2016 $1M Escalator Series
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
Hollywood, Fla.
$350 No Limit Hold’em ($300,000 Guaranteed)
Entries: 1,286
Prize Pool: $385,800
February 18-21, 2016
Hollywood, Fla. (February 22, 2016) — The third of four $1M Escalator Series events concluded during the early morning hours of Monday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla. Outlasting the 1,286-entry field and taking the tournament’s trophy along with $50,000 in prize money was Ronald Campillo of Pembroke Pines. Campillo held the chip lead at the 10-handed final table of the $350 buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed event and came out in the top spot following a 10-way, ICM chop. In addition to the money, Campillo earned a $560 seat in next week’s Escalator and a $3,500 seat in the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship.
The tournament’s super-sized field generated a prize pool of $385,800 handily besting the $300,000 guarantee. With six starting flights in the books, Day 2 began Sunday at 2 p.m. with 201 players remaining and only the top 120 finishing in the money. It wasn’t until the fourth level of Day 2 play that James Giraldo picked up pocket eights and busted the ace-king of an at-risk opponent to burst the bubble. From that point forward, all remaining players were assured $654.
Notables to finish in the money include Seminole Hard Rock Poker team member Stewart Newman (51st), Event 1 Escalator champion Eric Rivkin (81st), WSOP gold bracelet winner Jacquelyn Scott (84th) and John Dolan (98th). Jessica Dawley, also a member of the SHRP team, was among those to make Day 2 but bow out shy of the money.
For Campillo, the score marks his largest to date by far and skyrockets his career earnings to better than $60,000. He is a 39-year-old professional poker player who was born in the Dominican Republic before relocating to the State. He is married with two children.
Final table results:
1st: Ronald Campillo – $50,000 + $3,500 seat
2nd: Carlos Loving – $37,330 + $3,500 seat
3rd: Charlemagne Benjamin – $25,900
4th: Brett Bader – $25,525
5th: Perry Shiao – $23,990
6th: Matthew Vetstein – $23,765
7th: Rajiv Maragh – $23,535
8th: John Lowden – $21,900
9th: Steven Touitou – $18,810
10th: Cory Blum – $11,927
The above prizes include a $560 seat in Event 4 of the Escalator Series
The $1M Escalator series continues with the $560 buy-in, $400,000 guarantee February 25-28. More on that tournament is available on SHRPO.com.
Completed $1M Escalator Series events: