2018 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 14
$2,200 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Entries: 167
Prize Pool: $334,000
January 18, 2018
Event 14 of the 2018 Lucky Hearts Poker Open was a $2,200 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry) tournament. A total of 167 entries generated a prize pool of $334,000, easily surpassing the $200,000 guarantee. Predictably, the final table produced a talented bunch, including Event 13 champion Ari Engel, who finished in ninth place. Outlasting the field for the outright victory was Zachary Donovan.
After making a deep run in the WPT DeepStacks event a few days ago where he finished in 16th place, Donovan has followed that up with an impressive win leading into the heart of the Lucky Hearts schedule.
“Yeah, it’s been a good series for me. It’s good momentum going into the Main Event. I like playing here, and it’s been working out nicely.”
Donovan began the final table third in chips and within two levels had taken the chip lead without any all-in confrontations. The first elimination he scored wasn’t until three players remained when he knocked out Faraz Jaka.
With the two of them holding just about 80% of the chips in play between them, they found themselves in a classic race as Donovan held ace-king against Jaka’s queens. An ace found the flop, and Donovan found himself with a nearly a 4:1 chip lead entering heads-up play. About 10 minutes later, Donovan sealed the deal.
Despite the win and boost to his bankroll, Donovan doesn’t plan on doing things differently for the Main Event.
“It won’t change my approach, but maybe now I’ll late register.”
Results
1st: Zachary Donovan – $88,780 + trophy
2nd: Jordan Joeckel – $58,166
3rd: Faraz Jaka – $34,268
4th: Spencer Champlin – $20,858
5th: Ramon Miquel – $16,099
6th: Jeff Gross – $13,343
7th: Ben Yu – $11,556
8th: Chris Orme – $10,187
9th: Ari Engel – $8,878
10th: Alan Saltzman – $7,682
11th: Darren Rabinowitz – $7,682
12th: Adrian Mateos – $7,682
13th: Neil Patel – $6,513
14th: Bruce Kramer – $6,513
15th: Jeremy Ausmus – $6,513
16th: Olivier Busquet – $5,411
17th: Alberto Rodriguez – $5,411
18th: Stephen Song – $5,411
19th: Ryan McKnight – $4,349
20th: Dylan Linde – $4,349
21st: Ricky Guan – $4,349