2022 LHPO in Review

The 2022 Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open ran from January 13 through January 26 and it was another huge success. The series had 33 primary trophy events and was headlined by the WPT LHPO Championship.

Alex Yen took down a tough Championship final table and took home nearly a million dollars for the big win.

Alex Yen
WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Champion Alexander Yen with Seminole Hard Rock Poker Staff

We closed things out with the 2022 WPT LHPO Championship that drew 1,982 for the second-biggest field in tour history. They more than tripled the $2,00,000 guarantee for a $6,342,400 prize pool and Yen added his name to the list of WPT champions.

The Championship final table was a great way to close out the series and it was a fantastic show of poker skill by all.

The series featured more than $5,000,000 in guarantees and we drew more than 15,000 entries to award $16.5 million in prize money.

Events: 33
Entries: 15,321
Guarantees: $5,100,000
Prize Pools: $16,494,110

We kicked things off with a $600 Deep Stack tournament and the six starting flights attracted 4,960 entries. That was good enough for the biggest $600 buy-in tournament in state history and the third biggest overall. The $1,000,000 guarantee was increased to a $2,579,200 prize pool and Farid Jattin earned $306,832 after a heads-up deal.

That wasn’t enough for Jattin though. For the first time, we had a player win the first event of the series and the last. He capped off his series by winning the $2,200 Pot Limit Omaha tournament on the final day of the series.

Farid Jattin
2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open Event 33 Champion Farid Jattin

Jonathan Jaffe defended his LHPO High Roller title; he won the tournament in 2020 and again this series (no High Roller was played in 2021). Jay Kerbel won the Limit Omaha 8 title during the RRPO series in November and returned to LHPO then won it again.

Scott Baumstein and Yuval Bronshtein also hit milestones over the two-week series. Both won two LHPO trophies and both picked up their fifth major Hollywood title to tie for the third-most in our history. Baumstein won Event 7 and Event 17 $1,100 buy-in NLH tournaments and Bronshtein won the $400 Omaha 8/Stud 8 and $600 H.O.R.S.E. titles.

Yuval Bronshtein and Scott Baumstein
Yuval Bronshtein and Scott Baumstein

Nicholas Verderamo began his series with a win in the $600 Six-Max tournament then went on to finish the WPT LHPO Championship in fourth place for $361,130.

Thank you to everyone who came out to support the first series of the year, you made us look good and we appreciate each of you. We look forward to seeing everyone again in March for the 2022 Poker Showdown and another great time. You can find the Showdown schedule below along with results and updates from every Lucky Hearts Poker Open tournament.

2022 Poker Showdown Schedule

2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open Results

WPT LHPO Championship: Alex Yen – $975,240
Event 1 ($600 Multi-Flight): Farid Jattin – $306,832
Event 2 ($400 O8): Jay Kerbel – $13,655
Event 3 ($150 Big Stack): John Colucci – $5,985
Event 4 ($400 H.O.R.S.E.): Aron Dermer – $7,271
Event 5 ($400 Big O): Jamichael Harris – $13,775
Event 6 ($400 NLH): Bryan Choi – $25,820
Event 7 ($1,100 NLH): Scott Baumstein – $60,006
Event 8 ($600 Turbo NLH): Carlo Rodriguez – $9,827
Event 9 ($400 OE): Yuval Bronshtein – $9,020
Event 10 ($600 NLH): Eric Walling – $36,415
Event 11 ($400 Bounty PLO): Matthew Kaplan – $12,475
Event 12 ($150 Big Stack): Leudy Matos – $10,295
Event 13 ($400 Seniors): Marc Levy – $12,814
Event 14 ($600 6-Max NLH): Nicholas Verderamo – $38,600
Event 15 ($1,100 PLO8): Eugene Kotlyarevskiy – $26,000
Event 16 ($600 Turbo): Ben Gazzola – $19,558
Event 17 ($1,100 NLH): Scott Baumstein – $96,795
Event 18 ($200 Bounty NLH): Rafael Rodriguez – $10,775
Event 19 ($2,200 NLH): James Romero – $167,285
Event 21 ($150 Big Stack): Michael Kudrav – $4,534
Event 22 ($400 Turbo NLH): Marks Gorskis – $8,326
Event 23 ($400 Bounty NLH): Gil Levy – $14,351
Event 24 ($1,700 Bounty NLH): Nikita Kalinin – $55,235
Event 25 ($600 Turbo NLH/PLO): Max Pinnola – $10,880
Event 26 ($1,600 Survivor)
Event 27 ($600 NLH): Kharlin Sued – $36,990
Event 28 ($25K High Roller): Jonathan Jaffe – $574,085
Event 29 ($600 Bounty PLO): Melad Marji – $14,325
Event 30 ($200 Big Stack): Bhakeerathan Naahanathan – $19,465
Event 31 ($5K NLH): Taylor Von Kriegenbergh – $220,495
Event 32 ($600 H.O.R.S.E.): Yuval Bronshtein – $11,760
Event 33 ($2,200 PLO): Farid Jattin – $58,410

