FTOPS X Roundup: Greg 'DuckU' Hobson Takes Heads-up Title

Mickey Doft Live Reporter

Nov 16, 2008 7 min read

FTOPS X Roundup: Greg 'DuckU' Hobson Takes Heads-up Title 0001

An impressive lineup of events in the final weekend of the tenth Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) began on Saturday with action in three different major tourneys. Greg "DuckU" Hobson and "Antoshka" captured event titles during the night's action, while Event #22, the two-day, $5,000+200 high-roller event, saw 35 players survive into Sunday's conclusion, led by Amit Makhija. Here's how the day's action unfolded:

FTOPS X Event #21: $500+35 NLHE Heads-Up

FTOPS Event #21 was a $500+35 NL hold'em heads-up tournament. 897 players registered for this one, meaning that an overlay was in place for the participants. Among the best finishes were Mike "SirWatts" Watson in 13th place ($7,500), Zach "CrazyZachary" Clark in 17th ($4,000), Eugene "myrabbifoo" Katchalov in 22nd ($4,000), Joe "dyzalot" Morneau in 25th ($4,000), Mike "SowersUNCC" Sowers in 26th ($4,000), Aaron Bartley in 29th ($4,000), Annette "Annette_15" Obrestad in 36th ($2,000) and Justin "Boosted J" Smith in 44th ($2,000).

These eight players made it through to the quarterfinals:

PLAYM0NEYPR0

DayDough

mendieta19

JBlaze20

masjo93

Greg "DuckU" Hobson

blackjack9

molgul

Quarterfinals

JBlaze20 vs. molgul

JBlaze20 got the best of molgul early in the match. With blinds of 20/40, molgul raised to 120 and JBlaze20 called, leading to a flop of 8♠4♦3♥. JBlaze20 checked and molgul shoved all in for 2,195. JBlaze20 snap-called and turned up 4♥4♣ for middle set. Molgul showed 10♠8♣ and did not hit the miracle runner-runner. Molgul finished eighth for $14,000 while JBlaze20 advanced to the final four.

blackjack9 vs. PLAYM0NEYPR0

PLAYM0NEYPR0 got the best of Event #20 winner blackjack9. The chips made it to the middle with PLAYM0NEYPR0's A♥A♣ besting blackjack9's K♣Q♣. Seventh place paid blackjack9 $14,000. PLAYM0NEYPRO earned a seat in the final four.

masjo93 vs. mendieta19

Mendieta19 defeated masjo93 after masjo93 made a move with 8♦2♦ on a 3♣10♥-4-5♦ board. Mendieta19's pocket kings were held up when masjo94's outs failed to connect. Masjo93 finished in sixth place for $14,000, while Mendieta19 awaited the winner of the final match of the round.

DayDough vs. Greg "DuckU" Hobson

In a match lasting well over an hour, Greg Hobson edged DayDough. At the 100/200 level DayDough shoved with 8♣8♣ but ran into Hobson's Q♣Q♠. A third queen on the flop won it for Hobson, who advanced to the final four. DayDough earned $14,000 for fifth.

Semifinals

Greg "DuckU" Hobson vs. JBlaze20

At 30/60, Brian Hobson won the match. JBlaze20 opened to 120 and and Hobson raised it to 360. JBlaze20 called and the flop came Q♠3♠7♥. Both players checked and the 5♥ hit the turn. Hobson led out for 300 and JBlaze20 called. The J♠ river saw Hobson shove with the big stack and get called. DuckU's A♠A♦ were the best hand as JBlaze20's cards were mucked. JBlaze20 finished in fourth place for $26,500, while Greg "DuckU" Hobson guaranteed himself a spot in the finals.

PLAYM0NEYPR0 vs. mendieta19

After battling for just over an hour, mendieta19 was able to get the victory and eliminate PLAYM0NEYPR0 in third for $26,500, setting up a showdown with Greg "DuckU" Hobson.

Finals

Greg "DuckU" Hobson vs. mendieta19

Greg Hobson jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. At 25/50 and with a 3:1 chip lead, mendieta19 min-raised to 100 and Hobson moved his big stack all in with 3♥3♠. After a short tank, mendieta19 called with A♠8♣. The board ran out 7♥2♠Q♠5♦5♥ and the tournament was over. Mendieta19 finished as the runner-up for $52,000. Hobson's win added $87,000 to his impressive tournament record.

