2014 Borgata Spring Poker Open

Event 14: $15,400 $5 Million Guaranteed WPT World Championship
Day: 3
Event Info

2014 Borgata Spring Poker Open

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
a8
Prize
$1,350,000
Event Info
Buy-in
$15,000
Prize Pool
$4,852,400
Entries
328
Level Info
Level
31
Blinds
100,000 / 200,000
Ante
25

Athanasios Polychronopoulos Eliminated in 34th Place ($30,085)

Level 19 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante
Athanasios Polychronopoulos - 34th Place
Athanasios Polychronopoulos - 34th Place

Athanasios Polychronopoulos open-shoved for 120,000 in early position, Ryan D'Angelo called in the cutoff, and the action folded to Maurice Hawkins in the big blind. He folded as well, flashing the {a-Clubs}.

Polychronopoulos: {a-Hearts}{j-Diamonds}
D'Angelo: {7-Clubs}{7-Diamonds}

Knowing one ace was dead it was a bit of a lopsided race, and D'Angelo remained in front after the flop ({2-Clubs}{8-Hearts}{9-Spades}), the turn ({k-Hearts}), and the river ({4-Diamonds}).

Polychronopoulos exited in 34th place, earning $30,085, while D'Angelo is up to 670,000 chips.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Ryan D'Angelo us
Ryan D'Angelo
670,000
66,000
66,000
WSOP 1X Winner
Profile photo of Athanasios Polychronopoulos us
Athanasios Polychronopoulos
Busted
WSOP 2X Winner

Tags: Athanasios PolychronopoulosRyan D'Angelo

Alex Condon Eliminated in 35th Place ($30,085)

Level 19 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante
Alex Condon - 35th Place
Alex Condon - 35th Place

Justin Young taised to 25,000 in early position, Alex Condon moved all in for a little over 100,000 two spots to his left, and the action folded back to Young who instantly called.

Young: {k-Hearts}{k-Spades}
Condon: {a-Hearts}{q-Spades}

The kings held up on a board of {j-Clubs}{6-Hearts}{4-Clubs}{3-Hearts}{9-Spades}, and Condon was eliminated.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Justin Young us
Justin Young
615,000
171,000
171,000
WPT 1X Winner
Profile photo of Alex Condon us
Alex Condon
Busted

Tags: Justin YoungAlex Condon

Scott Eskenazi Eliminated in 36th Place ($30,085)

Level 19 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante
Scott Eskenazi - 36th Place
Scott Eskenazi - 36th Place

Tony Gregg opened to 27,000 from early position and one player flatted from the hijack, with Scott Eskenazi three-betting to 85,000 out of the cutoff.

Poker's "End Boss" didn't seem to mind the reraise in the slightest, and he casually flicked a four-bet of 177,000 into the middle.

This folded the flatter but Eskenazi made his stand by five-bet jamming for right under 300,000. Bowser was waiting to breath fire though, and Gregg snap-called while tabling {a-Clubs}{a-Hearts} like a true boss. Eskenazi had a real hand with his {k-Hearts}{k-Diamonds}, but it didn't matter after a clean runout of {j-Clubs}{8-Spades}{8-Clubs}{9-Diamonds}{4-Spades}.

Just like that the "End Boss" claimed the chip lead and moved over 1.2 million, meaning every player left in the field will have to contend with somebody who does not like to let anybody else win.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Tony Gregg us
Tony Gregg
1,240,000
357,000
357,000
Profile photo of Scott Eskenazi us
Scott Eskenazi
Busted
WPT 1X Winner

Tags: Scott EskenaziTony Gregg

Have a Poker Question? Learn.PokerNews Can Help

Level 19 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante

Ever find yourself confused at the table, be it over a strategy decision or how to interpret a particular rule? We all experienced such confusion repeatedly when starting out at the game, and for many of us questions can still arise now and then.

Learn.PokerNews provides a wealth of advice about poker to help all players avoid having too many of those "WTF" moments. Click over and read the latest contributions including strategy advice, interviews with pros, and other features of general interest to the poker community.

Tags: Learn.PokerNews

Scott Eskenazi Doubles Up

Level 19 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante
Scott Eskenazi
Scott Eskenazi

Jesse Sylvia opened to 27,000 and was called by Abraham Korotki and Maurice Hawkins. Scott Eskenazi moved all in for 116,000 total which was enough to get Sylvia and Korotki to fold. Hawkins decided to call with {A-Diamonds}{10-Clubs} and was racing against Eskenazi's {7-Hearts}{7-Spades}.

