FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Official End Of Flight 1B Chip Counts

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 12 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 89
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 19

John	DePersio	372,500
Richard	Kirsch	180,000
Maurice	Hawkins	162,100
Noel	Atherley	160,900
Richard	Rice	105,100
Jerry	Wong	92,000
Ricardo	Eyzaguirre	89,100
Ian	Ohara	81,300
Chris	Bolek	79,700
Sam	Mayer-Backer	78,500
Igor	Merda	75,200
Andrew	Becker	64,200
Daryl	Jace	62,000
Skip	McDonough	51,300
Sebastian	Kos	46,100
Anthony	Hockaday	44,300
Stuart	Paterson	34,900
Walter	Buss	25,200
Robert	Transue	18,400

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Depersio Bags Flight 1B Chip Lead

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 12 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 92
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 22

John Depersio (Parkland, FL)

When someone bags the chip lead in one of these opening flights (whether it's a $175 buy-in, or a $1,100 buy-in), there is usually one moment that can be looked back upon, that propelled them to the lead.  Those moments usually come later in the day, as the flight's are winding down, and leads are changing hand every few minutes.  For John Depersio, that moment came hours ago, when he was all-in with K♠ K♦ against Steve Karp's A♠ A♣.

Depersio flopped a set to take the lead, and never looked back from there.  He held the chip lead at dinner break, and while Maurice Hawkins made a solid effort, he could not find the hands to eclipse Depersio's stack.  John will bag over 300,000, making him the overall chip leader from the combined flights.  Official counts will be posted once the bagging process is done, just over an hour from now.

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Wong Flops Quads To Bust Fagagioli

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 12 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 91
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 25

After Michael Chiappetta opened to 2,400, action folded to Jerry Wong in the small blind.  Wong collected his chips and shoved for just under the starting stack.  Kenny Fagagioli was in the big blind, and with less than eight big blinds, he shoved for less.  Chiappetta folded his hand, and the two all-in players would be racing (Wong's 2♦ 2♠ against Fagagioli's A♥ J♠).  

The race would be short lived though, as the flop came out 2♥ 2♣ 4♠, ending Kenneth Fagagioli's night.  Wong has just over 35,000 after the hand, and less than (30) minutes of play remaining.

Jerry Wong - 39,000

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): It's A Two Horse Race, Heading To The Final Level

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 11 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 91
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 26

John Depersio (pictured left) and Maurice Hawkins

Flight 1B play is about to enter the final level of the day (Level 12), with blinds going up to 600/1,200/200 (70,000 chip average).  Yesterday saw the chip lead bonus come down to the final hand, as David Diaz was surpassed by the only player in the field that had a realistic chance of catching him (Alxandre Fradin).  This evening sees another "two-horse race," as John Depersio and Maurice Hawkins had gained a good amount of separation from the rest of the field.

John Depersio - 385,000
Maurice Hawkins - 290,000

Other than returning to Sunday's Day 2 with a guaranteed top ten chip stack, the flight's leader will earn entry into next weeks FSPC $1,500 Main Event ($500,000 GTD).

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Gerlin Making Moves, And Doubling Up

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 11 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 86
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 27

Jermaine Gerlin (Gainesville, FL)

Table 1 was be passed just as Jermaine Gerlin was shoving all-in (for 30,000), with Robert Transue and Jorge Aristizabal behind.  Transue then re-shoved for 45,000, forcing Jorge to release his hand.  "That was just a move," Gerlin said, as turned over K♣ 8♣ on the felt.  Jermaine watched as Transue tabled A♣ K♠, knowing he'd need some help to stay alive in Flight 1B.  The 10♠ 8♠ 9♥ 9♣ 2♠ runout gave Gerlin the winning hand, and the double to over 64,000.  Transue, who was once the chip leader in the flight, dropped down to 11,000.

