Friday, November 18, 2011

Event 17 Recap

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Fifty-six Seven Card Stud players took the felt at 12:00 noon grinding it out for the $19,600 Total Buy-In. Some familiar faces included, Bill Bumperino" Munley, Chris Reslock, Glen Engelbert, Bo Toft, Joe Boatwright, Joe Loguidice, and Rathe Miller.

Chris Reslock, Glenn Engelbert, Bo Toft, and Bill Munley failed to cash in this one day Event. Then again, 48 players failed to cash. The lucky 8 who got the money included, Dan Shapiro, Mike Huguenot, George Krafft, Rogrio Souse, Edmond Knesevitch, Ed Campbell, Rich Geller, and Grandpa Jay Zimmete.

Doris Bush was the Last Women Standing and Jack Barnes was the Bubble Boy.

We had an attorney, a CPA, an Electronic Sales guy, a retired FAA, and a poker writer in the field. When the dust settled, third place prize of $2,281 went to electronics sales guy Ed Campbell (Voorhees, NJ) and 2nd Place of $4,183 was awarded to Global Gaming Business writer Rich Geller (Newark, DE).

But the big Stud was "Grandpa" Jay Zimmet who took control of the final table and caught big hands at the right time. Jay takes home $7,225 and the Borgata trophy to his ten Grandchildren.

Jay, fresh off his June PLO Borgata victory, adds another piece of hardware to his mantle.

Congratulations again to "Grandpa" Jay Zimmet who won all of the 560,000 tournament chips and was crowned our 2011 Borgata Fall Poker Open Stud Champion.

Event 17: 1st Place - Zimmet

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

"Grandpa" Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ)
$7,225

Grandpa Jay Zimmet got very hot at the end of the tournament when it counted most. He cut through the final four like a knife through butter.

Jay is no stranger to winning Borgata Championships. On June 15, 2011 he took down Event 10 $350 +50 PLO. When he's not traveling the country playing poker, he's a partner in a health care consulting firm.

Look for Grandpa to make a showing in the Championship Event on Monday.

If you have "Grandpa" in your name, you better remember to thank all ten of your grandkids. As soon as he won, Jay asked me to mention hello to Jake, Liana, Shilee, Hannah, Allie, Ryan, Dean, Aden, Logan, & Adam.

"Grandpa brings home the bacon" exclaimed Jay Zimmet after hoisting the Borgata trophy.

His winning had came as he flipped a 7-8-9-10-J high straight.

Jay Zimmet finished in 1st Place earning $7,225.

Event 17: 2nd Place - Geller

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Rich Geller (Newark, DE)
$4,183

That's right a fellow poker writer just made a nice $4,183 score for his 2nd Place stud finish.

Great job to Rich Geller who is the European editor for Global Gaming Business magazine.

His company has local ties to Casino Connection magazine which is now exclusively on-line.

Rich Geller finished in 2nd Place earning $4,183.

Event 17: 3rd Place - Campbell

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Ed Campbell (Voorhees, NJ)
$2,281

This is Ed's third stud tournament he's ever played in and he finished third.

Ed works in the Electronic Sales industry.

He had above average chips most of the day then ran into a couple big pots at the end.

Ed Campbell finished in 3rd Place earning $2,281.

Event 17: 4th Place - Knesevitch

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Edmond Knesevitch (New Jersey)
$1,521

Once Rogrio Souse went out in 5th, the remaining 4 studs got down to business and players busted very quickly.

Edmond Knesevitch finished in 4th Place earning $1,521.

Event 16: Bubble Looming

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Five tables remain in the Signature Room - just six away from the money.

30 Players remain. Top 24 all get a piece of the $165,200 Total Buy-in.

236 players started the day.

Don't forget this is a two-day tournament so players will bag and tag chips at 2am then return tomorrow at noon to finish it out.

24th Place earns $1,202.

25th gets a pat on the back.

Event 17: 5th Place - Souse

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Rogrio Souse (Portugal & NC)
$1,331

Rogrio Souse was in Portugal for the last fourteen months. He's now back in his home in North Carolina and decided to come up to Borgata and play some Stud.

Edmond Knesevitch had the better two pair against Rogrio who was felted in fifth.

Rogrio Souse finished in 5th Place earning $1,331.

Event 17: 6th Place - Krafft

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

George Krafft (Absecon, NJ)
$1,141

George Krafft loves to play poker in his retirement, especially Stud. George used to work for the Federal Aviation Association (FAA).

George Krafft finished in 6th Place earning $1,141.

Event 17: 7th Place - Huguenot

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Mike Huguenot (Pleasantville, NY)
$760

Attorney Mike Huguenot doesn't want to roll over three tens anymore. He lost earlier with them and now had 10-10-10 fall to a wheel in his exit hand.

Mike and Dan Shapiro were both bounced out on the same hand. Mike started the hand with more chips and so jumps up one pay-level place.

Mike has won a few Stud tournaments at other casinos but has not yet taken down a Borgata Stud Event.

Mike Huguenot finished in 7th Place earning $760.

Event 17: 8th Place - Shapiro

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Dan Shapiro (Great Neck, NY)
$570

First stud final table appearance for Dan Shapiro who is an CPA by day and a poker player by night.

Dan Shapiro finished in 8th Place earning $570.

Event 17: Stud Elite Eight - Final Table

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Final Table:

Position......Player..............................Chips
1. Edmond Knesevitch (New Jersey)...............144,000
2. Ed Campbell (Voorhees, NJ)..........................65,000
3. Rich Geller (Newark, DE)..............................105,000
4. Rogrio Souse (Portugal).................................60,000
5. Mike Huguenot (Pleasantville, NY)..................54,000
6. Grandpa Jay Zimmete (Manalapan, NJ).........75,000
7. Dan Shapiro (Great Neck, NY)......................22,000
8. George Krafft (Absecon, NJ)..........................40,000

The youngest player at the table, Edmond Knesevitch, currently sits on top with 144,000.

Short stack Dan Shapiro looking to double up.

Congratulations to all eight players - everyone is in the money!

Event 15 Recap

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

A couple of birthday boys battled it out in the heads up championship match before Alex Queen (Bethlehem, PA) beat Darren Elias (Erie, PA), two games to one, to take the title and the 29,098 first place prize.

