:

2010:  Borgata Poker Open WPT Championship ($733k)

Their contrasting styles may produce some interesting action as the day unfolds.

Event 17: 13th Place - Altman

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Altman (left) Counts His Stack for Smith

Chip Smith raises, Brian Altman (Longmeadow, MA) moves all in, Smith calls.

In a classic race Smith hits an ace on the river with Ak vs Altman's QQ.

Altman is out in 13th place and picks up $2,221.

Championship: Borovetz In

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

Level 4:  Blinds 100/200.

Mike Borovetz busted out of the $1k Six Max in 16th place ($2,221) and has entered this event, landing at the same table with fellow Six Max bustouts Brock Parker and Maruti Yarlapati.

Also at table 20 with the three former Six Max players is Eric Panayiotou.

Championship: Batista Needs a Smoke

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

Chad Batista was all-in with pocket 4s against a player holding Q3 of diamonds.

The board showed A 3 2 A 4 with three diamonds.

Chad pushed his chips forward for the dealer to count, then walked away from the table.

They called him back telling him he won the hand (4s full beating a flush).

He said "I know.  I've been doing this a while.  I need a smoke".  He trusted the dealer to count his chips and his double up and push him the pot while he was out of the room getting his nicotine fix.

Event 17: Three More Down

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

 Queen (left) Watching NFL Action Before Busting

 
Mike Borovetz (Pittsburgh, PA), misses all his draws and is out in 16th place.

Alex Queen (Bethlehem, PA) and Dan Wach (Boonton, NJ) quickly follow him to the cashier.

Queen runs pocket 6s into pocket 10s, while Wach ships 150k with A 10 into the Will Failla's AQ.

Borovetz (16th), Queen (15th) and Wach (14th) all earn $2,221.

Championship: Yarlapati In

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

Maruti Yarlapati has also busted out of the $1k Six Max.  He finished in 17th place for $2,221.

Doesn't quite cover the buy-in for this event, but almost.  He's entered and landed at the same table with Brock Parker. 

Event 17: Yarlapati Out

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

In a huge hand Maruti Yarlapati (Pinebrook, NJ) ships 400k to chip leader Kyle Bowker.

On a flop of K Q 9, Bowker checks.

Yarlapati bets 15k, Bowker makes it 53k, Yarlapati goes to 250k, Bowker moves all in and Yarlapati calls.

Bowker: J 10 (straight)
Yarlapati: Q 9 (two pairs)

An ace on the turn, gives Bowker an inconsequential higher straight and the river bricks for Yarlapati who had full house outs.

"Would that be considered a bad beat," jokes Yarlaptai, "he was the big stack and I didn't believe him.."

Yarlapati earns $2,221 for his 17th place.

Championship: Parker In

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

Brock Parker made day two of the $1k Six Max, so was otherwise occupied until that event resumed at 1pm.

He has since busted out in 18th place ($2,221) and joined the Championship field.  He's at table 20, which has just started up short-handed.

Late registration is open through the break after level six, so plenty of time for players to get into today's field.

Event 17: Parker Out

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

  Bowker (left) Stacking Chips, While Parker (far end) Awaits His Fate

Chip leader Kyle Bowker hasn't even stacked his chips when the third returning short stack hits the rail.

Brock Parker (Silver Spring, MD) is all in with pocket 5s against Will Failla's A 7, but when the board double pairs, Parker is counterfeited and Failla's ace kicker takes the hand.

Parker is out in 18th place, earning $2,221.

Event 17: Fast & Furious

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Two hands, two eliminations on Table 1. Paul Volpe (West Chester, PA) knocks out Jeff Esterling (Arnold, MD) and Al Mottur (Chevy Chase, MD) on the first two hands.

Esterling (20th) and Mottur (19th) both earn $1,666.

Championship: Tweet Counts

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

Level 3:  Blinds 75/150.

