Friday, April 20, 2012

Event 21: Final Table Redraw

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Players are just back from break and four more eliminations set the final table. 

The worst beat comes at the hands of chip leader Jeffrey Gurfinkel (Hallandale Beach, FL) who was behind with J J vs Q Q, but flops a jack to bust Brian McKane (Holmdel, NJ) in 12th place.

Latest Eliminations:

Place-Name-Amount

11th Stephen Moy (New York, NY) $673
12th Brian McKane (Holmdale, NJ) $673
13th Luis Pereira (Millstown Twp., NJ) $570
14th Robert Noble (Philadelphia, PA) $570

Event 21: Chip Leader

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Gurfinkel Running Good

Jeffrey Gurfinkel (Hollandale Beach, FL) has the chip lead with 1.1 million.

The average stack for the 14 remaining players is 381k (19 BB) as blinds are now 10k/20k, 3k ante.

Event 21: Womack Wacks Another

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Eights are Great for Womack

Robert Noble (Philadelphia, PA) puts his last 180k all in with 8 7, but is dominated by the pocket eights of "JW," John Womack.

When asked how many players he's knocked out, JW smiles and says, "a lot."

Womack wins the hand and takes his chip stack to 950k which is second overall behind Jeffrey Gurfinkel (Hallandale Beach, FL).

Noble finishes in 14th place for $570.

Event 21: Flying Fast

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

The eliminations started slowly when the bubble broke, but just after the two table redraw we've seen a steady stream of bustouts.

Here are the latest:

Place-Name-Amount

15th John Froehlich (Bellmore, NY) $570
16th Joseph Zeller (San Diego, CA) $518
17th Mirta Urena (Brooklyn, NY) $518
18th Bill Hearon (New York, NY) $518
19th Jim Bozzuto (Orlando, FL) $466

Event 21: Two with One Blow

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

A big pot has two players all in and a third side pot brewing.  On a board of 2♠ 10 J 8♣ J♠, John "JW" Womack (Lauderhill, FL) puts out a healthy bet and Bill Hearon (New York, NY) reluctantly folds saying, "I missed the world."

Womack shows A♣ J♣ for trip jacks and knocks out Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ) who mucks, and a disappointed Jason Rosenberg (Brooklyn, NJ) who shows K♠ J♣ for trip jacks with a worse kicker.

19 players remain, one more elimination before the two table redraw.

Eliminations

20th Jason Rosenberg (Brooklyn, NJ) $466
21st Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ) $466

Event 21: Good Times at Borgata

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)


Coan Laughing to the Bank, while Howard Wolper (left) 
& John "JW" Womack Play on 

Tom Coan (Hauppauge, NY) is on the rail with pocket 4s against Mark Becker (New York, NY) who's mildly surprised that AK wins a hand when he flops an ace.

Coon laughs it off and is happy with a min. cash of $466.

Place-Name-Amount 

22nd Tom Coan (Hauppauge, NY) $466
23rd Paul Pedretti (Mineoloa, NY) $466
24th James Froehlich (Bellmore, NY) $466

Event 21: Two Down/Blinds Up

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

The first two players to cash have already picked up their $466 at the cage.

Place-Name-Amount

26th Donovan Ellis (Brooklyn, NY) $466
27th Marcus Vera (Hallandale Beach, FL) $466

The purple (500) chips have been removed from play as blinds are now 5k/10k, 1k ante.

Event 21: Fly Guys

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Nick Not Nervous Yet

In addition to watching the blinds and ante, Philadelphia fans are keeping an eye on the Stanley Cup playoffs.  Nick Guinto (Brigantine, NJ) is originally from the City of Brotherly Love and disappointed the Fly Guys are trailing the Penguins in game five 3 to 2 in the second intermission.

His prediction with perfect deadpan, "Flyers 9 to 7, with a late field goal."

Philadelphia leads this offensive series 3 games to 1 and can close it out with a win tonight in Pittsburgh.

Not Much Goaltending on the Big Screen

*****Series Update (10:20 pm)******
Penguins win 3-2 and now trail in the series 3 games to 2; game 6 is Sunday in Philadelphia.

Event 21: Bubble Breaks

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Pedretti Pierces Bubble

Leon Motola (E. Windsor, NJ) wasn't as lucky on his second all in and is the double bubble, out in 29th place.  Just a moment later Paul Pedretti (Mineola, NY) uses his big stack to bust a woman who prefers to be anonymous.

