Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 10:  $150 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
December 21, 2014

Entries: 213
Prize Pool: $25,560

RECAP

The last event of the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open was a seven-way chop with Paulo Castro (Sao Paulo, Brazil) taking home the final custom guitar trophy.

Casto is declared the winner based on having the chip lead, slightly more than runner-up Denise Tuck.

“It’s good,” said the soft spoken Brazilian, who finished 7th earlier in the series in Event 7 ($250 buy-in) for $1,934. He said a key hand in the tournament when his AQ beat pocket 6s.

“Flopped a boat,” smiled Tuck on her key hand. She held AK on an A-A-K flop, “ace-king was the catalyst to get me this far.”

Gary Lucci, Jared Grey, Justin Dunn, Ray Lambert and Norbert Kara are the other five players who all agreed to an even split of the remaining prize pool money.Each player took home ~$2,800.

The tournament began with 213 entries as the top 27 earned a piece of the $25,560 prize pool.

“It was a long day, I’m tired,” said Grey.

Castro is part of a strong Brazilian contingent that has been playing throughout the series. He’s currently living and working in Miami and Castro said this is one of his best tournament cashes.

FINAL RESULTS

Place-Name-Payout

1st Paulo Castro (Sao Paulo, Brazil) $2,801
2nd Denise Tuck (Bradenton, FL) $2,801
3rd Gary Lucci (Amherst, Nova Scotia) $2,801
4th Jared Grey (Nashville, TN) $2,801
5th Justin Dunn (Ocala, FL) $2,801
6th Ray Lambert (Clearwater, FL) $2,800
7th Norbert Kara (Clearwater, FL) $2,800
8th Rachel Rosario (Warwick, RI) $767
9th Marv “Flying Duckman” Karlins (Riverview, FL) $511
10th Terri Crawford (Lakeland, FL) $332
11th John Stillitano (Trenton, NJ) $332
12th Scott Parttridg (Riverside Heights, FL) $332
13th Garrett Topping (Atlanta, GA) $281
14th Jaeli Moron (Tampa, FL) $281
15th Frank Gomez (Lakeland, FL) $281
16th Rob Thomas (Tampa, FL) $256
17th Travis Fulford (Lakeland, FL)) $256
18th Teresa Mullen (New Hampshire) $256
19th Michael Schmidt $230
20th Matthew Gary $230
21st Kim McCann $230
22nd Gerald Panagrossi $230
23rd Scott Caracciolo $230
24th Joe Squires $230
25th Nagabhushan Begur $230
26th Matt Silva $230
27th Juan Angel Garcia $230

$250 Big Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
December 14-16, 2014
Entries: 218
Prize Pool: $50,000

RECAP

Manny Minaya and John Pappas, two long-time regulars of the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Poker Room, were heads up for Event 7 of the Winter Poker Open.  But the action was short as Minaya capitalized on his 4:1 chip lead to win the title, trophy and $13,535 first place prize.

“To lose to Manny is an honor and a privilege,” said Pappas, who earned $7,978 as runner-up.  “He’s one of the best tournament players I know.”

Minaya’s winning hand was against Pappas’ open-ended straight draw on a flop. Minaya’s pair of Jacks held and it earned him a win in his home casino.

“This isn’t my biggest win, but it’s nice because it’s local,” said Minaya who now has six career victories, his first here, and more than $1.4 million in career recorded tournament earnings.

While heads up didn’t last long, the final four of Minaya, Pappas, Richard Hope and John Holley traded chips for nearly two hours.

Holley, who shipped a double-up to Pappas, eventually became the short stack and busted 4th. Minaya then eliminated Hope in third place to hold 80% of the chips on the final hand.

218 entries started this event and 34 players returned for Day 2 looking for a piece of the $50,000 prize pool. Local grinder Wally Maddah (Tampa, FL) went out in 29th place, the double-bubble, while Wade Whidden (Valrico, FL) was the bubble-boy, one spot from the money as the top 27 cashed.

The last woman sitting was Ok Haselton, who finished 10th, while two Brazilians, Paulo Castro (7th) and Josias Santos (8th) also reached the final table. John Ripstra (9th), Gabriel Tudorache (6th) and Marcu Seitz (5th) rounded out the final ten.

“After I get a lot of chips I just play my game,” said Minaya, who also earned a $1,650 seat into the Championship Event (Dec. 18-21) as well as the custom Hard Rock guitar. “I like to see a lot of flops, but won’t play big pots unless I have a monster.”

When he’s not at the poker table, Minaya works in the bill collection business. Pappas is also well known in Tampa as an influential business man.

Final Results

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 5:  $560 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
December 11-14, 2014

Entries: 511
Total Prize Pool: $255,500

 
RECAP

After playing for about 13 hours on Day 2, the final four decided to call it quits, carving up the remaining prize pool.  Professional poker player Jose Galvez was the chip leader and he takes the lion’s share, bagging $42,000, the $1,650 seat in the Championship event, and the signature Hard Rock guitar.