Final Results:

1. Greg "DuckU" Hobson - $87,000

2. mendieta19 - $52,000

3. PLAYM0NEYPR0- $26,500

4. JBlaze20 - $26,500

5. DayDough - $14,000

6. masjo93 - $14,000

7. blackjack9 - $14,000

8. molgul - $14,000

FTOPS X Roundup: Greg 'DuckU' Hobson Takes Heads-up Title 101

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FTOPS X Event #22: $5,000+200 NLHE 6-max, Day 1

FTOPS Event #22, $5000+200 NL Hold'em 6-max, began the first of its two days of play on Saturday. The event drew 500 entrants for a total prize pool of $2,500,000, with first place set at $550,000. Day 1 ended after 17 levels with just 35 players remaining. Among those making the money but not surviving the day were Ben "1Mastermind" Chen in 41st place ($12,500) and Justin "Boosted J" Smith in 47th place ($11,250).

Leading the way into Day 2 will be Amit "amak316" Makhija, with a stack of 279,728. Hot on his heels are many other stars, including Mark "Buster Love" Seif in third with 226,425, Hans "miAmihAns" Winzeler in fourth with 194,045, Shawn "buck99" Buchanan in eighth with 111,276, and Kevin "GetPWN3D" Saul in tenth with 105,205. Others still in the field include Brandon Adams, Steve "thorladen" Weinstein, David "Davidp18" Peters, Evan "NEONPILS99" Parkes, Schoitl, David Pham, Kyle "kwob20" Bowker, govshark2, Eugene "myrabbifoo" Katchalov, Craig Marquis, David "Bussa Buss" Baker, Joe "Dyzalot" Morneau, Luke "magikstick8" Vrabel, and Christian "da_professional" Iacobellis.

The tournament continues at 2:00 pm ET on Full Tilt. Blinds and antes will be at the 600/1,200/150 level when action resumes.

The chip counts heading into Day 2:

1. Amit "amak316" Makhija - 279,728

2. gusavo - 234,060

3. Mark "Buster Love" Seif - 226,425

4. Hans "miAmihAns" Winzeler - 194,045

5. PureCash25 - 176,666

6. dpowell - 158,908

7. KaKeTKa - 126,435

8. Shawn "buck99" Buchanan - 111,276

9. phil_ivey41 - 106,140

10. Kevin "GetPWN3D" Saul - 105,140

11. YrrsiNN - 90,306

12. damham9 - 86,699

13. Brandon Adams - 85,311

14. Steve "thorladen" Weinstein - 85,098

15. David "Davidp18" Peters - 80,284

16. Evan "NEONPILS99" Parkes - 78,291

17. STELLA05 - 70,449

18. Schoitl - 65,320

19. RAZITUP2007 - 63,406

20. David Pham - 54,258

21. oiltrader - 49,925

22. Kyle "kwob20" Bowker - 47,775

23. govshark2 - 46,940

24. mreki88 - 44,089

25. Eugene "myrabbifoo" Katchalov - 39,739

26. Craig Marquis - 38,146

27. David "Bussa Buss" Baker - 37,238

28. belVolo - 34,861

29. fridhem - 32,678

30. Joe "Dyzalot" Morneau - 31,483

31. _PAJAS_ - 30,437

32. Luke "magikstick8" Vrabel - 25,011

33. brady22 - 24,335

34. Christian "da_professional" Iacobellis - 23,672

35. PLUsizeHoneY - 15,261

FTOPS X Event #23: $100+9 PLO w/ Rebuys

FTOPS Event #23 was a $100+9 PL Omaha (with rebuys) tourney. It attracted 962 entrants with 2,076 rebuys and 546 add-ons, though it fell a bit short of its $400,000 guarantee and therefore offered a little extra prize money to its participants. Notable finishes included Sandra Naujoks in 16th place ($2,000), Jonathan "shipitobv" Delong in 20th ($1,560), Matt "Mattg1983" Graham in 22nd ($1,560), and Ali Sarkeshik in 24th ($1,560). The chip counts at the start of the final table were as follows:

Antoshka - 1,192,401

deerchaser21 - 836,959

Marco "CrazyMarco" Johnson - 809,435

FinnishNightmre - 735,207

LuckyKuzmich - 615,038

Pillager Bik - 571,629

JMan772 - 371,078

MissOldy - 297,149

Tristan "Cre8ive" Wade - 220,104

Eliminated first at 15,000/30,000 was Tristan "Cre8ive" Wade. He committed his remaining stack of 190,104 with 9♠8♦7♣4♦ and was up against Marco "CrazyMarco" Johnson's A♥K♠J♠7♠. The board came 4♠8♠Q♠2♣9♣ and Johnson's flush got the best of Wade, who earned $6,800 for finishing ninth. Johnson busted Pillager Bik a few hands later. From middle position, Pillager Bik raised to 77,887 and Johnson called from the big blind. The flop came 6♣9♠8♠ and CrazyMarco led out 132,150. It was raised up to 567,224 by Pillager Bik and Johnson reraised to set his opponent all in. Pillager Bik called and showed Q♥J♣9♦8♣ for top two pair and a gut shot, but Johnson held 9♣9♦7♣6♦ for top set. The turn and river brought back to back kings and sent Pillager Bik home in eighth place for $9,360.

At 20,000/40,000 JMan772 was eliminated. Antoshka opened the pot to 110,000 under the gun and JMan772 called from middle position. They saw a 3♠6♥7♣ flop and Antoshka made a continuation bet of 160,000. JMan772 min-raised it to 320,000 and Antoshka shoved all in. JMan772 called, also all in, with A♦A♣10♠5♦ and trailed Antoshka's Q♠10♥7♥6♠, which had made top two pair. The turn and river were no help to JMan772, who finished in seventh place for $12,000. When blinds reached 25,000/50,000, Marco Johnson was sent to the rail. He opened the hand with a raise to 175,000 from under the gun and deerchaser21 called from middle position. Johnson bet all in when the flop came 2♦7♥A♦ and deerchaser21 called. Johnson held A♣Q♦J♣3♠ for top pair while deerchaser21 was on a draw with K♦Q♣8♣3♦, but he got there when the 8♦ fell on the river. Marco "CrazyMarco" Johnson finished sixth for $18,000. FinnishNightmre was also a casualty of deerchaser21 at this level. All of FinnishNightmre's chips went into the middle with A♥8♦5♠4♣ against deerchaser21's A♠Q♠Q♦4♦. The board rolled out 3♣K♥2♠7♣7♥ and FinnishNightmre was out in fifth for $25,000.

The 40,000/80,000 round of play brought the elimination of LuckyKuzmich. In an unraised pot, a flop of 4♦3♥Q♠ led LuckyKuzmich to shove all in with K♦Q♦10♠9♣. Unfortunately for LuckyKuzmich, deerchaser21 flopped top two pair and none of LuckyKuzmich's needed overcards hit the turn or river. LuckyKuzmich took $33,000 for fourth. The newfound chips didn't last long for deerchaser21. At 50,000/100,000, deerchaser21 opened to 350,000 on the button and MissOldy pushed it to 1.1 million from the big blind. Deerchaser21 called and the flop came Q♥2♣A♠. MissOldy shoved for 750,000 and deerchaser21 called with A♣10♥6♥3♣, leaving MissOldy behind with K♥K♠10♦8♠. The 4♣ on the turn took away club outs from MissOldy, but the river was the J♦ and made the Broadway straight for MissOldy. Deerchaser21 was eliminated the next hand and earned $43,000 for third.

Heads-up play began with these chip counts:

Antoshka - 1,875,965

MissOldy - 3,773,035

Despite the chip disadvantage, Antoshka rallied to win the tournament. In the final hand, MissOldy raised to 260,000 on the button and Antoshka bumped it up to 780,000. A call brought out the 3♣5♣A♦ flop and Antoshka led out enough to set MissOldy all in. MissOldy called and the hands were revealed to be A♥A♣8♣5♦ for Antoshka (top set) and A♠K♥10♥6♥ for MissOldy (top pair). The turn and river were blank and MissOldy was out in second place for $58,000, while Antoshka won Event #23 for a $92,000 payday.