The flop came {Q-Clubs}{9-Diamonds}{2-Clubs} and Hawkins asked the dealer for a club so that he could have a sweat.

The turn was the {4-Clubs}.

"There you go," said Hawkins. "Now bang it out."

The river was the {J-Diamonds} and Hawkins was unable to improve and Eskenazi wins the pot. "I thought you were rooting for me," Eskenazi said after the hand, a sly smile on his face.

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Maurice Hawkins us
Maurice Hawkins
710,000
-120,000
-120,000
Profile photo of Scott Eskenazi us
Scott Eskenazi
290,000
170,000
170,000
WPT 1X Winner

Tags: Maurice HawkinsScott Eskenazi

Level: 19

Blinds: 6,000/12,000

Ante: 2,000

Out of the Kave and Into the Spotlight: Byron Kaverman Primed for His Largest Splash Ever

Level 18 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante
Byron Kaverman
Byron Kaverman

Leading the way at the dinner break with 36 players remaining is Ohio native Byron Kaverman, a quiet young player that tends to fly well under the radar in the tournaments he plays.

Making it to the money has marked the sixth cash on Season XII of the World Poker Tour for Kaverman, and that ties the record for most cashes in a single season. Kaverman now shares the record with Matt Salsberg (Season XI), Lee Markholt (Season V and Season VI), Abraham Gray (Season IV), and Barry Greenstein (Season IV).

After making a very deep run in the 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event where he placed 34th for $229,281, Kaverman finished in the money at the bwin WPT Grand Prix de Paris, WPT bestbet Jacksonville Fall Poker Scramble, WPT Caribbean, partypoker WPT Montreal, and WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open. The best result from those in terms of winnings was the WPT Grand Prix de Paris where Kaverman took 20th place out of 187 players for $20,250.

Helping Kaverman move his way into the chip lead was the hand in which he eliminated Phil Hellmuth as the money bubble approached. According to our previous report, Kaverman opened and then called Hellmuth's all-in shove with the {A-Hearts}{Q-Spades}. The 13-time gold bracelet winning Hellmuth was dominated with the {A-Spades}{6-Hearts}. The board ran out in Kaverman's favor, leaving Hellmuth ranting as he made his way to the exit.

"That kid raises every hand and when I finally get a hand, he gets ace-queen," Hellmuth complained. "Are you kidding me?"

Kaverman will now add at least another $30,085 to his live tournament earnings, which total nearly $2 million, but he has the chance at making much more than that given that he's in the pole position with 36 players left.

Tags: Barry GreensteinByron KavermanLee MarkholtMatt SalsbergPhil HellmuthWPTSpring Poker OpenAbraham Gray

Chips With Dinner (full)

Level 18 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante
Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Byron Kaverman us
Byron Kaverman
889,000
239,000
239,000
WSOP 1X Winner
Profile photo of Tony Gregg us
Tony Gregg
883,000
23,000
23,000
Profile photo of Hans Winzeler us
Hans Winzeler
847,000
203,000
203,000
Profile photo of Maurice Hawkins us
Maurice Hawkins
830,000
Profile photo of Scott Seiver us
Scott Seiver
805,000
140,000
140,000
WSOP 7X Winner
WPT 1X Winner
Profile photo of Curt Kohlberg us
Curt Kohlberg
788,000
Profile photo of Eric Afriat ca
Eric Afriat
720,000
60,000
60,000
WPT 3X Winner
Profile photo of Ray Qartomy us
Ray Qartomy
681,000
-29,000
-29,000
Profile photo of Blake Bohn us
Blake Bohn
665,000
80,000
80,000
Profile photo of Ryan D'Angelo us
Ryan D'Angelo
604,000
-96,000
-96,000
WSOP 1X Winner
Profile photo of Yuval Harosh
Yuval Harosh
594,000
-74,000
-74,000
Profile photo of Brock Parker us
Brock Parker
550,000
-227,000
-227,000
Profile photo of Tony Dunst us
Tony Dunst
540,000
110,000
110,000
WSOP 3X Winner
WPT 1X Winner
Profile photo of Jordan Cristos us
Jordan Cristos
513,000
-41,000
-41,000
WPT 1X Winner
Profile photo of Jason Koon us
Jason Koon
498,000
68,000
68,000
WSOP 1X Winner
Run It Once
Profile photo of Jesse Sylvia us
Jesse Sylvia
495,000
-50,000
-50,000
WPT 1X Winner
Profile photo of Glenn Lafaye us
Glenn Lafaye
464,000
-96,000
-96,000
Profile photo of Justin Young us
Justin Young
444,000
-46,000
-46,000
WPT 1X Winner
Profile photo of Corey Hochman (Cory Hochman)
Corey Hochman (Cory Hochman)
397,000
117,000
117,000
Profile photo of Leonardo Palermo us
Leonardo Palermo
361,000
-22,000
-22,000
Profile photo of Abraham Korotki us
Abraham Korotki
350,000
110,000
110,000
Profile photo of Jonathan Tamayo us
Jonathan Tamayo
317,000
-133,000
-133,000
WSOP Main Event Champion
WSOP 1X Winner
Chip Leader Coaching
Profile photo of David Daggett
David Daggett
284,000
64,000
64,000
Profile photo of David Grandieri us
David Grandieri
274,000
59,000
59,000
Profile photo of Loni Harwood us
Loni Harwood
274,000
144,000
144,000
WSOP 2X Winner