Pedretti has A 10 against the woman's A K, but flops a ten to knockout the bubble and send the final 27 players into the money for a min. cash of $466.

Table four is now breaking as play is 9 handed on three tables.

Event 21: Shorties Survive

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

After three quick eliminations the short stacks are hanging on for dear life just spots from the money.

First Tom Coon (Hauppauge, NY) doubles 20k with pocket 10s, then it's Leon Motola (E. Windsor, NJ) who's at risk with A 10 for 23k and he spikes an ace against a pocket pair.

Life doesn't get any easier as blinds are moving up to 4k/8k/1k ante.

Event 21: Play Resumes

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

The remaining 32 players are back from the dinner break, but the short stacks may need some pepto if they miss the money.  Five players miss the money, while the 27 who cash are guaranteed at least $466.

We expect play to slow down as we approach the money bubble.  Buckle up!

Event 21: Numbers Game

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Number of Entries:  267
Players Remaining: 32
Chips in Play:  5.34 million

Average Stack: 167,000 (28 BB)

Next Blinds: 3k/6k/500 ante

Total Buy-In: $53,400
First Prize: $14,505
Places Paid: 27

Event 21: Dinner Time

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

At the end of level 16, players were sent on a one hour dinner break.  Play will resume at 8:25pm.

32 players remain in the hunt for the top prize of $14,505.  Only 27 get a piece of the pie.

Average stack is 167k.

Event 21: Seven From the Money

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Laura Camuso, winner of event 18, busted out in 36th place.

Ibra Ibraimovic busted out in 35th place.

34 players remain on 4 tables.  Only 27 get paid.

Event 21: New Chip Leader

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Level 16:  Blinds 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

Following a color-up break, 39 players have returned to the felt.  Average stack is 137k.

 Luis Pereira

Luis Pereira (Millstone Twp, NJ) has taken the chip lead with 345k.

Event 21: Kings Good for Ibra

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Ibra Ibraimovic's pocket Kings held up against AQ to bust a shorter stack.  Ibra chipped up to ~250k.

Down to 4 tables now, leaving 40 players still in the hunt.  Average stack is ~134k.

Only 27 get paid.  Thirteen more must go to reach the money.

Event 21: In & Out

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Level 15: Blinds 2k/4k, 400 ante

The big stacks are accumulating on table one. Currently seated there are
Brian McKane
Ken Mezaros
Stephen Moy
Jim Bozutto

Meanwhile, these former big stacks have busted out:
Ricardo Velasco
John Greenwood
Hamilton Dimaya

Event 21: McKane Kuts Two

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Level 14:  1,500/3,000, 400 ante

I only arrived to witness the aftermath of a huge hand on table 1.

Brian McKane

Three players got all-in on the flop and by the river, Brian McKane (Homedale, NJ) had made a flush, busting both his opponents.

Those opponents were Borgata regulars  Eric 'clownfish' Doerr and Gina 'Ginevil' Cannone.

With that pot, Brian chipped up to about 300k.

Table 6 has broken and chip leader Stephen Moy got moved to table 1.  Stephen is up to 360k.

Event 21: Aces Good for Wolper

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Howard Wolper was all-in again, this time in a three-way pre-flop all-in.

Of course he had the nuts, pocket Aces.

His opponents held AK and QT suited.  It was all over with a board of a A K x K x, giving Howard Aces-full.

He more than doubled up to ~100k, busting the short-stack.

60 players remain.  Average stack is 89k.

Howard is one of only four players to hold three Borgata Open titles, and one of only three players to win two titles during a single series.

Event 21: Battle of the Big Stacks

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Level 13: Blinds 1,200/2,400, 300 ante

Stephen Moy

Stephen Moy (New York, NY) has catapulted into the chip lead with about 270k.

Ibra Ibraimovic has rebuilt his stack. He's up to 210k.

Ken Mezaros is up to ~200k.

Jim Bozutto is also stacking about 200k.

Event 21: Break Time

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)      

End of level 12 and time for a break.

Down to 7 tables (70 players).  Average stack is 76k.

During the previous level:

Ricardo Velasco was up to 190k, but then he called a short-stack all-in with AJ.  The all-in player had pocket 2s and they help up when the board fell Q 9 6 7 3.

Ricardo shipped the double across the felt, dropping his stack to ~160k.

Event 21: Payouts

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Entries: 267
Total Buy-In: $53,400

Place - Amount

1st $14,505
2nd $8,547
3rd $4,921
4th $3,988
5th $3,108
6th $2,590
7th $2,072
8th $1,554
9th $1,036
10-12 $673
13-15 $570
16-18 $518
19-27 $466

Event 21: Aces Good for Mezaros

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Ken Mezaros (Freehold, NJ)

Three players were involved in a pre-flop all-in confrontation:

UTG:  AJ
Hamilton Dimaya (cutoff): 99
Ken Mezaros (bb): AA

The board came 8 8 5 6 5 and the Aces held up.  Ken more than doubled up to about 105k.

Hamilton Dimaya was left with about 45k.  The third player was busted.

Happy 4/20!

Event 21: Another New Chip Leader

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Level 11: Blinds 800/1,600, 200 ante

Jim Bozzuto

Before the blinds went up:

Jim Bozzuto (Queens, NY) and chip leader Ibra Ibraimovic got involved in a pot. On the river, the board read 7 6 5 7 T.

Jim was all-in against Ibra. Jim tabled pocket Tens for the rivered full house, beating Ibra's two pair.

Jim doubled up to 180k, taking the chip lead. Ibra was left with ~80k.

About 120 players remain, making the average stack ~44,500.

Event 21: New Chip Leader

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Level 10:  Blinds 600/1,200, 200 ante

Play has resumed after the break.  13 tables remain (130 players max).

Ibra Ibraimovic

In action shortly before the break:

On a flop of 7 6 4 with two spades, one player bet, Ibra Ibraimovic (Brooklyn, NY) raised, a third player shoved, the opener folded, and Ibra called.

The all-in player said "uh-oh" and turned over J2 of spades (flush draw with one overcard).

Ibra had pocket 6s for middle set.  "No spade!" he said as the dealer cranked off the last two.

Ibra was able to successfully fade the last two cards and his set was good to take the pot and the chip lead.  He's up to ~180k.

Event 21: Greenwood Guts Two

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)    

Level 9 is done and players are taking a break while the green 25 chips are colored up.

During the previous level:


John Greenwood

On a flop of K 8 7 with two clubs, a short-stack moved all-in, another player called, then John Greenwood (Long Island, NY) moved in over the top, forcing his second opponent all-in.

The short stack had A2 of hearts (no pair, no draw).
The middle stack held AK of spades (top/top).
John had pocket 7s for the set and the lead.

The last two were bricks and John collected the pot, busting two opponents at once (sorry John, this is not a bounty tournament).   John is up to ~65k.

John cashed in the $350 Deep Stack event last week, so he's looking for his second cash of the series today.

Event 21: New Chip Leader

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)     

Level 9:  Blinds 500/1,000, 100 ante


Ricardo Velasco

 Ricardo Velasco (Las Vegas, NV) may have taken the chip lead.  He's up to about 130k.

Ricardo has two cashes during the Spring Open and he's going strong for number three today.

Event 21: Goners

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Approaching the end of level 9 and they're dropping like flies.

Reporting to the rail:

Jeremiah McKenna
Gil Sacks
Andrew Klein
Steve Scales

Down to 16 tables (160 players max).

Event 21: Wolper Doubles

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)   

Level 8:  Blinds 400/800 with 75 ante

Howard Wolper & Gil Sacks

 Howard Wolper was all-in for 19,400 on a flop of J T 9 with two diamonds.  One opponent folded what he later said was two pair.  The third player called, showing QT off for middle pair with open-ender

Howard had KQ for the flopped straight, leaving his opponent needing a King to chop or runner-runner for a full house.

An Ace on the turn improved Howard's straight to Broadway.  His opponent could now only chop with a King on the river. 

River was a 3 and Howard doubled up to ~40k.

Event 21: Just Spotted

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)  

Laura Camuso, (Boston, MA) winner of the $400 Deep Stack Semi-Turbo No Limit event ($17,110) has turned up in the field.

Also just spotted Jeremiah McKenna (Norwalk, CT).

Gil Sacks was all-in for 5,650 on a flop of K 7 2 with two clubs.  After a couple of minutes in the tank, his opponent let it go.

Event 21: Registration Closed

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Level 7:  Blinds 300/600, 75 ante

The break after level 6 is over, which means no more re-entries.  It will be a while before the numbers are official, but there are approximately 267 entries in today's event.

That includes Paul Darden, who turned up late.