Play has resumed

Break time chip counts via Twitter:

Bob Hwang - 41k
Joe Steur - 35,975
Mike Summers - 34,600
Kevin McColgan - 34k
Brian O'Donoghue - 34k
---> Starting Stack:  30k
Amanada Musumeci - 30k
Rep Porter - 30k
Matt Iles - 29k
Todd Terry - 28,250
Lee Childs - 27,500
James Tedrow - 24k
Jonathan Little - 24k
Joe verrecchia - 22,525
Matt Matros - 22k

Championship: Break Time

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

End of level 2 and time for a break.

Shortly before the end of the level, table 19 got underway with a couple of familiar faces:

Harry Korotki
Rick Rossetti

All players are now on a 15 minute break.

Championship: Late Reg Table

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

Table 18 is up and running with these late arrivals:

Mike Melkersen
Travis Greenawalt
Anthony Gregg

Vinny Pahuja has also arrived late and landed at table 15.

Discovered Kyle Burnside at table 16.

Jamie Kerstetter has appeared at table 7.

Championship: Tweet Time

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

Early action reported via Twitter:


Robert Hwang ‏@ActionBobNJ
Day 1a Borgata main event. Already play the most absurd hand ever. Up to 43k from 30k start.

Cherish Andrews ‏@CherishAndrews
Have an octoniner at my table, talking about how big of a luck box @Gregy20723 is. I told him #jbl

James Tedrow ‏@teddyrowe
Just had to c/f river with 44 on A49A9 board where I was getting ready to bet like 1.5x pot on river..... He showed AK, sigh

Daniel Buzgon ‏@WiLDmAn_75
Borgata $2700 flagship today. Sandwiched between @mattyiles @Flashgordon227 and soggy dogg. #tryingnottobubbleanothetone

Joe Verrecchia ‏@JoeDeertay
Esposito tellin stories for days at this table #wdie

Michael McNeil ‏@potodds3
$2700 Main day one at Borgata. #sundayfunday

Lee Childs ‏@leechilds
Enjoyable table to start today @BorgataPoker. Having fun 4 & 5-betting @summerspro & @YoungOrson.

Michael Dentale ‏@Mikunbelievable
Playing the borgata main. Sat down an hour ago. Start with 30k, up to about 80k.

Aaron Massey ‏@nevermissmassey
My friend @Mikunbelievable is running everybody over early. Had to leave, grab a bacon egg and cheese, an orange juice, and a gameplan 

Championship: More Faces

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 2:  Blinds 50/100.

More familiar faces in the field:

Stephanie Hubbard
Allen 'Chainsaw' Kessler
Stephen Reynolds
Frank Reina
Barry Leventhal
Mike Summers
Lee Childs
Orson Young
Ken Silberstein
Jonas Wexler
Adam Gerber
Brian Haveson
John DiBella
Chris Lindh
Collin Whyte
Jason 'Gorilla Fish' Evans
Todd Terry
Joe Neiman
'Action' Bob Hwang
Shawn Busse
Roland Israelashvilli
Frank Ficadenti
Matt Iles
Dan Buzgon
Gordon Eng
Wade Woelfel
Matt Burnitz

Championship: Face Time

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

Lots of familiar faces in the Signature Room early today:

Jonathan Little
Dwyte Pilgrim
Greg Fishberg
Michey Woll
Esther 'E-Tay' Taylor
Sam Bernstein
Jake Schwartz
Gary Ackerman
Al Wasserberger
Charles Furey
Mike 'Little Man' Sica
Amanda Musumeci
Brian O'Donoghue
Aaron Massey
Mike Dentale
Cherish Andrews
Matt Brady
Tony Sinishtaj
Roman Valerstein
Joe Gibbons
Tony Behbahani
Chris Bell
Nick Petrangelo
Neville Darrell
Chris Grove
Vitaly Kovyazin
James Tedrow
Chad Batista
Matt Matros
Darren Elias
Ari Engel
Harrison Gimbel
Mark Ketteringham
Matt Stout
Joe Liberta
Thomas Hoglund
Bruce Yamron

and that's just the first nine tables!

Happy Aniversary Melissa & Adam Gerber!

