Monday, September 9, 2013

Event 8: Bonacci Reclaims Lead

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 18:  Blinds 3k/6k/500 ante  

Franco Bonacci

Franco Bonacci has leap-frogged Dan Wach to retake the chip lead.

Franco is up to 700k as the last level of the night ticks away.

Dan is still holding onto second with about 550k.

Eleven tables (99 players) remain.  Average stack is 222k.

By comparison, the day 1A chip leader, John DiBella, finished the night with 723k.  Second in chips was Johnson Nguyen, who bagged 520k.

With ten minutes left on the clock, all tables will play five more hands, then bag up for the night.

Event 8: Holley Hits Rail

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 18:  Blinds 3k/6k/500 ante  

John Holley

Blinds are up for the last level of the night.

On the turn with a board of Q♣4♣36♣, John Holley (Destin, FL) was all-in for 138k and Josip Ricov (Sunnyside, NY) was in the tank.  The blind increase announcement happened while Josip considered his action.

After a few minutes, Josip made the call.  John tabled pocket 8s.  Josip held KQ off for a pair of Queens.

River was the 2 and no help to John.  He was busted.  John finished 2nd in event 3, the PLO/8 event just a few days ago, good for $9,411.  Josip chipped up to ~400k.

Event 8: More Big Stacks

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 17:  Blinds 2,500/5k/500 ante  

Franco Bonacci is up to ~480k, but isn't the chip leader.

Dan Wach

Dan Wach is up to 515k and currently leads the field.

Event 8: New Chip Leader?

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 17:  Blinds 2,500/5k/500 ante  

Play has resumed after the break.

David Albis

David Albis (Jackson, MS) appears to be the new chip leader with 425k.

Before the break,  Jonathan Kramer (Forest Hills, NY) opened for 10,200, Cherish Andrews (St. Thomas, PA) called on the button, then David raised to 50k from he big blind.

Jonathan jammed for 130k, Cherish got out of the way, and David snap-called.

Jonathan: QQ
David:  AA

The Aces held up and Jonathan was busted while David vaulted into the chip lead with two levels left to play.

Event 8: Suck-Out & Re-Suck-Out

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 16:  Blinds 2k/4k/400 ante 

Chris Edwards

Chris Edwards (Little Silver, NJ) got his chips in with AK and was racing against a player with pocket 7s.

An Ace on the flop gave Chris the lead and hope for survival.

Then a 7 on the turn gave his opponent a set and all of Chris' chips. 

Event 8: Celebrating Losing a Hand?

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 16:  Blinds 2k/4k/400 ante 

Marguerite Spagnuolo

After calling an 11,500 bet on the river, Marguerite Spagnuolo (Staten Island, NY) discovered her straight was beat by a full house. 

"I knew something was wrong when that went check, check" she said.  Apparently her opponent checked his boat until the river, when he bet.

"Woo!"  She said, celebrating that she lost the minimum on that hand.

She's in good shape with ~250k with three levels left to play tonight.

Marguerite won the Ladies event here during the 2013 Borgata Summer Poker Open, good for $4,766.

Event 8: Big Stacks Sharing Felt

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 16:  Blinds 2k/4k/400 ante

Peter Ippolito

Peter Ippolito (E Meadow, NY) is up to ~320k and challenging Franco Bonacci for the chip lead.

Franco is up to ~350k.

Both of these big stacks are sharing the felt on table five.

Event 8: O'Donoghue Exits

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 15:  Blinds 1,500/3,000/400 ante

Twenty tables remain with 200 players still in action today.

Average stack is 110k.

Brian O'Donoghue Takes Two

Brian O'Donoghue, (Bayside, NY) who was profiled after he went back-to-back during the 2012 Borgata Poker Open, has departed this event shortly after dinner.  He tweeted this after his exit:


Event 8: Albilia Out-Kicks Button

 $500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 15:  Blinds 1,500/3,000/400 ante


Ari Albilia's All-In Moment

During the previous level (1,200/2,400/300 ante):

On a flop of T 5 3 with two spades, Ari Albilia (Syosset, NY) was all-in from the small blind against the player on the button.

Ari:  KT (top pair, King kicker)
Button: T6 suited (top pair, 6 kicker)

The last two fell 4 A and Ari doubled his short stack to about 30k.

Event 8: Brown Doubles

 $500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 14:  Blinds 1,200/2,400/300 ante

Travis Greenawalt

Travis Greenawalt (Landisville, PA) opened for 6,400, got called by the small blind, then Chad Brown shoved from the big blind.

Travis folded, but the big blind called.

BB:  JT
Chad:  AK

Board: A Q 5 7 4

Chad paired his Ace and doubled up to ~90k.

Sharing the felt on table 5 with Travis and Chad are Joe Palma (winner of event 3, PLO/8), Peter Ippolito, and big stack Franco Bonacci.

Event 8: Back In Action

 $500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 14:  Blinds 1,200/2,400/300 ante

After-dinner play is underway.  Five levels to go before the bag & tag.  That's five levels to claim those chip lead bonuses, also.