Alexander Yen Picks the Right Time to Win His First Tournament, Earning $975,240 and a WPT Title

2022 Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
$3,500 WPT LHPO Championship
$2,000,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  1,982
Prize Pool:  $6,342,400
January 20-26, 2022

Alex Yen
WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Champion Alexander Yen

On Wednesday evening, Alexander Yen outlasted the second largest field in World Poker Tour history to earn his own place in history as the 2022 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open champion, winning $975,240 and getting his name engraved on the one-and-only Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup.

“It feels absolutely incredible,” said Yen. “I’ve never won a live tournament before. I don’t even think I’ve won online, so this is a pretty unreal feeling.”

There were 1,982 entries in this event, more than tripling the $2 million guarantee to create a prizepool worth more than $6.3 million.

The final table began with the final six players, and they played for nearly an hour before the first elimination. Omar Lakhdari moved all in with KsQs, but couldn’t outrace the 9d9c of Daniel Lazrus, who flopped a set of nines. Lakhdari was out in sixth place, earning $208,025.

The next elimination was a surprise, as Josh Kay came into the final table with the second largest chip stack (91 big blinds!), but about 90 minutes into the final table, Kay hit a horrible streak where nothing seemed to go right. Kay lost an all-in-preflop race against Nicholas Verderamo, followed almost immediately by losing a preflop race against Anton Wigg. Eventually, Kay got it all in with AcJc, but it failed to hold up against Wigg’s KdQh with two queens on the flop, and Kay was out in fifth place, earning $272,830.

Verderamo began the final table as the short stack, but he moved up two spots in the payouts before he shoved Ad8s into Yen’s QsQd. The queens held up to eliminate Verderamo in fourth place, where he earned $361,130.

At that point, Daniel Lazrus was the clear short stack, struggling to tread water at the bottom of the leaderboard. Lazrus scored some small double-ups, but never seemed to get above 20 big blinds. Eventually, Lazrus got it all in with 6s6c against Yen’s KdJs, but a jack on the flop ended his tournament in third place, where Lazrus earned $482,380.

Yen began heads-up play with 2.6x as many chips as Wigg, though they were both quite deep, and Wigg could be patient with 54 big blinds in his stack. Wigg also had experience on his side, with nearly $3.3 million in career earnings, most of it coming in no-limit hold’em.

“He’s an incredible player,” said Yen about Wigg. “I don’t play very much hold’em. Most of my experience right now is Omaha cash, so he definitely had the skill advantage.”

Wigg nearly evened things up when Yen bluffed all in after a flop of 10s8h6d with KcQh, but Wigg called him with Ad10c — top pair, top kicker — and it held up. Yen still had the lead, but not by much.

Wigg did take the heads-up chip lead at one point, but he held it for less than 10 minutes before Yen took it back.

Then they built up a sizable pot on a board of QhJd4s2c10d, and Wigg made a big bet on the river. Yen called with Jc8c for second pair, and it was good — Wigg had been bluffing with 7h2s.

That pot gave Yen a 2-to-1 chip lead again, and the tournament would end about 10 minutes later when, in Yen’s own words, “I hit the dream flop and won.”

Yen limped, Wigg raised with QdQc, and Yen called. The flop of 10d8c6c looked safe for Wigg’s queens, but little did he know that Yen had 9c7c, and flopped a straight with a straight-flush draw.

Wigg shoved the 6d turn, not knowing he had only four outs to stay alive. Yen snap-called, and the 4d on the river gave Yen the Championship.

Wigg earned $650,180 for second place, while Yen’s first prize of $975,240 more than tripled all of his career earnings before this.

So what does Yen plan to do with this windfall?

“I really don’t know yet,” said Yen. “Maybe a little real estate, a little investing, and a little fun.”

