Event 5 Day 1A: Swapping Leads

$600 Deeper Stack No-Limit Hold’em
$150,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 12:  1,000/2,000 with a 2,000 ante
Day 1A Entries:  96

Yuriy Kozinskiy

The last break ended and players returned to action to play three more levels today.

We had a shift at the top of the counts. Engelberth Varela added a few chips to his stack from two hours ago but Yuriy Kozinskiy did even better, building up to 296,000 for the late lead. Al Norman also topped 200K with dangerous players Raminder Singh and Willie Wiggins lurking.

Yuriy Kozinskiy – 296,000 (148 bb)
Engelberth Varela – 278,000 (139 bb)
Al Norman – 213,000 (107 bb)
Raminder Singh – 145,000 (73 bb)
Willie Wiggins – 132,000 (66 bb)

Event 5 Day 1A: More Additions

$600 Deeper Stack No-Limit Hold’em
$150,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 11:  1,000/1,500 with a 1,500 ante
Day 1A Entries:  93

Eugene Katchalov

The entry count is creeping up after the dinner break and we still have a bit of work to do to reach the $150,000 guarantee. With only two starting flights, players have a shot at some nice value for a few days work.

Some new friends in the field include Eugene Katchalov, James Salmon, Al Norman, and Matthew Lambrecht.

James Salmon
Al Norman
Matthew Lambrecht

Event 5 Day 1A: Engelberth Varela Leads Big After Dinner

$600 Deeper Stack No-Limit Hold’em
$150,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 9:  500/1,000 with a 1,000 ante
Day 1A Entries:  86

Engelberth Varela

Players returned to action after the dinner break with 86 entries in the game and six more levels in the day.

Engelberth Varela, the Deep Stack Poker Series Event 2 champ, has a huge lead at the top of the counts with 250,000 on the nose. Kyle Sullivan is back in second with 132,500 followed by Yuriy Kozinskiy and Raminder Singh in the 100K club.

Here’s a look at some of the big stacks and a few others in the field:

Engelberth Varela – 250,000 (250 bb)
Kyle Sullivan – 132,500 (133 bb)
Yuriy Kozinskiy – 113,500 (114 bb)
Raminder Singh – 106,000 (106 bb)
Gary Gelman – 93,500 (94 bb)
Lyle Diamond – 89,000 (89 bb)
Solange Lucas – 84,500 (85 bb)
Steven Karp – 83,000 (83 bb)
Courtland Twyman – 79,000 (79 bb)
Zach Eichenbaum – 69,000 (69 bb)
David Inselberg – 66,500 (67 bb)
Richard Whitebrook – 46,500 (47 bb)
Willie Wiggins – 45,000 (45 bb)
James Salmon – 35,000 (35 bb)
Matthew Kuba – 32,500 (33 bb)

Yuriy Kozinskiy
Kyle Sullivan

Event 5 Day 1A: Dinner Break

$600 Deeper Stack No-Limit Hold’em
$150,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 8:  400/800 with a 800 ante
Day 1A Entries:  82

Level 8 ended and tournament staff sent Event 5 players on their 40-minute dinner break while they color the black chips out of play.

They will return to play six more levels before survivors bag up their chips for Day 2 on Wednesday at 11 am.

If players wish to grab a bite at the table or the Poker Cafe area, you can now order food from The BŌL to your table (top-tier Asian cuisine), among other items on the Poker Room menu, or you can grab something and sit in the cafe lounge area.

Event 5 Day 1A: Going Deeper

$600 Deeper Stack No-Limit Hold’em
$150,000 Guaranteed  |  Structure
Level 1:  100/100

The next multi-flight tournament on the schedule gets underway with Flight A of Event 5 at 11 am. This one is a $600 Deeper Stack with a $150,000 guaranteed prize pool and two starting flights.

Players sit with 40K in their stacks and all Day 1 levels last 40 minutes, increasing to 60 on Day 2 and 90 minutes with Level 23. Late registration and unlimited re-entries are available until the start of Day 2 on Wednesday at 11 am.

