Sal Pipitone Wins a Trophy in His First Poker Trip to Florida

2021 Seminole Hard Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 4
$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Entries: 115
Prize Pool:  $38,525
November 18, 2021

Event 4 Champion Sal Pipitone
Event 4 Champion Sal Pipitone

Sal Pipitone started the final table of Event 4 as the chipleader, knocked out the first two players in the first five minutes, and never gave up the chip lead on his way to a heads-up chop with David Shmuel to win the title, the trophy, and $9,068.

“It went as smoothly as can be,” said Pipitone. “I just made a lot of hands, and I feel like I played them as well as I could. I ran good, obviously, and I maintained the chip lead the whole way.”

Surprisingly, even though Pipitone has been playing poker for a very long time, this is his first ever trip to the Seminole Hard Rock, and his first time playing poker in the state of Florida.

“A lot of people speak highly of this place [Seminole][Hard][Rock][Hollywood], so I was looking forward to coming here. I was in Vegas for 10 days, and a buddy of mine brought this series up, and I said, you know what? There’s four mixed tournaments in a row, so I’ve got to finally get down to Florida and give it a shot.”

Even with the chip lead, it wasn’t a cake walk for Pipitone.

“David [Shmuel] played very well,” said Pipitone, “and he put a lot of pressure on me, especially in the stud games. Stud Hi and Limit Hold’em are probably my weaker games, and he definitely knew how to put the pressure on. I don’t know if I would have made the chop if it wasn’t him. If it was somebody else, I think I would have just played.”

Pipitone will be back the next two days to play more mixed games, but then he plans to return home for Thanksgiving and skip the WPT Seminole Rock ‘n’ Roll Poker Open — “I’m not much of a hold’em player these days,” said Pipitone.

That’s okay, because no matter what happens the next few days, Pipitone is already going home with a Rock ‘n’ Roll Poker Open trophy.


Final Results:

PlaceNameWinnings
1stSal Pipitone$9,068*
2ndDavid Shmuel$9,067*
3rdKris Lord$4,200
4thKenneth Po$2,720
5thPatricia Yannuzzi$2,060
6thJeffrey Cookson$1,710
7thJoel Harwood$1,475
8thNoah Carbone$1,300
9thTony Ruberto$1,140
10thBenjamin Matthews$1,140
11thFrank Gentile$1,010
12thMichael Dreese$1,010
13thBretalan Atiyeh$875
14thDavid Prager$875
15thKevin Love$875

* Indicates results of a heads-up deal.

Event 4: Sal Pipitone Wins in a Heads-Up Chop with David Shmuel

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 23:  25,000/50,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  2 of 115

Event 4 Champion Sal Pipitone
Event 4 Champion Sal Pipitone

Before heads-up play began, Sal Pipitone wanted to look at ICM numbers, so they precisely counted their chip stacks:

Sal Pipitone  –  795,000  (16 BB)
David Shmuel  –  585,000  (12 BB)

They eventually agreed to a straight chop, and as chipleader, Pipitone would be declared the winner and receive the trophy and the extra $1.

Congratulations to Sal Pipitone!

1st:  Sal Pipitone  –  $9,068* + RRPO trophy
2nd:  David Shmuel  –  $9,067*
3rd:  Kris Lord  –  $4,200
4th:  Kenneth Po  –  $2,720
5th:  Patricia Yannuzzi  –  $2,060
6th:  Jeffrey Cookson  –  $1,710
7th:  Joel Harwood  –  $1,475
8th:  Noah Carbone  –  $1,300
9th:  Tony Ruberto  –  $1,140
10th:  Benjamin Matthews  –  $1,140
11th:  Frank Gentile  –  $1,010
12th:  Michael Dreese  –  $1,010
13th:  Bretalan Atiyeh  –  $875
14th:  David Prager  –  $875
15th:  Kevin Love  –  $875

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

* Indicates the results of a heads-up deal.