Read full

Double Bubble During Dinner

Level 18 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante
Nick Schulman - One of the two bubble boys
Nick Schulman - One of the two bubble boys

The tournament clock ticked down to triple zeros here in the Season XII WPT World Championship, and the remaining 38 players started trickling out of the Poker Room for their 75-minute dinner break. Half of the field was already gone when a commotion broke out in the high-limit area where two of the tournament tables are being held.

Several players were hugging one another, including Tom Dobrilovic, and Maurice Hawkins was singing a very familiar tune.

"We're in the moneyyyyy," Hawkins belted. "We're in the moneyyyyy."

It couldn't be. Less than a minute ago there were 38 players remaining, and now two of them were suddenly gone?

Upon further review, we discovered that the bubble had indeed burst with concurrent eliminations on adjacent tables. Thanks to our colleagues with the WPT we have exact details for one hand, and thanks to Hawkins we have some details on the other.

In the first elimination, Michael Lavoie raised to 30,000 from under the gun. Curt Kohlberg three-bet to 65,000 on his immediate left, and the action folded back to Lavoie, who moved all in for 165,000. Kohlberg made a quick call.

Lavoie: {a-Diamonds}{q-Diamonds}
Kohlberg: {k-Hearts}{k-Spades}

Kohlberg had Lavoie dominated, and there was very little sweat as the board came {j-Clubs}{8-Diamonds}{8-Spades}{6-Clubs}{7-Clubs}.

On the next table over, a short-stacked Nick Schulman was all in and at risk with an open-ended straight draw.

According to Hawkins, Yuval Harosh raised to 20,000 from under the gun, Hawkins called on the button, and Schulman defended his big blind. The flop fell {j-Diamonds}{10-Diamonds}{3-}, Schulman and Harosh both checked, and Hawkins fired out 35,000. Schulman moved all in for 150,000, Harosh folded, and Hawkins called.

Schulman: {q-}{9-}
Hawkins: {a-Diamonds}{k-Diamonds}

Hawkins was in the lead with ace-high, but he also held straight and flush draws. The turn was a {2-}, changing nothing, and the {a-Spades} on the river gave Hawkins a pair of aces for kicks and giggles.

"We're in the moneyyyy," Hawkins continued to sing.

Some players - particularly the ones captaining short stacks - are in for a surprise when they return and find they've earned a minimum of $30,085.

We are on dinner break for another 50 minutes. See you then!

Player Chips Progress
Profile photo of Maurice Hawkins us
Maurice Hawkins
830,000
440,000
440,000
Profile photo of Curt Kohlberg us
Curt Kohlberg
788,000
267,000
267,000
Profile photo of Michael Lavoie
Michael Lavoie
Busted
Profile photo of Nick Schulman us
Nick Schulman
Busted
WSOP 5X Winner
WPT 2X Winner

Tags: Curt KohlbergMaurice HawkinsMichael LavoieNick Schulman

Bubble Bursts

Level 18 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante

Half of the field was already out the door and headed to dinner when there were two eliminations at the same time in the Poker Room!

We will have full details for you shortly...