Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Hollywood
Event #29
$250 No Limit Hold’em Turbo
Total Entries: 175
Prize Pool: $36,750
Jeremy Costa won the final open event of the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the 40-year-old Massachusetts native.
Costa was in bad financial shape before the final event, but found a way to outlast a field of 175 players to take home the title and $10,657.
“To be honest with you, I was almost dead broke,” said Costa after his win. “I was just deciding if I was going to just go back and regroup before Borgata or if I was going to play this last one.”
Costa made the right decision. He is leaving the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino with a five-figure score and his first career tournament win.
Costa has been surrounded by tournament success the last few weeks. His two roommates, Frankie Flowers and Charbel Azzi, booked a very successful series here in South Florida. Just 15 hours earlier, Flowers won a tournament of his own and Azzi made a deep run in the $3,500 WPT Main Evnet.
While many would be motivated by their friends’ success, Costa just continued to look within himself for the motivation to succeed.
“It was really just believing in myself and telling myself ‘You know what? there’s still one more tournament. If I got a chip and a chair, I’m going to try and win.’ That’s really what happened,” said Costa.
Away from the table, Costa is trying to put his money to good use. He started a company called Poker For a Purpose, which offers an understanding of the game for people who are looking for an alternative path in their life.
“You know, I didn’t have the greatest life growing up and stuff like that,” said Costa. “So I just want to give back to the community. This win will actually help me start doing that. I’ve got some motivational gear and some motivational things that I’ll be able to do now.”
Costa is from the northeast originally, but has been putting in lots of time at the tables at the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa.
After having several close calls earlier in his poker career and a failed shot in the $3,500 WPT main event after satelliting in, he’s just grateful for the win.
“It’s just a blessing,” said Costa. “To be able to be here and win one of these trophies. It’s one of my favorite places to play and it just feels unbelievable.”
Here is a look at the results:
1st: Jeremy Costa – $10,657
2nd: Andy Spears – $6,248
3rd: Eric Kolodny – $3,675
4th: Jorge Gomez – $2,940
5th: Jerry Humphrey – $2,205
6th: Mario James – $1,838
7th: Michael Newman – $1,470
8th: Maurice Roy – $1,103
9th: Charles Dunker – $827
10th: Sheila O’Connor – $735
11th: Michael Lavoie – $735
12th: Adam Weinraub – $735
13th: William Massey – $643
14th: Francis Margaglione – $643
15th: Marsha Wolak – $643
16th: Thomas Neientimp – $551
17th: Thomas Gari – $551
18th: Richard Roeper – $551