David Shmuel
Runner-Up David Shmuel

Event 4: Kris Lord – 3rd Place ($4,200)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 23:  25,000/50,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  2 of 115

Kris Lord
Kris Lord

During a round of Stud Hi-Lo, Kris Lord moved all in on fifth street for his last 45,000, and David Shmuel called.

David Shmuel:  6d3s  6c4s9dQh  Ah
Kris Lord:  10s7h  AdJc9c3h  4c

Shmuel started the hand with a pair of sixes, and they held up the entire way as neither player made a qualifying low or improved on the high side.

Shmuel won the pot with his pair of sixes to eliminate Lord in third place.

Kris Lord  –  Eliminated in 3rd Place  ($4,200)

Here are the updated chip counts for the start of heads-up play:

Sal Pipitone  –  795,000  (16 BB)
David Shmuel  –  585,000  (12 BB)

Event 4: Kenneth Po – 4th Place ($2,720)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 22:  20,000/40,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  3 of 115

Kenneth Po
Kenneth Po

During a round of Hold’em, Kenneth Po got most of his short stack all in from the small blind against Kris Lord on the button.

The flop came AdJd9h, and Po got his final 4,000 in the pot with AhKd for a pair of kings.

But Lord turned over AsJc for the lead with two pair, aces and jacks. Po needed to improve to stay alive.

The turn card was the Qh, the river card was the 4c, and Lord won the pot with his two pair to eliminate Po in fourth place.

Kris Lord  –  320,000  (8 BB)
Kenneth Po  –  Eliminated in 4th Place  ($2,720)

With three players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 460,000 (12 Big Bets). The next player to be eliminated will earn $4,200.

Event 4: Patricia Yannuzzi – 5th Place ($2,060)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  4 of 115

Patricia Yannuzzi
Patricia Yannuzzi

During a round of Stud Hi-Lo, Patricia Yannuzzi got it all in on fifth street against Sal Pipitone.

Sal Pipitone:  (Ah8h)  3s10cAd10h  (Qs)
Patricia Yannuzzi:  (As5d)  6sJcAc5c  (8c)

Neither player finished with a qualifying low hand, and Pipitone won the pot with a higher two pair, aces and tens, to eliminate Yannuzzi in fifth place.

Sal Pipitone  –  705,000  (24 BB)
Patricia Yannuzzi  –  Eliminated in 5th Place  ($2,060)

With four players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 345,000 (12 Big Bets). The next player to be eliminated will earn $2,720.

Event 4: Jeffrey Cookson – 6th Place ($1,710)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  5 of 115

Jeffrey Cookson
Jeffrey Cookson

Jeffrey Cookson was eliminated by Patricia Yannuzzi during a round of Razz.

Patricia Yannuzzi:  9-8-7-6-5  (K-8)
Jeffrey Cookson:  J-10-7-4-A  (K-A)

Yannuzzi finished with a 9-8 low to beat Cookson’s J-10 low and score the elimination.

Jeffrey Cookson  –  Eliminated in 6th Place  ($1,710)

With five players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 276,000 (9 Big Bets). The next player to be eliminated will earn $2,060.

Event 4: Joel Harwood – 7th Place ($1,475)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  6 of 115

Joel Harwood
Joel Harwood

During a round of Stud Hi-Lo, Joel Harwood was nearly down to the felt in a hand against Sal Pipitone.

Sal Pipitone:  (Ad2c)  5c5h4s9h  (3c)
Joel Harwood:  (6h2h)  3h7sAc6s  (Kd)

On seventh street, Pipitone checked his pair of fives, Harwood bet 20,000, and Pipitone check-raised to 40,000.

Harwood called, but Pipitone made a wheel (a five-high straight) to scoop the pot, beating Harwoods pair of sixes with a 7-6 low. Harwood was knocked down to just 9,000.

Joel Harwood  –  9,000  (~1/2 BB)

The next hand was still during the Stud Hi-Lo round, and after the 2K ante, Harwood got it all on third street for 7,000 against David Shmuel and Kenneth Po.

