Tournament Reports

The Delaware Poker Championship II, which began at noon on Saturday, Sept. 8, garnered 185 participants and a total prize pool guarantee of $74,000.00. The final table played for nearly three hours with the winner being announced at 12:45 on Sunday , Sept. 9. Jessie Abulencia of Virginia Beach, Va., took home the Championship trophy, bracelet, and $22,000.00 in cash. “I feel unbelievable,” said Abulencia, the 33-year-old owner of a janitorial service. “It was a good rush. I’m stoked.” Abulencia said he will use part of the money to take his family on vacation to Florida in December.

When Greg Merson won his first WSOP bracelet and then followed it up with a seat at the WSOP main event final table, it seemed, to the uninitiated, like it had come out of nowhere. Merson, a short-handed cash game specialist, had been dominating poker tables for years though, and the lack of exposure was due in large part to those tables being of the non-tournament, online variety.

Merson’s example is prudent here because it’s easily comparable to Tony Gregg’s. Gregg, too, is an online specialist, a cash game player known well to professionals, but not to the public. He’s also Merson’s roommate, and backer, and like Merson, he’s suddenly dominating tournaments. The latest example? The World Poker Tour’s Parx Open Poker Classic, at the Parx Casino in Pennsylvania. A field of 500 entries put up the $3,500 entry fee, and it was Gregg who emerged the victor to the tune of $417,127.

The $1,200 buy-in No-Limit Hold ‘Em main event at the Foxwoods casino in Connecticut included 345 players attempting to win a piece of the $364,769 prize pool. There were 73 who returned on the second day to resume play, and six hours later the Final Table was set.

Final Table action continued for another 6 hours before the final two contestants reached an agreement. In the end, Sherif Sweillam of Old Greenwich, CT collected $60,000 for 2nd place, while the Title, Championship Trophy, and $75,768 went to Carlo Sciannameo of Worcester, MA.

FOXWOODS RESORT CASINO
MEGASTACK CHALLENGE

EVENT 14                    8/18/12
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM MEGASTACK
BUY-IN  $1,090 + $110
PLAYERS  345
PRIZE POOL $364,769
1. Carlo Sciannameo  . $75,768

As we go to press with this issue, it’s too late to enter the Main Event at the Bicycle Casino In Bell Gardens, CA, where the prize pool has been estimated at $3,000,000. This event began on Friday and again on Saturday, August 24 & 25, and is scheduled to hold the final WPT filming on Wednesday, August 29. Since this event is not over as we go to press, we cannot give you results. However, we do have results from most of the 37 total events leading up to the final. This issue covers events from #11 to #29, as well as events #2 and #3 that were missed in our last issue. The remaining events will appear in the next issue of Poker Player

Brandon Barnes of Taylor, MI, took home the first prize in the Florida State Poker Championship, held at the Isle at Pompano casino. The top four finishers settled on a deal based upon chip count. Barnes received $212,500. Also participating in the deal were: Adam Levy of Coconut Creek, Fl, for $187,000, Hans Winzler of Miami, Fl, for $151,000, and Tommy Vedes of Queens, NY, for $94,340. Fourteen others, mainly locals, also cashed in this $5,300 buyin Main event, the last of 15 in this annual tournament.

Galen Kester of Tunica, MS won the main event at the World Poker Open, which just concluded at the Gold Strike in Tunica, Mississippi. There were 158 players in this 23rd event of the WPO, posting buy-ins of $3,000 + $150. Second place (of $91,000) went to Brad Peeples of Coffeyville, MS, while 3rd place of $50,000 went to Mike Postle of Rancho Cordova, CA. With the exception of Postle, all paid places went to residents living east of the Mississippi River.

 Heartland Poker Tour producers promised players and fans an exciting tournament for the 200th episode of the nationallytelevised poker show, and Route 66 Casino Hotel in Albuquerque did not disappoint. Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion, stole the show, advancing to the Final Table as the chip leader and leaving as the champion, with $71,875

 Raymer adds to over $7 million in career winnings. In contrast, runnerup, Robert Crawford of El Paso, Texas, listed his lifetime career winnings as “not much.” Crawford, who invested just $180 into the tournament and left with $42,500, considered the day a success. “I definitely didn’t expect to be playing heads up with Greg Raymer today,” he said.

The excitement ran to fever pitch last week at the Hustler Casino as a record-shattering 3,937 entrants over three main events jammed the room to capacity and spilled out the doors. No wonder owner Larry Flynt was beaming from ear to ear as he surveyed the action. Among the many players vying for the rich guaranteed prizes was Poker Hall of Famer Barbara Enright. Enright played in several events but failed to cash.

Winner of the final event, Gregg Shanberg of Irvine, CA, took the $50,000 grand prize holding cards that only Gus Hansen would play, 3, 6 offsuit. There was 5 way action in the final pot, while Shanberg’s garbage cards toppled all hands, including one opponent’s pocket Queens.

July’s featured event at Seneca’s Salamanca was the $10,000 Guaranteed Hillside Poker Challenge. The room was packed with live table games and tournament action! With a $200 Buy-In + $30 Entry Fee = $10,000 tournament chips players vied for a $10,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool! Six places were paid out.

1. Scott Murawa . . . .$4,044.00
^{Buffalo, NY}
2. Michael Shanks . . .$2,385.00
^{Bradford, PA}
3. Thomas Clayton . .$1,555.00
^{Elmira, NY}
4. Mike Steinhauser . .$1,140.00
^{Bradford, PA}
5. Philip Stiles . . . . . . . $726.00
^{Harrison Valley, PA}
6. Chris Barton . . . . . . $578.00
^{Elmira, NY}

Grand Sierra Resort  - Summer Pot Of Gold
Event 1 thru 10 Results