2019 Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open 
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino 
Hollywood, Florida
Event 3
$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Entries: 84
Prize Pool: $28,560
November 21, 2019 

At last year’s Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open, Barry Levy got heads-up in the H.O.R.S.E. event but failed to win, finishing as the runner-up behind Sebastien Soares.

This evening, Levy found himself heads-up once again in the H.O.R.S.E. event, this time with a small chip disadvantage against Charles Odenz. But after a 75-minute heads-up battle, Levy won the final hand during razz, finishing with a 7-6 low to win the title and the RRPO trophy.

While Levy came up one spot short in this event last year, he did win a H.O.R.S.E. event here at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood back in 2011, plus two more H.O.R.S.E victories in Atlantic City. His other three trophies were won in Omaha Hi-Lo events in California and Atlantic City.

So why does H.O.R.S.E. appeal to Levy so much?

“People don’t play every game well,” said Levy after his victory. “Some people are great at one game, and maybe great at another. But it’s tough for them to switch gears when the games change, and it throws them off a bit. Not that I’m that much better or worse than anybody, but I’ve been playing all these games for a long time. I can exploit spots, like in razz. For the most part, nobody knows how to play razz. They made that game up. Who knows how to play razz?”

The tournament started at 12:00 noon, and it took about 14 hours to reach a winner, with the final table lasting a bit more than four hours. Levy’s nephew Neil Jacobs was on the rail for the entire final table, watching Levy go from chipleader to short stack to champion.

“I like the fast structure,” said Levy. “You get in, you get out, and you get home at a reasonable time.”

Final Results:

1st:  Barry Levy  –  $8,425 + RRPO Trophy
2nd:  Charles Odenz  –  $5,615
3rd:  Matthew Smith  –  $3,805
4th:  Richard Shtrax  –  $2,675
5th:  Kevin Love  –  $1,955
6th:  Aaron Kupin  –  $1,485
7th:  Bobby Leff  –  $1,180
8th:  Roy Arkin  –  $975
9th:  Craig Chait  –  $840
10th:  Yuval Bronshtein  –  $840
11th:  Carey Pickus  –  $765