An $80 Slot Machine Ticket Lead to a $37,505 Six-Max Victory for Justin Zaki

2020 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 22
$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  160
Prize Pool:  $155,200
January 19, 2020

Event 22 Champion Justin Zaki
Event 22 Champion Justin Zaki

When Justin Zaki busted out of the WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open on Sunday afternoon, he got in his car to drive home to Tampa, about three-and-a-half hours away. He got as far as a gas station before he remembered something.

“I realized I had a slot machine ticket that I never cashed out,” said Zaki. “So I returned to cash the ticket. Then I figured ‘Whatever, I guess I’ll play.’ ”

Zaki entered the $1,100 Six-Max No-Limit Hold’em event, but his first entry didn’t go well — he was eliminated early in one of the most annoying ways possible when his ace-king lost against ace-king.

As frustrating as his day had been to that point, Zaki fired one more bullet, and his day finally turned around for the better. Zaki went on to win the event outright, defeating Ryan Jones heads-up for the title and the trophy.

Zaki has won more than $700,000 at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood, but this is his first trophy here.

“It feels good,” said Zaki. “I’ve gotten close so many times, and I just never catch any breaks at the end. But I ran pretty good today.”

Zaki ran so well that he turned a bustout from the main event and an $80 slot machine ticket into $37,505 and his first Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood trophy.


Final Table Results:

1st:  Justin Zaki  –  $37,505
2nd:  Ryan Jones  –  $25,000
3rd:  Tim Vance  –  $17,060
4th:  Gregory Back  –  $11,925
5th:  Hector Pacheco  –  $8,545
6th:  Aleksandr Gofman  –  $6,285
7th:  Gaurav Krishan  –  $4,740

Event 22: Justin Zaki Wins ($37,505); Ryan Jones Finishes as Runner-Up ($25,000)

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 22:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante
Players Remaining:  1 of 160

Justin Zaki
Justin Zaki

After about 10 minutes of heads-up play, Ryan Jones got it all in from the button for 335,000 with AcQc, and he needed his hand to hold to stay alive against Justin Zaki’s Kh10c.

The board came 8d7h4c2h8c, and Jones won the pot with his ace to double up in chips.

Ryan Jones  –  690,000  (35 bb)
Justin Zaki  –  1,710,000  (86 bb)

About five minutes later, Jones got it all in again, this time with 2h2c, but he was dominated by Zaki’s 6s6h.

The board came 8s8h7d3cAd, and the pocket sixes held up for Zaki to win the pot — and the tournament — with two pair, eights and sixes.

Stay tuned for a recap, which will be posted later tonight.

1st:  Justin Zaki  –  $37,505
2nd:  Ryan Jones  –  $25,000
3rd:  Tim Vance  –  $17,060
4th:  Gregory Back  –  $11,925
5th:  Hector Pacheco  –  $8,545
6th:  Aleksandr Gofman  –  $6,285
7th:  Gaurav Krishan  –  $4,740

Ryan Jones
Ryan Jones

Event 22: Tim Vance – 3rd Place ($17,060)

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 22:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante
Players Remaining:  2 of 160

Tim Vance
Tim Vance

Tim Vance got it all in from the button for about 600,000 with AsKh, and he needed to improve to stay alive against the QsQd of Justin Zaki in the big blind.

The board came 4s4c3d8h2h, and the pocket queens held up for Zaki to win the pot and eliminate Vance in third place.

Tim Vance  –  Eliminated in 3rd Place  ($17,060)

Heads-up play is underway, and these were their chip counts after Vance’s eliminations:

Justin Zaki  –  1,720,000  (86 bb)
Ryan Jones  –  680,000  (34 bb)

1st:  $37,505
2nd:  $25,000

Event 22: Gregory Back – 4th Place ($11,925)

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  10,000/15,000 with a 15,000 ante
Players Remaining:  3 of 160

Gregory Back
Gregory Back

With the board showing AcJc8h10c on the turn, Gregory Back got it all in from the small blind for about 200,000 with 10s10h for a turned set of tens.

But Ryan Jones turned over AsAd on the button for a flopped set of aces, and Back needed to catch the case ten on the river to stay alive.

The river card was the Qh, and Jones won the pot with his higher set to eliminate Back in fourth place.

Gregory Back  –  Eliminated in 4th Place  ($11,925)

Seat 1.  Tim Vance  –  500,000  (33 bb)
Seat 2.  Ryan Jones  –  900,000  (60 bb)
Seat 3.  Justin Zaki  –  1,000,000  (67 bb)

Event 22: Justin Zaki Leads the Final Four

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  10,000/15,000 with a 15,000 ante
Players Remaining:  4 of 160

Justin Zaki
Justin Zaki

They are down to the final four players in the six-max tournament, and here are their approximate chip counts:

Seat 1.  Tim Vance  –  600,000  (40 bb)
Seat 2.  Ryan Jones  –  475,000  (32 bb)
Seat 3.  Gregory Back  –  225,000  (15 bb)
Seat 4.  Justin Zaki  –  1,050,000  (70 bb)

And here are the final table payouts:

1st:  $37,505
2nd:  $25,000
3rd:  $17,060
4th:  $11,925

5th:  Hector Pacheco  –  $8,545
6th:  Aleksandr Gofman  –  $6,285
7th:  Gaurav Krishan  –  $4,740

We will be providing live updates for the rest of the night until they reach a winner.