Jermain Gerlin - 64,500
Robert Transue - 11,400

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Wong Enjoys A Little Two-Card As Well

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 10 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 84

Jerry Wong (Plattsburgh, NY)

2016 November-Niner Jerry Wong (Plattsburgh, NY) has had a very impressive year in terms of no limit hold'em results to this point, but his mixed games results are nothing to look over as well.  Wong won his first ever SCOOP title in May, besting (123) entries in the $2,100 Razz (Event #14-High) event, and earned $60,270.  He's also coming off a WSOP at which he cashed in six events, including final table finishes in the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (8th Place - $36,218), and the $2,500 Mixed Bet-Bet (4th Place - $32,804).

The larger buy-in non-no limit events are few and far between outside of the WSOP, but Jerry has done fine for himself playing the two-card variation, with over $2,888,000 in live tournament earnings. Wong sits down with just under (25) big blinds, and will look to run that up over these last three levels of the night.

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Updated Chip Counts At Dinner

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 9 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 82
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 31

Players are heading on their scheduled (45) minute dinner break, and will be returning to action at approximately 6:35pm.  Blinds returning will be 400/800/100, with the full field chip counts at break posted below.

Table 1:

1. Robert Transue - 77,000
2. Darryl Jase - 68,000
3. Jorge Aristizabal - 52,000
4. Igor Merda - 70,000
5. Stu Patterson - 32,000
6. Jermaine Gerlin - 12,000
7. Andrew Becker - 12,300

Table 2:

1. Jordan Redavid - 31,000
2. Walter Busse - 32,000
3. Maurice Hawkins - 170,000
4. Ian O'Hara - 117,000
5. Anthony Hockaday - 38,000
6. Chris Bolek - 80,000

Table 3:

1. Steve Karp - 28,000
2. Mark Kerness - 49,000
3. Noel Atherley - 128,000
4. Kenny Fagagioli - 43,000
5. Sebastian Kos - 50,000
6. Skip McDonough - 17,000
7. John Spadavechia - 28,000

Table 9:

1. Michael Chiappetta - 28,000
2. Sam Mayer-Backer - 23,000
3. Richard Rice - 37,000
4. John Depersio - 229,000
5. Ricardo Eyzaguirre - 14,000
6. Ryan Wilson - 81,000
7. Brian Breen - 12,000
8. Joshua Kay - 37,000

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): "I'm Just Not Good Enough To Fold There"

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 9 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 77

John Depersio (Parkland, FL)

John Depersio (Parkland, FL) opened UTG to 1,400, with two players flatting, and action on Steve Karp.  Steve three-bet to 7,600, which then led to a lot of action.  Depersio called the three-bet, A. Nonymous folded his hand, and action would be back on the button.  The unknown player decided to back shove for 35,000, with Karp announcing that he was all-in as well (for over 100,000).  

"You're never folding in this spot," Karp said to Depersio, who seemed really torn about his decision. The talking from Karp would continue, and after a minute, Depersio dropped a stack of chips forward for a call.  Karl quickly turned over A♠ A♣, with Depersio rolling over K♠ K♦, and the player on the button showing A♦ Q♠.  The dealer then fanned out a flop of K♣ 6♥ 4♠, with John grabbing a commanding lead, and holding through the turn and river.  

John had Karp covered, and after stacking the pot, he would chip up to 250,000.  Depersio is now over 100,000 clear of his nearest opponent, and can begin thinking about that chip lead bonus (Event #14 seat).

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Karp Flats, And Watches All The Action Unfold

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 8 (Blinds 250/500/75)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 70

Steve Karp (Dona, FL)

Ryan Wilson would open the action at Table 9 to 1,250, with action folding around to Steve Karp, who made the call.  Next to act was Angelo Miele, who put together his chips, and three-bet shoved for 37,000.  After the button and blinds folded, action would be back on Wilson, who asked for an exact count.  He would agonize for another minute, before folding his hand, and leaving Karp left to act.