Here are the dinner-time tweets from the field:

Leo Gee ‏@LeoNYpoker 57m
140k on dinner break avg stack 82k

Amanda Musumeci ‏@TheReaLMander 54m
Wow got 2outed for most of it right before the dinner bell. Fmlll. QQ<55 on the river. Coming back with 30k. #ninjas

John Allan Hinds ‏@JABistro 52m
61k on dinner break

Andrew Spears ‏@soccerajs77 50m
60k at dinner, coming back to 2400bb.

Edward Pham ‏@EdwardPhamPoker 48m
55K at dinner break of Borgata 560

Kori Hunter ‏@korihunter 48m
KK < AA aipf for 85k last hand before dinner. Out. Got my voucher though! #BPO 500k gtd

Cherish Andrews ‏@CherishAndrews 46m
Dinner break with 75k.

Lee Childs ‏@leechilds 45m
253k at dinner. Coming back to 1200/2400/300.

Aaron Pinson ‏@NityByNature 45m
88k on dinner break of the 500k

Kevin Saul ‏@BeL0WaB0Ve 45m
Good news: made dinner break of the 500k. Bad news: I only have 40k (15bbs) after taking a 2 outer on river

Norman Michalek ‏@norm_michalek 43m
About 93k on dinner break heading to 1.2/2.4k blinds. Gonna get my noms on.

Jordan Ludwick ‏@JluddyPoker 41m
90k on dinner break @BorgataPoker

Chris Leong ‏@ChrisLeongPoker 40m
~80k at dinner coming back to bb 2400

Michael Marder ‏@MMarder86 40m
81,200 on dinner. Coming back to 2400/300. #BPO8

Jonathan Kramer ‏@JonathanKramer2 17m
140k ok dinner break! #leggo

Marguerite Spagnuolo ‏@mmmmarguerite 5m
145k at dinner @BorgataPoker. About 240 left from 733. Avg stack 90k. #BPO8 

Event 8 - Payouts

Borgata Poker Open
Event 8 - $500 + $60 Deeper Stack No Limit Hold'em
September 8-10, 2013

Entries:  1,056
Total Buy-In:  $528,000

PAYOUTS:
1:        $111,360
2:          $66,914
3:          $40,493
4:          $33,913
5:          $27,839
6:          $22,524
7:          $17,969
8:          $13,666
9:            $9,364
10-12:    $6,074
13-15:    $4,302
16-18:    $2,784
19-27:    $2,278
28-36:    $1,974
37-45:    $1,772
46-54:    $1,569
55-63:    $1,417
64-72:    $1,265
73-81:    $1,164
82-90:    $1,063
91-100:  $1,012

Event 8: Chad Calls It Like It Is

  $500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Chad Brown (Las Vegas,NV) is not a regular here at Borgata, but he's already got this crowd figured out.

Chad Brown

He tweeted this:



Actually Chad, those dinner vouchers are the new 'min-cash'.

Event 8: Dinner Time

 $500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

End of level 13 and time for dinner.  Play will resume at 8:08 pm with level 14, blinds 1,200/2,400 with 300 ante.

There are still 25 active tables, which puts the count of remaining players at 241-250 (out of 733 entries).

Average stack is about 90k.


Professional Photographer In Action

Eric Harkins of Image Masters (IMPDI) has been on the floor of the Borgata Poker Open since Thursday, snapping photos of players in all the main events.

As an added bonus during the series, IMPDI and Borgata are providing a customized 16 x 20 framed photo with Borgata chip and event information plaque to the winner of each Borgata Poker Open trophy event.

If you're not fortunate enough to win a custom framed photo, you can always check out the online gallery available for purchase or stop by the IMPDI table in the event center lobby to browse the photos, look at samples, and talk to Eric in person.

Event 8: Bonacci Leads

 $500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 13:  Blinds 1k/2k/300 ante

Franco Bonacci

Franco Bonacci (Pittsburgh, PA) is up to ~320k and the chip lead.

Franco has two Borgata Open titles to his credit already.  He won the $1k Six Max No Limit Hold'em event during the 2011 Borgata Spring Poker Open, for $33,174.  Then he won the $350 Big Stack NLH event during the 2012 Borgata Summer Poker Open for $23,191.

Still five-plus levels to go, so plenty of time to build those stacks!

Event 8: O'Brien Chipping Up

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 13:  Blinds 1k/2k/300 ante

 Players have returned from break.

Lana O'Brien's All-In Moment

During the previous level:

On a flop of 8 4 3 with two hearts, seat 7 bet 6,500, seat 8 raised to 14,500,  then Lana O'Brien (Englishtown, NJ) jammed for 48,800. 

After a couple of minutes in the tank,  seat 7 let it go.  Seat 8 followed suit and Lana collected the pot, chipping up to ~90k.

Event 8: Prescott Triples, Martin Climbing

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 12: Blinds 800/1,600/200

In the Allie for a Triple

Allie Prescott (Memphis, TN) has nearly $900,000 in career tournament earnings and is looking to add to his Borgata total.

Prescott is all in for 24k against two players and when the dust settles, Prescott flops the nuts with KQ on a J 10 9 board for the triple-up.

