Event 1: Still Four Handed; Rocha Leads

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)          

Play resumed after the break with blinds of 120k/240k, 30k antes.

Chips have been moving around the table. 

Leonardo Palarmo got all-in with pocket 9s against the A9 of Sean Lee.  Then the board came T 8 7 6 T and they CHOPPED the pot with the same Ten-high straight.

Joshua Lawson called on the button, Leonardo completed the small blind, and Alex Rocha checked his option.  They all three checked the flop of J 8 4 rainbow.  Turn was a 3 and it was checked to Joshua, who bet 400k.  Leonardo folded and Alex called.  River was a 2.  Alex checked, Joshua bet 1 million, and Alex called.  Joshua said "Queen-high".  Alex tabled Q8 for a pair of 8s to take the pot.

Joshua completed the small blind, then Leonardo shoved from the big for another 1.74 million.  Joshua called, showing K9 off.  Leonardo held AQ suited.  The board came 7 6 5 J T and Ace-high was good to ship the double to Leonardo.  He chipped up to ~4 million.

Alex opened for 500k, Sean Lee called from the button, and Leonardo called from the big blind.  The flop was J 5 3 rainbow.  It was checked to Sean, who fired 1.2 million.  Leonardo folded and Alex called.  Turn was a 9.  Alex checked, Sean bet 2.5 million.  Alex asked what he had behind (about 10 million) then moved in for ~ 8 million.  Sean thought for a few seconds, then mucked.

 Alex Rocha

With that pot, Alex chipped up to ~15 million and took the chip lead.

Joshua called on the button and Alex checked his option.  The flop was J 6 4 and both checked.  Turn was another Jack and Alex bet 500k.  Joshua called.  River was a Queen and Alex checked.  Joshua bet 1.2 million.  Alex tanked for a bit, then called.  Joshua showed J5 suited for trip Jacks.  Alex mucked his hand.  Joshua stacked up to ~11.5 million.  Alex was left with ~13 million.

Event 1: 5th Place - Ryan Wood

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)         

Ryan Wood moved all-in from the hijack and Joshua Lawson called from the cutoff.  Ryan held pocket 3s and was hoping they would hold up against Joshua's AJ.  His hopes were short-lived, however, as the board came A 9 6 5 4.  Joshua took the pot, chipping up to ~12.2 million.

Ryan Wood

Ryan Wood of Crownsville, MD, finished in 5th place, earning $39,265.

Sean Lee is still the chip leader with ~17 million. 

Sean opened for 1 million utg and it folded around to Alex Rocha in the big blind.  He moved all-in and Sean called, showing QJ suited in diamonds.  Alex held A9, also suited in diamonds.  The board came A Q 2 4 8 and Alex doubled up to ~7 million.

Another level concluded and players took off for a break.  Here are their approximate chip counts:

Sean Lee 13.5 million
Joshua Lawson 12.3 million
Alex Rocha 7.9 million
Leonardo Palermo 3.17 million

Event 1: 6th Place - Alex Bolotin

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)        

Alex Bolotin raised and Sean Lee called.  The flop came 6 5 4 and both players checked.  Turn was another 6 and Alex checked.  Sean bet 1 million and Alex called, then checked dark.  River was a 2 and Sean moved all-in.  Alex called to see Sean's 87 suited for the flopped straight.  Alex mucked his hand.

 Alex Bolotin

For his 6th place finish, Alex Bolotin (Brooklyn, NY) will collect $31,768.

Event 1: 7th place - Brian Mooney

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)        

Another level ticked away and blinds increased to 100k/200k with 30k antes.

Joshua Lawson raised utg and action folded around to Ryan Wood in the big blind, who moved all-in.  Joshua called, showing pocket Kings.  Ryan held AK offsuit.  The board came Q 9 2 -- all spades -- giving Ryan the nut-flush-draw and a lot more outs, but the last two were offsuit 7 Q and Joshua doubled up.  He's over 5.6 million.  Ryan was left with ~3 million.

 Brian Mooney

In a battle of the blinds, Joshua raised from the small and Brian Mooney (Middle Village, NY) three-bet from the big.  Joshua moved in and Brian called all-in, showing AK off.  Joshua held pocket Tens.  The board came T 6 3 2 2 and Joshua filled up.  Brian earned $25,343 for his 7th place finish.

Event 1: 8th Place - Bobby Hanley

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)        

Leonardo Palermo opened for 350k and Ryan Wood (bb) moved all in for another 1.26 million on top.  Leonardo made the call, showing AJ offsuit.  He was dominating Ryan's AT offsuit, until the board came K T 8 3 T.  Ryan took the pot with trip Tens, doubling up to ~3.4 million.

Bobby Hanley

Action folded to Bobby 'haha' Hanley on the button and he raised to 450k.  Ryan Wood (sb) moved all-in.  Bobby called, tabling A4 suited.  He was ahead of Ryan's KQm, but again the board favored Ryan as it ran out 8 7 7 7 Q.  Ryan took the pot with 7s full of Queens and Bobby was busted.  He earned $19,275 for his 8th place finish.

