Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Hollywood
Event #29
$250 No Limit Hold’em Turbo 
Total Entries: 175
Prize Pool: $36,750

Jeremy Costa won the final open event of the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the 40-year-old Massachusetts native.

Costa was in bad financial shape before the final event, but found a way to outlast a field of 175 players to take home the title and $10,657.

“To be honest with you, I was almost dead broke,” said Costa after his win. “I was just deciding if I was going to just go back and regroup before Borgata or if I was going to play this last one.”

Costa made the right decision. He is leaving the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino with a five-figure score and his first career tournament win.

Costa has been surrounded by tournament success the last few weeks. His two roommates, Frankie Flowers and Charbel Azzi, booked a very successful series here in South Florida. Just 15 hours earlier, Flowers won a tournament of his own and Azzi made a deep run in the $3,500 WPT Main Evnet.

While many would be motivated by their friends’ success, Costa just continued to look within himself for the motivation to succeed.

“It was really just believing in myself and telling myself ‘You know what? there’s still one more tournament. If I got a chip and a chair, I’m going to try and win.’ That’s really what happened,” said Costa.

Away from the table, Costa is trying to put his money to good use. He started a company called Poker For a Purpose, which offers an understanding of the game for people who are looking for an alternative path in their life.

“You know, I didn’t have the greatest life growing up and stuff like that,” said Costa. “So I just want to give back to the community. This win will actually help me start doing that. I’ve got some motivational gear and some motivational things that I’ll be able to do now.”

Costa is from the northeast originally, but has been putting in lots of time at the tables at the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa.

After having several close calls earlier in his poker career and a failed shot in the $3,500 WPT main event after satelliting in, he’s just grateful for the win.

“It’s just a blessing,” said Costa. “To be able to be here and win one of these trophies. It’s one of my favorite places to play and it just feels unbelievable.”

Here is a look at the results:

1st: Jeremy Costa – $10,657
2nd: Andy Spears – $6,248
3rd: Eric Kolodny – $3,675
4th: Jorge Gomez – $2,940
5th: Jerry Humphrey – $2,205
6th: Mario James – $1,838
7th: Michael Newman – $1,470
8th: Maurice Roy – $1,103
9th: Charles Dunker – $827
10th: Sheila O’Connor – $735
11th: Michael Lavoie – $735
12th: Adam Weinraub – $735
13th: William Massey – $643
14th: Francis Margaglione – $643
15th: Marsha Wolak – $643
16th: Thomas Neientimp – $551
17th: Thomas Gari – $551
18th: Richard Roeper – $551

Event 29 Final Results

$250 No Limit Hold’em
Level 27: 20,000/40,000 with a 5,000 ante
Players Remaining: 1 of 177

Jeremy Costa won the $250 No Limit Hold’em Turbo for $10,657. A complete recap will be posted shortly.

Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship 
Level 34: 125,000/250,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 1,222
Average Stack: 12,220,000 (48 bb)

Hyoung Chae – 13,375,000
Justin Young – 13,225,000
Garrett Greer – 10,025,000

1st – $654,161 + TOC Seat
2nd – $458,722
3rd – $297,336

Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship 
Level 34: 125,000/250,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 1,222
Average Stack: 12,220,000 (48 bb)

Justin Young opened from under the gun to 525,000 and it folded to Matthew Haugen in the big blind. Haugen shoved for 4,975,000 and Young called putting Haugen at risk.

Young:
Haugen:

The dealer burned and turned a board improving neither player and officially busting Haugen 4th. He earned $220,207.

Justin Young – 11,875,000 (47 bb)
Matthew Haugen – Eliminated in 4th place ($220,207)

Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship 
Level 34: 125,000/250,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining: 4 of 1,222
Average Stack: 9,165,000 (36 bb)

$25,000 High Roller No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
End of Level 20: 15,000/30,000 with a 5,000 ante
Players Remaining: 6 of 94

The final six players have been sent off for a one-hour dinner break. Play will resume at 9:10 p.m., and action will continue tonight until a winner is determined.