"It's a breath of fresh air," said Queen about the format just one week before his 23rd birthday, "It's fun to do something different and it's great to win."

For Elias, the runner-up finish wasn't a spoiler on this 25th birthday, as he was glad to celebrate
his $14,550 payday with friends and family over dinner.

"It's more exciting," said Elias about playing heads up, "I enjoy it more than a regular tournament it's a good change of pace.

The NCAA basketball style bracket was a best 2 out of 3 games in each round, featured two WSOP bracelet holders in Jason Young and Brian Lemke. They both missed the money as did 2011 Borgata Poker Open Champion Bobby Oboodi ($922,00) and former heads up champions Christian Harder (Sept. 2011), Jeremy McLaughlin (Sept. 2010), Jesse Yaginuma (Sept. 2009), and Chalie Hook (June, 2009).

After getting a bye in the first round, Queen swept his first three matches against Eracles Panayiotou, Cliff Ziff, and Jamie Kerstetter. The quarterfinal win set up a semis match-up against Olivier Busquet, the 2009 Borgata Poker Open Champion ($926,000).

The match went to a third game and Queen felt fortunate to beat the more experienced heads up veteran. "He's literally one of the best in the world," said Queen, "I tried not to be intimidated and was able run good in a couple of spots."

Elias' trip to the finals started with wins over Adel Shakerian and Dan Pignataro, before staging an epic 5 hour marathon Thursday night against Yaginuma. Elias eventually won the third game after the clock struck midnight, signaling the start of his birthday.

The final eight players returned Friday for quarterfinal action where they played for the $75,000 total buy-in.

Despite losing in the quarters, Anthony Zinno, Denis Gnidash, Jamie Kerstetter, and Michael McNeil all cashed for $3,638, while semifinal losers Busquet and Randy Feder, each earned $7,275.

Kerstetter became the first woman to cash in a Borgata heads up event, while Feder, who lost to Elias in the semis, cashed in this event for the second straight time. He advanced one round further than his quarterfinal loss in September.

This is Queen's second Borgata first place finish. The 2010 Borgata Spring Poker Open Champion ($356,000), is looking to take this momentum into the Fall Poker Open Championship event which gets underway Sunday.

Tournament Results


Championship

Alex Queen def Darren Elias

Final Four

Alex Queen def Olivier Busquet
Darren Elias def Randy Feder

Elite 8

Darren Elias def Michael McNeil
Alex Queen def Jamie Kerstetter
Olivier Busquet def Denis Gnidash
Randy Feder def Anthony Zinno

Sweet 16

Darren Elias vs Jesse Yaginuma
Michael McNeil def DJ Mossey
Anthony Zinno def Feming Chan
Randy Feder def Tom Cope
Jamie Kerstetter def Jamil Wakil
Alex Queen def Cliff Ziff
Denis Gnidash def Christian Harder
Olivier Busquet def Dave Inselberg

Second Round


Darren Elias def Dan Pignataro
Jesse Yaginuma def Travis Greenawalt
DJ Mossey def Jacob Toole
Michael McNeil def Jonas Bendikas
Anthony Zinno def Yaron Reuven
Feming Chan def Nick Petrangelo
Tom Cope def Chalie Hook
Randy Feder def Akash Seth
Jamil Wakil def Srinivas Reddy
Jamie Kerstetter def Dan Colman
Cliff Ziff def Adam Gerber
Alex Queen def Eracles Panayiotou
Christian Harder def Thomas Pomponio
Denis Gnidash def Travis Chapman
Dave Inselberg def Orson Young
Olivier Busquet def Bobby Oboodi

First Round

Darren Elias def Adel Shakerian
Yaron Reuven def Jesse Cohen
Orson Young def Ryan Eriquezzo
Chalie Hook def Michael Gagliano
Olivier Busquet def Tim Finne
Travis Greenawalt def Michael Deckard
Jacob Toole def Douglas Lovelace
Anthony Zinno def Jeremy McLaughlin
Eracles Panayiotou def Brian Lemke
Denis Gnidash def Steve Ryan
Dave Inselberg def Matthew Weiss
Jamie Kerstetter def Jesse Rockowitz
Adam Gerber def Jason Young
Randy Feder def Michael Hahn
Jesse Yaginuma def Matt Maccaroni
Travis Chapman def Alon Shahar
Nick Petrangelo def Bill Blanda
Thomas Pomponio def Alan Kornblau

Byes

Dan Pignataro
Donald Mossey
Michael McNeil
Feming Chan
Tom Cope
Jonas Bendikas
Akash Seth
Jamil Wakil
Srinivas Reddy
Dan Colman
Cliff Ziff
Alex Queen
Christian Harder
Bobby Oboodi

Event 17: Bubble Barnes

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Jack "Bubble" Barnes

Jack Barnes (Point Pleasant, NJ) just missed the money and the final table of eight players.

No money for Jack who has Jacks up but ran into Aces up from George Krafft.

8th place get $570 and 1st takes home $7,225.

Event 16: Second In Chips

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Jesse Cohen (Ardmore, PA) - 275,000

Jesse Cohen is sitting to the immediate left of Jamie Kertsetter and is second in chips to tournament leader Kevin Saul who is at a different table.

Jesse is building a wall of 275,000 chips while Kevin is well over the 300,000 mark.

The player to the right of Kevin Saul is Cory Litke (York, PA). Cory has an above average stack of 170,000 and just knocked a player out with Ace high vs. eight high. They both missed draws.

So Cory scores $500 with only an Ace in his hand. Good work!

Event 15 Champion: Queen

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Alex Queen (Bethlehem, PA)
$29,098


After losing game one, Alex Queen battled back to win game two and eventually wins a back and forth game three. Queen walks away with the Borgata trophy and the $29,098 first place prize.

Event 15: 2nd Place - Elias

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Darren Elias (Erie, PA)
$14,550

After grinding his way through five wins, birthday boy Darren Elias finishes runner-up to Alex Queen. Shortly after signing the paperwork for his $14,550, Elias was off to meet friends at family at Wolfgang Puck to celebrate his 25th.

Event 17: Double Bubble

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Doris Bush - Last Woman Standing

Event 17 came back from dinner with 12 people and in a half-hour lost three players.