Alex Yen
WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open Champion Alexander Yen with Seminole Hard Rock Poker Staff

Final Table Results:

1st:  Alex Yen  –  $975,240
2nd:  Anton Wigg  –  $650,180
3rd:  Daniel Lazrus  –  $482,380
4th:  Nicholas Verderamo  –  $361,130
5th:  Josh Kay  –  $272,830
6th:  Omar Lakhdari  –  $208,025

Farid Jattin Bookends The 2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open With a Second Victory in Event 33

2022 Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 33
$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Entries: 107
Prize Pool:  $214,000
January 25-26, 2022

2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open Event 33 Champion Farid Jattin

Event 33 of the 2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open was the $2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry). A field of 107 entries generated a prize pool of $214,000. The two-day affair and final event on the schedule had 12 players who made it through to Day 2.

When it was all said and done, the 2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open ended the same way it began, with Farid Jattin emerging victorious. Jattin began the series by winning Event 1 for $306,832 and ended it by winning Event 33 outright for $58,410.

“It feels good to win another one,” Jattin said afterward. “I play a lot of PLO cash games and feel it’s my strength.”

Jattin began Day 2 fourth in chips of the remaining 12 players, was third in chips when the final table of nine players was reached, and went on a tear from there, eliminating the last six players to earn his victory.

“The past couple of years, I’ve been focusing a lot more on the cash games, that type of scene, especially since Covid. I don’t really like the online grind, so I had to make a shift. I really enjoy PLO, and I feel like my talent for tournaments, combined with my creativity in PLO, it comes together really nicely.”

PlaceFirst NameLast NamePrize Amount
1FaridJattin$58,410
2MarkWahba$39,105
3AyedShweihat$26,500
4EricSalazar$18,670
5GregoryNerenberg$13,650
6RichardKellett$10,375
7ShayShabtai Mahaih$8,215
8KyleBowker$6,785
9ElliottKampen$5,850
10KanYing$5,850
11MichaelPrendegrast$5,285
12AriOxman$5,285
13PhilHui$5,010
14DavidMoreno$5,010

Bhakeerathan Naahanathan Wins Event 30 of the 2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open in Five-Way Deal

2022 Seminole Hard Rock Lucky Hearts Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 30
$200 Big Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$50,000 Guarantee
Entries:  965
Prize Pool:  $149,575
January 24-26, 2022

2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open Event 30 Champion Bhakeerathan Naahanathan

Event 30 of the 2022 Lucky Hearts Poker Open was a $200 Big Stack No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry). A field of 965 entries produced a prize pool of $149,575, nearly tripling the guarantee. A five-way deal took place at the final table, and as the chip leader, it was Bhakeerathan Naahanathan who was the official winner for $19,465.

PlaceFirst NameLast NamePrize Amount
1BhakeerathanNaahanathan$19,465*
2AndreRakusa$17,009*
3GilNachum$16,733*
4DeonarineItwaru$14,113*
5GilAboodi$12,175*
6ChanthyPhoutsakanh$5,865
7Samuel IlanCharnis$4,900
8LucianoNardi$3,940
9YoannGimenez$2,985
10FredericoDabus$2,985
11ScottBlackman$2,445
12RobertKuznietz$2,445
13StephenStow$1,945
14PeterShapiro$1,945
15DucarmelBeaubien$1,945
16NikolayVolper$1,645
17HagaiStein$1,645
18MiguelMcdonald$1,645
19JaimeMontero Garcia$1,385
20JuanDiaz$1,385
21MiguelHernandez$1,385
22BrentHoover$1,160
23JordanTuschak$1,160
24JohnSarappa$1,160
25AndreBryan$1,005
26YuriyYershakov$1,005
27ZeeshanPeervani$1,005
28BrandonByars$885
29MichaelReed$885
30BryanHunter$885
31MatthewLake$885
32CorneliusRogers$885
33MikeBeasley$885
34RichardVargas$885
35MatthewGallen$885
36FrederickAllenspach$885
37ArthurHolmes$765
38JordanMiller$765
39KemhallGrant$765
40DevondMarshall$765
41ReinaldoBarreiro$765
42ArthurLucas$765
43JeffKessler$765
44VivoLoubaton$765
45SeolPark$765
46SantanaNoronha$665
47FranciscoHernandez$665
48DavidClark$665
49StevenBennett$665
50AbrahamRamos Padilla$665
51RonnieTate$665
52SpyrosMalkotsis$665
53WilliamRincon$665
54AaronWatson$665
55MohammadHaghdoust$565
56JeremyGoureau$565
57MarceloApareicdo$565
58AntonioAlbanes$565

*denotes the five-way deal

Event 33: Farid Jattin Wins! ($58,410); Mark Wahba Eliminated in 2nd Place ($39,105)

$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  8,000/16,000
Players Remaining:  1 of 107

Farid Jattin

Farid Jattin raised to 38,000 on the button, Mark Wahba three-bet the pot to 114,000 from the big blind and Jattin called.

