Uruguay's Fabrizio Gonzalez Scores $236,500 Win in South Florida
On Tuesday, the 2015 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open, in conjunction with Poker Night in America, live streamed an unprecedented four final tables at the same time. One of those final tables was from Event #22: $2,650 buy-in $1,000,000 Guarantee No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout, a three-day tournament that attracted 502 players and created a prize pool of $1,217,350.
In the end, Uruguay's Fabrizio "SixthSenSe19" Gonzalez, who now calls Spain home, emerged as the last man standing to capture the $236,400 first-place prize, the largest score of his career. Prior to the win Gonzalez had $898,665 in live tournament earnings, which included $191,646 for a 45th- place finish in the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event; $156,204 for a fifth-place finish in the summer's $10,000 Bellagio Cup XI; and $148,000 for a third-place finish in the 2011 Conrad Poker Tour Punta del Este Main Event.
Gonzalez now has more than $1.1 million in lifetime earnings, which puts him firmly atop Uruguay's all-time money list. That's not taking into account the more nearly $3 million he's won online.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fabrizio Gonzalez | Montevideo, Uruguay | $236,400 |
| 2 | Daniel Fuhs | San Diego, CA | $141,800 |
| 3 | Darryl Ronconi | Naperville, IL | $84,800 |
| 4 | Xuan Liu | Toronto, ON | $70,900 |
| 5 | Seth Davies | Ben, OR | $59,100 |
| 6 | Chris Hunichen | Clayton, NC | $47,300 |
| 7 | Jon Borenstein | Teaneck, NJ | $35,500 |
| 8 | David Diaz | Bartlett, TN | $29,500 |
| 9 | Casey Yontz | Columbus, OH | $23,150 |
According to updates from the event, the final table bubble was one of the longest in recent memory as it took nearly four hours for the field to go from 10 down to the final nine.
"Oh man, that was really long," Gonzalez told SHRPO officials after his win. "It was really entertaining too. I came in with 600,000 and I was down to 300,000, and then I ended up with 1.7 million so it was really fun. I just tried to create pressure with 10 people left because I felt like it was a good moment for my chips."
That bubble allowed Gonzalez to enter the final table second in chips, behind only Xuan Liu. The two stayed out of each others way for most of the final table, but eventually clashed when just four players remained. After Daniel Fuhs doubled through Liu, she was left with just 400,000 in Level 29 (40,000/80,000/10,000). A short time later she got it all in preflop holding the K♥8♥ and was called by Gonzalez, who held the 3♠3♣ on the button. The A♠10♠2♠ flop was dry as could be for Liu, and the 4♠ turn actually left her drawing dead as Gonzalez made a flush. Liu took home $70,900 for her fourth-place finish. She was soon joined on the rail by third-place finisher Darryl Ronconi, which left Fuhs and Gonzalez to battle for the title.
In what would be the final hand of the tournament, which took place in Level 30 (50,000/100,000/15,000), Fuhs shoved all in for 1.1 million holding the 8♣7♥ and Gonzalez called with the 4♣4♠. It was a flip, but not after the J♥8♥7♠ delivered Fuhs two pair. The 6♣ turn meant Gonzalez needed either a four or five to swipe the pot, and he found it when the 5♣ spiked on the river. Fuhs had to settle for second place and a $141,800 consolation prize.
"He was a tough player, but I think I picked up some good cards," Gonzalez said of his heads-up opponent. "I think I played very good heads up. I was grinding him down and kept the pressure on, and everything worked out."
For more on the SHRPO, check out the following recaps:
- David Eldridge wins Event #23 $1,100 No-Limit Hold'em for $146,100.
- Jason Mercier wins $25,400 High Roller for $517,000.
- Omar Zazay wins 2015 SHRPO Main Event for $1 Million; Daniel Colman falls in third.
*Lead photo and data courtesy of SHRPO.
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