2020 Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 25
$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  41
Prize Pool:  $1,012,700
January 20-21, 2020

The $25,500 High Roller returned to the LHPO schedule this year and the tournament bested its $1,000,000 guarantee with 41 entries. WPT Champions Club member Jonathan Jaffe conquered the tough field and walked away with the trophy along with $340,285 after a heads-up deal.

“I misfired my first bullet running kings into aces,” Jaffe said of his High Roller run. “But the second one went great and I ran really well.”

The tournament drew some of the best players around and it featured a talented final table. But with seven getting paid, they had a long process to get into the money. After two and a half hours with eight players, former SHRPO $10K Champ Alexander Turyansky dropped in eighth place to put the rest of the field in the money and end Day 1.

Jared Jaffee was short to start the final table but came into Day 2 with the chip lead. Kevin Rabinchow, Byron Kaverman, and 2019 Poker Showdown Championship final table member Maria Ho were all eliminated in the first four hands and Ping Liu followed in fourth place.

It was a long three-handed battle between Jaffe, Jaffee, and Arkadiy Tsinis. Jaffee’s lead as Jaffe took command and he was sent out in third place to begin the heads-up match for the High Roller title.

Jaffe had a big lead and the two decided to chop up the remaining prize money after playing a few hands. Tsinis earned $257,207 for a runner-up finish and Jaffe added a LHPO High Roller title to his WPT win.

“It’s definitely not as exciting as the WPT win,” Jaffe said. “But it’s always fun to get a win especially one this big.”

Jaffe was joined in his winner’s photo but former WPT LHPO Champion Brian Altman who returns on Wednesday to play his live-streamed final table and Jaffe plans to be on the rail for that one.

High Roller results:

1st: Jonathan Jaffe – $340,285 *
2nd: Arkadiy Tsinis – $257,207 *
3rd:  Jared Jaffee – $146,842
4th:  Ping Liu – $101,270
5th:  Maria Ho – $70,889
6th:  Byron Kaverman – $55,699
7th:  Kevin Rabinchow – $40,508
* – denotes results of a heads-up deal

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  15,000/30,000 with a 30,000 ante

The heads-up match between a WPT Champion (Jonathan Jaffe) and WSOP bracelet winner (Arkadiy Tsinis) played out for a few hands before the two decided to look at numbers for dividing up the remaining prize pool.

It was a quick negotiation and the numbers were adjusted based on the counts at the time.

Jonathan Jaffe – 3,035,000 (101 bb)
Arkadiy Tsinis – 1,065,000 (36 bb)

1st: Jonathan Jaffe – $340,285
2nd: Arkadiy Tsinis – $257,207

Jaffe picks up the High Roller title along with a very nice payday.

3rd:  Jared Jaffee – $146,842
4th:  Ping Liu – $101,270
5th:  Maria Ho – $70,889
6th:  Byron Kaverman – $55,699
7th:  Kevin Rabinchow – $40,508

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  15,000/30,000 with a 30,000 ante
Players Remaining:  2 of 41

Jared Jaffee dropped chips after the break and made a move to double. He shoved for 360,000 from the button, Jonathan Jaffe folded his small blind but Arkadiy Tsinis quickly called in the big.

Tsinis:
Jaffee:

It was a race, Jaffee could not pair on the flop but he picked up a ton of outs with the open-ended straight draw/flush draw. Tsinis made a set on the turn and Jaffee missed all 13 of his outs on the river to exit in third place.

Arkadiy Tsinis – 1,115,000 (37 bb)
Jared Jaffee – Eliminated in 3rd Place ($146,842)

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  15,000/30,000 with a 30,000 ante
Players Remaining:  3 of 41

Jared Jaffee folded his button and Jonathan Jaffe dropped enough 100K chips in the middle from the small blind to put Arkadiy Tsinis all-in. He took a look at his cards and quickly called.

Tsinis:
Jaffe:

Tsinis woke up with a hand in the big blind and his tens held as the board ran .