David Shmuel:  (6s5d)  3sAs9cQs  (10s)
Kenneth Po:  (XxXx)  8c7s
Joel Harwood:  (Ad7h)  QcQh4dJs  (2h)

3rd Street:  David Shmuel brought it in for the full 10,000, Joel Harwood called all in for 7,000, and Kenneth Po called.

4th Street: Harwood would have acted first with his pair of queens showing, but since he was all in, action moved clockwise to Po, who checked. Shmuel bet 10,000, and Po folded. Shmuel took the side pot.

When the rest of the cards were dealt, neither player made a qualifying low hand, and Harwood’s pair of queens wasn’t enough. Shmuel won the pot with his ace-high spade flush to eliminate Harwood in seventh place.

David Shmuel  –  125,000  (6 BB)
Joel Harwood  –  Eliminated in 7th Place  ($1,475)

With six players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 230,000 (12 Big Bets). The next player to be eliminated will earn $1,710.

Event 4: Noah Carbone – 8th Place ($1,300)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  7 of 115

Shortly after Tony Ruberto’s elimination in ninth place, Noah Carbone got his short stack all in on fourth street in a round of Stud against Sal Pipitone.

Sal Pipitone:  (KsKc)  7c6c6s3d  (Qs)
Noah Carbone:  (9s9h)  8c2d5d10c  (4h)

It was pocket kings against pocket nines, and Pipitone improved to two pair, kings and sixes, to win the pot and eliminate Carbone in eighth place.

Sal Pipitone  –  503,000  (25 BB)
Noah Carbone  –  Eliminated in 8th Place  ($1,300)

With seven players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 197,000 (10 Big Bets). The next player to be eliminated will earn $1,475.

Event 4: Tony Ruberto – 9th Place ($1,140)

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  8 of 115

In the first or second hand at the final table, during a round of Stud, Tony Ruberto was up against Sal Pipitone. These were the hands:

Sal Pipitone:  (Qd9d)  9c2h3h7d  (Kh)
Tony Ruberto:  (KcQc)  5d4h10s4s  (Xx)

5th Street:  Ruberto bet 20,000, Pipitone raised, and Ruberto called all in for 26,000.

The rest of the cards were dealt, and Ruberto never fully showed his final card, mucking as he was eliminated in ninth place.

Sal Pipitone  –  405,000  (20 BB)
Tony Ruberto  –  Eliminated in 9th Place  ($1,140)

With eight players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 172,000 (9 Big Bets). The next player to be eliminated will earn $1,300.

Event 4: Final Table Begins with Sal Pipitone in the Lead

$400 H.O.R.S.E. (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  9 of 115

Event 4 Final Table
Final Eight Players in Event 4, after Tony Ruberto’s Elimination

The final nine players have drawn for random seats at the final table, and here are their seating positions and chip counts:

Seat 1.  Tony Ruberto  –  48,000  (2 BB)
Seat 2.  Sal Pipitone  –  375,000  (19 BB)
Seat 3.  Jeffrey Cookson  –  172,000  (9 BB)
Seat 4.  Joel Harwood  –  115,000  (6 BB)
Seat 5.  Noah Carbone  –  55,000  (3 BB)
Seat 6.  Kris Lord  –  235,000  (12 BB)
Seat 7.  Kenneth Po  –  131,000  (7 BB)
Seat 8.  Patricia Yannuzzi  –  82,000  (4 BB)
Seat 9.  David Shmuel  –  172,000  (9 BB)

Here are the payouts they’re playing for:

1st:  $11,105 + RRPO trophy
2nd:  $7,030
3rd:  $4,200
4th:  $2,720
5th:  $2,060
6th:  $1,710
7th:  $1,475
8th:  $1,300
9th:  $1,140

And here are the players who have finished in the money so far:

10th:  Benjamin Matthews  –  $1,140
11th:  Frank Gentile  –  $1,010
12th:  Michael Dreese  –  $1,010
13th:  Bretalan Atiyeh  –  $875
14th:  David Prager  –  $875
15th:  Kevin Love  –  $875

With nine players remaining from a field of 115, the average chip stack is about 153,000 (8 Big Bets).

Sal Pipitone
Chipleader Sal Pipitone