This is Galvez’ first win in a major event and largest career cash, so it’s quite a milestone for him.  He came here from Miami to play because “The girls are gorgeous and really nice.  The staff is really great, the food is awesome.”  He got to have his picture taken with some of the Hard Rock Calendar girls, who have been visiting the poker room each afternoon.

This event carried a $200,000 guarantee on the total prize pool and had six starting flights.  Altogether it drew a total of 511 entries for a prize pool of $255,500.  The final 54 players earned a share.

Also making this final table was Stephen Diamantas, winner of last year’s Tampa Winter Open Championship, which was a WPT Regional event, for $121,900.  Diamantas finished 8th when his AQ lost a race to pocket 8s.

Galvez was the chip leader at the end of his starting fight B, bagging 247,500.  Since he had a couple of days off, he drove back home to Miami.  His 14-year-old sister Jennifer plays guitar and he told her he was going to win this one for her.  “I love that you give guitars as trophies,” he said.  Now he can keep his promise to Jennifer.

“It’s awesome,” Galvez said, “hopefully this is the first of many”.  He’s been playing professionally for about a year and booked a $34,000 cash back in January.   When he’s not playing tournaments, he can be found in the $2/$5 No Limit cash games.

He promised his friend Nick, “if we bink this one, we’re going to go to the World Series and play the Main Event next year”.  Now he can keep that promise as well.

FINAL RESULTS

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 6:  $300 Omaha H/L 8B (Re-Entry)
December 13, 2014

Entries: 53
Total Buy-In: $13,250

RECAP

“It feels very good to be able to repeat and defend my title,” said semi-professional poker player Bryan Scofield.  He just pulled off a repeat victory, winning the same event he won here during the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Summer Poker Open.  Today’s victory earned him $4,408, the $1,650 seat in the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open Championship, and the signature trophy guitar.

After busting Archie Workman in 11th place, Bryan Scofield went on a rush and built a big stack while mowing down the competition.  He eliminated the 6th, 5th, & 4th place finishers, then after Mauro took out 3rd place, they decided to chop up the rest between them.

This event drew 53 players for a total prize pool of $13,250.   The final six players got paid.  Although billed as a two-day event, they finished it up in under 12 hours.

Even with back-to-back victories in Omaha High/Low, Scofield doesn’t consider it his best game, preferring No Limit Hold’em.  He’s been playing tournaments for about six years and these are his only two wins on record.  He would like to see more Omaha High/Low events on tournament schedules.

FINAL RESULTS

1: Bryan Scofield (Tampa, FL) $4,408
2: Mauro (Tampa, FL) $2,703
3: Michael Tadlock Bushnell, FL) $1,752
4: Steve Novack (Sand Key, FL) $1,206
5: Jim Hagan (Branden, FL) $870
6: Charlie Wells (Melbourne, FL) $661

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 4: $150 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed
December 7-11, 2014

Entries: 1,069
Total Prize Pool: $128,280

RECAP

“It feels great!”  said Gabriel Tudorache (Reddick, FL) after winning the $100,000 Guaranteed Event 4, $150 No Limit Hold’em. He claimed $13,720 for the win, along with the $1,650 seat in the Seminole Hard Rock Winter Poker Open Championship and the signature guitar trophy.  “I can’t wait to show my wife!”

Tudorache took a massive chip lead before the dinner break when he turned a better two-pair hand against Nick Tzoumas, who finished 12th.  When the final eight returned from dinner, they played for a short while before deciding to chop it up and call it a night.  The other seven players each took $10,000 and gave Tudorache all the rest.

After seven starting flights over four days there were a total of 1,069 entries in this event for a prize pool of $128,280.  This more than covered the $100,000 guarantee.  The prize pool was distributed among the final 100 players.

Only 125 made it to Day 2 and the bubble burst after only an hour of play.  82-year-old Franklin Walker came into Day 2 as co-chip-leader with Tom Nguyen.  Walker made it to 14th place, earning $1,076. Nguyen went out in 49th place for $393, booking his second cash of this series.  He was part of the 10-way chop that ended Event 1.

The second-oldest player in this event, Max Dertke, held the chip lead when three tables remained.  The 81-year-old made it to the final table, then busted out in 10th place, outlasting Walker by four places.

This is Tudorache’s first tournament win.  He plays poker professionally and usually sticks to cash games, $2/$5 or $5/$10 No Limit Hold’em.  He started Day 2 seventh in chips and at one point had pocket Aces two hands in a row in the big and small blinds — and they held up both times.  Good luck and solid play led him to victory.

“Great food and service,” he said about the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa.  He’s planning to be back on Saturday for Event 5 and of course the Championship event next week for which he earned his seat today.

He’s got two sons, seven and five years old, and they love to hear his poker stories.  “I love them to death” he said about his wife and kids. No one at his house plays the guitar, but it may be time to sign them up for lessons!