19 tables are still active (190 players max).   These tables will start breaking quicky now.

Event 21: Brothers of the Felt

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Level 6:  Blinds 200/400, 50 ante

Joe Liberta (Berlin, NJ) took 3rd in event 20 yesterday (actually at about 2am this morning) good for $3,953.

That was his third cash and second final table of the Spring Open.

John Del Rossi (Mantua, NJ) has two cashes during this series, one of them a final table. 

These two guys aren't related at all, but look enough alike that they could be brothers:

Joe Liberta & John Del Rossi

John has already fired his second bullet today.

Level six (plus the following break) will be the end of the registration and re-entry period (about 1:55pm).

Event 21: Re-Entries Abound


$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Approaching the end of level five and familiar faces are turning up at the re-entry window.

Chris Edwards fired his second bullet after making a desperation shove with an up-an-down straight draw, only to find that his opponent flopped the straight.

Gil Sacks has also fired his second bullet.

Event 21: Early Chip Leader

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

Level 5:  Blinds 150/300, 25 ante 

Hamilton Dimaya

Hamilton Dimaya (Saddle Brook, NJ) has jumped into an early chip lead.  He's up to about 110k.

According to Hamilton (and his tablemates verifiy) he's had Aces three times already, and once against pocket Kings.  He's also had pocket Jacks three times.  He's made two boats and hit quads once.

And that's just during the first four levels.

Event 21: Bullet #2

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)  

Level 4:  Blinds 100/200

Joshua Supsak

Joshua Supsak (Linwood, NJ) has relocated to a new table, in the 10 seat (held for re-entries).  He told me he's on bullet #2 after an interesting hand:

After a raise and 3-bet, four players paid 2,500 to see a flop of 6 3 2 with two diamonds.  Joshua had pocket 6s for top set, another player had pocket Aces, another player had pocket 9s, and the last had T9 suited in diamonds.

Joshua got all-in with top set against the flush draw and a diamond came on the river while the board failed to pair.  The flush took the pot and Joshua hit the re-entry window.

Event 21: Break Time

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry) 

End of level 3 and time for their first break of the day.

Smoke 'em if you got 'em (but only in designated smoking areas).

Event 21: More Familiar Faces

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Level 3:  Blinds 75/150

Table 21 is about to get started as players continue to pile in for this event.  The latest sightings:

Daniel Chan
Gina Cannone
Chris Edwards
Gil Sacks
Tom McGarry
Joe Loguidice
Joe Liberta
Anthony Zinno
John Del Rossi
Mikhail Volfson

Event 21: More Regulars Turn Up

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

Level 2:  Blinds 50/100

Table 19 is getting underway as more players arrive and fill the empty seats.

Among the new faces are:
Pierre Diessler
Steve Scales
Benjamin Chan

Event 21: Borgata Regulars

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

It's their last chance to take home a trophy this series, so they're out in force today.  Here are the Borgata regulars I spotted on the 18 tables already in action:

Howard Wolper
Joshua Supsak
Jimmy Wong
Grace Sun
Sungwoo Tae
Andrew Klein
Ibra Ibraimovic
Eric Doerr
Ricardo Velasco
Neville Darrell

Event 21: Final Main Event Underway

$200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)

The final main event of the 2012 Borgata Spring Poker Open is underway.

This is a Big Stack, so players began with 20,000 chips.

The first 6 levels are 25 minutes long and also represent the entry and re-entry period.  Players can register late through the end of level 6 and if they bust out, they can re-enter as many times as they want, until the end of level 6.

Beginning with level 7, they extend to 30 minutes.

Level 1 blinds are 25/50 and cards are in the air.

This is a one day event, so they'll play all night until a winner is determined.

Leaderboard Update (4/20)

Borgata Spring Poker Open Leaderboard
By participating in any Borgata Spring Poker Open event (April 4-20, 2012), players earn points based upon the Borgata Poker Tournament Leaderboard Formula.