Prescott finished third here in January during the Winter Poker Open for $18,000 in the $1K won by Aaron Massey (Chicago, IL).

As level winds down, Nancy Martin (Washington Crossing, PA) dodges her opponent's outs with pocket 10s, adding 25k to take her stack to 152k.

Players are heading on break.

Event 8: Twitter Updates #Bustouts

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 12: Blinds 800/1,600/200 ante





Event 8: Big Stacks Building

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Blinds 800/1,600/200 ante

Joe Pozos

Joe Pozos (Lewes, DE) is up to ~300k and possibly the chip lead.  He was not aware of the chip lead bonuses, but he is now!

The chip leader at the end of play (end of level 18) earns a $2,000 bonus.  Second in chips earns $1,000. 

Joe is sharing the felt with Borgata regular Dan Wach (Boonton, NJ) who is up to 240k.  Dan has some experience with chip lead bonuses.  He won a $3,000 bonus for being the end of day 1A chip leader during the 2013 Borgata Summer Poker Open Championship.  Dan ended up finishing 2nd in that event, earning $235,627.

Event 8: Hinds with Maccaroni Helper

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 12: Blinds 800/1,600/200 ante

John Allan Hinds tweets his double-up through Matt Maccaroni, but we think he should reconsider his assessment:


Maccaroni is definitely better than Huck Seed, but what about Ben Lamb and Christina Pie?!?!!?

Event 8: Chen Cuts Two

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 11: Blinds 600/1,200/200 ante

Guo Liang Chen

Ralph Massey (Chicago, IL) shoved for ~16k, then Alex Rocha (S Setauket, NY) re-shoved for 40k.

Guo Liang Chen (Philadelphia, PA) had them both covered and called. The hands were tabled:

Ralph:  AK
Alex:  AQ of hearts
Guo:  JJ

A Jack and two hearts on the flop gave Guo a set, but gave Alex a flush draw.

Then the case Jack hit the turn and it was over Guo scooped the pots with quadzilla.  Both Ralph and Alex reported to the rail with no chance to re-enter.

This table (21) was a really nasty one, with these familiar faces in addition to those above:

Wendy Freedman
Leo G
Baruch Thaler
Rick Austin
Russ Dykshteyn

Event 8: Fantasy vs Reality

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Fox & Linster Heads Up
 
Level 11: Blinds 600/1,200k/200 ante (increased to 40 min.)
 
Dave Fox (Coram, NY) and Mike Linster (Island Park, NY) are playing heads up at the poker table, but not in cards. They're in a fantasy football league together and their game comes down to Monday Night Football (MNF).
 
"I've got an outside shot," says Linster, who trails Fox by 20 points; but both have players in tonight's MNF games.
 
Fox + 20
 
Remaining Players
 
Foster
Tate
Forbath
 
Linster
 
Remaining Players
 
RG3
Gates
Houston D
 
Linster's hoping for a comeback that makes the game as close as their chips stacks. He's at 29,400, while Fox has 29,600, "but he's in the small blind, so I took the lead."
 
 


Event 8: Branimir Busts Three

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 10: Blinds 500/1,000/100 ante

Branimir Krgin

After a raising, shoving, and calling frenzy on table 8, four players were all-in pre-fop.

Paul Vacchio:  JJ
Unsub:  33
Neville Darrell:  AQ♠
Branimir Krgin: T♠T♣

Board: A♣7♣28♣9♣

Paul Vacchio (Inwood, NY) was ahead going in, but he did not have a club. 

Neville Darrell (Sarasota, FL) took the lead on the flop with a pair of Aces.

By the river, there were four clubs on the board and Branimir Krgin (Harrison, NY) made a flush to scoop all the pots, busting the other three players in the process.  He's now up to ~125k.

Event 8: Break Time Tweets

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 10: Blinds 500/1,000/100 ante

Play has resumed after the color-up break.

Looks like the early chip leader may be Josip Ricov with ~176k.

Here are some other chip chirps from the break:

joe ‏@joeyrodsx3 15m
Color up break coming back to 13k at 500/1000/100 lets get some rungood

Lee Childs ‏@leechilds 13m
93k at the break. 500/1000/100 next.

Chris Leong ‏@ChrisLeongPoker 11m
Will failla open 1800 mp, Btn flat, I go 6800 from bb, will snap all in for 32k eff and kk > QJs. 64k at bb 1k

Jesse Cohen ‏@JCohen130 10m
46k @ 1k #investors #fans #loversandfriends

Frank Alger ‏@frankalger 9m
62300 on last break before buy in/rebuys end. 55 vs A-paint twice for 2 kos. @BorgataPoker $560 nlhe

Michael Marder ‏@MMarder86 8m
67,300 coming back to 1k/100. Was over 100k then had AA aiof of A73ddx...so yeah. #BPO8

Kevin Saul ‏@BeL0WaB0Ve 6m
Made it thru 9 levels without rebuying!! #winning 48k going to 500-1k

Andrew Spears ‏@soccerajs77 5m
52k at end of reentry.

