2017 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
Hollywood, FL
Event 20
$300 No Limit Hold’em
Entries: 184
Prize Pool: $46,920
April 1, 2017

Michael Luong earned his first career title on Saturday night by defeating a field of 184 entries to win $12,157 in the $300 no limit hold’em.

After a long, 15-hour day of poker, the 25-year-old professional poker player was humble in nature and short on words.

“I just played it the way it was and I got it,” said Luong after his win.

Luong came into the final table near the top of the chip counts, but it took nearly five hours before he had amassed all of the chips in play. This is mostly due to the good structure and the high talent level of the final nine players.

“Surprisingly, at the very beginning of the final table, the blinds weren’t too big,” said Luong. “Everybody had a decent stack and it was fun. Everybody was playing pretty well. There were several people at the table that was playing amazingly well. I just had to wait, get a couple hands and made it happen.”

As a professional poker player living in Georgia, Luong doesn’t have the luxury of having casinos in the area. Most of Luong’s poker experience comes in underground games.

“It’s more underground games,” said Luong about where he’s forced to play in Georgia. “I travel to Vegas often too. So, I do a little of both.”

He currently plays in these games to make a living, but before he was playing these games, he was dealing them to pay for his computer information science degree at Georgia State University.

It was when he was in the box pitching cards that he learned the ins and outs of the game before jumping into playing full time.

“I used to deal at these games,” said Luong. “I learned the game and started liking it a lot. I just got used to it and started playing a lot and I like it a lot.”

Luong spends most of his time in cash games, but every so often, he’ll take a shot at a tournament.

“Cash is mainly my focus, but tournaments, I’ll jump in one every now and then just to see how I do,” said Luong.

He did pretty well on Saturday.

Results:

1st: Michael Luong – 12,157
2nd: Richard Little – $8,152
3rd: Ashley Sleeth – $4,809
4th: Steven Bennett – $2,925
5th: Tobias Peters – $2,259
6th: Francis Garcia – $1,872
7th: Marc Duquette – $1,595
8th: Aaron Scott – $1,403
9th: Roberto Bendeck – $1,216
10th: Preston Michael – $1,032
11th: Thomas Jackson – $1,032
12th: Rudijanto Soetkino – $1,032
13th: Dominick Amore – $868
14th: Frank Folino – $868
15th: Hamid Izadi – $868
16th: Andrew Grose – $727
17th: David Ring – $727
18th: Thomas Curtis – $727
19th: Alan Rosenbaum – $587
20th: Robert Mantin – $587
21st: Nader Bahhur – $587
22nd: Josias Santos – $445
23rd: Willie Wiggins – $445

$300 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 17: 2,500/5,000 with a 500 ante
Players Remaining: 10 of 184

The $300 no limit hold’em is down to its final 10 players and they have redrawn for seats at the unofficial final table. With one more elimination, the final nine players will be credited with making a final table.

Here is a look at the seating arrangement and chip counts for the final 10:

Seat 1: Rich Little – 166,500
Seat 2: Steven Bennett – 250,000
Seat 3: Roberto Bendeck – 199,000
Seat 4: Tobias Peters – 161,000
Seat 5: Marc Duquette – 322,500
Seat 6: Francis Garcia – 42,000
Seat 7: Mike Preston – 59,000
Seat 8: Aaron Scott – 152,500
Seat 9: Ashley Sleeth – 215,500
Seat 10: Michael Luong – 260,500

Hera are the remaining payouts:

1st: $12,157
2nd: $8,152
3rd: $4,809
4th: $2,929
5th: $2,5259
6th: $1,872
7th: $1,595
8th: $1,403
9th: $1,216
10th: $1,032

$300 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 10: 500/1,000 with a 100 Ante
Players Remaining: 49 of 184

Registration closed for the one-day Event 20 and the tournament nearly doubled its $25,000 guaranteed prize pool. The tournament drew 184 entries to create a prize pool worth $46,920 with the last 23 players earning a piece.

A min-cash will earn $445 and the next Showdown champ will bank $12,157 plus the trophy and custom-framed winner’s photo courtesy of IMPDI.

2017 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, FL
Event 20
$300 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Entries: 184
Prize Pool: $46,920
April 1, 2017

1st: $12,157
2nd: $8,152
3rd: $4,809
4th: $2,929
5th: $2,259
6th: $1,872
7th: $1,595
8th: $1,403
9th: $1,216
10th – 12th: $1,032
13th – 15th: $868
16th – 18th: $727
19th – 21st: $587
22nd – 23rd: $445

$300 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 1: 25/50

While most eyes will be focused on Day 2 of the Championship, we have another new trophy event kicking off at noon. Event 20 is a one-day tournament with a $300 buy-in with a $25,000 guaranteed prize pool.

Players start with 10,000 stacks and they will play 30-minute levels from beginning to end. Late registration and unlimited re-entries are available until the start of Level 9 at 4:30pm and a dinner break is scheduled at 6:30pm. Before the end of the evening, we will crown our next Showdown champion.

Cards are about to fly and we’ll catch up with them after the close of registration.

• $25,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
• Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
• Late registration available until start of Level 9
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 20 Structure Sheet

Main Event Schedule

12PM: Day 2 – $3,500 WPT Showdown Championship (Re-Entry)

• Championship Day 2 Chip Counts
• Championship Day 2 Table/Seat Assignments
• Championship Payouts

12PM: Event 20 – $300 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)

• $25,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
• Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
• Late registration available until start of Level 9
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 20 Structure Sheet

5PM: Event 21 – $570 Turbo No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)

• Players begin with 12,000 in chips and 15-minute levels
• Late registration available until start of Level 9
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 21 Structure Sheet

Secondary and Satellite Schedule

9AM: Event 86 – $130 WPT Finale Turbo Step Satellite (1-in-10)

• 2 seats guaranteed into $1,050 WPT Finale Satellite
• Players begin with 8,000 in chips and 15-minute levels
• Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9
• Satellite will be held in The Poker Room
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 86 Structure Sheet

3PM: Event 87 – $1,050 WPT Finale Satellite (1-in-10)

• 15 seats guaranteed into $2 Million GTD WPT Finale
• Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
• Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 7
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 87 Structure Sheet

6PM: Event 88 – $1,050 WPT Finale Satellite (1-in-10)

• 2 seats guaranteed into $2 Million GTD WPT Finale
• Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
• Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 7
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 88 Structure Sheet

8PM: Event 89 – $550 WPT Finale Turbo Satellite (1-in-20)

• 2 seats guaranteed into $2 Million GTD WPT Finale
• Players begin with 8,000 in chips and 15-minute levels
• Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 89 Structure Sheet

10:30PM: Event 90 – $1,030 WPT Finale Super Turbo Satellite (1-in-10)

• 1 seat guaranteed into $2 Million GTD WPT Finale
• Players begin with 6,000 in chips and 10-minute levels
• Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 7
• This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
• Event 90 Structure Sheet

——————-

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood Property Update

Preparations are underway for the development of an iconic hotel tower and resort:

• Parking – Poker players are encouraged to park in Winner’s Way Garage to access both the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown tournament space and The Poker Room

• The Poker Room – Players may access the poker room by entering through the main lobby or via the exterior entrance on the opposite end of Winner’s Way Garage.

• Inside hotel – Services and amenities inside the hotel will remain open along with regularly scheduled events and entertainment.

For additional construction updates, please visit TheNewHardRock.com