  • $150,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 40,000 in chips
  • Levels 1-14 last 40 minutes; Level 15-22 last 60 minutes
  • Levels 23+ last 90 minutes
  • Late registration until start of Day 2
  • Day 1 will end after Level 14
  • Event 5 Structure Sheet

DSPS Day 7 Schedule

Primary Event Schedule

11AM: Event 5 Day 1A – $600 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

  • $150,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 40,000 in chips
  • Levels 1-14 last 40 minutes; Level 15-22 last 60 minutes
  • Levels 23+ last 90 minutes
  • Late registration until start of Day 2
  • Day 1 will end after Level 14
  • Event 5 Structure Sheet

6PM: Event 6 – $250 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)

  • $20,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 20,000 in chips
  • Levels last 20 minutes
  • Late registration until start of Level 10 (9:30pm)
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays to completion
  • Event 6 Structure Sheet

2026 Deep Stack Series Schedule and Results

Antuan Bunkley Wins Event 5 of the 2026 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown in Four-Handed Deal for $14,610

2026 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 5
$600 Seniors 50+ No-Limit Hold’em
$50,000 Guaranteed
Entries:  158
Prize Pool:  $82,160
April 9, 2026

2026 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Event 5 Champion Antuan Bunkley

Event 5 of the 2026 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown was a $600 Seniors 50+ No-Limit Hold’em. A field of 158 entries generated a prize pool of $82,160, easily surpassing the guarantee. A four-way deal was reached at the final table and Antuan Bunkley was the chip leader at the time, making him the official Event 5 champion  for $14,610.

The win marked Bunkley’s second SHRP major series trophy victory, having previously won a $300 Black Chip Bounty event during the 2023 SHRPO. It’s also his third Seniors event triumph in as many months, with wins at the Wynn in February and the Venetian in March to go along with tonight’s result.

PlaceFirst NameLast NamePrize Amount
1AntuanBunkley$14,610*
2AndrewFahey$13,972*
3NicholasBiasevich$12,385*
4AlbertoSabogali$9,593*
5GregorySpinder$5,600
6MarcWolfe$4,260
7GordonEng$3,280
8JohnCofhlin$2,540
9WilliamCascioli$2,000
10MatthewBrown$2,000
11EmersonWard$1,500
12JeffreyKenny$1,500
13RichardWhitebrook$1,240
14StevenGissin$1,240
15RichardChouinard$1,240
16RaminderSingh$1,040
17EricSiegel$1,040
18DennisGilman$1,040
19TinaTellone$1,040
20JamesClark$1,040

*denotes four-handed deal

Event 5: Antuan Bunkley Wins in a Four-Way Deal! ($14,610)

$600 Seniors 50+ No-Limit Hold’em
Prizepool: $82,160  |  Structure  |  Payouts
Level 25:  20,000/40,000 with a 40,000 ante
Players Remaining:  4 of 158

Antuan Bunkley
Antuan Bunkley

When the final four players returned from break, they decided to run the ICM numbers for a possible deal. After verifying their chip stacks, they looked at the ICM payouts and quickly agreed to the deal to end the tournament.

These were their official chip counts, followed by the new payouts:

1.  Antuan Bunkley  –  1,500,000  (38 bb)
2.  Andrew Fahey  –  1,280,000  (32 bb)
3.  Nick Biasevich  –  840,000  (21 bb)
4.  Alberto Sabogali  –  330,000  (8 bb)

1st:  Antuan Bunkley  –  $14,610* + Showdown Trophy
2nd:  Andrew Fahey  –  $13,972*
3rd:  Nick Biasevich  –  $12,385*
4th:  Alberto Sabogali  –  $9,593*

As chipleader, Bunkley is awarded the title and the trophy. Congratulations!

This is Bunkley’s seventh tournament victory since October, and his third straight in Seniors events — he won the Wynn Millions Seniors event in February and the Venetian DeepStack Seniors Event in March. So that’s three Seniors event trophies in less than two months. Bunkley is definitely on a hot streak!

Stay tuned for a recap from this event.

* Indicates the results of a four-way deal.