12th Place.....Jimmy Chen (New York, NY)
11th Place.....Ray 18 (Philadelphia, PA)
10th Place.....Doris Bush (Langhorne, PA)

Doris was excited that her last card gave her two pair but Edmond Knesevitch scored a better two pair on his final card. Doris is the Last Woman Standing and the Double Bubble.

With Doris out we're literally left with all STUD players.

Down to 9 players on two tables in the Borgata Poker Room.

Hand for hand action until the bubble breaks - could take a while as there are no really short stacks left.

Paying top 8 spots. Once we get to eight we'll re-draw for a final table.

Event 15: Queen Evens Match

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Queen Moves the Button

Alex Queen takes game two to even the match with Darren Elias. Both players are all in preflop and Queen's pocket 9s hold against pocket 6s.

The best of three series is down to a winner take all for the $29,098 first prize.

Event 16: Dinner Time - Tweets!

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Level 11 is done and 52 surviving players have taken off for their one hour dinner break.  Play will resume at 8:35pm.

Tweets from the diners:

aje221 Austen Johnson
Terrible last 2 levels. Down to 75k at dinner break. Coming back to 200 800/1600 54 left. 24 pay

SugDpoker David Zeitlin
85k + 3 bounties at dinner. About 50 players left, pays 24.

KevinSauLivePro Kevin Saul
In typical BeL0WaB0Ve fashion, rand 125k down to 40k 20min after break, and back to 201k at dinner break got 5 bounties

JYoungpoker Jason Young
1st and last update of the day til I put chips in the bag...130K in the $700+$500 bounty on dinner break have 3 bounties so far..that is all

Event 17: Dinner Time

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Level 14 has come to a close and for the remaining 20 Stud players, that means they get 40 minutes away from the game.

Play will resume at 8pm.

Event 16: Payouts

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Entries: 236
Total Buy-In: $165,200

Place - Amount

1st   $42,469
2nd  $25,238
3rd   $19,229
4th   $15,223
5th   $12,018
6th     $8,813
7th     $6,810
8th     $4,807
9th     $2,804
10-12 $2,003
13-18 $1,602
19-24 $1,202

Event 15: Game 1 to Elias

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

It only takes 25 minutes for Darren Elias to win the opener over Alex Queen (aka ArgentinaBoy), who files this report from twitterverse:

ArgentinaBoy
Alex Queen

Got dwindled down to 12k then get in aq vs 1010 all in pre aq2 flop turn 10 :-( second round now


It's a best of three series and Elias is one win from the title.

Event 16: Saul Sacks Musumeci

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Kevin Saul's pocket Jacks held up against a short-stack all-in with A4 suited.

Kevin collected his 4th bounty chip ($2,000).

A couple of hands later, Amanda Musumeci fired at an Ace-high flop of all clubs.  Kevin Saul raised enough to cover her.  She tanked for a minute, then called all-in, showing AJ for top pair (no club).  She was ahead of Kevin's pocket 7s, but he had a club. 

 Kevin Saul

The offsuit King on the turn changed nothing, but the Queen of clubs on the river completed Kevin's flush.

Kevin chipped up to about 200k and pocketed his 5th bounty ($2,500).

Event 15: Championship Underway

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Queen vs Elias

The heads up championship is under way with Alex Queen taking on Darren Elias for the title. It's a best of three format where the winner gets the trophy and $29,098. The runner-up takes home $14,550.

Event 16: Blinds Up, Players Down

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Blinds are now up to 600/1,200 with 200 antes for level 11.  From now on, all levels will be 50 minutes long.

72 players remain at 12 tables.

Average stack is ~65k (54 big blinds).

These folks have busted out:
Steven Levy
Miami John Cernuto
Ryan Eriquezzo
Abe Korotki

Event 15: Queen def Busquet, Advances to Finals

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Olivier Busquet (New York, NY)
$7,275

After two hours of play and blinds at 500/1k Olivier Busquet and Alex Queen are all in with the championship on the line.

Busquet: K 2
Queen: K 4

The flop brings a four to end Busquet's tournament as he gets 3rd/4th place money ($7,275) for reaching the semifinals.

Queen tweets, "eek out lucky win vs liv," as he's now into the finals against Daren Elias.

Event 16: Sica Sent Packing

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

 Mike 'Little Man' Sica was the unfortunate player who had pocket Kings when Lee Childs had pocket Aces.  The Aces held and Lee took most of Mike's chips.

Then three players take a flop of 985 and Mike (bb) gets the rest of his chips in the middle holding QT (gutshot straight-flush draw).  Unfortunately for Mike, the last two came offsuit 2 9 and Rachelle Nagy (sb) took the pot, and Mike's bounty, with Ace-high.

Mike hits the rail and starts looking for his next tournament to enter.

Event 17: Dan the Man

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Big Stud Shapiro

The big stack with 30 players left is Dan Shapiro (Great Neck, NY) and it's easy to track his progress. At the end of each level he writes down his chip count, and the data shows a sharp uptick the last two levels.

Shapiro was in the 20k neighborhood before nearly doubling his stack to 39,625 exactly.

Another familiar face spotted in the crowd is "Grandpa" Jay Zimmet (Manalapan, NJ) who won the June Big Stack PLO ($11,051). Click here to read how a brief illness helped him win the title.

Event 17: Payouts

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Entries: 56
Total Buy-In: $19,600

Place - Amount

1st  $7,225
2nd $4,183
3rd  $2,281
4th  $1,521
5th  $1,331
6th  $1,141
7th    $760
8th    $570

Event 16: News from the Twitter-verse

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Just 84 players remain in the hunt for bounties.  Josh Brikis is not one of them -- he has reported to the rail.

They're enjoying a color-up break and will return to blinds of 500/1,000 with 100 antes.

Here are the latest tweets:

leechilds Lee Childs
70k. AA>KK all in pre. Still not bounties yet tho.

aje221 Austen Johnson
90k with 2 $500 bounties. Returning to 100 500/1000.

SugDpoker David Zeitlin
61k going to 500-1000, super swingy again. About 80 players left.

TheReaLMander Amanda Musumeci
Got about 45k in max bounty from 20k starting(I used 2bullets).

