$3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 28:  50,000/75,000 with a 75,000 ante
Players Remaining:  6 of 843

The last day of the 2020 Seminole Lucky Hearts Poker Open is here and that means it is time to crown our WPT LHPO Champion. From 843 entries down to six, they return today to play it out in front of the WPT live-stream cameras.

Brian Altman leads the return and attempting to make history. He was the WPT LHPO champion in 2015 and, if he wins today, would be the first player ever to win the same WPT tournament twice.

But second place John Dollinger and the rest of the players will have something to say about that. The average stack is 5,620,000 (75 bb) so this will be a long road to the title.

Cards go back in the air at 2 pm and the WPT live stream will be on a 30-minute delay with hole cards.

Seat 1: John Dollinger – 10,275,000 (137 bb)
Seat 2: Chanracy Khun – 3,150,000 (42 bb)
Seat 3: Brian Altman – 10,400,000 (139 bb)
Seat 4: Nadeem Hirani – 5,000,000 (67 bb)
Seat 5: Nadya Magnus – 4,000,000 (53 bb)
Seat 6: Peter Walsworth – 900,000 (12 bb)

Remaining payouts:

1st: $482,636*
2nd: $311,751
3rd: $230,086
4th: $171,642
5th: $129,438
6th: $98,686
7th: $76,078
* First-prize amount includes the winner’s $15,000 entry into the season-ending Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Champions.

The 2020 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship drew 853 entries and the tournament is down to its final table six players.

They are led by former WPT LHPO Champion Brian Altman with John Dollinger not far behind in second.

Here’s a look at the lineup and a little bit of their history.

Seat 1: John Dollinger 10,275,000 (137 bb), a 32-year-old professional poker player who grew up in Florida. Dollinger’s biggest score came in March 2016 when he won the Battle at the Beach, in Pompano Beach Florida. He took home $181,117 for that win and has a career total earnings of $711,639

Seat 2: Chanracy Khun – 3,150,000 (42 bb) from Quebec Canada, has been in the restaurant business for ten years. He won WPT Barcelona in 2013 for $232,487 and that is his biggest score. He has over $1,000,000 in earnings and is a father.

Seat 3: Brian Altman – 10,400,000 (139 bb) is a 31-year-old professional poker player from Boston, Massachusetts. He won this event in February 2015 for $723,008 and could make history by being the first player to win the same WPT twice. He has over $3,700,000 in earnings and is the most accomplished player at the table.

Seat 4: Nadeem Hirani – 5,000,000 (67 bb) – a 33-year-old hailing from India and currently residing in Waynesboro, Georgia. He is self-employed in retail and playing poker for the last two years. This is currently his biggest poker accomplishment.

Seat 5: Nadya Magnus – 4,000,000 (53 bb) is a 43-year-old professional poker player that was born in Russia. She is a mother with one son and has been playing poker for eleven years. She has two WSOP Circuit rings and $652,074 in earnings.

Seat 6: Peter Walsworth – 900,000 (12 bb) is a forty-year-old father of two children from Florida. He went to Florida State University for finance and worked at Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch. His biggest tournament cash came this past November when he final tabled the WPT Borgata Fall Poker Open for $185,018. Walsworth has close to $1,300,000 in career earnings.

Primary Event Schedule

2PM: Final Table- $3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship

• Championship Final Table Seats and Counts
• Championship Payouts

3PM: Event 29 Day 2 – $2,200 Deep Stack PLO (Re-Entry)

• Held in the Poker Room
• Event 29 Day 2 Seats and Counts
• Event 29 Payouts

5PM: Event 27 Day 2 – $150 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)

• Held in the Poker Room
• Event 27 Day 2 Chip Counts
• Event 27 Day 2 Chip Table and Seat Assignments
• Event 27 Payouts

2020 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 28
$5,000 Eight-Handed NLH (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  78
Prize Pool:  $370,500
January 21, 2020

One week ago, Jonathan Bussieres defeated Justin Harvell heads-up to win Event #15. Tonight, Bussieres did it again, winning Event #28 ($5,000 Eight-Handed No-Limit Hold’em) after making a heads-up deal with runner-up Faraz Jaka.

There were 78 entries in this one-day tournament, and the final 10 finished in the money. With the Money Bubble (and the tightened play that precedes it) only two spots away from the final table, the final table started with shallow stacks — the average was only 22 big blinds.

After James Calderaro busted in ninth place, the final eight players battle for nearly an hour as the blinds got higher and higher. But once Ray Qartomy busted in eighth place, a figurative dam burst, and they lost three more players in the next 26 minutes.

It was a frenetic final table, with frequent lead changes and lots of ups and downs. Eventually, Bussieres was able to build a lead and hold onto it, and after eliminating Joe McKeehen in third place, Bussieres had a 2-to-1 lead over Faraz Jaka. They quickly agreed to a deal, and as chipleader, Bussieres won the title and the trophy.

It was the second trophy of the series for Bussieres, and they both came in eight-handed events. But with a $5K buy-in, this victory carries more prestige, along with 12 times as much prize money.