Event 2: (Day 1) Recap

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

Steve Dannenmann, the 2005 WSOP Main Event runner-up to Joe Hachem, is in striking distance of adding a Borgata title to his resume. Dannenmann is 4th in chips with 21 players remaining from a starting field of 520 in Event 2 ($300 + $50 NL) of the Borgata Winter Poker Open.

The Baltimore area native trails Jessy Pulido (Pembrooke Pines, FL), who took the chip lead away from Benchino Chan (New York, NY) when the two clashed in several big pots before Day 1 ended. Pulido finished with 638k, while Chan dropped from 525k down to a precarious 125k.

"I kept ending up with second best hands," said Chan as he bagged and tagged half the chip average. Pulido said he siphoned off 100k or more from Pulido on two different hands and picked up an additional 60k when he was dealt pocket aces. "I'm making the final table for sure," said Pulido, who has a 200k lead over second place Qiaosun Wu.

Players in the field with notable Borgata and national accomplishments included Josh Brikis, James Boyd, Dave Inselberg and Gordon Eng. But when Day 2 resumes Friday at 1 pm all eyes will be on Dannenmann, who has 8 major Borgata cashes since his 2005 dual with Hachem.

The remaining 21 players are eyeing the top prize of $37,679 out of the total buy-in of $156,000.

Event 1: 9th Place - Shawn James

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)        
   
Another level completed and the final 9 took a break.  After the break, play resumed with blinds of 80k/160k and 20k antes.

Joshua Lawson opened for 450 utg, then Shawn James moved all-in from the cutoff.  After some thought, Sean Lee moved in over the top.  Joshua opted out.  Shawn held pocket 6s and was racing against Sean's AK.  The board came Q 5 3 J J and Shawn doubled up to ~2.5 million.  Once again, the hit to Sean Lee's stack was barely noticeable.

Just a few hands later, Shawn opened for 675k and Sean raised to 2 million straight.  When action folded back around to Shawn, he moved all-in.  Sean snap-called, showing pocket Kings.  Shawn held AQ and would need help to survive.  The board came Q J 8 T 9 and Sean improved to a straight to claim the pot.

 Shawn James

Shawn James finished in 9th place, earning $13,207.

Event 3 Recap

Glenn Engelbert (Erial, NJ) overcame a 3-2 chip deficit in heads-up play and was down to just 75k before rallying to beat Joe Calandrino (Oakdale, NJ) and win Event 3 (Limit) at the Borgata Winter Poker Open.

"This is a relief," said Engelbert who takes home $6,925 for the win, "it felt like I was bubbling everything last year."

Calandrino took the chip lead after the dinner break and knocked out three players at the final table, but wasn't able to seal the deal when he had Engelbert on the ropes. "I played well," says Calandrino who earned $3,760 for second place, "but luck was definitely a factor."

The key hand of heads-up play came with Calandrino holding pocket 9s against Engelbert's QJ. The flop came JJ7 and there was a lot of action, especially in a limit tournament. Engelbert sealed the deal when another 7 hit the turn to complete his full house.

Engelbert won the 400k pot as he was able to get two extra bets out of Calandrino, 40k each on the turn and river. "He didn't need to give up 80-thousand," says Engelbert, "but I guess he didn't believe I had a jack."

Engelbert closed out the tournament when his ace high took down the final pot. The mixed game specialist feels this is redemption as he says he finished just outside of the money in two different Borgata HOSE tournaments last year.

The tournament began with 68 players and featured a lot of players who usually are at the No-Limit tables. Borgata regulars Jason Young (Suffern, NY) and Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ) were in the field along with Norman Whitely (Newark, DE) and Al Riccobono (Ossining, NY), who finished first and second in this event, respectively, in the 2009 Borgata Poker Open.

Whiteley was poised to make another deep run and was the chip leader at the dinner break, but a late night rough patch left him short of the money. As the tournament moved along quickly, a vote with two tables remaining had players agreeing to shorten the two-day event to one.

In the end nine players cashed in on the total buy-in of $20,400, with Engelbert taking home the top prize.

Event 1: Final Table Lineup

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)       

Here are the seat assignments and rough chip counts for the final table:

Seat - Player - Chips (in millions)

1 - Bobby Hanley - 2.6
2 - Ryan Wood - 2.4
3 - Joshua Lawson - 4.1
4 - Brian Mooney - 3.9
5 - Leonardo Palermo - 4.8
6 - Alex Rocha - 3.7
7 - Alex Bolotin - 3
8 - Shawn James - 2.4
9 - Sean Lee - 10

Event 1: 10th Place - Gina Cannone

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)      

Gina 'Gin-evil' Cannone got all-in holding K9 suited, only to run into the AK of Shawn James.  The board came Q 7 6 6 Q and Shawn took the pot.

 Gina Cannone

Gina finished in 10th place, earning $8,566.  Since Joanne Monteavarro busted out in 32nd place, Gina has been the last woman sitting in this event.  With her departure, it is nothing but testosterone from here on.