FINAL RESULTS

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 1:  $350 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
December 4-7, 2014

Entries: 769
Total Prize Pool: $230,700

RECAP

“It feels great!  I’m excited,” is how Yong Wolfer (Rochester, NY) summed up his experience winning this event.  When they reached the ten-handed final table, he had almost a quarter of all the chips in play.  The final ten decided on an chip-based chop with Wolfer collecting $39,273, the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open Signature Guitar Trophy, and the $1,650 seat in the Championship event.

The opening event of the Winter Poker Open was a two day event that featured six starting flights over three days.  Due to this, it was actually the third event of the series to reach a conclusion.   The total number of entries was 769 building a total prize pool of $230,700, which crushed the guarantee of $150,000.

Wolfer entered this event twice.  In Flight D, he had “a bad run of cards and played too aggressively with no cards”.  Things went better for him in Flight E and he bagged 167,000, putting him 29th out of 129 returning players.  Today, he played “very aggressively, picking his spots” and that helped him to build a huge chip lead over the final ten players.

He came down for vacation and to play poker, sort of a poker-cation, and is usually a cash-game player, preferring $2/$5 and $5/$10 No Limit.  This is his best career cash in a tournament and has sparked his desire to play more tournaments.

Wolfer has a home improvement business back home and has to get back to it, but would like to return to play more events during this series.  “I love Florida.  The area and the casino are very nice.  I just can’t get over the weather.”

FINAL RESULTS

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 3:  $250 Ladies Big Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
December 7, 2014

Entries: 18
Total Buy-In: $4,500

RECAP

The Ladies event turned into a one woman show and it’s Dani Mae (St. Petersburg, FL) who is the queen of the tournament.

Mae dominated the final table of this Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open  event to win $1,932, the custom guitar trophy and a $560 entry into Event 5.

“It always feels good to get a win,” said Mae who got off to a fast start early in the tournament.

Mae doubled-up early with quad 6s against Diane Rossi (Orlando, FL) who had a full house and was crippled on the hand.

“I was hoping she had an Ace or Ten for the boat,” said Mae who held on the board. It turned out Rossi had both.

“That was definitely a turning point,” said Rossi who held on the hand. “I hit the boat, then the bigger boat.”

Rossi managed to regroup and make it to the final three where she and Denise Tuck (Bradenton, FL) were dominated by Mae’s monster chip lead.

“I did very well because I was down early,” said Tuck and added. “I had the nut flush against a straight flush.” The hand, as detailed here, knocked Tuck down to 3,500, before she bounced back.

When Terri-Anne Crawford (Lakeland, FL) went out in fourth place with AK vs Mae’s KK, Mae held 2/3 of the chips in play.  Tuck and & Rossi negotiated a deal and the tournament was over with Mae declared the winner.

Tuck officially finished in second place, while Rossi picked up some of the prize pool for finishing in third.

“I woke up on the right side of the bed because I felt like this was in the bag before I sat down,” said Mae who is a yoga instructor and  a $2/$5 cash player who is starting play more tournament poker.

“I love it here,” said Mae, “the dealers are awesome and this place is spectacular.”

FINAL RESULTS

1st – Dani Mae (St. Petersburg, FL) $1,932
2nd – Denise Tuck (Bradenton, FL) $1,288

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open
Event 2:  $300 Pot Limit Omaha High
December 5, 2014

Entries: 47
Total Prize Pool: $10,100

RECAP
In an event that was scheduled for two days, Josh Adkins (Tallahassee, FL) out-played and out-lasted the field to take it down in under 11 hours.  The victory earned him $4,040, the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open Trophy Guitar, and a $1,650 seat in the Championship event.  Local regular Mike Raimon took second place and $2,525.

The final table came together several hours earlier with nine players, but only the final five would get paid.  It took three hours (which included a half-hour dinner break) to play down to the money when Matt Thompson busted out on the bubble.

Local pro Natasha Barbour (and wife of second-place finisher Mike Raimon) was the last woman in this event and she was short-stacked for most of the final table.  She held on to finish 5th for $909, becoming the first player to cash in the 2014 Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Winter Poker Open.

This event drew a modest field of 47 entrants for a total prize pool of $10,100, which was paid to the final five players.

Josh Adkins is a self-taught professional poker player and he’s only been playing for a couple of years.  “This is the first poker room where I played live — this is where it all began,” he said.  “This room is awesome.  I can’t say enough about the staff.”

He was headed for collegiate football, but broke his back playing and turned to poker as an outlet for his competitive nature.  “I hate losing,” he said.  So he continues to play, just on green felt instead of green grass.

Adkins is planning to be in town for the entire series and is jumping into Event 1 tomorrow in Flight E.  He’s also happy to be “free-rolling the main” with the $1,650 seat he earned with his victory today.

FINAL RESULTS

1: Josh Adkins  $4,040
2: Mike Raimon  $2,525
3: Michael Aueron  $1,515
4: A. Nonymous  $1,111
5: Natasha Barbour  $909