Event 19
It was about 4am on Thanksgiving morning when the final trophy event of the 2018 Borgata Fall Poker Open came to an end and with it, the exciting November series was a wrap.
Wenhao Ying – 1st Place – 2018 BFPO Championship
Earlier on Wednesday, a relatively unknown 24-year-old grad student named Wenhao Ying went wire-to-wire on the live streamed final table to claim 1st place in the $1 Million Guaranteed Championship event, along with $200,000* and his first Borgata title. In fact, this is his first title on record, more than doubling his lifetime earnings, which have all come in the previous 27 months.
Ying faced down a final table that included three very experienced pros: Paul Volpe, Brian Altman, and Matt Wantman. Altman ran into a cooler early that sent him out in 6th place, but the other two were there at the end with Ying. They agreed on adjusted payouts based on their chip standings which brought the four-day Championship to a close.
Frank Lagodich – 1st Place – 2018 Fall Poker Open Kick-Off
The sixteen-day-long series was kicked off with the $500,000 Guaranteed Deep Stack No Limit Hold’em event. The prize pool came close to $800,000 and another young player claimed that title as well. First place and $128,359* went to 22-year-old Ohioan Frank Lagodich on his first-ever trip to Borgata. After getting heads-up with Borgata regular and poker pro Joe Cappuccio, Lagodich took the chip lead and the final two negotiated an adjusted payout with an even split of the remaining prize pool.
It was a good series for some of the “old school” Borgata tournament grinders as well. After several near misses, Bob Camano finally claimed his first Borgata title in Omaha/Stud High/Low Mix event. Andrew Klein booked his sixth Borgata win in the Old School NLH event, moving him into fifth place on the Most Wins at Borgata list. Howard Wolper waited until the final night of the series to make the money in Event 20, notching his 117th lifetime cash at Borgata, extending a record that’s going to be hard to beat.
The Ladies were once again in the spotlight, with two regulars claiming titles and setting records. BorgataPoker.com sponsored pro Katie Stone made the final six of the Deepest Stack NLH event and negotiated an adjusted payout giving her 1st place and $19,337*. This was her third Borgata title, putting her in a tie for first on the ‘Most Wins at Borgata by a Woman’ list. Until this series, Patricia Barsanti-Chou held this record. Just four days later, Anna Antimony won the Almighty Stack, coming out on top of a field of 1,073 runners to take the top prize of $91,586. This was also her third Borgata title, putting her in a three-way tie with Stone and Barsanti-Chou.
If there was a ‘Grind Until You Get There’ award, it would go to Carlos Matos for this BFPO series. He finished 5th in Event 9, the Deepest Stack, for $19,337*, then followed that up with a 3rd place finish in Event 15, the Saturday Series Deep Stack, for $14,432*. He finally got there and capped the series with a win in Event 19, the Deeper Stack, for $14,000* and his first Borgata Open trophy.
In total, more than $3.4 million was paid out in prize money in these 20 main events alone, not including satellites and secondary events, and 18 Borgata Fall Poker Open trophies found new homes. A complete list of main event winners is below.
*Indicates Adjusted Payout
The daily tournament schedule has resumed in the Poker Room, with brief interruptions for Holiday Tournaments on Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. There is also a DeepStacks Challenge Series running December 26th – December 30th.
It’s never too early to make plans for the 2019 Winter Poker Open, which runs January 15th – February 1st, and returns to Borgata’s spacious Event Center venue. The series will be capped by the World Poker Tour Winter Poker Open Championship, January 27-31.
On behalf of Borgata Poker Staff and bloggers Tim Kelliher, Chris Murray, and myself, thank you to all the players who participated and make Borgata tournament poker great. And thank you to the staff for the best-run events on the East Coast.
Hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving and enjoy the coming Holiday season!
@Kaelaine
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
End of Level 24: Blinds 10000/20000/20000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 3
Average: 1,990,000
The final four, Benhayun, Weprin, Matos, and Amoroso, from seat 1 around.
By seat with estimated chips midway through 25.
- x
- Sami Benhayun 800,000
- x
- Barry Weprin 1,700,000
- x
- Carlos Matos 2,700,000
- x
- x
- Ray Amoroso 1,500,000
Key pot: 3bet from the blinds from Matos.