The final nine have drawn seats and are moving to the final table.

Event 1: Bolotin Doubles

  $500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)     

In another battle of the blinds, Alex Bolotin (sb) was all-in against the monster stack of Sean Lee (bb).  Alex's pocket Kings were crushing Sean's pocket 7s. 

 Alex Bolotin

The board changed nothing and Alex doubled up to ~2 million.  The hit to Sean's stack was barely discernible.

Event 1: 11th Place - Dimitrios Bergos

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)     

Dimitrios Bergos made his move with two paint cards and got looked up by chip leader Sean Lee, who had A8.  An Ace on the flop was all Sean needed to send yet another player to the payout desk.

 Dimitrios Bergos

Dimitrios finished in 11th place, earning $8,566.

Event 1: 16th - 12th Places

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)     

Vittorio Faricelli busted out in 16th place, earning $3,927.

In a battle of the blinds, Jeff Gottesman (sb) got all-in against monster-stack Sean Lee (bb).  Jeff's AK was ahead of Sean's QJ, but the flop came Q Q 4 and it was all but over.  No miracle occured and Jeff was busted in  15th place ($6,067).

Ed McCarthy got all in with KJ against the pocket 3s of Bobby 'Haha' Hanely.  The 3s held up and Bobby took the pot.  Ed ended up with 14th place and $6,067.

Ron Durante

Ron Durante finished in 13th place ($6,067).

 Eric Hall

Eric Hall was busted in 12th place ($8,566).

Event 2: End of Day 1 Chip Leaders

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

Name-Chip Count

Jessy Pulido 638k
Qiaosun Wu 438k
Ibrahim Musleh 380k
Steve Dannenmann 379k
Louis Mense 376k
Aaron Mermelstein 371k
Gary King 330k
Dustin Bradley 312k
Elso Garcia 288k
David Penna 283k
James Lillis 268k
David Meagher 180k
Adam Klein 171k
Benchino Chan 135k
Meikat Siu 130k
Lawrence Lakatosh 127k
Alexander Shteyman 108k
John Yiovanakos 95k
Jesse Sasso 89k
Frank Fazio 65k
Mike Murphy 47k

Play resumes 1 pm Friday.

Event 2: Done for the Night

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

Pulido Pulling Away

In the last hour of play on Day 1, Jessy Pulido (Pembrooke Pines, FL) clashes with chip leader Benchino Chan (New York, NY) and puts a dent in Chan's armor to take the lead heading into Day 2. Pulido winds up with 638k, while Chan drops from 525k down to a precarious 125k.

"I kept ending up with second best hands," says Chan as he bags and tags for the night as one of 21 returning players.

Pulido says he siphoned off 100k or more from Pulido on two different hands and picked up an additional 60k when he was dealt pocket aces. "I'm making the final table for sure," said Pulido, who has a 200k lead over second place Qiaosun Wu.

Day 2 resumes Friday at 1 pm with the average stack at 248k.

The top 5 stacks:

Jessy Pulido 638k
Qiaosun Wu 438k
Ibrahim Musleh 380k
Steve Dannenmann 379k
Louis Mense 376k

Event 1: 18th - Macchia; 17th - Doerr

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)    

Blinds are up to 50k/100k with 10k antes.

Steven Macchia (cutoff) got all-in holding KJ against Sean Lee (sb) after a raising war.  Sean was ahead, but racing with pocket 8s. 

 Steven Macchia

The board came 7 5 3 Q 6 and after holding the chip lead most of the afternoon, Steven Macchia was busted in 18th place.  He earns $3,927 for his efforts.

Sean Lee is now sitting behind almost 10 million chips.

On a flop of K J 4 with one spade, Alex Rocha got all-in against Eric Doerr.  Alex held KQ of spades for top pair and the lead.  Eric held QT for the open-ended straight-draw.  The last two came running spades, J A, and Alex briefly thought Eric had won with broadway, then realized he had made the back-door spade flush to take the pot.  He doubled up to ~3.5 million.

Eric Doerr

Eric was left short-stacked and busted out soon after.  He finished 17th for $3,927.

Event 3 Champion: Engelbert

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Glenn Engelbert
$6,925

Glenn Engelbert (Erial, NJ) overcame a 3-2 chip deficit in heads-up play and was down to just 75k before rallying to beat Joe Calandrino (Oakdale, NJ) and win Event 3 (Limit) at the Borgata Winter Poker Open.

"This is a relief," said Engelbert who takes home $6,925 for the win, "it felt like I was bubbling everything last year."

Calandrino took the chip lead after the dinner break and knocked out three players at the final table, but wasn't able to seal the deal when he had Engelbert on the ropes. "I played well," says Calandrino who earned $3,760 for second place, "but luck was definitely a factor."

The key hand of heads-up play came with Calandrino holding pocket 9s against Engelbert's QJ. The flop came JJ7 and there was a lot of action, especially in a limit tournament. Engelbert sealed the deal when another 7 hit the turn to complete his full house.

