Event 1: Last Ladies

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)     

Level 18:  Blinds 3k/6k, 500 ante

Down to 10 tables now -- 90 players  (average 187k, 31 big blinds).

 Taemee Feuer & Cathy Dever

Only two ladies remain in action.  Taemee Feuer has about 350k, almost double the average stack.

Cathy Dever (Lancaster, PA) has about 120k.

Event 1: Falling Fast

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)    

With 11 tables remaining, they went to 9-handed play.

Players are still leaving in a hurry.  They're down to 94 now, making the average ~181k.

Among the goners is WSOP bracelet holder Svetlana Gromenkova.  With her departure, only three ladies remain in the field (about 3.2%).

Only 63 get paid, so 31 more will leave empty handed.

Event 1: "That's Sick, Bro"

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)   

After a player opened for 20k, Frank Ingardia (Staten Island, NY) moved all in and got called.

Frank's pocket 8s were racing against AK.

 Frank Ingardia

The flop came Q T 8, extending Frank's lead with a set, but giving his opponent a gutshot.

The gutter hit on the turn when a Jack fell, making Broadway.  It looked like Frank was headed for the rail.  He needed the board to pair on the river to survive.

It paired with the case 8, giving Frank quadzilla.  He doubled to about 245k.

His opponent was still in good shape, left with about 200k, an above average stack.

Event 1: Color Up Break

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)   

End of level and time to color up the black 100 chips.

Nicky Frangos is making a helluva comeback.  Two levels ago he was down to only 14k (blinds were 1,500/3,000).  He's built his stack back up to about 220k.

Nachman Berlin is holding on over on table 3 with about 100k.

Gordon Eng lost a big flip AK vs. JJ for a 200k pot.  He's still in, but below average.

Play will resume after the break with level 17, blinds 2,500/5,000 with 500 ante.

106 players remain.  Average stack is ~160k (32 big blinds).

Event 1: Latest Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)  

Britt Reid (Robbinsville, NJ) appears to have taken the chip lead.

Britt Reid

He claims about 600k, so I'm taking his word for it.  There's no way to count the mountain of chips, which is four stories tall.

Mohammed Hakim is up to ~500k.

Twelve tables remain (115 players).

Event 1: Ibraimovic Ejected

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)  

Level 16:  Blinds 2k/4k, 400 ante

Early chip leader Ibra Ibraimovic has busted, but it took two players to take him out:

First, he had Russ Dykshteyn (Brooklyn, NY) all in for ~200k and dominated.  Russ had QJ and was in bad shape against Ibra's AQ.  Then the flop brought two Jacks, giving Russ trips and the double up to roughly 415k.

Russ Dykshteyn

Then Ibra got his short-stack in holding AQ and racing against Keith Crowder's (Elkins Park, PA) pocket 4s.   Keith flopped a set and it was over for Ibra.  Keith chipped up to ~80k.

Russ is extending his hot streak.  He finished 3rd in the Spring Open Championship in April ($112,950).

In 2009, Keith made the TV table of the WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship, finishing 5th for over $188,000.  He has one Borgata Open title, won during the 2010 Spring Open ($37k).

Event 1: Latest Chip Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)  

Level 15 is over and players are taking a break.

Mohammed Hakim (Parsipanny, NJ) has accumulated a stack of about 440k, making him the big stack for now. 

 Mohammed Hakim

Mohammed finished 2nd in the $400 Big Stack No Limit event during the Spring Open just a couple of months ago, good for $17,926 (runner up to winner Mark Wahba, who also won the Spring Leaderboard contest).

The all-ins are coming rapidly and players are departing at a good clip.  Only 13 tables remain (130 players max).

Event 1: Bracelet Watching

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry) 

I've discovered WSOP bracelet winner Svetlana Gromenkova (Brooklyn, NY) lurking in the field.  Svetlana won the Ladies event at the 2008 WSOP, good for over $224,000. 

 Svetlana Gromenkova & Adam Agaev

She has 13 cashes at the WSOP, but only a few here at Borgata.  Her highest reported finish here was a 3rd place in the 2006 Winter Open Limit Hold'em event ($13,977) and her biggest cash was for a 7th place finish in the 2008 Winter Open ($750 No Limit - $16,003).

Event 1: New Chip Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Blinds are up to 1,500/3,000 with 400 ante (level 15)

During the previous level, Sal 'Espo' Esposito (Long Island, NY) got all in on the river against the big stack of Pofuk Ying.

