$2,650 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-Out)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 9: 400/800 with a 100 ante
Players Remaining: 189 of 395

Nick Yunis opened with a raise to 1,800 in middle position, and Nick Yunis three-bet shoved for 18,400 next door. Yunis took a soak in the tank, chatting with his neighbor as he did.

Most of their conversation was too quiet to overhear; the two were mostly smirking at each other, really. “Most people would be in there already, I think,” Yunis said at one point. Eventually, he folded, saying something about pocket jacks.

“I had nothing,” Soverel mocked as he pushed his cards toward the muck.

“Ace-king high?” Yunis mused.

From two seats over, Jake Schindler pointed at Soverel’s hole cards laying face-down and shot him a hopeful eye.

Soverel went ahead and flipped up his .

The next hand, Yunis opened to 1,800 again, and a player behind him three-bet shoved for 5,800. Yunis rolled his eyes and sighed for a moment, long enough for Schindler and Soverel to giggle at each other over the delay. Yunis did eventually call.

The at-risk player had , but it was no match for Yunis’ . The board ran out , and Yunis got the knockout with two pair.

Nick Yunis – 45,000 (56 bb)
Jake Schindler – 37,000 (46 bb)
Sam Soverel – 24,000 (30 bb)

$5,250 SHRPO Championship
$3 Million Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 19: 6,000/12,000 with a 2,000 ante
Players Remaining: 52

We saw some talented players hit the rail over the last stretch of play but there are still plenty of big names remaining.

Among those eliminated were Asher Conniff (pictured), Kevin Saul, Paul Volpe, Kevin Saul, Tony March, Allen Bari, Dermit Blain, Kathy Lehne, and 2016 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship final table member Shawn Nguyen.

53rd: Paul Volpe – $15,014
54th: Asher Conniff – $15,014
55th: Shawn Nguyen – $13,551
56th: Javier Sarache – $13,551
57th: Kevin Saul – $13,551
58th: Adam Koppel – $13,551
59th: Douglas Booth – $13,551
60th: Tony March – $13,551
61st: David Inselberg – $13,551
62nd: Allen Bari – $13,551
63rd: Adam Krach – $13,551
64th: Dermot Blain – $12,433
65th: Benjamin Ector – $12,433
66th: Jean “Prince” Gaspard – $12,433
67th: Joseph Ross – $12,433
68th: Kathy Lehne – $12,433
69th: Gabriel Andrade – $12,433
70th: Justin Warner – $12,433

$5,250 SHRPO Championship
$3 Million Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 18: 5,000/10,000 with a 1,000 ante
Players Remaining: 52

Players are now on their last 15-minute break of the night. When they return, they’ll play two more levels before bagging and tagging on Day 2.

$5,250 SHRPO Championship
$3 Million Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 18: 5,000/10,000 with a 1,000 ante
Players Remaining: 52

Paul Volpe raised to 25,000 preflop from late position, and Ari Engel reraised to 71,000 on the hijack. Volpe reraised all in for 370,000, and Engel called to cover him. The two players then revealed their cards.

Engel:
Volpe:

Board:

Volpe was eliminated in 53rd place, good for $15,014, and Engel stacked up 1.13 million after the hand.

Ari Engel – 1,130,000 (113 bb)
Paul Volpe – Eliminated in 53rd Place ($15,014)

$5,250 SHRPO Championship
$3 Million Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 18: 5,000/10,000 with a 1,000 ante
Players Remaining: 54

Action folded around to Daniel Blum in the small blind and he shoved all in for 157,000, which the player in the big blind called.

Blum:
Big Blind:

“Alright, I’ll take a chop,” the player in the big blind said. It looked like it was headed that way when the flop came down .

However, that is when the dealer burned and turned the turn to guarantee Blum the double, which he got after the was run out on the river.

Daniel Blum – 315,000 (31.5 bb)

$5,250 SHRPO Championship
$3 Million Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 18: 5,000/10,000 with a 1,000 ante
Players Remaining: 56

The flop read when David Inselberg bet an unknown amount from the big blind, and Scott Clements raised all in on the cutoff. Inselberg called all in, so the two players tabled their cards.

Clements:
Inselberg:

Turn and River:

Inselberg was eliminated in 61st place, good for $13,551, and Clements stacked up 630,000 after collecting the pot.

Scott Clements – 630,000 (63 bb)
David Inselberg – Eliminated in 61st Place ($13,551)

2017 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open 
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
Hollywood, FL
$2,650 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-Out)
$1 Million Guaranteed
Entries: 395
Prizepool: $1,000,000

1st: $204,600
2nd: $143,340
3rd: $92,150
4th: $61,550
5th: $47,350
6th: $39,250
7th: $32,950
8th: $26,700
9th: $20,460
10th-12th: $17,250
13th-15th: $14,370
16th-18th: $11,800
19th-21st: $9,800
22nd-24th: $8,320
25th-27th: $6,850
28th-36th: $5,600
37th-45th: $5,000
46th-52nd: $4,440

$5,250 SHRPO Championship
$3 Million Guaranteed | Payouts
Level 18: 5,000/10,000 with a 1,000 ante
Players Remaining: 59

After a player in middle position raised to 21,000 and Anthony March three-bet to 75,000, David “Doc” Sands four-bet to 160,000 from the cutoff. The original raiser folded and March thought long and hard before moving all in for what looked to be 415,000.

He immediately regretted it when Sands snap-called and tabled the best hand in poker.

Sands:
March:

March needed a miracle to cracks Sands aces, but he didn’t get one as the board ran out .

David Sands – 975,000 (97.5 bb)
Anthony March  – Eliminated in 60th Place ($13,551)

$2,650 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-Out)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Returning to Level 9: 400/800 with a 100 ante
Entries: 395

Registration is officially closed with 234 of 395 entries remaining. The 75-minute dinner break gave us a chance to scout the room for big and notable stacks. Here are a few:

Tom Thomas  –  112,800
Darryll Ronconi  –  108,000
Seth Fisher  –  104,000
Nigel Murray  –  94,600
Sean Perry  –  88,200
Chris Hunichen  –  64,900
Staffan Lind  –  50,000
Jerry Wong  –  48,500
Shawn Cunix  –  42,200
Jake Schindler  –  39,100
Matt Salsberg  –  38,000
Nick Yunis  –  37,300
Ray Qartomy  –  37,000
Blake Bohn  –  35,000
Maria Ho  –  25,600
Loni Harwood  –  21,600
Aleks Dimitrov  –  19,600
Phil Hui  –  19,000
Mohsin Charania  –  18,300
Steve Karp  –  18,000
Cate Hall  – 16,400
Ian O’hara  –  15,400
Aaron Massey  – 9,200
Ryan Riess  –  6,000