Engelbert won the 400k pot as he was able to get two extra bets out of Calandrino, 40k each on the turn and river. "He didn't need to give up 80-thousand," says Engelbert, "but I guess he didn't believe I had a jack."

Engelbert closed out the tournament when his ace high took down the final pot. The mixed game specialist feels this is redemption as he says he finished just outside of the money in two different Borgata HOSE tournaments last year.

Joe Calandrino
2nd Place - $3,760

Event 3: 3rd - Borgman

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Doug Borgman (Austin, TX)

$2,375

Doug Borgman's run ends when chip leader Joe Calandrino takes out his third victim at the final table. Borgman hits the J♦ on the turn to lead with a pair of jacks, but it gives Calandrino a flush draw to go along with an over card.

When the 5♦ comes on the river it gives Calandrino the nut flush with his A♦ 10♦, to knock Borgman out in 3rd place.

Calandrino is now heads-up with Glenn Engelbert and has a 3-2 chip lead, 300k to 200k, as blinds are 5k/10k.

Event 3: 4th - Mavro

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Nick Mavro (Astoria, NY)

$1,781

Event 3: 5th - Larkin

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Joe Larkin (Pasadena, MD)

$1,385

Event 1: Sean & Shawn Catch 2-Outers on the River

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)    

 Leonard Sande

Leonard Sande busted out in 19th place, earning $3,213.

The two big stacks on table three got involved in a hand.  On the turn, the board read 7 2 2 3 and there was more than 2 million chips already in the pot. 

Sean Lee got all-in against Steven Macchia, who held pocket 9s.  Sean held 76 suited and was in bad shape.  His 6 was no good because Steven already had a better two-pair hand. 

Sean was facing elimination -- until another 7 hit the river.  That two-outer gave him a full house and a huge double-up.  He's now the clear chip leader with ~7.8 million.  Steven was left with ~1.9 million.

Shawn James got all-in holding pocket 8s against the pocket Kings of Eric Hall.  Shawn was on the brink of elimination, until an 8 hit the river, giving him the set and the double-up.

With 18 players remaining, they have moved to the final two tables.

Event 2: Final Break

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

The 24 remaining players (217k avg.) are on a 10 minute color-up break as the 500 (purple) chips are removed from play.

The big stack is still Benchino Chan who's holding steady at 525k. Steve Dannenman is second with 395k, while Dustin Bradley (Tampa, FL) moves into the third spot with 330k.

Play continues until 2 am or 18 players whichever comes first.

Level 19 (5k/10k/1k ante) is up next.

Event 3: 6th - Zaliwiciw

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Wasyl Zaliwiciw (Philadelphia, PA)
$1,187

Event 3: 7th - Dennis

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Monty Dennis (Harlem, NY)

$989

Event 3: 8th - Floyd

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Bill Floyd (Norristown, PA)
$792

Event 1: 27th - 20th Places

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)    

Konstanti Ehlert busted in 27th place ($3,213).

Shawn James doubled through Dimitrios Bergos.

Gino Genari

Gino Genari got all in holding AJ, but ran into Steven Macchia pocket Aces.  Aces held and Gino was busted in 26th place ($3,213).

 Vitaly Kovyazin

On the next hand, Vitaly Kovyazin (Brooklyn, N) got all-in against Steven.  Vitaly's QJ had Steven's J9 dominated, but a 9 on the flop was all Steven needed to bust another player.  Vitaly finished 25th ($3,213).  Steven is now up to ~6.1 million.

Eric Hall busted Joshua Supsak in 24th place ($3,213).

Patrick Whitmore

Patrick Whitmore moved his short-stack in utg, Eric Hall called from the button, Ed McCarthy called from the small blind, then Dimitrios Bergos moved in over the top from the big blind, folding the other two players.  Dimitrios held pocket Queens and was crushing Patrick's pocket 3s.  The board came A Q 9 4 7 and Dimitrios took the pot.  Patrick took 23rd place and $3,213.

Marcello Delmonaco (left) moved all-in, then Michael Shasho moved all-in from the button.  Joshua Lawson had both covered and called from the big blind.  Marcello's A7 off was way behind.  Michael was racing with AK off.  Joshua held pocket Queens and the lead.  

The board came 7 6 4 Q 3 and Joshua took the pot.  Michael (right) had fewer chips to start the hand, so he finished 22nd.  Marcello took 21st place.  Both earned $3,213.

Dimitrios Bergos doubled through Shawn James.

Brian Mooney busted Aaron Smith.  Aaron finished 20th for $3,213.

Aaron Smith

Event 3: 9th - Young

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Ed Young (Bronx, NY)

$594

Doug Borgman continues to memorize the final table as he's survived to make the money while down to just 6k with only 11 players left. Borgman takes his stack to 75k and then adds to it when he knocks Ed Young out in 9th place.

Young's fate is sealed when Borgman hits a queen on the flop with A Q to win the hand.

Event 3: In the $$$$$

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Carmen Addamo
Bubble Boy

The elimination of Carmen Addamo (Lodi, NJ) in 10th place, puts the remaining nine players in the money.