KevinSauLivePro Kevin Saul
Color up break, 126,600 going to 500-1,000 100a. Got my 3rd bounty #offiallyfreerolling

Event 17: Remaining STUDs

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Down to only 35 STUDs remaining.  Among those are Joe Boatwright, Joe Loguidice, and Rathe Miller.

Chris Reslock, Glenn Engelbert, Bo Toft, and Bill Munley have all reported to the rail.

They're currently playing at 600/1,200 limits with just a couple of minutes remaining in the level.

They'll continue into level 11 with limits of 800/1,600.

Event 15: Elias def Feder, Advances to Finals

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Randy Feder (Plainview, NY)
$7,275

Darren Elias is into the championship after beating Randy Feder two games to one in the semifinals. Elias has now won two matches today, after winning a five hour marathon over Jesse Yaginuma late Thursday night.

Feder takes home 3rd/4th place money ($7,275) for advancing to and losing in the semifinals.

Elias will face the winner of Alex Queen and Olivier Busquet who are playing game three after splitting the first two.

Randy's Run Stopped by Elias

Event 16: Interesting Tables

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Blinds are up to 400/800 with 75 antes.

More interesting match-ups are developing as tables break and players are moved into empty seats.

Steven Levy has joined Steve Ryan, Kevin Saul, and Amanada Musumeci at table 1.

Steven Rodriguez, Jeremy McLaughlin, and Austen Johnson are sharing the felt on table 7.

Table 16 is currently home to Jerry Maher, Michael Michnik, Keith Crowder, and John McGuinness.

Event 16: Table Two Action

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Doug Lovelace (who took 12th and $1,917 in the first bounty tournament) shipped it on a flop of Q Q 7.
 Rachelle Nagy

He had flopped trips with his Q5, but Rachelle Nagy (Lake Norman, NC) had him out-kicked with Q9 suited.

The last two changed nothing and Rachelle chipped up to about 90k and collected her first $500 bounty chip.

Sharing the felt with Rachelle on table two are Lee Childs and Jesse Cohen.

Mike 'Little Man' Sica just got moved into the seat vacated by Doug.

Event 15: Elite 8 Bust-outs

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

$$$ In the Money $$$
Despite losing their quarterfinal matches, Anthony Zinno, Denis Gnidash, Jamie Kerstetter, and Michael McNeil all cash for $3,638.

Event 16: Eriquezzo Ejects Another

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Down to 19 tables in action in the Signature Room.

A short while ago, a short-stack was all-in with pocket Aces and Ryan Eriquezzo looked him up with T9 suited. 

The flop came 8 7 6 and that was it.  Ryan collected his 4th bounty of the day.  'Miami' John Cernuto just joined this table, along with Jeffrey Papola, and Chris Bell.**


**  Chris Bell was busted and left before I got his posted.

Event 15: Queen Evens Match

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Queen & Busquet
After losing the first game, Alex Queen rallies to win game two and force a deciding game three in their semifinal match

The heads up format is a best of three each round where players start with 20k in chips and levels are 20 minutes long starting with blinds at 100/200.

Darren Elias leads Randy Feder 1-0 in the other semifinal; game two is underway.

Event 16: Time to Check the Tweets

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

Players have returned from break and all the tables are now together in the Signature Room.

Blinds are now 300/600 with 75 antes.

Some Tweets from break:

SteveRyanPoker Steve Ryan
About 65k. At table 1 so Kevin on my left with mountains is not a fun prospect in a never breaking scenario

SugDpoker David Zeitlin
72k and 2 bounties going to 300-600. I think it got like 250 players.

aje221 Austen Johnson
39k returning to 75 300/600. 1 bounty

poochpoker Joe Cappuccio
27K 300/600

KevinSauLivePro Kevin Saul
Wow hit a 2 outer TT<bigger stacks'JJ<and shortie's A7 all-in on 7c6c6x flop, river Th for 125k pot! Have 113k on break goin to 600bb, 2 ...

Leechilds Lee Childs
45k. Going to 300/600/75


Event 17: Case Closed

$350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

Registration is closed and the field is at 50+. Somebody asks, "Is Barry here," referring to Barry Levy, who won back-to-back tournaments, including last night's conclusion of the H.O.R.S.E.

Fortunately for the field he's back in Brooklyn, NY admiring his two new Borgata championship trophies.

Level 8 is underway with the big bets at 400/800.

Online Contest Winner Announced

congratulations to the Borgata Fall Poker Open online contest winner ....

MATTHEW  MAZZEO

Event 15: Elias def McNeil

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Michael McNeil (Wheeling, WV)
$3,638
The longest of the quarterfinals is in the books and Darren Elias wins the third and final game to beat Michael McNeil two games to one.

Elias is now playing Randy Feder in the Final Four.

Event 16: Perfect 10

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

The re-entry period is closed and just a few minutes before the end of the level, WPT title holder Kevin Saul (Chicago, IL) is part of a three-way all-in pot with pocket 10s. The big stack in the hand has pocket jacks and when a 10 hits the river, the player explodes.

"What did you think I had when I reraised you," he fumes. "Flush draw?" Saul replies coyly, "I was running out of time to re-enter," he says while stacking chips to stay alive.

Level 7 (250/500/50 ante) is underway.

Event 15: Still Grinding

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

McNeil vs Elias
Michael McNeil vs Darren Elias, the last of the four quarterfinal matches, is tied at one game each in the best of three series. Elias took the opener and McNeil forced the rubber match.

Randy Feder, who defeated Anthony Zinno in the Elite 8, is waiting to see who he'll face in the Final Four.

Event 16: Last Level for Re-Entry

$700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

More than two hundred entries are in the field and players are keeping an eye on the clock as this is the last level for re-entry.

Blinds are (200/400/50 ante)

More Faces in the Crowd

Jeremy McLaughlin
Alex Nepomnyaschiy
Christian Harder
Arkadiy Tsinis (Las Vegas, NV)
Johannsy Joseph, Event 14 Winner

Event 15: Feder def Zinno

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Anthony Zinno (Boston, MA)
$3,638
Randy Feder rallies to defeat Zinno two games to one after losing the first game on the first hand.

"I definitely could get away from it," says Feder who flopped top two pairs on a board of J 8 7, "but it wasn't a no-brainer."