Amoroso decided to fold to a double barrel in a three bet pot, facing pressure from Matos.
Under average now, he shoves the next hand and takes it down.
Benhayun, left, faces the music.
Benhayun is soon crippled and faces a tough choice from the blinds. Facing a shove from Barry, he gambles, hoping 
are live cards with his last 8 blinds. However, Weprin has shipped 
– crushed.
Sami takes 4th for $4,015.
Barry knocks out Sami, and it’s three left. A deal is in the air, and with Carlos well ahead, he will take the trophy and first place undisputed. A great run for Matos – his first Borgata title.
Ray Amoroso, Jackson, NJ, 2nd, $7,053.
Barry Weprin, Mamoroneck, NY, 3rd, $7052.
Carlos Matos, Bronx, NY, 1st, $14,000.
Having a great series already, it is only natural to find Carlos with tonight’s Deeper Stack trophy.
Congratulations to him, Ray, and Barry for their respective runs!
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
End of Level 23: Blinds 10000/20000/20000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 4
Average: 1,492,000
The finalists by seat with estimated chips:
- Anon. – bust
- Sami Benhayun 900,000
- x
- Barry Weprin 1,600,000
- Ming Oei bust
- Carlos Matos 2,600,000
- x
- Paul Colwell bust
- Ray Amoroso 1,300,000
Our anonymous big stack, after a long and steady mid-stacked run, busts to Sami in a preflop flip – 
failing to improve against 
.
Then, it’s Ming’s turn, trapped into going with 
by depth, and felted by Sami’s .
Ming Oei, great run to sixth, $2,509.
Colwell, short all final table, finally busts, a nice ladder to fifth for $3,011.
Then, Sami oversteps, firing in barrels against Barry, who picks off a brave river bet on a board, ruining Benhayun’s momentum.
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
End of Level 22: Blinds 10000/20000/20000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 7
Average: 852,000
Mike Dunn is the next out, as he and Carlos get the money in on 
.
As the PFR, Carlos naturally continued with 
into a fairly favorable board, 80,000. Mike responded with a raise to 200,000 leaving 400,000 back, and of course covered by the chip leader.
Carlos decided he did not want to b/c and face a jam with his draw, and stuffed on Mike. However, Dunn could not be happier with that, holding .
However the on the turn gave Carlos broadway, and with no improvement for Mike, he takes ninth for $1,129.
Carlos takes a small hit, though right before the short break. Sami gets in his 10 bigs with 
against Carlos’ , and spikes the river for a double.
Benhayun, grey cap, survives domination. On his left, Gary Wong, next on the chopping block.
“Well deserved!” he exclaims, still smarting from earlier beats to his once leading stack.
As the players dispute the break length, it’s Gary’s time to go, being felted by Amoroso’s in aggressive flop action. Another run from the dangerous and swingy Wong, 8th for $1506.
Amoroso gets his stack colored up at break.
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
Level 22: Blinds 10000/20000/20000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 9
Average: 663,000
The shortstacks bust rapidly once in money, including Maureen and her husband.
The ten handed final table is made, and Ryan Hagerty takes 10th for $1,004, getting it in slightly ahead with 
but losing to its equity enemy, .
Ryan Hagerty, right, is out. Benhayun, left, is now under average stack.
Barry makes quad aces and gets bet into – good feeling.
The finalists by seat with estimated chips:
- Anonymous 540,00
- Sami Benhayun 300,000
- Gary Wong 250,000
- Barry Weprin 1,500,000
- Ming Oei 500,000
- Carlos Matos 2,000,000
- Mike Dunn 700,000
- Paul Colwell 125,000
- Ray Amoroso 600,000
Recent finishers:
11. Mark Medvin, $1004
12. Dax Funderburk $1004
13. Victor Filletti $878
First big action nine handed is Dunn doubling through Ming, over .
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
Level 10: Blinds 6000/12000/12000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 12
Average: 497,000
The new chip leader, Barry Weprin, surrounded by Maureen and her husband Adrian – who just busted in 15th.