Jordan Ludwick ‏@JluddyPoker 4m
48k goin to 500/1000 after break @BorgataPoker

Christine Brewer ‏@CBrewer_09 2m
Made it through re entry period on one bullet #winning!!

Jason Nagers ‏@Felt_Proof 26s
Just got to AC and super late Regg'd the $560, 55k from 30kss #BPO

Kevin McColgan ‏@Bukowski101 1m
Down to 13k then up to 38k after some silly shit 500/1k

Aaron Pinson ‏@NityByNature 1m
30k at start of 5/1k. End of rentries

Jonathan Kramer ‏@JonathanKramer2 40s
75k at 1k bb.. Re buy period over . Successful 1 bullet. #leggo


Marguerite Spagnuolo ‏@mmmmarguerite 25s
First day of school a success! In other news, I have 110k @BorgataPoker Event 8!!!

Event 8: Last of the Re-Entry Tickets

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

On Break, Next Blinds 500/1k/100 ante

Phillips (left) Facing Akturk's Turn Bet

On the last hand of the level, Ali Akturk (Maspeth, NY) and Carter Phillips (Charlotte, NC)
play into the break with the board showing A J 10 9 Q.

Phillips checks, Akturk moves all in for 12k and Phillips calls.

Phillips: AQ (two pairs)
Akturk: 33 (pair of 3s)

"Can I get a ticket," asks Akturk who will be one of the final players re-entering the tournament.

Phillips is up to 118k with re-entry closing.

Event 8: Last Level to Re-Enter

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 9: Blinds 400/800/75 ante

Players have 30 minutes of play and the following break to re-enter and late register the tournament.

The window closes at ~4:15 pm.

Event 8: Bullets Flying

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Floor Manager Ryan Lets Estevez Pick her Poison,
as Andrews Waits

Level 8: Blinds 300/600/75 ante

The steady stream of bustouts have players making the long walk to the registration desk, then back into the Event Center to find their new seats.

Those jumping back in recently to fire another bullet include David Kim (Flushing, NY), Alan Kraut (Doylestown, PA), Elda Estevez (Jamaica, NY) and Cherish Andrews (Brigantine, NJ), who tweets:


Event 8: 3 Levels to Register

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Event Center

Level 7: 250/500/50 ante

More than 600 players are in the 1B field, putting the total entries at more than 900.

Will "The Thrill" Failla (Commack, NY), fresh off his 5th Borgata trophy, has taken his seat in the Event Center.

Registration is open through the break after level 9, until ~4:20 pm.

Event 8: Break Time Tweet Counts

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Next Blinds: 250/500/50 ante

Chip Counts (via Twitter)

Michael Marder 87k
Norman Michalek 64k
Lee Childs 63k
Amanda Musumeci 30k
Kevin McColgan 30k
Allison Schultz 27k
Jesse Cohen 27k
Tim Bishop 25k
Andrew Spears 27k

Event 8: Second to One

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 6: Blinds 200/400/50 ante

Jonas Wexler

Two of the more visible runner-ups in the series are in the 1B field.

Jonas Wexler (Southampton, PA), who battled to a second place finish for $25,448 in the $1K is here, along with Event 1 runner-up Dan Wach (Boonton, PA) who earned $235,627.

Also in the field is Wendy Freedman (Las Vegas, NV) who bagged $25,856 as runner-up in Event #7 ($450 Entry).

5-time Borgata trophy winner Will Failla (Commack, NY), who defeated Wexler early this morning for $46,269, has yet to make an appearance, despite his fans clamoring for his arrival.

Dan Wach

Event 8: Ralphy Stacks Neiman

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 5: Blinds 150/300/75 ante

Dealer Tu, Counts the Stacks as (l-r) Kelly & Marano Watch

With unlimited re-entries, players are firing early and often.  We pick up a hand with three-players all in after the flop of 4♣ 2 9 ♣.

Phil Neiman (Flushing, NY): Q♣ 10♣ (flush draw)
Ralphy "Stacks" Marano (Bloomfield, NJ): 2♠ 2♣ (set)
Peter Kelly (New Haven, CT): Q Q♠ (over pair)

Turn: 8♣ (Neiman flush)

River: 4 (Marano full house)

Marano knocks out Neiman, doubles through Kelly and is up to 90k.

Kelly drops to 5k, while Neiman picks up a re-entry ticket.

Marano sends a shoutout to Sergeant Joe B.

Event 8: Back From Break

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
Level 4: Blinds 100/200

Twitter Counts

Frank Alger 34k
John Zentner 33k
Tim Bishop 32k
Jesse Cohen 24k

Reminder to players to tag @BorgataPoker on their chip counts; we're using the hashtag #BPO

Event 8: Texas Hold'em, Three Seats Open

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
Level 3: Blinds 75/150

Saydam, Nguyen & Ricov Three-Handed

Josip Ricov (Sunnyside, NY) is sitting pretty with the 120k after knocking out three players on two consecutive hands.  Ricov is left with only two other players at the table, Menam Saydam (Potomac, MD) and Dat Nguyen (Forest, VA), and they can't play the third level until more victims, or players, arrive.

On the first knockout, Marguerite Spagnuolo (Staten Island, NY) 4-bets preflop with pocket Queens and Ricov sees a flop of 2-2-5. After the turn and river Ricov open ships and Spagnuolo calls.

Ricov: A2
Spagnuolo: QQ

Trip 2s is the winner and Spagnuolo is out the door, "I was looking for the hidden cameras," says the good natured Spagnuolo. "Thought it was a joke, A2 off, only at BorGOTCHA!"

On the next hand Ricov, Daniel Welborn & Joel Frank are all in after a flop of  9♠ 5 2.

Ricov: 6 7(flush draw)
Welborn: QQ (over pair)
Frank: 22 (set)

Turn: 4♠ (Ricov adds gutterball)

River: 10

A river flush sends two more out the door and has the remaining players shaking their heads.

"Make sure you tell them that I raised preflop," says Ricov, adding there's "no chance" he'll be re-entering.

To get a sense of what Ricov is all about, here's a look at a photo from January's Borgata Winter Poker Open.

Ricov Out of Hibernation

Event 8: Early Tweets

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 2: Blinds 50/100


Event 8: $500,000 GUARANTEED (Part 2)

$500 + $60 Deeper Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Level 1: Blinds 25/50

After a busy Sunday/early Monday, that had three Borgata trophies handed out, final table intensity is replaced with volume and Day 1B of the $500,000 Guarantee.

Day 1A had 320 entries and it's expected that Day 1B will more than double the number.

The tournament features 30k chips and 30 minute levels to start.

Re-entry and late registration is open for the first 9 Levels and the two end of night big stacks receive bonuses: $2,000 for chip leader, $1,000 for second place.

The fourth guarantee of the Borgata Poker Open is underway and after going three-for-three, players are looking to make it four in a row.

The guarantee joins the $2 Million Guarantee opening event, the $150,000 Guarantee $1k tournament and Saturday's Event 7, $100,000 Guarantee.

Monday, September 9

TODAY'S EVENTS (EVENT CENTER)

11AM: Event 8B - $500 + $60 Deeper Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
             $500,000 GUARANTEED
  • Players start with 30,000 in tournament chips 
  • Levels 1-10: will last 30 minutes each | Levels 11-20: will last 40 minutes each
    Levels 21+:  will last 50 minutes each
  • Players that bust within the first 9 Levels may Re-Enter (unlimited re-entries) 
  • 2-Day event with two starting days.  Day 2 starts on Tuesday at 12PM
  • $2,000 will be awarded to the chipleader at the end of Day 1A and Day 1B
    $1,000 will be awarded to the player finishing second behind the chipleader at the end of Day 1A and Day 1B

4 PM: Event 36 - $200 + $30  SURVIVOR NLH
  • Players start with 15,000 in tournament chips
  • Levels will last 25 minutes each 
  • Approximately 1 in 10 will win $2,000 CASH
  • 1-Day event

7 PM: Event 37 - $150 + $30 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)
  • Players start with 15,000 in tournament chips 
  • This is a Bounty tournament.  Players must have their Bounty chip clearly displayed on table in order to remain active in tournament
  • Levels will last 20 minutes each
  • Players that bust within the first 6 Levels may Re-Enter (unlimited re-entries) 
  • 1-Day event

    Event 10 Recap

    2013 Borgata Poker Open $350 Buy-In + $50 Entry Ladies No Limit Hold'Em (Re-Entry)
    Entrants: 74
    Prize pool: $25,123


    A tired but thrilled Alyson Parker gave her two friends on the rail a huge hug after coming back from a huge chip deficit to overcome runner-up Grace Sun to win her first major tournament ever. "I have the best rail ever," Alyson said, a huge smile on her face. "You gotta love my girls." For her great comeback, Parker is going home with an impressive $8,793 and not one, but two, trophies.



     Alyson Parker (Plainsboro, NJ) - 1st place - $8,793


    When the final table started, our final ten looked like this:

    Seat One: Grace Sun, Merrick, NY 220K
    Seat Two: Leanne Rosenblatt, Towns River, NJ 185K
    Seat Three: Jeanelle Roberts, Haverstraw, NY 175K
    Seat Four: Alyson Parker, Plainsboro, NJ 135K
    Seat Five: Dawn Santoli, Staten Island, NY 270K
    Seat Six: Mara Mercado, Queens, NY 190K
    Seat Seven: Sheree Bykofsky, Atlantic City, NJ 185K
    Seat Eight: Gina Saladino, Conshohocken, PA 180K
    Seat Nine: Diana Shamshoum, Montreal, Canada 215K
    Seat Ten: Holly Raba, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 100K

    Play was slow at first as each of the remaining ten did not want to be the bubble girl. Jeanelle Roberts would be that unfortunate person when she lost a race to Diana Shamshoum to finish in 10th place. It took some time before we would lose another player, Sheree Bykofsky, in 9th place but once Bykofsky was eliminated the rest of the ladies would follow, mostly at the hands of Grace Sun who would roll into heads up play with Parker with a huge chip lead. Sun would eliminate player after player but then ran into the hot hand of Parker once heads up play commenced to make it all for nothing. The key hand was one where Sun had Parker dominated with A-T against A-8 but Parker would hit an 8 to assume control of the match.

    The order of finish and payouts were as follows:

    1st - Alyson Parker $8,793
    2nd - Grace Sun $4,773
    3rd - Dawn Santoli $3,015
    4th - Leanne Rosenblatt $2,261
    5th - Diana Shamshoum $1,759
    6th - Gina Saladino $1,507
    7th - Mara Mercado $1,256
    8th - Holly Raba $1,005
    9th - Sheree Bykofsky $754

    After the win, Parker said that she had been playing poker since she was young and joked "which was a long time ago." Young at heart though, Parker is looking forward to more opportunities now to play poker at Borgata. "Borgata is home for me. I play here a lot." Alyson is going to try and satellite her way into the WPT Main Event. If she plays like she did today, we might just be seeing her with Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten in a couple of weeks.


    Event 9 Recap

    2013 Borgata Poker Open $400 Buy-In + $50 Entry Pot Limit Omaha High Only (Re-Entry)
    Entrants: 90
    Prize pool: $34,920


    Jason Rosenberg is a high stakes Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) cash game player who routinely plays at stakes of $25/$50 and above. It was no surprise then that he was able to translate his cash game skill into his first ever tournament win. Short stacked with ten remaining, and with only nine getting paid, Rosenberg battled back from last place to the point that he had a commanding chip lead with four players left. He fought off a valiant effort from his heads up challenger, Gabriel Ohana, in order to win the $12,222 first place prize and a beautiful Borgata Poker Open trophy.


    Jason Rosenberg (Raleigh, NC) - 1st place - $12,222


    When the final table started, our final ten looked like this:

    Seat One: Jason Rosenberg, Raleigh, NC 120K
    Seat Two: Robert Melo, Queens, NY 140K
    Seat Three: Gil Sacks, Bala Cynwyd, PA 130K
    Seat Four: Daniel Jones, Columbus, OH 165K
    Seat Five: Gabriel Ohana, Baltimore, MD 420K
    Seat Six: Mike Zuniga, Frederick, MD 275K
    Seat Seven: Glenn Engelbert, Erial, NJ 165K
    Seat Eight: Kori Hunter, Columbia, MD 100K
    Seat Nine: Oliver Entine, New York, NY 70K
    Seat Ten: Michael Clark, Kearney, NJ 220K

    Only nine of the ten players would make the money and it would take over three hours until we would reach that point. The unlucky bubble boy would be Kori Hunter from Columbia, MD. It would take another hour to eliminate another player, three time Borgata Poker Open winner Glenn Engelbert, in 9th place but once that elimination took place the flood gates opened and it would only be a couple of hours before we would crown our winner.

    The order of finish and payouts were as follows:

    1st place - Jason Rosenberg $12,222
    2nd place - Gabriel Ohana 6,635
    3rd place - Michael Clark $4,190
    4th place - Daniel Jones $3,143
    5th place - Mike Zuniga $2,444
    6th place - Oliver Entine $2,095
    7th place - Robert Melo $1,746
    8th place - Gil Sacks $1,397
    9th place - Glenn Engelbert $ 1,048

    After the win, Rosenberg explained how he wasn't even going to play the tournament but a friend convinced him too. "It's my first tournament win ever," an excited Rosenberg said. Even though he routinely plays pots that equal how much he won in this event, the challenge of besting 89 other players was more than enough to satisfy Rosenberg. "It feels nice," he said. "It's hard to get all the chips in play." Jason loves the Borgata and isn't done playing here. "I plan on playing Day 1B tomorrow and will also play in the WPT Main Event," Jason said. With his win in this tournament, he'll be able to do so without worrying too much about the hit on his pocketbook.


    Event 10 - 1st place Alyson Parker

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    With a persistent, never give-up, attitude, Alyson Parker hung in throughout the final table and used a combination of great play, good timing, and a little bit of luck to come out on top of the Ladies event winning her first ever major tournament. "I've won a few nightly tournaments," she said, adding "but those don't count." Her rail joined her in celebration causing Parker to state that "I have the best rail ever. You gotta love my girls."

    Alyson was tired but felt good and said that the Borgata is home to her. "I'm going to definitely be playing more events now and am going to try and satellite into the WPT Main Event," she said. Parker has been playing poker since she was young which she joked "was a long, long time ago."



    Alyson Parker (Plainsboro, NJ) - 1st place - $8,793

    Event 10 - 2nd place Grace Sun

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    Grace Sun had a commanding chip lead entering heads up play but everything that could go wrong... did... and ultimately she would be unable to come back against Alyson Parker and would have to settle for second place. It all started when Alyson moved all in with A-J and Grace called with K-Q and was unable to outdraw Alyson. Then Grace would get unlucky when Alyson would hit an 8 with her A-8 to best the A-T that she held. With Alyson now holding a 2:1 chip lead, Grace moved all in over the top of Alyson's raise with K-T and could only say "crap" when she saw that Alyson had her dominated with A-T. The board would come in Alyson's favor to give Grace the runner-up finish.



    Grace Sun (Merrick, NY) - 2nd place - $4,773

    Event 9 - 1st place Jason Rosenberg

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    At one point, Jason Rosenberg was on the verge of not even making the money. The shortest stack at one point with ten players remaining, Rosenberg found a couple of double ups by doing as he said "putting my money in and coming back bigger." Rosenberg, a high stakes PLO cash game player, said this was "the first tournament I've ever won" adding that "it feels nice. It's hard to get all the chips in play." Rosenberg was not going to play the tournament but his friend Gabriel convinced him to.

    Rosenberg gushed about the Borgata stating it was one of his favorites to play at on the tournament circuit. He'll be playing Day 1B of Event #8 tomorrow and also plans on playing in the WPT Main Event. For now, he'll catch a few hours of sleep knowing that he's essentially free-rolling the rest of the Borgata Poker Open.


    Jason Rosenberg (Raleigh, NC) - 1st place - $12,222

    Event 9 - 2nd place Gabriel Ohana

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    Gabriel Ohana entered heads up play at a huge chip disadvantage to Jason Rosenberg but managed to pull even after scoring two double ups. He would get his money in good on his elimination hand holding A6T♠2 on a A8♣7 flop but was up against Rosenberg's huge drawing hand as he held JT98. Rosenberg would hit his wrap on the 6 turn and the 7♣ on the river did nothing to change the outcome.


    Gabriel Ohana (Baltimore, MD) - 2nd place - $6,635

    Event 10 - 3rd place Dawn Santoli

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    On a nine high flop, Dawn moved all in with J-9 only to find she was in big trouble because Alyson Parker had pocket aces. Dawn was unable to improve and we are now heads up between Alyson and Grace Sun.


    Dawn Santoli (Staten Island, NY) - 3rd place - $3,015

    Event 9 - 4th place Daniel Jones

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)



    Daniel Jones (Columbus, OH) - 4th place - $3,143

    Event 9 - 3rd place Michael Clark

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)


    Michael Clark (Kearney, NJ) - 3rd place - $4,190

    Event 9 - 5th place Mike Zuniga

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    At one point Jason Rosenberg looked like he was in danger of bubbling. A couple of double ups put him in good shape and now he is crushing the final table with over 2/3 of the chips in play with four players remaining. His latest victim was Mike Zuniga who put the last of his chips into the middle with AK♠32 against Jason's A♠A9♣2. Jason would end up hitting a full house, aces full of fives, bringing his stack to 1.1 million.


    Mike Zuniga (Frederick, MD) - 5th place - $2,444

    Event 10 - 4th place Leanne Rosenblatt

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    A short stacked Leanne Rosenblatt moved all in with 9♠7♠ and was called by the overwhelming chip leader Grace Sun who held K-J. Leanne was able to get any help and we are down to our final three.


    Leanne Rosenblatt (Towns River, NJ) - 4th place - $2,261



    Event 9 - 6th place Oliver Entine

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    Oliver Entine was the next victim in our series of rapid fire eliminations. With only one big blind left and on a flop of A-4-4, Oliver was looking good with his K-K-T-4 against his opponent's A-J-x-x. The river was an ace though and that would be the end of the day for Oliver.



    Oliver Entine (New York, NY) - 6th place - $2,095

    Event 9 - 7th place Robert Melo

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    Earlier they weren't busting at all, now they are busting left and right. Robert Melo got it all in with K-K-x-x against Daniel Jones A-Q-T-9. The flop came 9-8-x and the river was a jack to give Jones the nut straight.

    Robert Melo (Queens, NY) - 7th place - $1,746

    Event 9 - 8th place Gil Sacks

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    The colorful presence of Gil Sacks is no longer with us as he was eliminated in 8th place.


    Gil Sacks (Bala Cynwyd, PA) - 8th place - $1,397

    Event 9 - 9th place Glenn Engelbert

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    No details of the hand but multiple Borgata Open event winner Glenn Engelbert was eliminated in 9th place as players are finally starting to have to risk chips.



    Glenn Engelbert (Erial, NJ) - 9th place - $1,048

    Event 10 - 5th place Diana Shamshoum

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    A tired Diana Shamshoum raised blind to 60K. Grace Sun raised enough to set her all in and Shamshoum made the call with 7-3. Sun held A-Q and an ace on the river was more than enough to send Shamshoum off to bed. Sun is the overwhelming chip leader four handed.


    Diana Shamshoum (Montreal), 5th place - $1,759

    Event 10 - 6th place Gina Saladino

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    Gina Saladino got the rest of her chips all in and was called by Grace Sun. Gina held K♠J♠ and was against Sun's A♠6♠. The ace high held and Gina was our next player eliminated.


    Gina Saladino (Conshohocken, PA) - 6th place - $1,507

    Event 10 - 7th place Mara Mercado

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    Mara Mercado was eliminated in 7th place at the hands of Diana Shamshoum. Hand details were not available.


    Mara Mercado (Queens, NY) - 7th place - $1,256

    Event 9 - But I have a flush draw...