 Sal Esposito

Ying had pocket Jacks for an overpair to the 9-high board, but Sal had QT suited to make a Ten-high straight.  He doubled up to ~360k, putting a big dent in Ying's stack and usurping the chip lead.

Then their table broke and they were scattered among the 15 remaining tables.

Event 1: Ins and Outs

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Still In:

Adam Agaev
Doug Rosen
Cathy Dever
Michael Buttacavoli
Phong 'VIP' Nguyen
Nick Frangos
Kieth Crowder
Nancy Martin
Howard Wolper

Out:

Mickey Woll
Rick Rossetti
Dan Spirer
Lisa Pickell
Matt 'Muffins' Mazzeo
Alex Rocha
Lana O'Brien
'Lucky' Lee Kirsch
Anthony Licastro

16 tables still in action.

Event 1: Greenawalt's Stack Growing

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry) 

On the river with a board of 8 3 2 T 9 (no flush possible) Travis Greenawalt (Landisville, PA) shoved for ~36k against two opponents.

 Travis Greenawalt all-in and waiting for Akiva Pearlman (far right)

Akiva Pearlman (Providence, RI) tanked for a minute, then made the call.  The third player folded.

Travis rolled over pocket 2s for bottom set and Akiva mucked. 

Travis collected the pot, more than doubling up to ~150k.

Then their table broke.  Travis was moved to table 3, joining Gordon Eng, Mike Linster, and Nachman Berlin.

Event 1: Back to Business

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

They're baaaaack!

Play has resumed following dinner with

Level 14, blinds 1,200/2,400 with 300 ante

With 185 players remaining and only 63 getting paid, that means about two-thirds of the field will leave empty handed and one-third will get paid.  Still a long way to go to reach the money.

Event 1: Numbers Game

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Number of Entries:  679
Players Remaining: 185
Chips in Play: 16.975 million

Average Stack: 92k (38 BB)
Big Stack: 390k (163 BB)

Blinds: 1,200/2,400/300 ante

Play Resumes: 8:10 pm

Total Buy-In: $339,500
First Prize: $79,069
Places Paid: 63

Event 1: Dinner-Time Tweets

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Here's a sampling of player tweets from the dinner break. 

Chris Rich ‏@Shipit777
Just busted last hand before break 66 vs ak blind vs blind he min raised an and I shipped 20 bigs from bb flop kk4xx #gg

Tom Pomponio ‏@PompYouUp
59k going into 1200/2400 borgata $560 on dinner break, about 190 left and 63 pay I think, 79k for first, lets go #fb

Britt Reid ‏@BrittReid73
150k @ dinner borgata event 1

Gordon Eng ‏@Flashgordon227
Busted pca winner sitting at 185k @BorgataPoker dinner break

Jose Montes ‏@suganills
Wow 234k on dinner #playinggoodrunningbetter #bspo

To follow players in this series, subscribe to my list @Kaelaine/Borgata-June-2012.  #BSPO2012

Event 1: Dinner Break Chip Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Mejia (left) Tells a Tale on How Ying (right)Cracked Kings

Less than 200 players are on dinner break and a clear chip leader has emerged in Pofuk Ying (Edison, NJ) who has 390k.

Just before the break, Jorge Mejia (North Bergen, NJ) joins the table and says, "oh no, not this guy."

Mejia proceeds to explain how at their earlier table Ying chased down a flush with Q 7 againt Mejia's pocket kings. "This guy is crazy, but good," he says after he lost 90k to Ying on the hand.

Ying's biggest cash was for $26,000 as runner-up in the 2010 Borgata Winter Open $200 event. That was 1,100 player field that featured winner Alex Lindh, Todd Rebello & Tony "O.G." Shurilla at the final table.

Mejia survived the hand and was left with 40k.

Players are on a one hour break and play resumes at ~8:10 pm.

Event 1: New Seat for Siegel

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Down to 20 tables, leaving 200 players in action.  Average stack is approaching 85k.

Taemee Feuer, Eric Siegel, & Mickey Woll

Eric 'Pools' Siegel has been moved again, this time landing at table 7, in between Borgata regulars Taemee Feuer (Westbury, NY) and Mickey Woll (Manahawkin, NJ).

Since tables are breaking high-to-low, Eric should stay put for a while.

At the end of this level (about 7:05pm) surviving players will be rewarded with a one hour dinner break.

Event 1: Trohy Times Three

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ) is still alive in today's main event,  but is down to less than 10 big blinds with < 20k in front of him.