Final Results:

1st:  Jonathan Bussieres  –  $100,760* + LHPO Trophy
2nd:  Faraz Jaka  –  $88,470*
3rd:  Joe McKeehen  –  $50,460
4th:  Mark Guariglia  –  $35,065
5th:  Craig Varnell  –  $25,450
6th:  Jim Collopy  –  $19,325
7th:  Greg Baird  –  $15,385
8th:  Ray Qartomy  –  $12,875
9th:  James Calderaro  –  $11,355
10th:  Paul Domb  –  $11,355

* Indicates a heads-up deal.

$2,200 Deep Stack PLO (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 13:  3,000/5,000
Players Remaining:  4 of 35

After 12 levels of play, there were four players remaining to bag up their chips for the night. Action will resume tomorrow (Wednesday) at 3:00 pm in the poker room.

The chipleader is David Prociak, who already holds the record for the most Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood trophies with seven. Will Prociak win his eighth trophy tomorrow? Return to SHRPO.com to find out, as we will be providing live updates for this event alongside the WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open.

Here are the official chip counts and seating assignments, followed by the remaining prizepool:

Seat 1.  Melisa Singh  –  174,000  (35 bb)
Seat 2.  David Prociak  –  346,000  (69 bb)
Seat 3.  Timothy Banks  –  106,000  (21 bb)
Seat 4.  Andrei Mitsiuk  –  74,000  (15 bb)

1st:  $26,265 + LHPO Trophy
2nd:  $17,510
3rd:  $11,675
4th:  $8,280

$150 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$50,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 15:  2,000/4,000 with a 4,000 ante
Players Remaining:  67 of 619

Flight A:  282 Entries; 35 Advanced
Flight B:  337 Entries; 32 Advanced
Day 2:  Wednesday at 5:00 pm

$150 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$50,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 15:  2,000/4,000 with a 4,000 ante
Players Remaining:  67 of 619

Flight A:  282 Entries; 35 Advanced
Flight B:  337 Entries; 32 Advanced
Day 2:  Wednesday at 5:00 pm

$5,000 Eight-Handed NLH (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 23:  15,000/25,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining:  1 of 78

After the elimination of Joe McKeehen in third place, Jonathan Bussieres and Faraz Jaka quickly agreed to an ICM deal to split the remaining prizepool.

These were their official chip counts, with the updated payouts listed below:

Jonathan Bussieres  –  1,030,000  (41 bb)
Faraz Jaka  –  525,000  (21 bb)

It’s the second trophy of the series for Bussieres, who won Event #15 ($600 Eight-Handed Turbo NLH) exactly one week ago.

1st:  Jonathan Bussieres  –  $100,760* + LHPO Trophy
2nd:  Faraz Jaka  –  $88,470*
3rd:  Joe McKeehen  –  $50,460
4th:  Mark Guariglia  –  $35,065
5th:  Craig Varnell  –  $25,450
6th:  Jim Collopy  –  $19,325
7th:  Greg Baird  –  $15,385
8th:  Ray Qartomy  –  $12,875
9th:  James Calderaro  –  $11,355
10th:  Paul Domb  –  $11,355

* Indicates a heads-up deal.

$150 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$50,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 15:  2,000/4,000 with a 4,000 ante
Players Remaining:  32 of 337

Day 1B came to an end with 32 players remaining, and the big stack belonged to Elliot Goldman, who bagged up 459,000 (115 big blinds).

The full list of official Day 2 chip counts will be posted soon, along with the seat draw, but in the meantime, here is the top of the Day 1B leaderboard:

1.  Elliot Goldman  –  459,000  (115 bb)
2.  Andre Bryan  –  437,000  (109 bb)
3.  Jose Parra  –  353,000  (88 bb)
4.  Jose Rivero  –  286,000  (72 bb)
5.  David Coughlin  –  270,000  (68 bb)

There are a total of 67 players returning for Day 2, but only the final 36 will finish in the money. Here are the payouts:

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
10th-12th:  $966
13th-15th:  $780
16th-18th:  $669
19th-27th:  $557
28th-36th:  $483

Day 2 begins tomorrow (Wednesday) at 5:00 pm in the poker room. Stay tuned for the full list of official chip counts and the Day 2 seat draw.

$5,000 Eight-Handed NLH (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 23:  15,000/25,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining:  2 of 78

The final three players return from break to begin Level 23, with increased blinds of 15K-25K and a 25K ante. These were the official chip counts from the break:

Seat 1.  Jonathan Bussieres  –  715,000  (29 bb)
Seat 2.  Faraz Jaka  –  525,000  (21 bb)
Seat 3.  Joe McKeehen  –  315,000  (13 bb)

In one of the first hands after the break, Joe McKeehen raised from the small blind, Jonathan Bussieres reraised from the big blind, and McKeehen moved all in for about 345,000.

Bussieres called with , and McKeehen turned over . McKeehen was dominated and facing elimination.

The board came — McKeehen turned a gutshot straight draw, but improved no further. Bussieres won the pot with his king to eliminate McKeehen in third place.

Joe McKeehen  –  Eliminated in 3rd Place  ($50,460)

Here are the official chip counts for the start of heads-up play, along with the remaining payouts:

Jonathan Bussieres  –  1,030,000  (41 bb)
Faraz Jaka  –  525,000  (21 bb)

1st:  $113,535
2nd:  $75,695