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

♥♥ Adam and Melissa Gerber (Moorestown, NJ) are celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary today! ♥♥

♥♥ Wishing them all the best for many more years of married bliss! ♥♥

Adam, who won the 2007 US Poker Championship and has almost $1 million in lifetime earnings is here playing in the Championship day 1A today, hoping to add to that total.

Championship: New Twist!

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

There's a new twist on the Fall Poker Open Championship event.

In the past, there has been a cash bonus for the chip leader at the end of days 1A and 1B.

This time, the top TWO in chips will be rewarded with a bonus!

$3,000 will be awarded to the chip leader at the end of Day 1A and leader at end of Day 1B.

$2,000 will be awarded to the player finishing second in chips at the end of Day 1A and the player finishing second in chips at end of Day 1B.

Championship: Day 1A Underway

$2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
             $1,000,000 GUARANTEED

Day 1A of  the Borgata Fall Poker Open is underway!

Players started with 30,000 chips and levels are one hour long today (days 2-3 will be 75 minute levels).

Players who bust out may chose to re-enter as many times as they like through the end of the registration period (break after level 6 or about 5:45 pm).  Players who bust out (or surrender their chips) may register again on day 1B Monday.

Level 1 Blinds: 25/50.

Let the cards and chips fly!

Event 17 - Table Assignments & Chip Counts

Borgata Fall Poker Open
Event 17: $1000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em
November 17-18, 2012

Entries:  229
Total Buy-In:  $229,000

Players Remaining: 20
Average Chip Stack: 286,000


START OF DAY 2 SEAT ASSIGNMENTS & CHIP COUNTS:
T1 | S1 - JOHN WERTMAN (DALLAS, PA):  285,000
T1 | S2 - DAVID INSELBERG (LONG BEACH, NY):  392,000
T1 | S3 - ALFRED MOTTUR (CHEVY CHASE, MD):  66,500
T1 | S4 - PAUL VOLPE (WEST CHESTER, PA):  429,000
T1 | S5 - JEFFREY ESTERLING (ARNOLD, MD):  19,500

T2 | S1 - IAN SEARING (SMITHTOWN, NY):  205,500
T2 | S2 - EMANUEL FAILLA (SMITHTOWN, NY):  155,000
T2 | S3 - KYLE BOWKER (WALTON, NY):  836,000
T2 | S4 - DANIEL WACH (BOONTON, NJ):  240,000
T2 | S5 - JOHN PARKER (SILER SPRING, MD):  65,500

T3 | S1 - DILIP RAVINDRAN (JERSEY CITY, NJ):  413,000
T3 | S2 - HENRY MICHAEL BOROVETZ (PITTSBURGH, PA):  236,500
T3 | S3 - JOHN DELROSSI (MANTUA, NJ):  361,000
T3 | S4 - ALEXANDER QUEEN (BETHLEHEM, PA):  176,500
T3 | S5 - HARRY BIENENFELD (GLEN HEAD, NY):  89,000

T4 | S1 - BRIAN ALTMAN (LONGMEADOW, MA):  309,500
T4 | S2 - PERRY DEBARR (FALLS CHURCH, VA):  599,500
T4 | S3 - FRANK SMITH (LUMBERTON, NJ):  263,000
T4 | S4 - MARUTI YARLAPATI (PINEBROOK, NJ):  394,000
T4 | S5 - VINCENT MAGLIO (REVERE, MA):  132,500

Sunday, November 18

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

11 AM: Event 18A - $2500 + $200 Championship Deep Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
             $1,000,000 GUARANTEED 

• Players start with 30,000 in tournament chips 
• Day 1 Levels:  will last 60 minutes each | Day 2 & 3 Levels:  will last 75 minutes each 
• Players may Re-Enter through Level 6 
• 3-Day event with two starting days.  Day 2 begins Tuesday at 12PM
• $3,000 will be subtracted from the prize pool and awarded to the chip leader at the end of Day 1A and leader at end of Day 1B; 
• $2,000 will be subtracted from the prize pool and awarded to the player finishing second behind chip leader at the end of Day 1A and the player finishing second behind chip leader at end of Day 1B 