Zinno held 9 10 for the flopped straight and when the board bricked off, Feder was down 1-nothing. "After that it was just the regular grind,"

After winning game two, Feder says he was down to 6k in chips and flopped an open ended straight draw when he called Zinno's all-in bluff with 7 2. "I won with queen high," and added the double-up propelled him to the win.

Feder Survives vs Zinno

Event 15: Busquet def Gnidash

$1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

Denis Gnidash (Fairlawn, NJ)
$3,638


Olivier Busquet defeats Denis Gnidash two games to none in the best of three series to advance to the Final Four. Busquet faces Alex Queen in the semifinals, while Gnidash earns $3,638 for advancing to the quarterfinals.

Busquet Moves Past Gnidash

Leaderboard Update (11/18)

Borgata Fall Poker Open Leaderboard Update

By participating in any Borgata Fall Poker Open event (November 9-23, 2011), players will earn points based upon the Borgata Poker Tournament Leaderboard Formula.

Winners will be announced Monday, November 28:
  • 1st Place: $3,500 entry into Borgata Winter Poker Open Championship event (January 29 - February 3, 2012) 
  • 2nd - 4th Place: Apple iPod Touch 
  • 5th - 7th Place: Keurig coffee maker 
  • 8th - 10th Place: Nikon digital camera
    Below are the top scores for the Borgata Fall Poker Open Leaderboard contest through November 17th events* (Final Results from events 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)

    361.200 PTS:  MICHAEL MICHNIK (HOLLYWOOD, FL)
    361.000 PTS:  MICHAEL LYDON (MIDDLE VILLAGE, NY)
    329.100 PTS:  LANA OBRIEN (ENGLISHTOWN, NJ)
    317.638 PTS:  JOHN MCGUINNESS (TOMS RIVER, NJ)
    313.010 PTS:  AUSTEN JOHNSON (WOODSBORO, MD)
    312.000 PTS:  BARRY LEVY (BROOKLYN, NY)
    304.938 PTS:  HARRY KOROTKI (OWINGS MILLS, MD)
    303.075 PTS:  AMANDA MUSUMECI (PHILADELPHIA, PA)
    297.063 PTS:  DANIEL DAGOSTINO (BELLEVILLE, NJ)
    296.348 PTS:  MARK SYKES (HAMDEN, CT)
    273.858 PTS:  JOHN DELROSSI (MANTUA, NJ)
    258.500 PTS:  EDWARD GRAU (MIDDLE RIVER, MD)
    254.500 PTS:  ERIC LISICA (GLEN BURNIE, MD)
    253.688 PTS:  ILYA VASSERMAN (HUNTINGDON VY, PA)
    247.500 PTS:  STEVEN RODRIGUEZ (STATEN ISLAND, NY)
    242.575 PTS:  ROBERT BROWN (MILFORD, NH)
    241.450 PTS:  MICHAEL SICA JR (N BRUNSWICK, NJ)
    239.125 PTS:  THOMAS FORMICHELLA (BROOKLYN, NY)
    223.350 PTS:  ERIC DOERR (NEWARK, DE)
    216.000 PTS:  HAYONG ZHOU (BALTIMORE, MD)
    215.938 PTS:  CHARLES BARRETT (DUNKIRK CAL, MD)
    214.815 PTS:  TONY SINISHTAJ (FLUSHING, NY)
    213.638 PTS:  SUNG HA KIM (CLIFFSIDE PARK, NJ)
    206.790 PTS:  CUONG PHUNG (ATLANTIC CITY, NJ)
    204.275 PTS:  NORMAN RODRIGUEZ (W HEMPSTEAD, NY)
    201.775 PTS:  SON NGUYEN (ELKRIDGE, MD)
    201.525 PTS:  ROBERT BAESCH (BERLIN, MD)
    201.175 PTS:  CARLOS COLON (E PATCHOGUE, NY)
    201.115 PTS:  DEAN CHEN (ELLENVILLE, NY)

    Event 16: Movers and Shakers

    $700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

    Tables shrinking and re-entries growing means players are nomads roaming from table to table.
    The featured table is without question Little Man Sica, Chalie Hook, and Steven Rodriguez.

    Also Still Playing

    Ryan Eriquezzo
    Adam Lippert
    Jesse Yaginuma
    Dave Inselberg
    Keith Crowder
    Bob Hwang
    Matt Maccaroni
    Russel Crane
    Steve Ryan
    Bill Blanda
    Austen Johnson
    Jamie Kerstetter
    Mei Siu
    Josh Brikis
    Ben Klier
    Lee Childs
    Kevin Saul

    Event 15: Busquet & Elias Lead

    $1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

    Olivier Busquet (vs Denis Gnidash) and Darren Elias (vs Michael McNeil) have each won their first games in the best of three series.

    Anthony Zinno and Randy Feder are still grinding in game one, while Alexander Queen (def Jamie Kerstetter) is into the Final Four.

    Payouts

    Entries: 50
    Total Buy-In: $75,000

    Place-Amount

    1 $29,098
    2 $14,550
    3-4 $7,275
    5-8 $3,638

    Event 15: Queen def Kerstetter

    $1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

    Jamie Kerstetter (Monroe Twp., NJ)
    $3,638

    Alex Queen beats Jamie Kerstetter in two straight games. "I was running bad," says Kerstetter, who's the first woman to cash in a Borgata heads up event.

    The killer hand comes in game one when Queen 3-bets preflop with 8♣ 2♣, the flop is Q 8 5 rainbow. Queen c-bets, Kerstetter calls with Q 10, before another 8 falls on the turn.

    Queen's all in on the river and his trip 8s cripple Kerstetter before she eventually loses both games.

    The match only takes an hour and Kerstetter is off to play the 6-max. "I'm just going to win it," she says, while cashing for $3,638 for advancing to the quarterfinals.

    Queen is into the semifinals and moves up on the pay sheet to a minimum of $7,275 and faces the winner of the Denis Gnidash vs Olivier Busquet match.

    Queen Eliminates Kerstetter

    Event 17: Bumping Along on 7th Street

    $350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

    Bill "Bumperino" Munley squeezes back is final hole card and sees a third diamond to complete the nut flush. After a bet and call he shows down the winner to scoop the pot and says, "this one's for Gudi."