Addamo has pocket jacks and is ahead of Doug Borgman (Austin, TX) and his pocket 5s. But a two outer on the turn gives Borgman the set to knock out Addamo.

The remaining nine players are guaranteed at least $594 as they go after the top prize of $6,925.

Event 3: Final Table Seating

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

Seat-Name-Chip Count

1 Bill Floyd (Norristown, PA) 72k
2 Joe Calandrino (Oakdale, NJ) 230k
3 Monty Dennis (Harlem, NY) 54k
4 Doug Borgman (Austin, TX) 75k
5 Wasyl Zaliwiciw (Philadelphia, PA) 47k
6 Carmen Addamo (Lodi, NJ) 14k
7 Ed Young (Bronx, NY) 24k
8 Glenn Engelbert (Erial, NJ) 30k
9 Joe Larkin (Pasadena, MD) 122k
10 Nick Mavro (Astoria, NY) 61k

Event 1: 28th Place - Chris Russell

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)    

Chris 'unique' Russell got all-in pre-flop against Steven Macchia.  Unfortunately, Chris' AT was dominated by Steven's AJ.  The board came A K 4 Q 6 and Steven's kicker played to take the pot.

Chris Russell

Chris Russell finished 28th, earning $2,713.

With 27 players remaining, they broke table four.  Average stack is over 1.36 million.

Event 3: Final Table

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

The final table is set when Joe Lopes (West Creek, NJ) busts in 11th place. The final 10 players are drawing for their new seat assignments and are one elimination from hitting the money.

Event 2: BIG stack

$300 + $50 NLH (1 re-entry)

Chan Representing Chinatown

With the field shrinking, the big stacks continue to grow. As the floor person breaks another table it's clear the new chip leader is Benchino Chan (New York, NY) who has 525k.

Chan says his pocket aces held against another big stack who had pocket kings.

Other big stacks in the mix include Steve Dannenmann (280k) and Abraham Musleh (243k).

Event 1: New Chip Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)   

Another level of frenetic play has ended.

Leonard Sande (New Haven, CT) doubled through Joshua Supsak.  Leonard chipped up to ~1.9 million while Joshua dropped to about 600k.

Marcello Delmonaco (New Haven, CT) doubled through Aaron Smith when his pocket Kings held up against Aaron's flush draw.

Sean Lee

Matt Gambino (bb) got all in holding KQ against the pocket Aces of Sean Lee (button).  The board brought no salvation and Matt (W Babylon, NY) was busted in 30th place ($2,713).

Matt Gambino

Nick Hojnoski (Corning, NY) got his last chips in with QJ against the dominating AQ of Leonardo Palermo (Ortley Beach, NJ).  The board came A T 8 7 2 and Nick was busted in 29th place ($2,713).

Nick Hojnoski

28 players remain.  They took a break while the 1k chips were colored up.

Sean Lee (Albertson, NY)  is up to 3.6 million and is the new chip leader.   Steven Macchia has dropped down to ~3.2 million.  Ryan Wood is third with 2.15 million.  Joshua Lawson is fourth with 2.1 million.

Play resumed with blinds of 30k/60k and 5k antes.

Event 1: Cannone Triples; Rappaport & Monteavarro Out

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)   

While the players took a break, I got some quick chip count estimates.  Here are the leaders:

Steven Macchia - 3.7 million
Joshua Lawson - 1.95 million
Sean Lee - 1.8 million
Ryan Wood - 1.8 million
Joshua Supsak - 1.7 million
Gino Genari - 1.6 million
Brian Mooney - 1.6 million
Konstanti Ehlert - 1.5 million
Michael Shasho - 1.5 million
Aaron Smith - 1.4 million
Alex Rocha - 1.3 million
Ed McCarthy - 1.3 million
Eric Hall - 1.2 million
'Bobby Haha' Hanley - 1.2 million
Marcello Delmonaco - 1.2 million

Play resumed with blinds of 25k/50k and 4k antes.

 

Gina 'Gin-evil' Cannone

Another three-way all-in.  This time Gina Cannone was the short-stack and all-in with pocket Aces.  Joshua Supsak was the big stack with pocket Kings. Erik Rappaport held pocket Tens and was in bad shape.  The board changed nothing and Gina tripled up to over 1.5 million.  Joshua took the side pot and was left with ~1.7 million.  Erik was busted in 33rd place ($2,713).

Joanne Monteavarro moved her last chips in, then Aaron Smith moved in over the top.  Everyone else got out of the way.  Joanne's A7 was dominated by Aaron's AK.  The board came J J 3 5 6 and Aaron took the pot with nut-no-pair.  Joanne took 32nd place ($2,713).

Event 3: 14 Remain

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Eliminations are continuing at a feverish pace in the Limit tournament (Event #3) of the Borgata Winter Open as the starting field of 68 is down to 14 players.