12 PM: Event 39 - $270 + $30 Championship Qualifier No Limit Hold'em

• Players start with 12,000 in tournament chips 
• Levels 1-15: will last 25 minutes each | Levels 16+: will last 30 minutes each 
• Approximately 1 in 10 will win $2700 entry into the Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship
  (Nov 18 - 21, 2012)
• 1-Day event  

3 PM: Event 40 - $540 + $60 Championship Qualifier No Limit Hold'em

• Players start with 15,000 in tournament chips 
• Levels 1-15: will last 30 minutes each | Levels 16+: will last 40 minutes each 
• Approximately 1 in 5 will win $2700 entry into the Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship
  (Nov 18 - 21, 2012)
• 1-Day event 

7 PM: Event 41 - $270 + $30 + $100 Black Chip Bounty Championship Qualifier No Limit Hold'em

• 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 1-15: will last 25 minutes each | Levels 16+: will last 30 minutes each 
• Approximately 1 in 10 will win $2700 entry into the Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship
  (Nov 18 - 21, 2012)
• 1-Day event  

Event 17: Bowker Leads, 1 pm Restart

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Kyle Bowker 

Chip Leader, 836k

Kyle Bowker (Walton, NY) is the chip leader with 836k as the final 20 players have bagged and tagged for the night.

The average stack is 286k (48 bb) with blinds going to 3k/6k/500 ante.

Play resumes 1 pm Sunday.

Name-Chip Count

Kyle Bowker 836,000 (139 bb)
Perry DeBarr 599,500
Paul Volpe 429,000
Dilip Ravindran 413,000
Marvti Yarlapati 394,000
Dave Inselberg 392,000
John DelRossi 361,000
Brian Altman 309,500
Average Stack 286k (48 bb)
John Wertman 285,000
Chip Smith 263,000
Dan Wach 240,000
Mike Borovetz 236,500
Ian Searing 205,500
Alex Queen 176,500
Will Failla 155,000
Vincent Maglio132,500
Harry Bienenfeld 89,000
Al Mottur 66,500
Brock Parker 65,500
Jeff Esterling 19,500 (3 bb)

Prize Pool

1:          $58,865
2:          $34,985
3:          $26,656
4:          $21,102
5:          $16,660
6:          $12,217
7:            $9,441
8:            $6,664
9:            $3,887
10-12:    $2,777
13-18:    $2,221
19-24:    $1,666

Check back after 9 am for seat assignments

Event 17: 24 to 21 places

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Four  players went down after the bubble broke and the last level was played out.

24 - Karthik, Alexandria Va. $1,666

23 - Jeffrey Einsidler, Beford NY, $1,666

22 - Samuel Bernstein, Englewood NJ, $1,666

21 - Max Digilov, Staten Island, $1,666

Event 17: Karthik First to Cash

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

On the first hand after the bubble, Dave Inselberg (NY) sends our first player into the money with
AJ against the pocket 6s of Karthik (Alexandria, VA).  Inselberg hits an ace on the flop to knock Karthik out in 24th place for $1,666.

Karthik is a former Borgata trophy winner, earning $33,000 for his win during the 2012 Borgata Spring Poker Open.

Hand-for-hand play lasted 34 minutes, so 17 minutes is put back on the clock and action will continue until the end of the level when they'll bag and tag for the night.

Event 17: Bubble Breaks

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Mr. Anonymous, showing that there's bad Karma in not giving your name to friendly bloggers, is the Bubble Boy.

Anonymous went all in with king, deuce against Johhn Del Rossi's suited jack, nine.

Two hearts on the flop and one on the river gave Del Rossi the flush and sent anonymous packing and put the remaining 24 players in the money.

They're playing out the level and then bag and tagging for tomorrow.

Event 17: Chip Doubles Twice Through Volpe

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Just before hand-for-hand play, Chip Smith (Lumberton, NJ) gets two double-ups through Paul Volpe (West Chester, PA). One of the hands comes at the same time Alex Queen knocked out a player on a neighboring table to set the field at 25.

Volpe has a pair of aces (A 7) against Smith's pair of kings (K 6) on an A K x flop.  The field is just two cards from the money, but a king on the turn gives Smith new life and keeps the field at 25, one spot from the money.

