Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open
Event 8: $560 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em
August 21 – 24, 2014

Total Entries: 2,767
Total Prize Pool: $1,383,500

RECAP
It was only supposed to last two days, but they liked the tournament so much they came back for an extra day to find a winner. In the end, Riley Fuller outlasted 2,767 players plus several bad beats to earn the title and take home the $239,585 top prize.

Event 8 had a $1,000,000 guaranteed prizepool which was quickly surpassed on the fifth of six starting flights. The $560 buy-in No Limit tournament had a deep stack structure to give players a lot of room to make moves. The re-entry option allowed them to loosen up in the early stages and they kept the registration desk busy. Of the 2,767 start players, more than 1,200 of them came out to play on Saturday.

Flight 1E was the early starter on Saturday and the biggest of the six. It also produced the overall chip leader coming into Day 2 as Bret Beebe amassed a stack of 694,000 which was more the 200,000 better than second place Jordan Cutter. Both players were able to make the money but neither was able to get deep enough to have a shot at the big money on top.

Day 2 continued into the early morning hours when tournament staff put a halt to the action at 3am with 10 players still remaining. We had one player who wished to remain anonymous and we granted his request as he came back with a huge chip lead. Holding 23% of the chips in play with 10 players remaining, he had a great shot to win the title. He lost a major pot along with the chip lead when his bluff move was sniffed out by Adam Zimowski.

Riley Fuller seemed to be a man destined to fall short of the big prize when he found himself on the wrong end of several bad beats. Fuller flopped a set of Jack against David Castanova only to lose to a rivered gutshot straight draw then had his Aces cracked by Derrick Simon’s pocket Fives when a Five came on the flop.

Fuller didn’t let the beats both him. He continued to battle and went into heads up play with healthy lead against Adam Rouse. They battled for a level until Rouse made one mistake that cost him.

“They one time I ship in light.” Rouse commented, “That’s when he’s got Kings.”

Rouse moved all-in with after a button raise and Fuller quickly called with . Like many hands at the final table, the board added a little drama to the affair. Rouse picked up an open-ended straight draw on the turn to chop the hand but the river blanked to give Fuller the title after 40 long levels of play.

“Mental toughness.” Fuller said simply when asked how he bounced back.

“I just had to be tough and get through it.”

The Boca Raton, FL resident outlasted 2,766 of his opponents to earn the tournament title, his custom framed winners photo from IMPDI, and the big money which goes along with accomplishment.

FINAL RESULTS:
1. RILEY FULLER (BOCA RATON, FL): $239,585
2. ADAM ROUSE (LONGWOOD, FL): $155,382
3. ADAM ZIMOWSKI (RACINE, WI): $101,756
4. STEPHEN JONES (PHILADELPHIA, PA): $86,507
5. DERRICK SIMON (MIRAMAR, FL): $71,768
6. A NONYMOUS (COCONUT CREEK, FL): $57,166
7. DAVID CASTRANOVA (HOLLYWOOD, FL): $42,703
8. DANIEL GRIFFITHS (DACULA, GA): $28,928
9. TYLER MCKENDRY (THOUSAND OAKS, ON): $20,663
10. ANDREW GRAHAM (WESTFORD, MA): $13,775
11. BRIAN HASTINGS (FORT LAUDERDALE, FL): $13,775
12. SCOTT ZAKHEIM (DAVIE, FL): $13,775
13. KEVIN TORRES (MAYAGUKZ, PR): $9,298
14. KHAMSOUK NIFONG JR (GAINESVILLE, GA): $9,298
15. ROBERT CHOW (SCHAUMBURG, IL): $9,298
16. MARSHA WOLAK (SARASOTA, FL): $7,094
17. MICHAEL JELASO (MANTECA, CA): $7,094
18. MICHAEL RANNELLI (BRANCHBURG, NJ): $7,094
19. MATTHEW YORRA (MIAMI, FL): $5,786
20. JOSE AVILA (MIAMI, FL): $5,786
21. HENRY RONDON (PEMBROKE PINES, FL): $5,786
22. CYBEL CABRERO (PARKLAND, FL): $5,786
23. NICOLAS YUNIS (LAS VEGAS, NV): $5,786
24. MOISES BENCHLOUCH (PALMETTO BAY, FL): $5,786
25. ALBERTO ESKENAZI (SURFSIDE, FL): $5,786
26. ALEJANDRO RAMOS CINTRON (BAYAMON, PR): $5,786
27. ROBERT BOURKNEY (NORTH COLLINS, NY): $5,786
Continue reading SHRPO FINAL RESULTS – EVENT 8 →

Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open
Event 14:  $250 Pot-Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
August 25, 2014

Entries: 115
Prize Pool: $24,150

RECAP
After a grueling 12 hours of play, Henry Hull (St. Augustine, FL) emerged victorious over the field of 115 Pot Limit Omaha entrants.  “I’m excited!” said Hull about winning his first major title.  For his victory Hull will collect $7,969, plus the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open trophy and a custom framed 16×20 photograph provided by IMPDI.

The final three battled for nearly two hours before David May was eliminated in third place ($2,995).  The chip lead changed hands repeatedly while this trio fought for every pot.  Once May hit the rail, the heads-up battle between Hull and runner-up Anna Calder was fairly short.  Calder got her chips in after flopping a flush draw against Hull’s set of Tens.  Calder’s draw whiffed and she settled for second place and $4,516.

This event drew 115 entries for a total prize pool of $24,150, which was paid out to the final 12 players.  They reached the money after about eight hours of play.  Notables cashing in this event included ‘Miami’ John Cernuto, who finished 9th, making his fourth cash and third final table of this series.  Mike Beasley booked his first cash of the series, finishing 8th.

Henry Hull is retired from the hardware business and has been playing tournaments as an amteur for about fifteen years.  He came to the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open for the HORSE and Omaha events.  He enjoys the games other than Hold’em.  “I’m not a really good No Limit Hold’em player,” he said.

“They were good players…nice people…very nice people,” Hull said, referring to his opponents at the final table.  “I like it” he said about the Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood.  He’s going home tomorrow, but may come back for the $10 Million Guaranteed Championship event later in the week.

FINAL RESULTS
1. HENRY HULL (SAINT AUGUSTINE, FL): $7,969
2. ANNA CALDER (UXBRIDGE, ON): $4,516
3. DAVID MAY (PLANTATION, FL): $2,995
4. MICHAEL MATHENY (MASON, MI): $2,149
5. LUIS SANTONI (PEMBROKE PNES, FL): $1,570
6. SCOTT JAFFA (WAYNE, NJ): $1,208
7. MATTHEW ZARCADOOLAS (FORT LAUDERDALE, FL): $942
8. WILLIAM BEASLEY (DAVIE, FL): $700
9. JOHN CERNUTO (LAS VEGAS, NV): $580
10. HENRY CHOW (SUGAR LAND, TX): $507
11. JESSE MCEUEN (AKRON, OH): $507
12. JEFFREY BAAR (SARASOTA, FL): $507

MAIN EVENT SCHEDULE AND RESULTS