2017 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, FL
Event 9
$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Entries: 2,923
Prize Pool: $1,461,500
March 23 – 27, 2017

Event 9 was the first tournament on the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown schedule with a guaranteed seven-digit gprize pool and they blasted past that mark. The tournament drew 2,923 entries to create a prize pool of $1,461,500 and it was Vittorio Maraone walking away with the title plus $212,532.

The tournament featured six starting flights over three days with a $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. The field hit the magic number early Saturday morning and they went on to create the huge prize pool by the time registration closed that evening. The last 250 players would take home some of that money on Sunday and the last three players would earn more than $100,000.

Plenty of top, local players made their way to the ballroom to participate including Michael “The Grinder”Mizrachi, Olivier Busquet, Aaron Massey, Alex Rocha and Asher Conniff along with Seminole Hard Rock Poker team members Darryll Fish, Mukul Pahuja, Jessica Dawley, Stewart Newman, and Loni Harwood.

Fish and Dawley would be the only two SHRP team members to make the money along with Seminole Hard Rock Tampa poker ambassador Wally Maddah. After bursting the money bubble, they played down to the end of Level 16 on Day 2 and paused action with 12 players remaining, Rocha leading the way, and Dawley making her second deep run in a huge, multi-day event this series.

Dawley fell victim to a bad beat to exit in tenth place along with Thomas Gari in the same hand. John Dubois, Will Underdown, Kazu Oshima, and Teddy Conner followed quickly before the last four players settled into a long, deep grind.

It took an hour to lose another player when William Kopp was sent out and favorite Alex Rocha followed in third after a bad run of cards. Maraone and Nick Shkolnik held similar stacks before heads up play began and they decided to split up the remaining prize pool.

Each took home more than $200,000 for their $570 investment and Maraone was declared the champ thanks to his slightly bigger stack. He banked $212,532 along with the trophy, custom-framed winner’s photo courtesy of IMPDI, and a seat in the $10,000 WPT Finale/$3,500 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship freeroll.

Final table results:

1st: Vittorio Maraone – $212,532*
2nd: Nick Shkolnik – $206,530*
3rd: Alex Rocha – $107,961
4th: William Kopp – $91,782
5th: Teddy Conner – $76,144
6th: Kazu Oshima – $60,652
7th: Will Underdown – $45,307
8th: John Dubois – $30,692
9th: Thomas Gari – $21,923
10th: Jessica Dawley – $14,615
* – denotes heads up deal

Complete Event 9 Payouts

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 36: 200,000/400,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 2 of 2,923

After Alex Rocha was eliminated in third place, Vittorio Maraone and Nick Shkolnik decided to look at the numbers for a chop deal with the following counts.

Vittorio Maraone – 31,170,000 (78 bb)
Nick Shkolnik – 27,250,000 (68 bb)

They quickly agreed to a deal that saw them both pocket more than $200,000 with Maraone earning the title, the trophy, and a seat in the $10,000 WPT Finale/$3,500 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship freeroll.

1st: Vittorio Maraone – $212,532
2nd: Nick Shkolnik – $206,530

Tournament recap to follow.

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 36: 200,000/400,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 2 of 2,923

Alex Rocha and Nick Shkolnik limped and Vittorio Maraone raised to 1,900,000. Rocha called and Shkolnik released before the flop. Both players checked and Maraone checked again after the turn.

Rocha bet 1,350,000 and Maraone called to see the river. Both players checked and Maraone tabled ace-high , good enough for the pot and Rocha dropped to 4,050,000.

On the next hand, Shkolnik opened to 900,000 from the button with Maraone and Rocha coming along to the flop. Maraone checked, Rocha moved all-in for 3,200,000, Shkolnik released, and Maraone called.

Maraone: 
Rocha: .

Maraone was ahead with bottom two against Rocha’s open-ended straight draw. The turn could not help Rocha and he was eliminated in third place on the river.