Event 17: Busted By Queen - Twice

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

It doesn't happen often, but Alex Queen (Bethlehem, PA) has the rare privilege of  busting the same person twice in the same tournament, all because of the re-entry option.

With 26 players remaining, Queen is all in with pocket kings against his opponent's pocket aces.  An ace hits the turn and the player is eliminated two spots from the money.

"I feel bad," says Queen, who told the table how he knocked out the same player earlier in the day.

We're now down to 25 players as action is hand-for-hand.

Event 17: Dueling Boats

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

When you see a flop of jack, jack, ace, you have to figure somebody has hit.

John Wertman, who was short-stacked down to about 95K, was sitting pretty with his pocket aces. But he slow played them against Al Mottur of Chevy Chase Md., first in with 30K and then raising all-in after Mottur bet 35K after the river.

That river card, a six, gave Mottur his own boat as he was holding pocket sixes.

That's kind of how slow playing is supposed to work - giving Mottur just enough time to bet into the better Full House.

They're two from the money at 26.

Event 17: Elimination....Finally

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

2k/4k/400 ante

After a long drought of eliminations, we finally see a couple of eliminations including Dan Buzgon.

On another table, four players see a flop of 5♥ 2♠ 3♦.

A player moves all in for 45k, Mike Borovetz re-shoves for 90k and puts Dave Inselberg in the tank.

Inselberg has both players covered, but has to worry about the big stack of Karthik who acts behind him. Inselberg eventually folds, as does Karthik.

Borovetz: J♦ 4♦ (over card, OE straight draw)
Opponent:  7♦ 5♦d (pair of 5s)

The turn brings the 6♣ to give Borovetz the winning straight and knock out a player.

We're currently at 26 players, two from the money.

Event 17: No Shame in Folding

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

2k/4k/400 ante

Mike Borovetz (Pittsburgh, PA) raises to 8,500 from UTG. Al Mottur (Chevy Chase, MD) raises to
23k from the button. Borovetz 4-bets to 64k and Mottur moves all in for 162k total.

"Is this really a cooler," laments Borovetz.

"No same in folding," says Mottur.

Borovetz makes the crying call with AK and is crushed by Mottur's pocket aces.

The rockets hold and Mottur gets a bubble double up, while Borovetz drops to 90k with 28 players remaining, four from the money.

Event 17: Wach Doubles Up

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Onetime chip Leader Dan Wach was in for his tournament life, down to his last 106,000. Called by John Del Rossi (who was just 50k from being knocked out at one point) Wach out kickered him.

Wach's ace, queen beat Del Rossi's ace, 10 as no help came on the board.

Meanwhile, down to 28, four from the money.

Event 17: No Laughing Matter

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Maglio & Bowker Enjoying Themselves on the Bubble

29 players remain and we're just five spots from the money. 

Kyle Bowker (Walton, NY) is the chip leader with 520k.  He has position on two other players with healthy stacks in Vinny Maglio (Revere, MA) and Perry DeBarr (Falls Church, VA).

The average is 197k (49 bb) as blinds are up to 2k/4k/400 ante after players were on a ten minute break.

Event 17: The Art of Will The Thrill

$1,000 + $90 Deep Stack Six-Max No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

While a few short-stacks have been hitting the rail, for the most part the larger stacked players have just been shuffling chips around for the last hour.

Fortunately, Will "the Thrill' Failla  is picking up the entertainment. And some of it even involves poker.

Failla made an 18K pre-flop bet which had John Del Rossi thinking.

"You know I wouldn't bluff," offered Failla.

"I've got one of those hands you really should fold," said Del Rossi.

"Then you'll have to suck out," Failla says. "In fact, I'll bet you that you'll have to suck out."

Del Rossi kept thinking and Failla kept offering helpful advice such as "I'm calling the shots."

Del Rossi said he'd fold if Failla showed. he agreed.

Failla had pocket 5s. Del Rossi had pocket 3s.

"I knew you had threes," Failla said.

Just the art of Will The Thrill.