Barry made middle set sing when his opponent jammed running trips on 
into his sevens full for the pot of the tournament so far – a 1,100,000 pot plus swing to Barry, giving him 1,350,000, ahead of Carlos and Ming.
Latest finishers:
16. Darwin C.
17. Ray Tavella
18. Rafal Kordys
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
Level 19: Blinds 5000/10000/10000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 18
Average: 331,000
The dealer points out the winning hand, while the bubble player walks away behind Darwin. That’s Gary in the left corner – he’s taken a big hit but makes the money.
The old chip leaders are not dead, but they are no longer. Carlos Matos has 1.2 million and no one is particularly close at the moment.
Ming Oei appears to have taken from Gary, and has about 750,000.
Big stacks together: Ray Amoroso has 720,000, on the right of leader Carlos.
That table, number 3, is now broken, and we have the final two with the cashing players redrawn.
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
Level 17: Blinds 4000/8000/8000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 29
Average: 205,000
The chip leaders are moving it around. She Lok “Gary” Wong has dropped to 800,000, while Carlos Matos is up to 550,000 and very steadily rising.
Benhayun, on table three with Carlos, is just as steady, now at 700,000 and within site of Gary.
Matos peels his cards on 2.
Meanwhile, we continue to close in on the bubble, in part thanks to Maureen Bloechlinger. On table one, she just knocked out two players at once. She was completing the action when two short stacks got it in for about 8 blinds, and saw the 
.
“Sometimes you gotta have balls,” Maureen, who went for it and took down both, including one who was looking to steal with . It works until it doesn’t. Maureen is co-founder of The Poker League of Nations, the world’s largest women’s poker organization.
Maureen is up to 250,000 and set to fade the bubble now.
Short break at the end of 18 coming next.
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
Level 17: Blinds 3000/6000/6000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 34
Average: 175,000
On now breaking table 5, the Pokermantis was in survival mode as usual. He had come back from 1,000 chips, and then 13,000 to reach a shove stack of 11 big blinds here in level 16.
The Pokermantis, back from a blind, making it work.
The unfortunate end for everyone’s favorite short stacker came at the hands of Almighty final tablist Nahn Cao. The Mantis dared to raise to 2.2x, 12,000, and somehow picked up three callers. Immediately behind, Cao should be fairly strong to take this line, and perhaps the others merely felt themselves priced in.
On 
, the small blind checked, and with about 50,000 in the pot and the same the same back, Mantis checked. Cao now fired 27,000 into the 50,000, a great sizing but likely committing as he himself had less than 25 blinds.
One caller counted out a raise, then folded, and the other mucked as well.
The Mantis pondering the lead from Cao.
Now the Mantis, who had folded the flop a VPIP earlier, said he had to count his outs. He took another thirty seconds, stacked his remaining ten blinds in a column and shoved, leaving Cao about 5 more blinds to call.
Apparently Nanh was lighter than he should be, because there was no snap despite getting 5:1 on his call. What had he bet? At last, he put in the chips, and the dramatic hand played out, the Mantis having trapped Cao, his 
far ahead of Cao’s .
However, the Mantis was not to be long for our tournament. The turn brought a cruel and , crushing the Mantis like a bug.
That awkward moment when your fans want a pic.
Cao gets back to health, and the table breaks – the money is still not quite near, but we’re at four table.
Oei and Wong: on the big stack table.
Meanwhile, perennial danger Gary Wong has just flushed out Bounty finalist Dan Walsh, hearts over hearts. The 600,000 chip pot, very big for this level, puts Gary in a commanding lead with 1,100,000.
Oei, up and down all tournament, takes a small one from him next, but Wong has chips to spare and still have a million.
$260+$40 Deeper Stack NLH
$30,000 Guaranteed
Structure Sheet
Level 15: Blinds 2000/4000/4000 bb ante
Entries: 199
Remaining: 44
Average: 135,000
The players have returned. Five tables left, each table moves to nine-handed.
Back in action in the center of the TTA.
Benhayun still leads, now with about 600,000.
Payouts:
- $14,805
- 8,281
- 5,019
- 4,015
- 3,011
- 2,509
- 2,008
- 1,506
- 1,129
- – 12. 1,004 13. – 15. 878 16. – 18. 753