2016 Rock ‘n’ Roll Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
Hollywood, FL
Event 2: $300 Omaha 8 or Better
Entries: 92
Prize Pool: $23,460
November 17, 2016

(Hollywood, FL) — Mike DeVeronica earned the first trophy of the 2016 Rock ‘n’ Roll Poker Open during the late night hours of Thursday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood. The victory came following a four-way chop in Event 2, a $300 Omaha 8 or Better tournament that ran as part of the property’s Seminole Hard Rock Poker series, and earned DeVeronica $4,605 along with a token guitar pick trophy.

Running alongside the series-opening $360 buy-in, $1,000,000 guarantee, Event 2 drew a modest field of 92 entries. While it didn’t match the quantity of the no limit hold’em event filling the ballroom with more than 800 players on Thursday, it drew a quality field. The likes of reigning Seminole Hard Rock Poker Player of the Year, David Prociak, Joel Harwood, who owns multiple Omaha 8 final table appearances and Jordan Chizick, who claims two titles in the variation were among those who made it to the final few tables. Harwood and Prociak bowed out shy of the money, but Chizick enjoyed a top-12 finish and scored a minor payday in the process.

DeVeronica began the 10-handed final table toward the middle of the counts, but battled back. By the time four players remained he had 315,000 chips good enough for the lead. A chop was suggested and there wasn’t much deliberation as tournament staff broke down the stacks and calculated the players’ ICM value. DeVeronica went home the winner while second in chips Mitchell Meltzer earned $4,433, third in chips Mike Dolle earned $3,816 and fourth in chips Augusto Vacazzini earned $3,547.

The victory marked DeVeronica’s 34th career cash and propelled him over $180,000 in reported tournament earnings. He is a 69-year-old retiree from West Park, Florida.

The RRPO kicked off yesterday and runs straight through until November 30th. At the $360 pricepoint, the opening event is the first in Florida poker history to boast a $1,000,000 guarantee. In addition, the series is headlined by the $3,500 buy-in, $2,000,000 guaranteed Championship which begins November 25th.

Event 2 final results:

1st: Mike DeVeronica – $4,606
2nd: Mitchel Meltzer – $4,433
3rd: Mike Dolle – $3,816
4th: Augusto Cavazzini – $3,547
5th: Dave Carvara – $1,652
6th: Gabriel Ramos – $1,321
7th: Jerry Kowalsky – $1,100
8th: Gunther Young – $880
9th: Al Green – $662
10th: Harry Eisenberg – $481
11th: David Shmuel – $481
12th: Jordan Chizick – $481

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 19: 15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 4 of 92

Following Dave Carvara’s 5th-place finish, the remaining four players agreed to a chop. Mike DeVeronica held the chip lead and pocketed $4,605. Mitchel Meltzer was next in chips and earned $4,432 while Mike Dolle and Augusto Cavazzini scored $3,817 and $3,548 respectively.

A full report on the victory will be posted shortly. In the meantime, here’s a look at the tournament’s results:

5th: Dave Carvara – $1,652
6th: Gabriel Ramos – $1,321
7th: Jerry Kowalsky – $1,100
8th: Gunther Young – $880
9th: Al Green – $662
10th: Harry Eisenberg – $481
11th: David Shmuel – $481
12th: Jordan Chizick – $481

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 19: 15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 4 of 92

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 19: 15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 5 of 92

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 18: 10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 6 of 92

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 18: 10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 7 of 92

Gunther Young got the last of his short stack all in preflop. Augusto Cavazzini and Michael Meltzer were among those to duke it out in a side pot. The board ran and Cavazzini and Meltzer both turned over for a queen-high straight. With no low out there, Young was eliminated in 8th place for $880.

Gunther Young – Eliminated in 8th place ($880)

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 18: 10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 8 of 92

With an average stack of just five big bets, a shorstacked Al Green got his last 5,000 in the middle in a four-way pot. After some side action, the hands were tabled and Green was unable to best the ace-deuce low of one opponent or the ace-high flush of another. He busted 9th earning $662.

Al Green – Eliminated in 9th place ($662)

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 17: 8,000/16,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 9 of 92

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 16: 6,000/12,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 10 of 92

Jerry Kowalsky scooped a pot and scored a double knockout of Jordan Chizick and David Shmuel in 12th and 11th respectively. The hand propelled the field to the 10-handed final table. Here’s a look at how the remaining players stack up:

Seat 1: Dave Carvara – 37,000
Seat 2: Jerry Kowalsky – 121,000
Seat 3: Harry Eisenberg – 10,000
Seat 4: Mike Deveronica – 136,000
Seat 5: Mitch Meltzer – 82,000
Seat 6: Gabriel Ramos – 77,000
Seat 7: Mike Dolle – 306,000
Seat 8: Augusto Cavazzini – 45,000
Seat 9: Gunther Young – 60,000
Seat 10: Al Green – 47,000

1st – $6,603
2nd – $4,624
3rd – $2,972
4th – $2,203
5th – $1,652
6th – $1,321
7th – $1,100
8th – $880
9th – $662
10th – $481

12th: Jordan Chizick – $481

$300 Limit Omaha/8 (Re-Entry)
Level 16: 6,000/12,000 Limits
Players Remaining: 12 of 92

After about 45 minutes of bubble play, Harry Eisenberg did the dirty work busting an unknown player 13th and sending the final 12 into the money. One player happy to squeak into a payday is Jordan Chizick. Chizick owns two Omaha/8 victories at the Seminole Hard Rock, but has his work cut out for him if he hopes to add a third. He currently claims less than two big bets with the final table right around the corner.

Here’s a look at what they remaining 12 are playing for:

1st – $6,603
2nd – $4,624
3rd – $2,972
4th – $2,203
5th – $1,652
6th – $1,321
7th – $1,100
8th – $880
9th – $662
10th-12th – $481