The average stack is 49k as the top 9 players cash. Here's what they're playing for:

Place-Amount

1 $6,925
2 $3,760
3 $2,375
4 $1,781
5 $1,385
6 $1,187
7 $989
8 $792
9 $594

Event 2: No Bubble!

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

As "G" the floor man directs dealers that hand-for-hand play will start the next hand, three players are all-in at three different tables. Two of the three are eliminated, while Mike "The Nose" Castaldo (Palisades, NY) survives to make the money.

The two eliminated players reduces the field to 54 and all remaining players cash for a minimum of $605 and erases the need for a bubble.

The field played one more hand before going on break. Play resumes with Level 15 (2k/4k/400 ante), with the average stack at 96k.

Event 1: Macchia Takes Out Two With Bullets

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)    

Another crazy three-way all-in.  Bill Seymour held AK; Alan Haddy held pocket Jacks, and big stack Steven Macchia held the weapons of mass destruction, pocket Aces.  The board came all low cards and Steven continues to add chips to his massive stack after busting two players. 

Bill Seymour started the hand with fewer chips, so he finished in 36th place.  Alan Haddy finished in 35th place.  Both earned $2,713 for their efforts.

34 players remain.  Average stack is now over 1 million.  There are 36.8 million chips in play and Steven Macchia has almost 3.7 million, meaning he's holding 10% of all the chips in play.

Event 3: Get Out the Vote

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Calandrino Collecting Chips

The Limit tournament was originally scheduled to be a two day event, but with 20 players left the floor person put the possibility of change to a vote. The field decided unanimously that it would rather finish tonight, rather than stop with 18 players remaining and return Friday afternoon.

Since the dinner break, a new chip leader has emerged as Joe Calandrino (Oakdale, NY) is up to 80k, while two of the big stacks have taken a hit. Jason Young (Suffern, NY) is on the rail, and former chip leader Norman Whiteley (Newark, DE) has gone from 62k to 11k.

The top 9 players finish in the money and are guaranteed a minimum of $594.

Event 2: On the Bubble

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

58 players remain (90k avg.) with the top 54 cashing for a minimum of $605.

Steve Dannenmann is still in the hunt, but Borgata regular Keith Crowder has hit the rail.

What they're playing for:

Place-Amount

1 $37,679
2 $21,185
3 $13,619
4 $10,819
5 $ 8,474
6 $ 6,961
7 $ 5,523
8 $ 4,313
9 $ 3,027
10-12 $1,967
13-15 $1,513
16-18 $ 1,135
19-27 $ 832
28-36 $ 757
37-45 $ 681
46-54 $ 605

Event 1: Mooney Triples

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)    

Play resumed after dinner at the same level, blinds are 15k/30k with 4k antes.

Gina Cannone raised to 60k utg and action folded around to Anthony Caruso in the big blind.  Anthony moved all-in for another 169k on top.  Gina made the call, showing pocket 8s.  Anthony held A4 and would need help to survive.

The board came 4 3 3 8 7 giving Gina full house.  Anthony finished in 43rd place ($2,285).

Over on table 1, there was a huge three-way pre-flop all-in.  The shortest stack held pocket Aces.  Brian Mooney (Middle Village, NY) held pocket Kings, and Konstanti Ehlert (Edison, NJ) held pocket Jacks and had the other two covered.

Brian Mooney

The board came T 6 4 6 K and Brian caught a miracle on the river to crack those Aces.  He chipped up to ~1.3 million.  The short stack was busted in 43rd place and Konstanti was left with less than 300k.

Konstanti wasted no time getting some chips back.  He shoved over the top of Eric Doerr's raise and got Eric to lay down.  He then got in a pot with Ryan Wood.  On the flop of 8 3 2 with two clubs, Konstanti shoved for 362k.  Ryan thought about it, then called showing A5 of spades for a gutshot with one overcard.  Konstanti held AK of clubs for the lead and flush draw.  The last two came offsuit J 8 and Konstanti doubled up.

Event 3: Let's Eat

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Norman Knows Limit Poker

The 30 remaining players (23k avg.) are on a one hour dinner break. The unofficial chip leader with 62k is Norman Whiteley (Newark, DE), who won this event in the 2009 Borgata Poker Open.

Jason Young (Suffern, NY) is in the mix with 40k, while Al Riccobono (Ossining, NY) and Howard Wolper (Altantic City, NJ) are both less than 20k.

Event 1: Dinner Time

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)   

Blinds are up to 15k/30k with 4k antes.

On the river, the board read J 8 7 A 4 with three hearts.  Seat 5 checked to chip leader Steven Macchia, who moved all-in.  Seat 5 tanked for several minutes and eventually another player called for the clock.  Before his time expired, the player called.  Steven showed pocket 4s for the rivered set.  Another player hit the rail and the big stack got bigger.

 Ryan Wood

Steven is up to 2.4 million and leading the pack.  Ryan Wood is second with just over 2 million.

45 remaining players have been sent on a one hour dinner break.  Play will resume at 8:30pm.

Average stack is almost 818k.

Event 2: Chowing Down

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

Here's a look at some of the big stacks as players are on a one hour dinner break. 76 players remain with an average stack of 68k.

