$150 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$50,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 24:  15,000/30,000 with a 30,000 ante
Players Remaining:  9 of 619

After the elimination of Efthimios Piperakis in 10th place, the final nine players redrew for random seats at the final table. These were their updated chip counts:

Seat 1.  Evan Haw  –  600,000  (20 bb)
Seat 2.  Al Gomez  –  815,000  (27 bb)
Seat 3.  Andre Bryan  –  780,000  (26 bb)
Seat 4.  Michael Tait  –  800,000  (27 bb)
Seat 5.  Antonio Campbell  –  405,000  (14 bb)
Seat 6.  Scott Roberts  –  1,410,000  (47 bb)
Seat 7.  David Coughlin  –  2,060,000  (69 bb)
Seat 8.  David Shmuel  –  2,100,000  (70 bb)
Seat 9.  Rene Noriega  –  355,000  (12 bb)

And here is the remaining prizepool at stake:

1st:  $20,052
2nd:  $11,885
3rd:  $7,799
4th:  $5,385
5th:  $3,974
6th:  $3,157
7th:  $2,414
8th:  $1,746
9th:  $1,263

And here are the players who have finished in the money so far:

10th:  Efthimios Piperakis  –  $966
11th:  Pinchas Chakchakov  –  $966
12th:  Matthew Zarcadoolas  –  $966
13th:  Albert Eskanazi  –  $780
14th:  Mario Atroce  –  $780
15th:  Carlo Rodriguez  –  $780
16th:  Courtney Rowe  –  $669
17th:  Zamira Kholdarova  –  $669
18th:  Michael Wetcher  –  $669
19th:  Jason McQueer  –  $557
20th:  Brenda Lyons  –  $557
21st:  Jose Rivero  –  $557
22nd:  Scott Hart  –  $557
23rd:  Elliot Goldman  –  $557
24th:  Jason Martin  –  $557
25th:  Alvaro Vivas Grisales  –  $557
26th:  Rodrigo De Barros Semeghini  –  $557
27th:  Louis Leo IV  –  $557
28th:  Vadim Shlez  –  $483
29th:  Leon Toledo  –  $483
30th:  Hermes Andino  –  $483
31st:  Jose Parra  –  $483
32nd:  Michael Gulliford  –  $483
33rd:  Michael Newman  –  $483
34th:  Joseph Istvan  –  $483
35th:  David Rivera  –  $483
36th:  Milton Miranda Jr.  –  $483

2020 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 18
$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  843
Prize Pool:  $2,697,600
January 17-22, 2020

The WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship was the headliner on the schedule and it did not disappoint. The $3,500 buy-in tournament drew a great, fun, talented group of players and Brian Altman made history by winning his second career WPT LHPO title for $482,636.

“This is incredibly special. It’s amazing to be the first person to win the same WPT event twice, and kind of cement myself in history with this event,” Altman said. “Obviously it’s fantastic to get big wins, but playing these events I’m happy to put myself in a position to go deep, be chip leader, and make final tables.”

The 843 entries over two starting flights easily surpassed the $2,000,000 guaranteed prize pool and put $2,697,600 up for grabs. The last 106 spots and the field made the money late on Day 2 as Altman and John Dollinger began moving up the accounts.

Dollinger and Altman were among the leaders for the last two days of the Championship and they swapped the lead late on Day 4. It was Altman who bagged the final table lead but Dollinger was only a few chips behind.

Peter Walsworth was the shortest stack coming into the final table, found an early double up, but eventually fell in sixth place to his friend Dollinger.

Nadeem Hirani also found an early double up but he was sent out in fifth place when his big slick could not hold against the of Altman.

Russian Nadya Magnus had a chance to put a female name on the WPT Champions Cup but she got in with a big ace that wasn’t as big as Altman’s big slick. She had a great run this week but fell in fourth place.

Dollinger and Altman held the majority of chips at the three-handed table but Chanracy Khun made a valiant comeback with two doubles. But the comeback ultimately fell short and he was eliminated by Dollinger in third place to set up the heads-up battle for the title.

Dollinger had a significant lead for the title but Altman quickly took back the advantage. On the final hand of the tournament, Altman picked up aces and Dollinger ran into them to end the tournament.

Altman made history by becoming the first player to ever win the same World Poker Tour event twice. He captured the WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship in 2015 and added another five years later.

“Winning a second WPT title feels amazing. It’s incredibly special. It doesn’t always work out. I’ve had maybe a dozen or so situations where I’ve gone deep and thought I was going to win and I didn’t,” Altman said. “But that’s how tournaments go. To continually put myself in a position to win tournaments, it feels special.”

On a fun side note, Altman was on hand when friend Jonathan Jaffe won the LHPO High Roller on Tuesday and joined him in the winner’s photo. Jaffe returned the favor today by railing the final table and hopping in the shot.

Final table results:

1st:  Brian Altman – $482,636*
2nd:  John Dollinger – $311,751
3rd:  Chanracy Khun – $230,086
4th:  Nadya Magnus – $171,642
5th:  Nadeem Hirani – $129,438
6th:  Peter Walsworth – $98,686
* First-prize amount includes the winner’s $15,000 entry into the season-ending Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Champions.

Download: Complete Championship results (PDF)

$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed | Payouts | Live Stream
Level 33:  125,000/250,000 with a 250,000 ante

John Dollinger limped his button, Brian Altman raised to 800,000 and Dollinger quickly moved all in for 9,175,000.

“Did you say all-in?” Altman asked to confirm.

He did and Altman immediately called.

Altman:
Dollinger:

Dollinger needed a lot of help to stay in the game but there was no magic on the flop. The turn left Dollinger drawing dead and Altman was officially a two-time WPT LHPO champ after the river.

Dollinger earned $311,751 for his runner-up finish while Altman earned $482,636 and put his name on the WPT Champions Cup for a second time.

1st: Brian Altman – $482,636*
2nd: John Dollinger – $311,751
* First-prize amount includes the winner’s $15,000 entry into the season-ending Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Champions.

$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed | Payouts | Live Stream
Level 32:  100,000/200,000 with a 200,000 ante
Players Remaining:  2 of 843

After narrowing the gap with John Dollinger, Brian Altman opened his button to 375,000 and Dollinger called. The flop was and both players checked.

The turn was , Dollinger bet 250,000 and Altman raised to 1,300,000. Dollinger called, the river was , and Dollinger checked. Altman bet 3,200,000 and Dollinger quickly called.

Altman showed for trip eights and Dollinger mucked the big pot to Altman.

Brian Altman – 21,550,000 (108 bb)
John Dollinger – 12,170,000 (61 bb)

$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed | Payouts | Live Stream
Level 31:  75,000/150,000 with a 150,000 ante
Players Remaining:  2 of 843

John Dollinger and Brian Altman took a quick break after Chanracy Khun’s elimination to set up the heads-up match. Blind levels are now 30 minutes long until we have a champion. Dollinger begins the match with a healthy lead over Altman.

Seat 1: John Dollinger – 20,850,000 (139 bb)
Seat 3: Brian Altman – 12,875,000 (86 bb)

Remaining payouts:

1st: $482,636*
2nd: $311,751
* First-prize amount includes the winner’s $15,000 entry into the season-ending Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Champions.

$2,200 Deep Stack PLO (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 16:  5,000/10,000
Players Remaining:  1 of 35

All three players limped for 10,000 each to see a flop of . The blinds checked, and Timothy Banks bet 25,000. Melisa Singh folded the small blind, and David Prociak called from the big blind.

The turn card was the , and both players checked. The river card was the , and they checked again.

Timothy Banks:    (jack-high flush)
David Prociak:    (set of sevens)

Banks won the pot with his jack-high flush to increase his lead.

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  162,000  (16 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  129,000  (13 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  409,000  (41 bb)

Two hands later, all three players limped to see a flop of . The blinds checked to Prociak, who bet 10,000, and then Banks check-raised from the small blind to 60,000. Singh folded, and Prociak called.

The turn card was the , and Banks moved all in. Prociak folded, saying he had the best hand on the flop, and Banks took the pot without showing his cards.

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  142,000  (14 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  95,000  (10 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  463,000  (46 bb)

At that point, the final three players agreed to a three-way even chop. As chipleader, Timothy Banks was declared the winner, receiving the trophy and the title.

1st:  Timothy Banks  –  $18,484* + LHPO Trophy
2nd:  Melisa Singh  –  $18,483*
3rd:  David Prociak  –  $18,483*
4th:  Andrei Mitsiuk  –  $8,280
5th:  Emmanuel Sebag  –  $6,270

Stay tuned for a recap from this event to be posted later tonight.

* Indicates a three-way chop.

$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed | Payouts | Live Stream
Level 31:  75,000/150,000 with a 150,000 ante
Players Remaining:  2 of 843

Brian Altman folded his button and John Dollinger moved all in from the small blind. Chanracy Khun gave his cards a look and called at risk for 1,900,000.

Dollinger:
Khun:

Khun was ahead for the double but Dollinger paired his ten on the flop. The turn left Khun drawing dead to the river and he was sent out in third place.

John Dollinger – 20,850,000 (139 bb)
Chanracy Khun – Eliminated in 3rd Place ($230,086)

$2,200 Deep Stack PLO (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 15:  4,000/8,000
Players Remaining:  3 of 35

All three players limped for 8,000 each to see a flop of . Timothy Banks checked the small blind, and Melisa Singh bet 13,000 from the big blind. David Prociak called from the big blind, and Banks also called.

The turn card was the , the blinds checked, and Prociak bet 15,000. Banks and Singh both called.

The river card was the , and Banks bet out for 60,000. Singh moved all in for about 255,000, and Prociak and Banks both folded. Singh took the pot to increase her chip lead.

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  432,000  (54 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  137,000  (17 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  131,000  (16 bb)

About five minutes later, David Prociak raised from the button to 18,000, Timothy Banks called from the small blind, and Melisa Singh called from the big blind.

All three players checked to the turn on a board of , and Banks pot-bet 54,000. Singh thought for a while before she called, and Prociak folded.

The river card was the , Banks moved all in for 91,000, and Singh thought for a while before she called.

Timothy Banks:    (ace-high straight)
Melisa Singh:  mucked

Banks turned over the nuts to win the pot, double up in chips, and take the chip lead.

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  255,000  (32 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  101,000  (13 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  344,000  (43 bb)

About five minutes later, Level 15 came to an end and the players took a 15-minute break. These were the official chip counts with the blinds increasing to 5K-10K:

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  222,000  (22 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  134,000  (13 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  344,000  (34 bb)

With three players remaining, the average chip stack is about 233,000 (23 big blinds), and the next player to bust will earn $11,675.

$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed | Payouts | Live Stream
Level 31:  75,000/150,000 with a 150,000 ante
Players Remaining:  3 of 843

John Dollinger limped the button and Chanracy Khun shoved for 3,025,000 from the small blind. Dollinger mucked his hand out of turn before Altman called in the big blind.

Khun:
Altman:

Khun’s suited ace was in the lead and the runout gave him another double.

After the hand, Dollinger was issued an orbit penalty for folding out of turn.

Chanracy Khun – 6,600,000 (44 bb)
Brian Altman – 12,200,000 (81 bb)

$2,200 Deep Stack PLO (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 15:  4,000/8,000
Players Remaining:  3 of 35

Timothy Banks raised from the button to 24,000, and David Prociak called from the big blind. Both players checked to the turn on a board of , Prociak checked, Banks pot-bet 52,000, and Prociak called.

The river card was the , and both players checked.

Timothy Banks:    (heart flush)
David Prociak:  mucked

Banks had two flush draws on the turn, and won the pot with a rivered heart flush to take the chip lead.

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  233,000  (29 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  153,000  (19 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  314,000  (39 bb)

The next hand, after a flop of , both blinds checked and Melisa Singh bet 13,000 from the button. David Prociak called from the small blind, and Timothy Banks called from the big blind.

The turn card was the , and all three players checked. The river card was the , action checked to Singh, and she bet 40,000. Prociak folded, and Banks called.

Melisa Singh:    (king-high flush)
Timothy Banks:  mucked

Singh won the pot with her king-high flush to take the lead.

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  308,000  (39 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  137,000  (17 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  255,000  (32 bb)

With three players remaining, the average chip stack is about 233,000 (29 big blinds), and the next player to bust will earn $11,675.