2019 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
$1,100 WPTDeepStacks Main Event
$1,000,000 Guarantee
Entries: 1,634
Prize Pool: $1,584,980
January 17-22, 2019
South Florida Main Event goes down as second largest on WPTDeepStacks record, Seminole Hard Rock owns the top four turnouts in the tour’s history
The WPTDeepStacks Main Event headlined the 2019 Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open schedule and it had a great turnout. The 1,634 combined entries created the second biggest field in the tour’s history with more than $260,000 set aside for first place. WSOP bracelet winner Jason Young came to the final table with a big lead and dominated to win the WPTDeepStacks title after defeating Leif Force heads-up.
“Oh man, it’s been a long journey to get back here,” Young said of the win. “There’s been a lot of stuff that’s gone on in my life over the last five-six years, that I didn’t think I’d ever be back in a position like this.”
“I’m rarely speechless, and I don’t even know how to process my thoughts just quite yet about everything.”
The Main Event had a $1,000,000 guarantee and the big turnout pushed the prize pool up to $1,584,980. The last 205 players were set to make the money with 322 advancing to Day 2.
They were near the money before the first break on Day 2 and a double knockout during hand-for-hand play burst the bubble. Day 2 came to end and when the Main Event reached 27 players and Chilean pro Nick Yunis bagged up the lead going into Day 3.
Young was in the middle of the pack at the restart but began to move up the counts as the day progressed. They formed the unofficial final table with ten players remaining and he had pulled himself into the lead. Yunis’ run came to an end in tenth place and the WPTDeepStacks live-stream final table was set with Young holding that big lead.
“This was fun. This was like a picnic.” Young said about his final table chip lead. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a spot like this and I wasn’t going to get rattled by anything…not today.”
Playing from nine players to a winner, the matter was settled in less than four hours. UK’s Paul James Hizer picked up aces in two big, early hands to send Stephen Ibrahim and Eddy Sabat out to start the day. Young took his turn with the knockouts when he eliminated Quinn Bruno and Pedro Aldave.
He held onto the lead until he was heads-up with Force, the other WSOP bracelet winner at the final table. Force doubled into the lead but it did not last long. Young doubled back when his tens flopped a set against jacks and the Main Event was over soon after.
“I’m going to celebrate this win with my daughter Kaeley and my family,” Young said about his title. “I can’t even possibly begin to think of what’s going to happen next right now. I’m just so happy that I can finally take a breath.”
Force earned $183,540 for his runner-up result while Young earned $263,205 which includes his WPTDeepStacks Championship package.
Final table results:
1st: Jason Young – $263,205 + LHPO trophy
2nd: Leif Force – $183,540
3rd: Paul James Hizer – $119,820
4th: Kevin Chan – $89,000
5th: David Inselberg – $66,760
6th: Pedro Aldave – $53,785
7th: Quinn Bruno – $43,930
8th: Eddy Sabat – $34,125
9th: Stephen Ibrahim – $26,025
WPTDeepStacks Lucky Hearts Poker Open Main Event results