    Chris Reslock, Glen Engelbert and Bo Toft are other recognizable faces in the field.

    Event 17: Stud Action

    $350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

    Old school players love old school games and seven card stud is a classic. The field is in the Poker Room as they start with 10k stacks and play 30 minute levels.

    This is a one day tournament and the cards are in the air.

    Event 15: Quarterfinals Set

    $1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

    The eight remaining players are in the money and now focus on the top prize of $29,098.

    Here's the lineup:

    Randy Feder vs Anthony Zinno

    Darren Elias vs Michael McNeil

    Jamie Kerstetter vs Alex Queen

    Dennis Gnidash vs Olivier Busquet

    Event 16: Queens = $500

    $700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

    Lichtman Likes the Ladies
    Kurt Lichtman (New York, NY) claims the first $500 bounty when he flops set over set on the tournament's first hand. Lichtman's set of queens bests a set of 6s and he not only knocks out the player, but doubles his stack in the process.

    Jason Young (Suffern, NY) doubles up with a set of 9s, but no knockout for JY as his opponent is left with 1k.

    Level 2 (50/100) is underway.

    Event 16: Table Draws

    $700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

    The Signature Room is filling up and the 6-handed tables have some interesting table draws.

    Table 5

    Adam Lippert
    Nachman Berlin

    Table 11

    Dave Zeitlin
    Feming Chan

    Table 21

    Keith Crowder
    Ryan Eriquezzo

    Also in the Field

    Steve Rodriguez
    George Medrano
    Abe Korotki
    Mei Siu
    Lee Childs
    Austen Johnson
    Bill Blanda
    Bob Hwang
    Steve Ryan
    Jason Young
    Sheree Bykofsky

    Event 16: Purple Rain

    $700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH (RE)

    The third bounty tournament of this series is a doozy as each knockout gets player's a $500 purple chip. Two knockouts and this turns into a <$300 tournament where the prize pool will be thick, but so will the competition.

    Players start with 20k in chips and the first 10 levels are 40 minutes long (11+/50 min). This is a 2-day re-entry event, and because this a bounty tournament players can not forfeit their chips and must be eliminated before re-entering.

    Blinds start at 25/50 and the cards are in the air.

    Friday, November 18

    Today's Events (Poker Room/The Signature Room)

    11AM: Event 16 - $700 + $70 + $500 Six-Max Purple Chip Bounty NLH
    $100,000 GUARANTEED

    • Players start with 20,000 in tournament chips 
    • This is a Bounty No Limit Hold'em tournament.  Players must have their Bounty Chip clearly displayed in order to remain active in tournament.
    • Players that "bust" within the first 6 Levels may Re-Enter (unlimited Re-Entries)
    • Levels 1-10: each will last 40 minutes | Levels 11+: each will last 50 minutes
    • 2-Day event


    12PM: Event 17 - $350 + $50 Seven Card Stud

    • Players start with 10,000 in tournament chips 
    • Levels will last 30 minutes  
    • 1-Day event

    3PM: Event 37 - $270 + $30 Championship Qualifier NLH
    • Players start with 12,000 in tournament chips 
    • Levels will last 25 minutes each
    • Approximately 1 in 10 will win entry into Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship event
      (Nov 20-23, 2011)
    • 1-Day event


    7PM: Event 38 - $500 + $50 Survivor NLH
    • Players start with 15,000 in tournament chips 
    • Levels 1-10: each will last 30 minutes | Levels 11+: each will last 40 minutes
    • Approximately 1 in 10 will win $5,000 CASH
    • 1-Day event

      Event 14 Recap

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      The second bounty tournament of the Borgata Fall Poker Open set sail at 11AM in Borgata Poker Room. Players love that in addition to the $87,850 Total Buy-In, each knock out gets you a black chip ($100) that goes straight to your bankroll.

      From a field of 251 players only one person captured all of the 3,012,000 chips along with the $23,861 first place prize. That person was Johannsy Joseph from Spring Valley, NY.

      He had to take down a field that included heavy hitter regulars such as Gionni Demers, James Boyle, Kalid Ali, Larry Gold, Sheree Bykofsky, Dave Zeitlen, Adam Lippert, Leanne Rosenblatt, Arkadiy Tsinis, Austen Johnson, Nachman Berlin, Mike Sica, Josh Brikis, and Dave Zeitlin.

      Killer feature table formed consisting of Sheree Bykofksy, Larry Gold, and Austen Johnson.

      There were three quick eliminations after the dinner break making Stuart Nelson (Atlantic, NC) on the rail as the bubble boy. Joe Manganiello (Cranford, NJ) was the first player to cash in 27th place earning $767.

      The final table of ten included Johannsy Joseph, Justin Friedman, Pearce Arnold, Leonardo Palermo, William Kakon, Kenneth Brown, Dennis Roitman, Viet Nguyen, Jeff Edgerton, and Andrew Interdonato.

      Six players made a fairly quick final table exit then Joseph, Arnold, Palermo, and Interdonato got down and played some serious poker.

      Third place honors and $8,095 was awarded to Leonardo Palermo (Tom's River, NJ) while 2nd Place for $14,060 went to Andrew Interdonato. Andrew gained a huge chip lead during heads up play then lost a couple key hands, called for a miracle river to comeback again, then ran into a run of luck from Joseph. Interdonato was the top bounty hunter with 12 knock-outs.

      Once again congratulations to our big winner, Johannsy Joseph who wishes his Pop a happy birthday today and has won the top prize and trophy in honor of all his friends and those who have supported him along the way.

      Ten $100 bounties for Johannsy are added to his $23,861 payday. Great job surviving the 18 hour tournament - you're the only player who gets to keep his original bounty chip.

      Event 14: 1st Place - Joseph

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Johannsy Joseph (Spring Valley, NY)
      $23,861

      Congratulations to Event 14 Champion, Johannsy Joseph who was severely crippled three-hands into his heads-up match then battled back to be the last man standing in the entire Borgata Poker Room in the wee hours of the morning.

      A key hand towards the end of the heads-up was when Johannsy flopped a set of deuces and let Andrew Interdonato turn two pair. All the chips got in on the turn and Joseph doubled up.

      So after the third hand heads up, Johannsy was down to 600,000 (out of 3,012,000 in play) and three hands before the tournament would end, he left Andrew with only 600,000.