Below are the top scores for the 2012 Borgata Spring Poker Open Leaderboard*
(Final Results from Main events: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 
Qualifiers and Secondary events: 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)

575.360:  MARK WAHBA
463.043:  MANH NGUYEN
419.375:  PAUL DARDEN  JR
399.955:  SUNGWOO TAE
395.323:  ELLIOTT ZAYDMAN
392.533:  JEREMIAH MCKENNA
380.313:  H MICHAEL BOROVETZ
379.248:  MICHAEL WOLL
370.063:  RANDALL PFEIFER
361.250:  MICHAEL DENTALE
356.463:  JAMES SLOAT
353.800:  BRIAN LEMKE
334.713:  DARYL BLACK
333.420:  YUEBIN GUO
330.488:  ERIC DOERR
327.550:  TRAVELL THOMAS
317.143:  QING GUO
317.123:  ALEXANDER ROCHA
315.360:  MARK BORGES
309.585:  JEREMIAH CALLAHAN
305.788:  JOSEPH LIBERTA
304.563:  WAHEED GUIRGUIS
302.450:  JIA LIU

April 20

TODAY'S EVENTS (POKER ROOM)
REGISTER IN POKER ROOM


11AM:  Event 21- $200 + $30 Big Stack No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
  • Players start with 20,000 in tournament chips
  • Levels 1-6: will last 25 minutes each | Levels 7+: will last 30 minutes each
  • Players that "bust" within the first 6 Levels may Re-Enter (unlimited re-entries)
  • 1-Day event


6 PM:  Event 46 - $150 + $30 + $20 Yellow Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)
  • Players start with 12,000 in tournament chips 
  • Levels will last 20 minutes each
  • Players that "bust" within the first 6 Levels may Re-Enter (unlimited re-entries)
  • 1-Day eventt

      Event 20 Recap

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Our winner, who would like to be known only as "Jim S" - has just won the first major tournament he's ever played in after taking out Matt Burnitz (Paoli, PA) heads up.  Jim S added Burnitz's $100 Bounty chip, the Borgata winner's trophy, and $12,485 cash.
      Our winner wouldn't go so far as to call himself an amateur.  "I'm just a guy who was eating dinner and decided to jump into a tournament."  No matter how you define it, Jim S definitely made several pro moves to amass all 2,500,000 chips in play.  "I had to be patient.  I picked my spots and it worked out well."

      Part of his strategy was to show a lot of hands. Players became afraid of him - as in afraid that he always had the goods.

      Pocket Kings holding up three times this afternoon helped Jim S to make the final table. It was there that Borgata poker legend Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ) ended in 9th for $936.  And where poker pro Joe Liberta (Berlin, NJ) had his wired three's counterfeited by Jim's A-10 for a 3rd place ($3,952) finish.

      The prize pool totaled $42,900 thanks to the 165 bounty hunters who faced the felt. Familiar Borgata names such as "Miami" John Cernto, Paul Darden, Eric "Clownfish" Doerr, Ben Geller, Andrew Interdonato, and Mark Wahba all battled today.  When the dust settled, the gunslinger with the most bounties was Matt Burnitz with 13.

      Congratulations again to Jim S for taking out the pros while cruising to a Borgata Spring Poker Open victory and taking home $12,485.

      Final Table Results
      1. Jim S. - $12,485
      2. Matthew Burnitz (Bear, DE) - $6,867
      3. Joe Liberta (Berlin, NJ) - $3,953
      4. Donald Brown (Westbury, NY) - $3,329
      5. Harold Stickel (Waretown, NJ) - $2,497
      6. Elliott Zaydman (Glen Rock, NJ) - $2,081
      7. Mark Borges (Hoboken, NJ) - $1,665
      8. Eric Netishvili (Hoboken, NJ) - $1,248
      9. Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ) - $936
      10. James Giura (Dover, NJ) - $832

      Event 20: 1st Place - Jim S.

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)


      Way to go to Jim S. who just won the first Borgata tournament he ever played in.

      "I had to be patient...I picked my spots and it worked out" said Jim.

      Part of Jim's strategy was to show a lot of hands. Players became afraid of him...afraid he always had the goods. Jim confessed he was setting up a couple key bluff's he wanted to implement at the final table. Those successful bluffs made him the chipleader with three players left.

      A good mix of skill and luck for Jim who caught his share of lucky cards when needed.

      He reached the final table with 120,000 and ended the night with 7 bounties.

      The final winning hand of the night showdowned Jim's A-2 vs. Matt Burnitz (Paoli, PA) K-2.

      Both players hit top pair on a flop of K-A-3.

      Turn brought a 4 and the river a J for the victory.

      Jim takes home the trophy and $12,485.

      Event 20: 2nd Place - Burnitz

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Matt Burnitz (Paoli, PA)
      $6,867

      Under ten hands of heads up play before Jim S. takes out Matt Burnitz (Paoli, PA). Matt took out thirteen players throughout the day for and extra $1300 in bounties.