Vittorio Maraone – 31,170,000 (78 bb)
Alex Rocha – Eliminated in 3rd place ($107,961)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 36: 200,000/400,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Nick Shkolnik and Vittorio Maraome limped and Alex Rocha checked his option to the flop. Maraone bet out 1,050,000, Rocha called, and Shkolnik released.

Both players checked the turn and Maraone checked the river. Rocha bet 2,350,000 and Maraone called with a set of fives to beat Rocha’s pair of jacks .

Seat 5: Alex Rocha – 7,700,000 (19 bb)
Seat 7: Nick Shkolnik – 29,250,000 (73 bb)
Seat 9: Vittorio Maraone – 21,500,000 (54 bb)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 36: 200,000/400,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Vittorio Maraone opened to 1,000,000 from the button and Nick Shkolnik called in the big blind to the flop. Both players checked to the turn, Shkolnik checked, and Maraone bet another 1,000,000.

Shkolnik called, the river came , and Maraone bet 3,300,000. Shkolnik thought a bit and called with two pair . The hand was second best after Maraone tabled his jack-high straight to take some chips back from Shkolnik.

Seat 5: Alex Rocha – 10,550,000 (26 bb)
Seat 7: Nick Shkolnik – 29,400,000 (74 bb)
Seat 9: Vittorio Maraone – 18,500,000 (46 bb)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 36: 200,000/400,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Nick Shkolnik raised to 900,000 from the button, Vittorio Maraone and Alex Rocha came along from the blinds to the flop. All three checked to the turn, Maraone bet 1,550,000 to get a fold from Rocha and call from Shkolnik.

Maraone bet another 2,750,000 after the river and Shkolnik took his time before he called. Maraone tabled king-high and Shkolnik was good with a pair of sevens for another big pot.

Seat 5: Alex Rocha – 10,750,000 (27 bb)
Seat 7: Nick Shkolnik – 36,200,000 (91 bb)
Seat 9: Vittorio Maraone – 11,500,000 (29 bb)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 36: 200,000/400,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Following the turn of a board, Vittorio Maraone checked from the small blind and Nick Shkolnik bet 1,450,000 from the button. Maraone called.

The river was the and Maraone checked. Shkolnik bet 3,200,000 and Maraone called instantly.

Shkolnik tabled for two pair, Maraone mucked, and Shkolnik collected the pot.

Nick Shkolnick – 29,000,000 (72 bb)
Vittorio Maraone – 18,000,000 (45 bb)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 35: 150,000/300,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Alex Rocha opened to 700,000 from the button and the other two players came along to the flop. All three checked to see the turn and Nick Shkolnick and Maraone checked. Rocha bet 850,000 to get a fold from Shkolnick and call from Maraone.

Maraone checked again after the turn and called when Rocha bet 2,200,000. Maraone tabled and it was good enough to get a muck from Rocha.

Vittorio Maraone – 25,700,000 (86 bb)
Alex Rocha – 13,600,000 (45 bb)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 35: 150,000/300,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Alex Rocha opened from the button and Vittorio Maraone came along from the big blind to see the flop. Maraone checked, Rocha bet 700,000 and Maraone check/raised to 2,100,000. Rocha moved all-in for 8,800,000 and Maraone called.

Maraone:
Rocha:

Rocha was ahead with the over pair and found another big double when the board complete with the turn and river.

Alex Rocha – 19,300,000 (64 bb)
Vittorio Maraone – 21,400,000 (71 bb)

$570 Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Level 35: 150,000/300,000 with a 50,000 ante
Players Remaining: 3 of 2,923

Vittorio Maraone opened to 750,000 from the cutoff and William Kopp called all-in for 475,000 from the button. The blinds released and hands tabled.

Maraone:
Kopp:

Kopp woke up with big slick after getting his stack cut down by Alex Rocha but couldn’t win the race on the board to exit in fourth place.

Vittorio Maraone – 31,500,000 (105 bb)
William Kopp – Eliminated in 4th place ($91,782)