      The winning tournament hand for our Champ was 4-3 off. Joe caught trip three's and successfully faded Opponent's nut flush draw.

      A key hand early on was when Johannsy woke up to pocket kings 12 handed and they held up. He surged in chips and held on while player after player seemed to implode.

      Johannsy says happy birthday to his Father whose birthday is today. Looks like Johannsy is supplying the cake - how about $23,861 worth of cake along with 10 $100 bounties.
      Sounds like a great 18 hour day at the office to me.

      Joseph thanked Jennifer, Mike B., Melanie, Soheb, Drew, Ralph, Dan Colpoys and apologized for anyone he forgot in the excitement of the win.

      The money prize is great but our winner was most excited over taking home the Borgata trophy. Well done as you earned it in a thrilling finish.

      Johannsy Joseph finished in 1st Place earning $23,861.

      Event 14: 2nd Place - Interdonato

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Andrew Interdonato (Washington, DC)
      $14,060

      This was a heads-up match worthy of television with action flops, miracle rivers, and giant swings. It ended just before 5:00 AM.

      Once Andrew was down to 600,000 he was waiting for an opportunity and found it in J-6 of diamonds on a diamond heavy flop.

      All the chips were sent in the middle as Joseph's 4-3 hit bottom pair.

      Flop: 6-10-3.

      Joseph hit another three on the turn causing Andrew to beg to the poker God's once again yelling out "Diamond, diamond".

      Unfortunately Andrew already used his "one time" on the last river card he called for and received with his tournament on the line.

      River A (non-diamond) spelled victory for Joseph and 2nd Place for Andrew.

      Andrew gives sincere thanks to his wife Carmela, sons Guy & Drew, and his dog Gio.

      Look for Interdonato to play in some more tournaments during the Fall Poker Open, maybe even the 12:00 Event in seven hours. He also pocketed 12 bounties which was the most overall in the tournament.

      Andrew Interdonato finished in 2nd Place earning $14,060.

      Event 14: Reversal of Fortunes

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Johannsy Joseph picked up a bunch of pots and had a 2 to 1 lead over Andrew Interdonato.

      In one hand Joseph's K-J won a huge pot on a 7-8-K-2-A. Andrew called a 350,000 value bet from Joseph on the river.

      Next a hand that could have ended it and made Johannsy the winner. Instead, Andrew scored a much needed double up after calling out the exact card he needed on the river.

      Johannsy's 5-6 vs. Andrew's 8-5.

      Flop of 5-6-10 gives Andrew two pair.

      Turn 7 gives Andrew an open ended draw and a pair - this is when all the chips get in. Andrew called Johannsy's shove.

      "Give me a nine" exclaimed Andrew. The dealer peeled off a nine of diamonds and Andrew immediately said, "Thank you".

      With that hand, Andrew has regained the chip lead but it's virtually even.

      Johannsy has 1,500,000 million vs. Andrew's 1,600,000.

      This is turning into a classic heads-up match. Really anybody's game!

      Event 14: Heads Up - Man Down

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Andrew vs. Joseph

      Three hands into heads-up, Andrew looked down at Q-Q and Joseph was dealt 10-10.

      Joseph opened for 60,000 - Andrew made it 140,000 - Joseph pumped it to 380,000 causing Andrew to push all-in. Joseph called and had Andrew covered by only 600,000.

      Board ran 8-9-8-5-7.

      Can Joseph survive this huge hit? He's gonna need a double up to get back in this thing.

      At 3:45 AM, this is the last tournament still going on in Borgata Poker Room.

      Event 14: 3rd Place - Palermo

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Leonardo Palermo (Toms River, NJ)
      $8,095

      Three-handed, Leonardo Palermo was by far the short stack at the table. He hung on as long as he could but with blinds balooning, A-2 was his best opportunity to go for a double up.

      Joseph caught lucky with his Q-5 seeing a miracle flop of 5-5-2.

      9 on the turn followed by all the chips getting in after a river K hit.

      Joseph called and tabled trips.

      Congratulations to Leonardo for his deep run and 11 bounty knock-out chips.

      Leonardo Palermo finished in 3rd Place earning $8,095.

      Event 14: 4th Place - Arnold

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Pearce Arnold (Washington, DC)
      $6,562

      Pretty sick final hand for Pearce Arnold who held J-10 and made a straight on the river.

      Pearce shipped the rest of his 350,000 stack and Andrew Interdonato insta-called.

      Board was Q-9-3-Q-8. Interdonato tabled Q-8 for the full house.

      Andrew may have gotten Pearce's $100 Bounty chip but Pearce still pocketed 11 of his own.

      Pearce Arnold finished in 4th Place earning $6,562.

      Event 14: 5th Place - Friedman

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Justin Friedman (Yardley, PA)
      $5,113

      Friedman's A-J ran into Andrew Interdonato's A-Q. Andrew bet pre-flop, Friedman shoved all in and Andrew called.

      No Jack for Justin but a Q hit the river just to rub it in.

      Justin Friedman finished in 5th Place earning $5,113.

      Event 14: 6th Place - Brown

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Kenneth Brown (Redondo Beach, CA)
      $4,261.

      Before dinner Kenneth Brown was the chip leader then he flopped a set of Jacks and lost when his Opponent (K-Q) turned Broadway.

      But Kenneth didn't give up. He rebuilt his stack and made it to the final table.

      Brown scored 8 bounties before his exit hand.

      Kenneth got it in with K-Q up against Joseph's A-J. Kenneth picked up an open ended draw on a flop of J-8-10 but Joseph improved to top pair.

      Turn was 2. River 7.

      "The story of my life" lamented Bond Trader, Kenneth Brown.

      He says hi to his friend Ruben Allen reading the blog back home.

      Kenneth Brown finished in 6th Place earning $4,261.

      Event 14: 7th Place - Edgerton

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Jeff Edgerton (New York, NY)
      $3,409

      Jeff was getting short stacked at the final table and made a move. Unfortunately his hand did not hold up.

      Jeff Edgerton finished in 7th Place earning $3,409.