      Out of the 165 entries, amazingly Matt felted 13.

      "This was the first bounty tournament I ever played in" said Matt.

      Matt was happy to finish in 2nd especially after having only 43,000 with 29 Players remaining. He was card dead and hanging on for 2 1/2 hours - fortunate to even make the money.

      He's probably kicking himself for folding middle pair on the board, especially since Jim S. showed a bluff. Matt would have won that hand and crippled Jim - instead he had to battle from the short stack.

      Burnitz is not a nit - he is a superior Borgata Bounty Hunter!

      Event 20: 3rd Place - Liberta

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Joe Liberta (Berlin, NJ)
      $3,953

      Borgata regular Joe Liberta takes home 11 $100 bounty chips but loses his own to Jim S.

      Jim calls from the small blind and Joe stuffs all-in from the big.

      Jim quickly calls and shows A-10 vs. Joe's 3-3.

      Board ran 7-8-5-5-8 counterfeiting Joe's pair giving Jim the pot using his Ace.

      Runner, runner counterfeit knocks out Liberta and sends short stack Matt Burnitz up at least one spot on the money chart.

      Joe also took 9th place in Event 5 during this series.

      Event 20: Patient Poker

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      It's anybody's tournament.

      Our final three have about the same amounts in chips.

      Jim has 800,000 vs. Joe Liberta's 900,000 vs. Matt Burnitz' 700,000.

      Jim in seat one has a poker injury. He has a bad back and it is acting up after playing all day. This is his first tournament so he's asking questions and sort of learning on the job. All in all he's doing fantastic for his first effort.

      Blinds are a whopping 25,000 / 50,000 with 5,000 antes.

      Evenet 20: 4th Place - Brown

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Donald Brown (Westbury, NY)
      $3,329

      Donald Brown says his good-byes to what has been deemed the "nicest" final table of the 2012 Borgata Spring Poker Open.

      Cooler for Brown four-handed who picks up A-K for the first time today and is up against KK of chip leader Matt Burnitz (Paoli, PA).

      "I'd love to get cards in one of these things" said a frustrated Donald Brown fresh off the loss.

      Three $100 bounties for Brown.

      Donald says hi to his wife Lee Ann and son Patrick who is following Borgatapokerblog at home.

      Event 20: 5th Place - Stickel

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Hal Stickel (Waretown, NJ)
      $2,497

      Hal gets his chips in good with J-J up against Jim's 10-10.

      Jim nails a ten on the flop for a set and the knock-out bounty chip.

      Board: 3-20-4-2-4

      Hal congratulated Jim who is playing in his first ever poker tournament.

      "He's had his share of beginner's luck but I'm rooting for him" said Hal.

      Hal is 71 and retired. Great stamina for Hal as he played great throughout this one day tournament against all the youngsters.

      Event 20: 6th Place - Zaydman

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Joe Liberta strikes again. He knocks out the man only known as "Comrade" and earns his 11th $100 bounty.

      The only player remaining with more is Matt Burnitz (Paoli, PA) with 12.

      Comrade got his short stack in with K-10 and couldn't believe Joe had yet another Big Slick.

      Board ran: J-3-J-3-K

      Elliott Zaydman (Glen Rock, NJ) earns $2,081 for his 6th Place finish.

      Event 20: Double Busto

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Mark Borges (Glen Rock, NJ)
      7th Place - $1,665

      Joe Liberta catches lucky and knocks out Mark Borges in 7th Place and Eric Natishvili in 8th Place for two $100 Bounty Chips giving him 10 total.

      A three way all-in pre-flop battle with Joe's A-J vs. Eric's 5-5 and Mark's A-K.

      Board ran: 3-J-Q-2-8

      Eric Natishvili (Hoboken, NJ)
      8th Place - $1,248

      Event 20: 9th Place - Wolper

      $260 + $40 + $100 Black Chip Bounty NLH (Re-Entry)

      Howard Wolper (Atlantic City, NJ)
      $936

      Borgata Poker Legend and author Howard Wolper cashes for $936.

      Every time Howard shoved at the final table it appeared that nobody called. The blinds and antes began to devour his stack and he made a move with K-7.

      Small blind, Hal Stickel called with 2-2 and hit a third deuce on the flop.

      Board: 8-2-A-8-K