Musleh Making Things Happen

161k Abraham Musleh (Brooklyn, NY)
160k Cathy Dever (Ephrata, PA)
155k Aaron Wright (Baltimore, MD)
140k Jesse Pulido (Pembrooke Pines, FL)
130k Aaron Mermelstein (Philadelphia, PA)
110k Angel Velez (Hoboken NJ)
105k Gabriel Aminov (Marlboro, NJ)
103k Fred Amponsem (Woodbridge, VA)
100k Robert Santilli (Jackson, NJ)
99k Frank Fazio (King of Prussia, PA)
99k Steve Dannenmann (Severn, VA)

Event 2: Waking Up to Aces

$300 + $50 NLH (1 Re-entry)

The Wright Stuff

On the last hand before dinner break, Aaron Wright (Baltimore, MD) goes from average stack to big stack.

A player in early position raises to 4,400 (blinds 800/1,600), followed by a 75k jam from Domenico Barretta (New London, PA), which is a blessing for Wright.

"I looked down at two black aces and said, 'thank you Jesus.' Wright makes the snap call and when the board runs out clean he eliminates Barretta.

"I can't believe I'm running this good," says Barretta, who now has 155k and is one of the top 5 stacks in the room.

Level 11 (800/1,600/200 ante) is winding down.

Event 1: Cannone Doubles; Spitzberg Sacked

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)   

Gina Cannone got her last chips in with A4 suited, only to get looked up by  Anthony Colombo, who had her dominated with AQ.  Then the board came  8 4 2 6 5 and Gina paired her kicker to double up.  She's up to ~600k.

Paul Spitzberg (Tenafly, NJ) moved his last 260k in from the button and got called by both Eric Hall (Staten Island, NY) in the small blind and Ed McCarthy (Souderton, PA) in the big.  On the flop of T 7 6, Eric tossed in his last ~45k and Ed called. 

 Eric Hall

Ed was out in front with pocket Jacks.  Eric held AT suited for a pair of Tens.  Paul was trailing with KQ (two overcards).  The turn was a 7 and changed nothing.  It looked like Ed was headed for a double-elimination, but then the ubiquitous Ace on the river gave Eric the win and the pot.  He chipped up to about 1 million.  Paul busted in 54th place, earning $1,999. 

53 players remain at six tables.

Event 2: The Comeback Kid

$300 + $50 NL (1 Re-Entry)

Celso Garcia Survives

With only 90 players left and 54 in the money, any move could make you, or break you.

One interesting story involves merchandising company worker, Celso Garcia (Charlotte, NC).

Celso was down to one measly 5,000 chip. He casually tossed it in for a pre-flop call and his opponents mistakenly thought he was all in. They got their 5,000 in and Celso decided he had the right price to call. "That lead to my first triple up."

Fast forward to a table change where Celso's wired Jacks held up for a double up. "Then I doubled up again."

Garcia now has some breathing room as he turned 5000 into 75,000 (his current chip stack).

Blinds are 1000 / 2000 with 300 antes.

Dinner break at 7:30pm.

Event 1: 56 Players Remain

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)   

Steven Macchia

 At the end of the level, 56 players remained and they took a ten minute break, giving me a chance to scope out the big stacks.  Here are the chip leaders with their approximate chip counts:

Steven Macchia - 2 million
Erik Rappaport - 1.7 million
Joshua Supsak - 1.65 million
Ryan Wood - 1.3 million
Anthony Colombo - 1.2 million
Chris 'unique' Russell - 1.2 million

After the break, play resumed with blinds of 12k/24k and 3k antes.

Event 1: Macchia Extends Lead

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)  

The chips are flying around the tables right now.  Joshua Supsak is back up to almost 1.7 million. 

Erik Rappaport raced his AK against a shorter-stacks pocket Jacks.  A King on the board gave Erik a double-up to ~1.7 million.

Steven Macchia continues to gather chips.  He's up to ~2.2 million now.

 Vittorio Faricelli

Yat Cheng (Charlotte, NC) got his last chips in the middle on a J J 2 flop, holding pocket 9s.  Unfortunately for Cheng, Vittorio Faricelli (Maspeth, NY) was holding pocket Aces.  No help for Cheng and he was busted in 59th place ($1,785).  Vittorio chipped up to over 700k.

58 players remain.

Event 2: Dorin Down, But Cheerful

$300 + $50 NL (1 Re-Entry)

World Traveler Joanne Dorin

Joanne Dorin (New York, NY) loves to travel. She's been to Greece, Israel, and all over this tournament.

Lots of players in Event 2 have stories to tell with Joanne as a main character. She's either doubling somebody up or devouring their entire stack.

She's currently on the downside of her roller-coaster ride with 80,000 chips. At her peak she had the lead with 190,000. Win or lose Dorin told me she's having a great time.

The bad run began as soon as she was moved to her current table. "I haven't won a hand here...my neighbors are rough on me" said Joanne.

She plans on playing a couple more Borgata Winter Poker Open tournaments this week.