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    Blinds 8K/16K

    A short stacked Gil Sacks moves all in on a rainbow flop and is called. Both players turn over Aces with rag cards. Sacks is suited in spades and says "but I have a flush draw." Apparently, Sacks is psychic because the turn and river were spades to give him the nut flush and double him up.

    A few hands later a short stacked Oliver Entine doubles up against Robert Melo when his K♣Q♣64♠ outkicks Melo's K♠J♠T6 on the K9♣45♣5 board.

    We're still at nine players and it looks like this final table is going to be a long one.

    Event 9 - Longest bubble ever finally pops

    $400 + $50 Big Stack PLO High (Re-Entry)

    Blinds 8K/16K

    It took exactly 3 hours to go from ten to nine players in Event #9, an unusually long bubble for a Pot Limit Omaha tournament. In the end it was Kori Hunter (Columbia, MD) who would be our 10th place finisher at the hands of Gabriel Ohana.

    Things should pick up (right?) now that they are in the money.


    Kori Hunter (Columbia, MD) - Our Bubble Boy

    Event 6: Recap

    $1,000 + 90 NL Hold'em (Re-Entry) $150,000 Guarantee

    Will "The Thrill" Failla (Commack, NY) becomes Borgata's first five time trophy winner after outlasting an extremely tough field, and a drawn out final table.  Will would be three handed with Anthony Zinno and Jonas Wexler (Southampton, PA) at 6:15pm, with the heads up battle ending just before 2:00am.  Jonas Wexler would fall just short of his first trophy, but would take home his largest Borgata cash to date with the $25,448 for second place.


    This event carried a $150,000 guarantee on total buy-ins and that hurdle was cleared by a hair as 159 entries generated total buy-ins of $159,000.  The final 18 players earned a cut and they played a long 16 hours on day one to bust the money bubble and get to the final 18, who returned for day two.



    The final table formed with only nine players, instead of the usual ten, thanks to a double knock-out by start-of-day-two chip leader Glen Minxolli.  Two short stacks were all-in and Minxolli had them covered, then went runner-runner to crack pocket Kings and beat AT with his AJ, making a straight.  Minxolli's luck turned after that, however, and the final table watched his stack dwindle.  He ended up finishing in sixth place.

    Failla's lifetime earnings are now over $4,000,000, and he has a certain affinity for Borgata's tournament series.  Failla noted how Allen Kessler mentioned to him earlier in the day that if Will would go on to win the tournament, it would be difficult for Kessler to catch him in this series (Kessler has three trophy wins).  Failla will be back in action tomorrow, playing Day 1B of Event 8 $560 ($500,000 Guarantee).
      

    Final Table Results

    1 - Will Failla (Commack, NY) $46,269
    2 - Jonas Wexler (Southampton, PA) $25,448
    3 - Anthony Zinno (Cranston, RI) $14,652
    4 - Mike Sneideman (Newtown, CT)  $12,338
    5 - Ryan Feldman (Plantsville, CT)  $9,254
    6 - Glen Minxolli (Peabody, MA)  $7,712
    7 - Cary Marshall (King Salmon, AK)  $6,169
    8 - Bill Jennings (Darien, CT)  $4,627
    9 - Xin 'Jay' Jin (Herndon, VA)  $3,470

    Event 10 - 8th place Holly Raba

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    After losing most of her stack to Mara Mercado, Holly Raba moved all in for 30K with the blinds at 8K/16K with a 2K ante. Leanne Rosenblatt also moved all in and the hands were turned over. A♠3♦ for Holly and A♥J♥ for Leanne. A jack on the river wasn't even needed as Rosenblatt held the lead through the entire hand. Holly and her family are headed back to Florida a little bit better off than when they got here.


    Holly Raba - 8th place - $1,005

    Event 10 - 9th place Sheree Bykofsky

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    With the blinds at 5K/10K and a 1K ante, Sheree Bykofsky (Atlantic City, NJ) moved all in for 60K with A-6 and was called by Grace Sun who held pocket jacks. The best hand prevailed and Bykofsky was off to collect her winnings.


    Sheree Bykofsky (Atlantic City, NJ) - 9th place - $754

    Event 10 - An excuse to leave home

    $350 + $50 Ladies Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

    Holly Raba told me that she was from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida when I was getting the final table information. "That's a long way from home," I surmised. She laughed. "Why are you in Atlantic City?" I asked. "To play in this tournament," she answered. "Just this tournament," I said, somewhat incredulous that someone would come all the way to Atlantic City for a $400 tournament. She nodded.

    It didn't make much sense to me until I saw her on break walking out with a group of people. When she came back she explained that she had come with her family. "It's their excuse to leave Florida," she said. "My Mom, Dad, Aunt, and two sisters are here with me." She added how much they loved the Borgata and to her families credit they have been sitting there the entire final table watching from a distance. It can't be too exciting for them but they are there cheering Holly on.

    Holly Raba's family cheering her on

    Event 6: 1st Place - Failla ($46,269)

    $1,000 + 90 NL Hold'em (Re-Entry)

    Will Failla (Commack, NY)
    Event 6 Winner - $46,269