Howard has the distinction of being one of only four players to have claimed three Borgata Poker Open series wins.  He's also one of only three players to win two titles during a single series:

Borgata Summer Poker Open
Event #19 - Limit Hold'em 1st $12,936 Jun 24, 2009

Borgata Poker Open / WPT Season 7
Event #9 - No Limit Hold'em 1st $67,400 Sep 9, 2008
Event #6 - Limit Hold'em 1st $26,190 Sep 7, 2008

Howard Wolper & Rick Rossetti

Howard is currently seated next to Rick Rossetti, who owns a WSOP Circuit Championship ring, but has yet to claim a Borgata Open trophy.

Event 1: 220 Remain

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Following a break, play resumed with level 13, blinds 1k/2k and 300 ante.

The first order of business was to break table 23, leaving 22 tables in action -- 220 players still in the hunt.

Ibra Ibraimovic has extended his chip lead.  He's up to about 300k now.

Event 1: Tough Table

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Eng (right of dealer), Linster (left of dealer), 

Berlin (3rd from right) & Licastro (right)

All the breaking of tables and shuffling of players has four strong players at one table.

Two of them, Anthony Licastro and Gordon Eng are Borgata trophy winners, while Nachman Berlin was a 2011 WSOP event runner up. Mike Linster, the fourth of the quartet, is no slouch with a Borgata runner-up finish and an 8th place finish in the 2011 Borgata Fall Poker Open.

Table Profile

Name	Career           Earnings		Highlights
Licastro	$1,300,000		2009 Borgata Poker Open Event 2 Winner ($55,000)
Eng	$786,000		2010 Spring Open $1,500 Winner ($73,000)
Berlin	$522,000		2011 WSOP $1,500 Event Runner-up
Linster	$182,000		2011 Fall Open 8th place ($45,000)
Total	$2,790,000		________________

Event 1: Last Two Down

 $500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Jon Ford (center) and the Remaining High Limit Room Players

The last two tables in the high limit room are finally down as everyone is now in the main area of the Poker Room.  Less than 300 players (of 679) remain as blinds are now 800/1,600 with a 200 ante.

Event 1: Payouts

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Entries: 679
Total Buy-In: $339,500

Place - Amount

1st $79,069
2nd $44,458
3rd $27,992
4th $22,723
5th $18,112
6th $14,984
7th $12,020
8th $9,056
9th $6,257
10-12 $4,281
13-15 $3,128
16-18 $2,305
19-27 $1,811
28-36 $1,614
37-45 $1,449
46-54 $1,284
55-63 $1,120

Event 1: Candy Land

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Gelbinovich, Richardone & Guyana in the Candy Lineup

As we're still a few hours away from the 7:30 pm dinner break, players are using a sugar rush to stay alert.

Daniel Gelbinovich is going with M&Ms vs Diana Guyana's Skittles.  Chocolate normally has the advantage, but Guyana has position so we'll defer to the sweet rainbow.

Caught in the middle is Frank Richardone, who is sporting a short stack with simple breath mints.

Event 1: Ibrai x 2 x 100k = Chip Leader

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Ibrai Leads with 200k

After the color-up break Ibrai Ibraimovic (Brooklyn, NY via Yugoslavia) has the unofficial chip lead with 200k.

His biggest hand came when his pocket 8s held against two players who were both all in with AK.

Ibraimovic knocks out both players and takes down a 100k pot to give himself a nice cushion as he has 200 BB with blinds at 500/1k, 100 ante.

Event 1: Green Me Up Scotty

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

The third break of the day brings us to the first color-up break of the 2012 Borgata Summer Poker Open.  The green (25) chips are being removed from play as players are on a 15 minute break.

More than 1/3 of the filed is gone as 400 players remain of the 679 entries.

Play resumes with level 10, blinds 500/1k & 100 ante, after a 15 minute break.

Event 1: Sporting a Straight Flush

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

 Spirer's Got Game

Dan Spirer (Mechanicsville, PA), who is a former Borgata trophy winner (2010 $1k 6-max/$81,000), is sporting his lucky poker shirt.

So far, so good, as he's survived the re-entry period and is hunkering down for a long grind.

Spirer is sporting a straight flush, but hasn't had any hands close to it.

Fashion Statement

Event 1: Media Moguls

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Two Borgata regulars are ready to make their mark in the entertainment world.


Joe Simmons is releasing his first album in two week. "The Sound Track to a Gambler's Mind," has been a long time in the making for the former band manager of The Roots.