The flop was 3s4s3d, Wahba bet the pot of 228,000, Jattin raised and Wahba called all in for about 350,000.

Jattin:  10d3c2c2s
Wahba:  AsQdJc8s

Jattin had trip threes and looked to hold against Wahba’s flush draw.

The 4d turn and Jd river completed the board, safe for Jattin to win his second event of the series, winning this one outright for $58,410.

Mark Wahba finished runner-up for $39,105.

A recap of the event will be posted later tonight.

Mark Wahba

Event 33: Mark Wahba Strikes First

$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  8,000/16,000
Players Remaining:  2 of 107

Mark Wahba limped on the button, Farid Jattin raised to 45,000 from the big blind and Wahba called.

The flop was 8h2c7s, Jattin bet 75,000, Wahba raised all in for 237,000 and Jattin called.

Wahba:  Qs10d9h9d
Jattin:  As8s7d5h

Jattin was ahead with eights and sevens, while Wahba had the overpair along with an open-ender.

The 2h turn and 9s river completed the board, giving Wahba nines full of deuces to double through Jattin.

Mark Wahba  –  564,000  (35 bb)
Farid Jattin  –  1,576,000  (99 bb)

Event 33: Farid Jattin vs. Mark Wahba

$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  8,000/16,000
Players Remaining:  2 of 107

Farid Jattin (left) vs. Mark Wahba (right)

Farid Jattin  –  1,800,000  (113 bb)
Mark Wahba  –  340,000  (21 bb)

1st:  $58,410 + LHPO Trophy
2nd:  $39,105

3rd:  Ayed Shweihat  –  $26,500
4th:  Eric Salazar  –  $18,670
5th:  Gregory Nerenberg  –  $13,650
6th:  Richard Kellett  –  $10,375
7th:  Shay Shabtai Mashaih  –  $8,215
8th:  Kyle Bowker  –  $6,785
9th:  Elliott Kampen  –  $5,850

Event 33: Ayed Shweihat – 3rd Place ($26,500)

$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  8,000/16,000
Players Remaining:  2 of 107

Ayed Shweihat

Ayed Shweihat raised to 35,000 from the button and Farid Jattin called from the big blind.

The flop was Jh6d2c, Jattin checked, Shweihat bet 75,000, Jattin check-raised the pot and Shweihat called all in for 172,000.

Shweihat:  AdAh9s2s
Jattin:  Js6s5h4c

Jattin was ahead with two pair and locked it up on the turn when the 3s fell with straight.

Farid Jattin  –  1,800,000  (113 bb)
Ayed Shweihat  –  Eliminated in 3rd Place  ($26,500)

Event 33: Eric Salazar – 4th Place ($18,670)

$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  8,000/16,000
Players Remaining:  3 of 107

Eric Salazar

Farid Jattin raised from the small blind, Eric Salazar reraised the pot from the big blind, Jattin reraised and Salazar called all in for about 175,000.

Jattin:  AhKcKs6h
Salazar:  KhQhQd6s

The board ran out 7s7d7c3d3c, giving Jattin sevens full of kings to eliminate Salazar in fourth place.

Farid Jattin  –  1,520,000  (95 bb)
Eric Salazar  – Eliminated in 4th Place  ($18,670)

Event 33: Gregory Nerenberg – 5th Place ($13,650)

$2,200 Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 17:  6,000/12,000
Players Remaining:  4 of 107

Gregory Nerenberg

Farid Jattin raised to 35,000 from under the gun and Gregory Nerenberg called from the big blind.

The flop was Jc9h5d and Nerenberg’s stack of 170,000-ish got into the middle with KdJh10d2h against Jattin’s AhJs10s6s.

Both had a pair of jacks, but Jattin had the superior kicker.

The 4c turn and 9s river completed the board, no help to Nerenberg, ending his tournament in fifth place.

Farid Jattin  –  1,280,000  (107 bb)
Gregory Nerenberg  –  Eliminated in 5th Place  ($13,650)