      Event 15: Thursday Results (Rounds 1-3)

      $1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

      Sweet 16

      Darren Elias def Jesse Yaginuma
      Michael McNeil def DJ Mossey
      Anthony Zinno def Feming Chan
      Randy Feder def Tom Cope
      Jamie Kerstetter def Jamil Wakil
      Alex Queen def Cliff Ziff
      Denis Gnidash def Christian Harder
      Olivier Busquet def Dave Inselberg

      Second Round

      Darren Elias def Dan Pignataro
      Jesse Yaginuma def Travis Greenawalt
      DJ Mossey def Jacob Toole
      Michael McNeil def Jonas Bendikas
      Anthony Zinno def Yaron Reuven
      Feming Chan def Nick Petrangelo
      Tom Cope def Chalie Hook
      Randy Feder def Akash Seth
      Jamil Wakil def Srinivas Reddy
      Jamie Kerstetter def Dan Colman
      Cliff Ziff def Adam Gerber
      Alex Queen def Eracles Panayiotou
      Christian Harder def Thomas Pomponio
      Denis Gnidash def Travis Chapman
      Dave Inselberg def Orson Young
      Olivier Busquet def Bobby Oboodi

      First Round

      Darren Elias def Adel Shakerian
      Yaron Reuven def Jesse Cohen
      Orson Young def Ryan Eriquezzo
      Chalie Hook def Michael Gagliano
      Olivier Busquet def Tim Finne
      Travis Greenawalt def Michael Deckard
      Jacob Toole def Douglas Lovelace
      Anthony Zinno def Jeremy McLaughlin
      Eracles Panayiotou def Brian Lemke
      Denis Gnidash def Steve Ryan
      Dave Inselberg def Matthew Weiss
      Jamie Kerstetter def Jesse Rockowitz
      Adam Gerber def Jason Young
      Randy Feder def Michael Hahn
      Jesse Yaginuma def Matt Maccaroni
      Travis Chapman def Alon Shahar
      Nick Petrangelo def Bill Blanda
      Thomas Pomponio def Alan Kornblau

      Byes

      Dan Pignataro
      Donald Mossey
      Michael McNeil
      Feming Chan
      Tom Cope
      Jonas Bendikas
      Akash Seth
      Jamil Wakil
      Srinivas Reddy
      Dan Colman
      Cliff Ziff
      Alex Queen
      Christian Harder
      Bobby Oboodi

      Event 15: Darren Elias Advances

      $1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

      Darren Elias

      The long day of heads up play is in the books and after a grueling 5 hour match ending at 1:15 am, Darren Elias (Erie, PA) moves on after defeating Jesse Yaginuma 2 games to 1 in their best of three match.

      Elias is in the money for a min cash of $3,638 and into the Elite 8 where he'll face Michael McNeil.

      The 8 returning players are still in the running for the $29,098 first prize.

      Play resumes at high noon as someone is three wins away from taking home the title.

      Friday Quarterfinal Matches

      Michael McNeil vs Darren Elias
      Jamie Kerstetter vs Alex Queen
      Denis Gnidash vs Olivier Busquet
      Anthony Zinno vs Randy Feder

      Event 14: 8th Place - Kakon

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      William Kakon (Miami, FL)
      $2,556

      William Kakon will head back to Miami with $2,556 in his pocket after his A-K ran into AA.

      Rough way to exit but not much Kakon could do in that predicament.

      William Kakon finished in 8th Place for $2,556.

      Event 14: 9th Place - Nguyen

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Viet Nguyen (Philadelphia, PA)
      $1,704

      Good run for Viet Nguyen who got his chips in against the big stack big blind.

      Viet had A 9 on a flop of J 9♣ 2. Opponent had J-2 and all the chips tumbled in.

      Viet bricked out and had to call it a night.

      Viet Nguyen finished in 9th Place earning $1,704.

      Event 14: 10th Place - Roitman

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Dennis Roitman (Brooklyn, NY)
      $1,108

      End of the road for Roitman who jammed with A-4 but ran into Viet Nguyen's K-K.

      Nguyen's Cowboys actually improved to a full-house on the river scoring the knock-out punch.

      Dennis Roitman finished in 10th Place earning $1,108.

      Event 15: Trading Chips

      $1500 + $150 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em

      Jesse Yaginuma just had aces cracked to Daren Elias two pairs, kings and jacks.

      Elias bets 2,800 on the turn and Yaginuma calls. On the river Elias moves all in for 8k and Yaginuma reluctantly calls looking to end the match.

      When Yaginuma sees the bad news he asks Elias, "why couldn't you just check-raise the turn, I'd feel better about telling a bad beat story. Elias smiles and says, "I thought about it," as he now takes the chip lead 32k to 8k.

      Blinds are 400/800, so it's far from over; these two are grinding for a spot into the Elite 8, and a $3,638 payday.

      Event 14: Perfect 10

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      Final Table:
      1. Johanny Joseph(Connecticut) ........................200,000
      2. Justin Friedman (Yardley, PA) ......................143,000
      3. Pearce Arnold (Washington, DC) .....................690,000
      4. Leonardo Palermo (Toms River, NJ) ...............355,000
      5. William Kakon (Miami, FL) ................................160,000
      6. Kenneth Brown (Redondo Beach, CA) ................170,000
      7. Dennis Roitman (Brooklyn, NY) ........................120,000
      8. Viet Nguyen (Philadelphia, PA) ..........................230,000
      9. Jeff Edgerton (New York, NY) ..........................315,000
      10. Andrew Interdonato (Washington, DC) ...........480,000

      Final Table of Ten

      Congratulations to the final ten players who outlasted 251 players.

      10th place gets $1,108.

      1st place earns $23,861.

      We're playing this one out until we have a winner.

      Event 14: Moving on Up

      $350 + $50 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH

      10 players remain and they're drawing for their final table seats.

      Last 8 eliminations:

      Place-Name-Amount

      11 Michael Sandler (Larchmont, NY) $1,108
      12 Nick Sanfilippo (Warren Twp., NJ) $1,108
      13 Geumsaeng Kim (Cherry Hill, NJ) $937
      14 David Dalesandro (Wenonah, NJ) $937
      15 Donald Gibson (Clifton, NJ)$937
      16 Greg Pogarsky (Rexford, NY) $852
      17 Dimitry Shamilov (Brooklyn, NY) $852
      18 Michael Mansfield (Parsonburg, MD) $852