The same can be said for Lisa Pickell, who last year filmed a pilot called "Poker Queens."  The inside look at women who play poker professionally has been shopped around and most recently gained interest from two different networks.

Poker Queens also features Borgata regulars Roz Quarto, May Siu, Debbie Troncone and Gina Cannone

Keep an eye and an ear out for the Queens and Simmons coming to a media center near you.

Event 1: More Stars

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Now that the re-entry is closed and the field is settling down with more than 650 entries, a few more recognizable faces are popping up.

Keith Crowder, fresh off his 6th place finish at Borgata's Holiday Weekend Series in the $500 entry/double black chip bounty, is in the field.

At the next table over is Gordon Eng and Mike Linster.

These three have combined career tournament earnings of  $1.4 million (Eng/$786,000 - Crowder/$452,000 - Linster/$182,000).

Event 1: Four to the Flop = Quads

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry) 

 Tommy Takes Out Two

On one of the last hands before the end of the re-entry period (200/400/50 ante) 4 players put in 2500 to see a flop of 8♣ 9♣ 4♣.

Frank Richardone (Staten Island, NY) and Tommy Flanagan (Brooklyn, NY) both flop a set, 9s for Richardone and 8s for Flanagan, and are all in along with a third player who has Q♣ 10♠ for a flush draw.

Richardone is almost free and clear when neither the turn or river brings a club, but is stunned when the case eight hits the river.

Flanagan gets the miracle one-outer for quad 8s and takes a 130k pot as he has both players covered.

Richardone quickly rebuys and says, "normally I wouldn't tell you, but it's a sick hand and I want to be in the blog."

Level 7 (250/500/50 ante) is underway.

Event 1: Russian Radio

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

 Morgovsky Reporting From Table 39

Borgata Poker is going global as the only Russian FM station in the U.S. is providing updates from the tournament.

Eugene Morgovsky (Brooklyn, NY), who's originally from Minsk, Belarus, hasn't had much vodka, but he is getting airtime when he's not raking pots.

The coverage is going to Danu Radio, 87.7 FM in New York.  So if you understand Russia check out our friends on the air or online.

Event 1: Saad Day for Maurice

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

On a flop of 5♦ 7♥ 4♦, Maurice Ellenberg (London, England) bets 2,500.  Saad Ghanem (Rosedale, MD) makes it 5,100 and Ellenberg goes in the tank.

After a minute, Ellenberg moves all in for 15k more and Ghanem reluctantly calls, saying, "do you have 9s or 10s?"

Ellenberg tables 10♦ 10♣ and Ghanem is relieved to see he's ahead with J♥ J♠.  The board bricks out and Ghanem knocks out Ellenberg, who still has time to re-enter.

Level 6 (200/400/50 ante), the last level to re-enter, is underway.

Event 1: Pools in Deep

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Siegel (2nd from left) Still Grinding

Eric "Pools" Siegel (aka Chick Parm) has been taking a tour of the entire Poker Room. He started in the main area, but has relocated, not once, but twice into the high limit section.

"Five's my number," says Siegel who has now re-entered twice (three entries total).

He says he "got sucked out on" when his KQ is beaten by Q7.

Level 5 (150/300/25 ante) is underway as antes are now in play.

Event 1: Muffins with Perfect 10s

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

 Matt Setting Up his Opponent

Matt "Muffins" Mazzeo doesn't like the early levels of tournaments and now we know why.  It only takes one hand to double-up and that can happen at any time.

Matty Muffins arrives at the start of level 4 (1 hour, 45 minutes late) and on the first hand he plays he flops a set of 10s.  His opponent turns two pairs with AQ and after all the chips are in the middle.

Mazzeo dodges the full house on the river and doubles his stack two minutes after sitting down.

"There's no way he should give you 25k," says "Lucky" Lee Kirsch, who's at the table. "There's no way you'd put all your chips in with ace-queen because you'd know you were beat."

Kirsch is giving Mazzeo a lot of credit because Muffins quips, "no, I'd go broke. It's a re-entry."

Players have until level 6 to re-enter the tournament.

Event 1: Ladies Gunned Down by Bullets

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

 Jeff Re-joins the Field

"It was kind of a weird spot," says Jeff Wicker (Philadelphia, PA) who grabs his re-entry ticket and gets a fresh stack.

Wicker says he ran pocket queens into pocket aces when he 4-bet one-third of his stack from the small blind.  "We had a guy opening light and showing down queen-seven, so that opened the door for easy three bets," he says.