Here’s how the table will stack up when the new level begins:

Seat 1: David Malka -1,885,000 (47 bb)
Seat 2: Tim West -1,355,000 (34 bb)
Seat 3: Nick Yunis – 635,000 (16 bb)
Seat 4: Yevgeniy Timoshenko -1,295,000 (32 bb)
Seat 5: –empty–
Seat 6: –empty–
Seat 7: Sylvain Loosli – 1,940,000 (49 bb)
Seat 8: Nick Petrangelo – 2,300,000 (58 bb)
Seat 9: –empty–

Everyone left is guaranteed to earn six figures this evening. Here are the remaining payouts:

1st: $658,000
2nd: $481,750
3rd: $298,450
4th: $206,800
5th: $133,950
6th: $101,050

$25,000 High Roller No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
End of Level 20: 15,000/30,000 with a 5,000 ante
Players Remaining: 6 of 94

Brian Benderoff moved all in for just less than 500,000 in middle position, and action folded around to David Malka in the big blind. He squeezed his cards one at a time. “First one’s good,” Malka said. When he peeked at the second, he said, “Wow,” and dropped a stack of calling chips into the pot.

Benderoff:
Malka:

The board ran out , and Malka won the pot with his pair of aces. Benderoff, who began the day with the chip lead, was eliminated in seventh place.

David Malka – 2,050,000 (68 bb)
Brian Benderoff – Eliminated

Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship 
Heading to Level 34: 125,000/250,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining: 4 of 1,222
Average Stack: 9,165,000 (36 bb)

Players are currently on break. Here’s a look at the chip counts heading to Level 35:

Seat 1: Cate Hall – Eliminated 9th ($65,404)
Seat 2: Andrey Plotnikov – Eliminated 8th ($87,880)
Seat 3: Hyoung Chae – 13,725,000 (54 bb)
Seat 4: Ben Tarzia – Eliminated 6th ($132,560)
Seat 5: Matthew Haugen – 4,325,000 (17 bb)
Seat 6: William Foxen – Eliminated 10th ($49,627)
Seat 7: Tim Reilly – Eliminated 5th ($164,113)
Seat 8: Justin Young – 12,950,000 (51 bb)
Seat 9: Garrett Greer – 5,650,000 (22 bb)
Seat 10: Sam Soverel – Eliminated 7th ($110,357)

Results through 11th place 

1st – $654,161 + TOC Seat
2nd – $458,722
3rd – $297,336
4th – $220,207

$25,000 High Roller No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 20: 15,000/30,000 with a 5,000 ante
Players Remaining: 7 of 94

Steffen Sontheimer opened to 65,000 in middle position, and Tim West three-bet shoved from the big blind. Sontheimer double-checked his cards, then quickly called all in for 635,000 total.

Sontheimer:
West:

The board ran out , and West’s kings held up to earn him the knockout. He barely had Sontheimer covered, so it’s essentially a double-up for him, eliminating his opponent in eighth place.

Tim West – 1,380,000 (46 bb)
Steffen Sontheimer – Eliminated

$150 No Limit Hold’em Re-Entry
Level 23: 10,000/20,000 with a 3,000 ante
Players Remaining: 10 of 625

The field has been trimmed down to the final 10 players and they have re-drawn for seats at the unofficial final table of 10.

Xiaoyan Wang is leading the final table with 1,496,000 in chips. Everybody is guaranteed a cash of at least $975, but first place is worth $20,237. Here is a look at the seating arrangement and chip counts:

Seat 1: Paul Tong – 1,001,000
Seat 2: Hector Chevalier – 1,186,000
Seat 3: Wally Maddah – 280,000
Seat 4: Billy Haworth – 448,000
Seat 5: Xiaoyan Wang – 1,496,000
Seat 6: Anibal Rodriguez – 265,000
Seat 7: Scott Cowan – 252,000
Seat 8: Edgardo Rosario – 493,000
Seat 9: Chien Chiu – 201,000
Seat 10: John Cummings – 590,000

Here is a look at the remaining payouts:

1st: $20,237
2nd: $12,000
3rd: $7,875
4th: $5,438
5th: $4,013
6th: $3,188
7th: $2,438
8th: $1,763
9th: $1,275
10th: $975