Event 22: Final Table Begins with Gaurav Krishan in the Lead

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  5,000/10,000 with a 10,000 ante
Players Remaining:  7 of 160

After the elimination of Toby Boas in eighth place, the final seven players redraw for random seats at the final table, and they will play down to a winner tonight.

Here are their updated chip counts, followed by the payouts:

Seat 1.  Hector Pacheco  –  405,000  (41 bb)
Seat 2.  Tim Vance  –  325,000  (33 bb)
Seat 3.  Ryan Jones  –  210,000  (21 bb)
Seat 4.  Gregory Back  –  345,000  (35 bb)
Seat 5.  Gaurav Krishan  –  465,000  (47 bb)
Seat 6.  Aleksandr Gofman  –  230,000  (23 bb)
Seat 7.  Justin Zaki  –  455,000  (46 bb)

1st:  $37,505
2nd:  $25,000
3rd:  $17,060
4th:  $11,925
5th:  $8,545
6th:  $6,285
7th:  $4,740

8th:  Toby Boas  –  $4,740
9th:  Daniel Podheiser  –  $3,675
10th:  Christopher Staats  –  $3,675
11th:  Shea Smith  –  $2,925
12th:  Gil Morgensztern  –  $2,925
13th:  Zachary Caspe  –  $2,400
14th:  Yordan Petrov  –  $2,400
15th:  Milen Stefanov  –  $2,025
16th:  Rayan Chamas  –  $2,025
17th:  Jerry Humphrey  –  $1,760
18th:  Charles Odenz  –  $1,760
19th:  T.K. Miles  –  $1,575
20th:  Guy Naimi  –  $1,575
21st:  Ory Hen  –  $1,575
22nd:  Daniel Couzens  –  $1,575
23rd:  Filipp Khavin  –  $1,575
24th:  Abbey Daniels  –  $1,575
25th:  Vladislav Varlashin  –  $1,460
26th:  Viktor Kovachev  –  $1,460
27th:  Anatoly Zharnitsky  –  $1,460

Event 22: Prize Pool and Payouts with $37,505 to the Six-Max Champ

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 10:  500/1,500 with a 1,500 ante
Players Remaining:  42 of 160

Event 22 Field
Event 22 Field

Registration has closed for the $1,100 Six-Max event, and with 160 entries, the total prizepool is worth $155,200 — easily surpassing the $100K guarantee.

The final 27 players will finish in the money, guaranteed at least $1,460 each, while the winner will earn $37,505.

2020 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 22
$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  160
Prize Pool:  $155,200
January 19, 2020

1st:  $37,505
2nd:  $25,000
3rd:  $17,060
4th:  $11,925
5th:  $8,545
6th:  $6,285
7th-8th:  $4,740
9th-10th:  $3,675
11th-12th:  $2,925
13th-14th:  $2,400
15th-16th:  $2,025
17th-18th:  $1,760
19th-24th:  $1,575
25th-27th:  $1,460

Event 22: Six-Max Sunday

$1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 1:  100/100

Chips and Cards

Event 22 is a new tournament on the LHPO schedule, and it should get a talented field. This is a $1,100 Six-Max tournament with a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool and a nice fallback for those who fall short in the Championship.

Players will start with 15,000 stacks and run 30-minute levels from start to finish. Late registration is available until the start of Level 9 at 7:30 pm and they may re-enter as many times as needed during that time.

  • $100,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 15,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
  • Event 22 Structure Sheet

LHPO Day 11 Schedule

Primary Event Schedule

12PM: Day 2 – $3,500 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship

12PM: Event 21 – $400 Deep Stack Black Chip Bounty (Re-Entry)

  • $50,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 20,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
  • Event 21 Structure Sheet

3PM: Event 22 – $1,100 Six-Max NLH (Re-Entry)

  • $100,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 15,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
  • Event 22 Structure Sheet

Secondary and Satellite Schedule

3PM: Event 67 – $140 Satellite into Event 24 (1-in-5)

  • 5 seats guaranteed into $600/$50K GTD LHPO Event 24
  • Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 20-minute levels
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 10
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
  • Structure Sheet

6PM: Event 68 – $2,650 High Roller Satellite (1-in-10)

  • 2 seats guaranteed into $1,000,000 GTD LHPO High Roller
  • Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 30-minute levels
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
  • Structure Sheet

10:30PM: Event 69 – $2,625 High Roller Super Turbo Satellite (1-in-10)

  • 1 seat guaranteed into $1,000,000 GTD LHPO High Roller
  • Players begin with 10,000 in chips and 10-minute levels
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 8
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays until completion
  • Structure Sheet

Complete 2020 Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open Schedule