"I can't just flat with queens," adds Wicker, who's eventually all in against the person who three-bet with pocket aces.

Wicker's biggest tournament cash came in the 2009 Borgata Summer Poker Open when was runner-up in a six-max for $16,000.

Level 3 (75/150) is winding down as players head towards their first break of the day.

Event 1: Heavy Hitters

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Alex's Place, Home at Borgata

The high limit area of the Poker Room is teaming with some Borgata stalwarts including Alex Rocha who has a Borgata Winter Open title (2011 Event 1/$151,000) and three cashes in this year's Spring Open.

Rocha was runner-up to Vinny Pahuja in the $1,000 tournament in April good for another $24,000.

Others setting up camp in the high limit area include:

Nancy Martin
Joe Simmons
Travis Greenawalt
Mike Castaldo
Scott Eininger
Tom Colamaria
Lisa Pickell
Rathe Miller
Jose Montes

Pickell Peers at the Flop

Event 1: Welcome Back

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Our first pass through the Poker Room and there are lots of hellos and friendly faces.

Here's a look at SOME of the the players that caught our eye:

Lana O'Brien
Leo G
Eric Doerr
Nachman Berlin
Joe Wertz
Cathy Dever
James Boyd
Lee Kirsch
Anthony Licastro
Phil Neiman
Eric Siegel
Paul Leon
Joe Brooks

This is just the main section of the Poker Room as more than 50 tables are up and running. Next stop, the High Limit area

Event 1: $100,000 Guaranteed!

$500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

Packed Poker Room

Welcome to the kickoff event of the 2012 Borgata Summer Poker Open.  The first event is always a big draw, especially when you guarantee a prize pool of at least $100,000.

Players are in their seats and salivating as they wait for the tournament to start.

The deep stack features 25k in chips and levels are 30 minutes each (11+ / 45 min.)  The 10 seat is open to start and where the re-entries will resume play.

Unlimited re-entries last for the first six levels and this is a two day event.

The button starts in the three seat and Tournament Director Tab Duchateau gets things going with the magic words, "shuffle up and deal!"

Today's Events

TODAY'S EVENTS (POKER ROOM)
REGISTER IN POKER ROOM


11AM: Event 1 - $500 + $60 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed

• Players start with 25,000 in tournament chips 
• Levels 1-10: will last 30 minutes each | Levels 11+: will last 45 minutes each
• Players that bust within the first 6 Levels may Re-Enter (unlimited re-entries)
• 2-Day event

4 PM:  Event 22 - $150 + $30 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo NLH

• Players start with 25,000 in tournament chips 
• Levels 1-15: will last 15 minutes each | Levels 16+: will last 25 minutes each
• 1-Day event

7 PM:  Event 23 - $100 + $20 + $25 Green Chip Bounty NLH

• Players start with 12,000 in tournament chips 
• Levels will last 20 minutes each
• This is a Bounty tournament. Players must  have their Bounty Chip clearly displayed on the table in order to remain active in tournament.
• 1-Day event

Borgata Summer Poker Open Leaderboard

Borgata Summer Poker Open Tournament Leaderboard
Win prizes for the Borgata Summer Poker Open Tournament Leaderboard promotion

How To Qualify:
By participating in any Borgata Summer Poker Open event (June 6-22, 2012), players earn points based upon Borgata’s poker tournament leaderboard formula, which takes into consideration these criteria:

• Participation
• Tournament Buy-In Amount
• Total Event Entries
• Place Finished

Players earn points for participating in tournaments and earn bonus points based on cashing in tournaments.
The Borgata Tournament Leaderboard will be updated throughout the tournament.

Prizes*:

1. $3,500 Entry into WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship
   (September 16-21, 2012)
2. $300 Entry into Borgata $30,000 Guaranteed Friday tournament
3. $140 Entry into Borgata $10,000 Bounty Monday tournament
4. $140 Entry into Borgata $10,000 Bounty Monday tournament
5. $120 Entry into Borgata $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday tournament
6. $120 Entry into Borgata $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday tournament
7. $120 Entry into Borgata $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday tournament 
8. $120 Entry into Borgata $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday tournament
9. $120 Entry into Borgata $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday tournament 
10. $120 Entry into Borgata $15,000 Guaranteed Wednesday tournament

Winners will be announced Monday, June 25, 2012.

* All prizes must be used towards tournament entry.  All prizes are non-transferable and have no cash value.  Prizes must be redeemed for tournament entry by August 31, 2012 ($3,500 entry by September 17, 2012).