Arkadiy Tsinis – 720,000 (24 bb)
Jonathan Jaffe – 2,350,000 (78 bb)

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  15,000/30,000 with a 30,000 ante
Players Remaining:  3 of 41

Jonathan Jaffe extended his lead over the last few hands of the level and holds 2.8 million of the 4.1 million chips in play at the three-handed table.

Seat 1: Jared Jaffee – 865,000 (29 bb)
Seat 2: Jonathan Jaffe – 2,825,000 (94 bb)
Seat 6: Arkadiy Tsinis – 410,000 (14 bb)

Remaining payouts:

1st: $364,571
2nd: $232,921
3rd: $146,842

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 17:  15,000/25,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining:  3 of 41

Arkadiy Tsinis opened to 55,000 from the cutoff and Ping Liu called in the big blind. The flop was and both players checked. The turn was , Liu bet 65,000 and Tsinis called. The board finished with the river and Liu put out a big 280,000 bet leaving about 400,000 behind. Tsinis thought for a minute and tossed in a calling chip.

Tsinis:
Liu:

Tsinis was best with two pair, kings and queens, to take the big pot.

Soon after, Jared Jaffee raised to 60,000 from the button and Liu moved all in for 375,000 from the big blind. Jaffee called and the hands were tabled.

Jaffee:
Liu:

Liu was live but missed the entire low board to exit in fourth place.

Seat 1: Jared Jaffee – 1,200,000 (48 bb)
Seat 2: Jonathan Jaffe – 1,750,000 (70 bb)
Seat 6: Arkadiy Tsinis – 1,150,000 (46 bb)

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 17:  15,000/25,000 with a 25,000 ante
Players Remaining:  4 of 41

Besides the four early big hands, the action slowed with the deepening stacks. Jonathan Jaffe won a few nice pots from Arkadiy and Jared Jaffe to take the lead with four players remaining.

Seat 1: Jared Jaffee – 1,060,000 (42 bb)
Seat 2: Jonathan Jaffe – 1,675,000 (67 bb)
Seat 3: Ping Liu – 700,000 (28 bb)
Seat 6: Arkadiy Tsinis – 665,000 (27 bb)

Remaining payouts:

1st: $364,571
2nd: $232,921
3rd: $146,842
4th: $101,270

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 16:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante
Players Remaining:  4 of 41

Ping Liu opened to 40,000 from the cutoff and picked up calls from Arkadiy Tsinis on the button and Jonathan Jaffe in the big blind. The flop came , Jaffe checked, Liu bet 40,000 and Tsinis raised to 120,000. Jaffe folded, Liu called, and the turn came .

Liu thought for a couple of minutes and moved all in for 330,000. Tsinis pulled out chips and called after a short think himself.

Liu:
Tsinis:

Liu was ahead with his flopped two pair kings and tens against Tsinis’ paired king. The river was the and Liu doubled up.

Ping Liu – 1,050,000 (53 bb)
Arkadiy Tsinis – 910,000 (46 bb)

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 16:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante
Players Remaining:  4 of 41

On the fourth hand of the day, Ping Liu opened to 55,000 from the button and Arkadiy Tsinis three-bet to 160,000 from the small blind. Maria Ho moved all in for 210,000 from the big blind, Liu folded and Tsinis called.

Tsinis:
Ho:

Ho was ahead and needed to win the race to stay it the game. The bad news came for her right on the flop. Tsinis paired his nine to take the lead and Ho could not catch up on the turn or river to exit in fifth place.

Arkadiy Tsinis – 960,000 (48 bb)
Maria Ho – Eliminated in 5th Place ($70,889)

$25,500 High Roller NLH (Re-Entry)
$1,000,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 16:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante
Players Remaining:  5 of 41

On the second hand of the day, Byron Kaverman had his 135,000 short stack in the middle from the big blind and Ping Liu had him at risk.

Liu:
Kaverman:

Kaverman needed to catch to double up but the board ran out to send him out in sixth place.

Ping Liu – 930,000 (47 bb)
Byron Kaverman – Eliminated in 6th Place ($55,699)