2019 Borgata Winter Poker Open Off to a Grand Start, 9 Events Crown Winners

The Borgata Hotel and Spa in Atlantic City is currently playing host to the 2019 Borgata Winter Poker Open with the action well underway since January 15. Comprising of 23 events, the series will conclude on February 1.

Nine out of the 23 events on the schedule have already crowned winners. They are as follows:

Among the many top pros in attendance at the series is Team PokerStars pro Aditya Agarwal. The pioneering Indian pro is back on familiar turf as he has two prior cashes at Borgata with his best score here being his 35^th place finish in the WPT Borgata Championship Re-Entry for $15,109 (₹10,69,127) in September 2014. Agarwal is expected to play in the $3,500 NLHE WPT Main Event and will be looking to better his previous score at the series.

Recap of Completed Events

$500 Black Chip Bounty Deep Stack NLH

The Black Chip Bounty Deep Stack NLH offered a $250,000 guarantee and smashed it with ease as a total of 1,073 entries generated a total prize pool of $375,550.

As play whittled down to the last two players, Frank Brannan and Adel Jo entered into a long-winded deal discussion. Since Brannan not only possessed the most chips but was also clearly in a position to take down the event and so did not want to agree to an adjusted payout at first but went along with complicated negotiation in the end.

Both finalists took away $50,000 each while Brannan bagged the trophy after a PLO flip.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Frank Brannan – $50,000*

2. Adel Jo – $50,000*

3. Emil Mardakhayev – $27,991

4. Corbin Avery – $27,539

5. Salvatore Anastasio – $25,000

6. Mukharji Uppalapati – $24,749

7. Harrison Dobin – $18,980

8. Rafael Jimenez – $16,601

9. Maurice Hawkins – $6,739

10. Alfie Orta – $4,371

*denotes heads-up deal

$340 Pot Limit Omaha (High)

Tommy Tran outlasted a field of 118 entries to take down the Pot Limit Omaha (High) event for $10,128 in prize money.

He squared off against Dennis Zollo in the heads-up play and on the final hand Zollo’s failed to overcome Tran’s , on the runout .

Zollo walked away with the runner-up prize of $5,666.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Tommy Tran – $10,128

2. Dennis Zollo – $5,666

3. John Lytle – $3,434

4. Adam Fox – $2,747

5. Charles Staubs – $2,060

6. Nikhil Kumar – $1,717

7. Mike Zhang – $1,374

8. Joseph Frezza – $1,030

9. Arnold Dinio – $773

$350 Saturday Series Deep Stack NLH

The Saturday Series Deep Stack NLH attracted 668 entries, collecting $233,800 in prize money.

Following the eliminations of Ryan Hagerty (8^th for $6,237), Indian-origin Vineet Pahuja (9^th for $4,309) and Jacob Naumann (10^th for $2,948) from the final table, the remaining seven players decided to strike an adjusted payout deal. The stacks were counted down and within minutes a deal was struck.

Mike Collette who held the chip lead at the time pocketed $28,670 and his first Borgata Winter Poker Open trophy.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Michael Collette – $28,670*

2. Anonymous – $27,237*

3. Angelo Rossi – $23,995*

4. Michael Watkins – $19,688*

5. Fotios Nicoles – $17,813*

6. Welther Marmol – $17,707*

7. John Visco – $15,952*

8. Ryan Hagerty – $6,237

9. Vineet Pahuja – $4,309

10. Jacob Naumann – $2,948

*denotes seven-way deal

$560 Super Survivor NLH

311 players joined the action in the Super Survivor NLH out of which 31 players survived and received $5,000 each in prize money.

Among the notables who received the $5,000 cash prize were two-time WSOP bracelet winner James Moore, along with Mike McGuinness, Judi Bielan, Nick Palma, Sang Kim, Raul Feranandez, Gary Kosakowski, Joey Galazzo and John Yanni.

$340 Seniors Deep Stack NLH

Barry Leventhal outlasted the 145-strong entry field in the $340 Seniors Deep Stack NLH and grabbed a winner’s payday of $12,447.

On the final hand of the event, Eric Siegel jammed his against Leventhal’s . Both players picked up straights on the board, however, Leventhal’s was the nut straight and that won him the trophy.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Barry Leventhal – $12,447

2. Eric Siegel – $6,962

3. Joseph Umdenstock – $4,220

4. Steven Blixt – $3,376

5. Alyse Kaplan – $2,532

6. Lisa Pickell – $2,110

7. Peter Carroll – $1,688

8. Benjamin Laves – $1,266

9. Joseph Frezza – $949

10. John Slaughter – $844

$230 Deeper Stack NLH

The final six players in the Deeper Stack NLH event agreed to an adjusted payout deal, following the elimination of Nicholas Palma (7^th for $2,451) from the ten-player final table.

Kyle Yen, who held the chip lead at the time of the deal, was proclaimed the winner and bagged $9,083 along with his first Borgata Winter Open Trophy.

“I just got aces sixes times it was all skill” joked Yen while he posed with his trophy in the winner’s circle.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Kyle Yen – $9,113*

2. Jonathan Neale – $8,542*

3. Jordan Wolbrum – $7,374*

4. Eileen Kustafik – $6,664*

5. Morgan Klein – $6,284*

6. Clinton Dunn – $5,757*

7. Nicholas Palma – $2,451

8. Gerard Carbery – $1,854

9. Jeremy Sussman – $1,257

10. Chuck Bryant – $817

*denotes six-way deal

$340 Super Survivor NLH (Re-Entry)

The Super Survivor NLH (Re-Entry) gathered a player pool of 159 runners, and only 15 players received $3,000 each in prize money including the likes of Spencer Champlin, Victor McCoy, George Darmanin and Dawn Spivak.

Martino Fanizzi pocketed $1,269 for finishing in 16^th place.

$300 Deepest Stack Double Header NLH

The Deepest Stack Double Header NLH drew in 1,129 entries culminating in a $293,540 prize pool. After several days of gruelling play, Ralph Macri emerged as the champion, after striking a heads-up deal with Everton Taylor who finished runner-up for $49,026. Marci took home $50,000 for his win.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Ralph Macri – $50,000*

2. Everton Taylor – $49,026*

3. Anonymous – $22,636

4. Daesun Yu – $18,935

5. Evan Simon – $15,660

6. Michael Dobbs – $12,671

7. Daniel Lobel – $9,966

8. Timothy Little – $7,403

9. Christopher Castle – $5,225

10. Grant Simmons – $3,403

*denotes heads-up deal

Events to Watch Out For

The $3,500 NLHE WPT Main Event is slated to start on January 27. Consisting of two starting flights, the event boasts of a $3,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. India’s Aditya Agarwal will be among the top pros to watch out for at the series.

The $450 NLHE – Almighty Stack event, comprising of five starting flights, kicked off on January 22. With a juicy $1,000,000 guarantee, it is yet another high-value event which is sure to offer some high-octane action.

Content & Images courtesy: theborgata.com

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