When Joanne's not playing poker, she'd rather be shopping.

Who knows, maybe the next table change will change your luck again.

Event 3: All Gunning After Young

$300 + $50 Limit

Jason Young - Chipleader

The Limit chip leader is Borgata regular and poker pro Jason Young, protecting a stack of 33,000.

Second in chips at a different table is Steven Hong (Bayside, NY) with 28,000.

When I mentioned that Young had the lead I heard another player state, "I would love to go heads up against him some day."

48 players remain on 6 tables.

Some are already looking forward to the 7:30pm dinner break.

Blinds are at 400 / 800.

Event 1: New Chip Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry) 

After the player in seat 6 moved his short-stack all-in, Joshua Supsak called him down with A9.  Seat 6 held KT and would need help to survive.  It didn't come as the board ran out A 8 6 6 Q.  Another player hit the rail and Joshua chipped up to over 1.6 million.

 Joshua Supsak

His lead did not last long, however.  Joshua raised to 50k (utg+1) and Alex Rocha (S Setauket, NY) kicked it on up to 100k on his left.  Action folded back around to Joshua, who announced he was all-in.  Alex called all-in and was ahead with AK suited.  Joshua's AQ offsuit was in bad shape.  The board came 9 7 5 5 3 and Alex doubled up ~1.2 million.  Joshua was busted down to ~1.1 million.

73 players remain.

In a huge three-way pot, Steven Macchia (Woodridge, NJ) rivered a set of 9s to bust one player and cripple another.  Steven tripled to 1.7 million, good for the chip lead.

72 players remain.

Alfie Natale (Philadelphia, PA) got his last ~80k in with pocket Jacks, only to run into pocket Queens in the big blind.  It looked like Alfie was headed for a 72nd place finish, but the board came 6 6 5 J T and Alfie caught the two-outer on the turn to double up.

Event 3: Payouts

$300 + $50 Limit Hold'em

Entries: 68
Total Buy-In: $20,400

Place-Amount

1 $6,925
2 $3,760
3 $2,375
4 $1,781
5 $1,385
6 $1,187
7 $989
8 $792
9 $594

Event 2: In The Lead

$300 + $50 NL (1 Re-Entry)

Down to eight tables in this two day tournament.
Blinds are 800/1600 with 200 antes

The unofficial leaders include:
Joanne Dorin 150,000
Tom Hancock 120,000
Vinny Bahuja 120,000
Robert Fetzko 110,000

Joanne had a monster 180,000 stack but recently took a couple hits.

Steve Dennenmann is alive with an average chip stack

Event 2: Payouts

$300 + $50 NL (1 Re-Entry)

Entries: 520
Total Buy-In: $156,000

Place-Amount

1 $37,679
2 $21,185
3 $13,619
4 $10,819
5 $ 8,474
6 $ 6,961
7 $ 5,523
8 $ 4,313
9 $ 3,027
10-12 $1,967
13-15 $1,513
16-18 $ 1,135
19-27 $ 832
28-36 $ 757
37-45 $ 681
46-54 $ 605

Event 1: Cannone Doubles; Sica Sacked

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)

Gina Cannone

Gina Cannone (Staten Island, NY) moved in and got looked up by the big blind, who held AQ offsuit.  Gina was racing with pocket Jacks.  The board ran clean --  T 4 3 3 9 -- and Gina doubled up to almost 500k.

Mike 'Little Man' Sica got his last chips in when he paired up on the turn, but the button held pocket Queens to send him packing.  Little Man finished 83rd for $1,285.

81 players remain.  73rd - 81st places earn $1,428.

Event 1: Huge hands, huge pots!

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NL (2 Re-entry)

Robert Boyko ran his pocket Kings into the pocket Aces of Kevin Johnson (Bridgewater, NJ).   The aces held and Kevin pulled the pot, chipping up to about 1.225 million.  Robert finished in 91st place ($1,142).

Jason Dominici and Eric Rappaport

On the next table over, Jason Dominici raised from the button, Eric Rappaport re-raised from the small blind, Jason 4-bet, and Eric 5-bet-shoved for over 500k total.  Jason took a few moments to deliberate, then made the call.  Eric tabled an un-impressive K8 offsuit.  Jason was ahead with AJ suited.

The flop came 9 4 3 and changed nothing.  Then a King hit the turn, giving Eric top pair and the lead.  Jason needed a 3-outer Ace on the river to win.  River was a 9, however, and Eric doubled up to over 1.1 million.  Jason, who started day two as the chip leader, was left with less than 100k and busted out soon after in 90th place ($1,285).

Joshua Supsak (Linwood, NJ) is up to 1.4 million and may be the chip leader.

At the end of level 20, 88 players remained.  They're taking a ten minute break.

Event 2: Fifteen Minute Break

$300 + $50 NL (1 Re-Entry) is take a fifteen minute siesta.

153 players on 17 tables remain and we started the day with 517 players.

When we return, blinds are going up to 500/1000 with 100 antes.

33,000 average chip stack.