2021 May Deep Stack Poker Series
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 1
$400 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed
Entries: 1,102
Prize Pool: $369,170
May 20-23, 2021
The 2021 May Deep Stack Poker Series opened on May 20 with the first of three flights of Event 1. The $400 buy-in tournament drew more than 1,000 entries and Hector Pacheco outlasted them all, dominating the final table for an outright win for $62,160.
“It was a great run,” Pacheco said after his win. “I did not do good after two buy-ins (Saturday).”
“Then I got in again around 8 o’clock and from that point on it was just smooth sailing.”
The final tally had 1,100 entries put up their buy-in, more than tripling the $100,000 guarantee, and they combined for a prize pool worth $369,170. The three starting flights had 207 players advance to Day 2 plus another 29 who joined before registration closed on Sunday.
The last 138 players took home a piece of that prize pool and they played late into the evening as the payouts increased. Event 1 reached its eight-handed final table in the early morning hours and Pacheco took a huge lead before they bagged up for Day 3.
Ryan Hogan and Pacheco had the two biggest stacks at the start of the final table and they ran into each other late. Hogan flopped two pair with kings and queens against Pacheco’s pockets aces then the board went running threes to give Pacheco the bigger two pair. It was a huge hand that had him return with 13 million of the 33 million in play.
“The aces versus king-queen,” Pacheco when asked about his biggest hands of the tournament. “That was the craziest one.”
“The two big stacks and the threes went runner-runner. That was the biggest one.”
Pacheco never blinked after the restart, using his massive stack to his advantage to push around the rest of the players until he was heads-up with Vinny Monteiro for the title. That only took one hand and Pacheco walked away with the title and the trophy.
The Puerto Rican native and Davie, FL resident is a Solutions Architect by trade and plans to stick around for the rest of the series.
“It feels great,” Pacheco said. “This is the best poker room I’ve ever been to and the staff is great. I’m going to have fun playing all week.”
Congrats Hector and thanks to all of our players who made the opening tournament a huge success.
Final table results:
1st: Hector Pacheco – $62,160 + Trophy
2nd: Vinny Monteiro – $43,630
3rd: Arkadiy Pervyy Bakhtin – $28,310
4th: John Desoto – $20,965
5th: Ryan Hogan – $15,860
6th: Marc Duquette – $12,800
7th: Paul Freedman – $9,895
8th: Rafael Lima – $7,305
board, but now needed to dodge diamonds. The 
turn completed his straight but the river 
gave Pacheco the flush along with the Event 1 title.
to improve Bakhtin to a pair of deuces, the turn 
on a 
for a double.
board and Pacheco’s pair of kings sent Desoto out in fourth place.
turn. The 
for a straight.
, Hector Pacheco check from the small blind and Paul Freedman moved all in for 1,400,000 from the big. Ryan Hogan moved all in with a similar stack and Pacheco folded.
