Championship: Sean Winter Dominates the Final Table From Beginning to End to Win His First SHRP Trophy

2019 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 20
$5,250 SHRPO Championship (Single Re-Entry)
$3,000,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  809
Prize Pool:  $3,923,650
August 9-13, 2019

2019 SHRPO Champion Sean Winter
2019 SHRPO Champion Sean Winter

When one player completely dominates a final table, it usually ends relatively quickly (as we saw four days ago when Jason Mercier steamrolled the $50K Super High Roller final table in about 90 minutes). The final table of the $5,250 SHRPO Championship ran more than nine hours from start to finish, but there’s no denying that Sean Winter dominated it wire-to-wire. Winter was methodical but relentless, and at no point did his chip stack even drop as low as 120 big blinds, ultimately winning the SHRPO Championship for $698,175.

Winter wasn’t the only big stack coming into the final table, as Joseph Cheong began with 110 big blinds after making it to this final table for the second straight year. (Cheong finished eighth in the 2018 SHRPO Championship to earn $102,843.) But Cheong ran into trouble early, and by the time Jordan Fisch doubled thru him in Hand #14, Cheong had lost nearly half his chips.

Speaking of double-ups, that was the theme of this final table for the first three-and-a-half hours, as the first eight all-in situations ended with the short stack doubling up. Five different players (including Cheong) were the shortest stack during that time, with a sixth dropping below 20 big blinds. Winter was coasting well above the fray, of course, never in a hint of any danger.

Eventually, in Hand #73, Nick Schwarmann got it all in with 8s8h, but it failed to hold against Winter’s Ad9h when an ace fell on the flop. That opened the floodgates.

Brandon Carl was knocked out by Winter on a bad beat in Hand #79, when Winter’s AcQs flopped a queen against Carl’s AdKd

In Hand #102, Giuliano Lentini doubled thru Cheong, knocking him down to a single big blind, and Cheong was eliminated on the next hand.

Ben Farrell was knocked out in sixth place when his Kh10d failed to improve against the 5s5c of Jordan Fisch in Hand #106.

In Hand #144, Giuliano Lentini got it all in with QdJd, but failed to improve against the AsKh of Jerry Robinson, and Lentini was out in fifth place.

In Hand #149, Jordan Fisch shoved from the small blind over two limpers with Ks8c, but Sean Winter woke up in the big blind with 10h10c. Fisch failed to catch up, and he was eliminated in fourth place.

Three-handed play lasted 29 hands before Jerry Robinson lost a race in Hand #178 with AhKc against Sean Winter’s 10h10d.

When heads-up play began, Winter had nearly 200 big blinds, and more than a 6-to-1 chip lead over Shalom Elharrar. This was a match-up between an experienced high-stakes pro with a massive chip lead (Winter) and a recreational player (Elharrar) who owns a business called Paranoia Horror Maze, which the Miami Herald described as “part haunted house, part escape room.”

But Elharrar had been the short stack at one point with nine players left, and had already played a lot of big pots against Winter. Could Elharrar come from behind yet again to overcome the seasoned pro who had dominated the final table to this point?

No.

Heads-up play was a lot of quick, small pots, with Winter slowly and methodically chipping away at Elharrar’s stack.

In Hand #215, Elharrar limped with 7d7c, and Winter shoved with 5c4c. Elharrar called, and he was a huge favorite to double up. Elharrar flopped a set of sevens, but the board brought five hearts, making it a chopped pot.

Elharrar appeared to go on tilt after having his double-up taken from him, and Winter took six of the next seven hands without a showdown to wear down Elharrar to just two big blinds.

Elharrar appeared to move all in blind before the cards were dealt in Hand #223, and Winter called with Ac10d. Elharrar turned over Ks10h, and he was dominated.

The final board read 7d5s5c4d9c, and though it had taken nine hours, Winter had won the SHRPO Championship in a dominating performance from beginning to end.

Winter won $698,175, raising his career live tournament earnings to more than $13.6 million. This is the fourth six-figure score for Winter at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood, but surprisingly, this is Winter’s first victory here.

With performances like he put on today, it’s unlikely to be his last.

Final Table Results:

1st: Sean Winter –  $698,175
2nd: Shalom Elharrar –  $487,695
3rd: Jerry Robinson –  $314,230
4th: Jordan Fisch – $232,065
5th: Giuliano Lentini – $176,350
6th: Ben Farrell – $139,705
7th: Joseph Cheong – $115,300
8th: Brandon Carl – $91,365
9th: Nick Schwarmann – $69,800