Steve quickly made the call and turned over A♠ A♣, with Wilson letting the table know he folded pocket jacks.  "You said you had pocket jacks," Miele asked across the table, before disappointingly turning over the same hand.  Angelo would be drawing dead on the flop, and was left shaking his head as he walked away from the table.

Steve Karp - 120,000

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Bolek Returns With A WSOP Bracelet (Updated Chip Counts)

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 7 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 69

Chris Bolek (Boca Raton, FL)

Players have returned from break, and one of the newest entries in the field arrives as a WSOP bracelet winner.  Chris Bolek (Boca Raton, FL) is one of the regulars in the "big game" here at the Isle, having returned from Las Vegas earlier this week.  Bolek made the return trip with a nice piece of jewelry he didn't have prior, having won a bracelet in the $1,500 No Limit Hold'em Bounty (Event #50).  The cash was the third largest of Chris's career ($266,646), bringing his total live tournament earnings to $1,799,164.  Bolek currently sits with just over 50,000, which puts him above chip average, and towards the top of the early leaderboard:

Maurice Hawkins - 110,000

Joseph Thomas - 73,000

Ian O'Hara - 58,000

Chris Bolek - 50,000

Joshua Kay - 47,000

Ricardo Eyzaguirre - 37,000

Richard Leger - 32,000

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): "Poppa Bear" Leading The Way After Busting Gianquitti

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 6 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 64

Robert Transue (North Lauderdale, FL)

The leader in "all-time tournament cashes" at the Isle Casino Poker Room is in today's field, and he's currently atop the leaderboard.  We approached Table 1 on the river of a hand between Robert "Poppa Bear" Transue, and Ryan Gianquitti.  The board read K♠ J♣ 3♠ 8♥ 3♣, and after Gianquitti checked the river, Transue threw out a bet of 20,000.  Ryan only had 5,000 in front of him, and after about thirty seconds, collected those chips and made the call.  Transue turned over A♠ A♣, which drew a unfavorable reaction from Gianquitti, before he collected his things and went to re-enter.

Robert Transue - 63,000

Players will be heading on their second break of the day at the end of this level, and will return to blinds of 200/400/50.  The levels will also transition to (50) minutes in length once play resumes, and will stay that way through the end of the flight.

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Leger Continues To Take From Miele

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 5 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 53

Richard Leger (Lighthouse Point, FL)

Walking by Table 9, Richard Leger (Lighthouse Point, FL) could be heard announcing himself "all-in."  He was on the flop (Q♠ J♣ 5♦) in a hand against Angelo Miele, and would wait to see what Miele's next course of action would be.  Angelo collected the chips for the call, and the two hands would then be tabled.  Leger was the first to turn over, showing Q♣ J♠, and would be in good shape against Miele's A♦ J♦.  The sweat would be real for Leger, as the 7♦ came on the turn, giving Angelo outs to a flush as well.  The 2♣ on the river sealed the hand for Leger, who would double up to 18,000.

Just a few hands later, we would catch Leger firing out a river bet of 1,100 on a board of Q♥ J♥ 3♠ 6♣ K♦, with Miele once again making a call against him.  Leger turned over A♥ 10♠, having rivered broadway, and once again taking from Miele's stack.  Richard now finds himself over 25,000, while Miele takes a hit to his stack, but still has 35,000.

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Lots Of Late Arrivals As First Break Ends

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 4 (Blinds 75/150/25)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 49

Steve Karp (Dona, FL)

Following in yesterday's footsteps, the bulk of the entries are choosing the period between 12:00pm-2:00pm to the enter the field.  Steve Karp (Dona, FL) is making his first appearance of the event, taking his seat just moments ago at Table 10.  Karp is a well known tournament player with close to $1,400,000 in live tournament earnings, highlighted by a runner-up finish in a $1,500 No Limit Hold'em event during the 2009 WSOP.  The second place score was worth $414,116, which still stands as Karp's best tournament score to date.

Karp is coming off of a summer with (6) WSOP cashes, and is another player sitting down in a "major" event for the first time since returning from Las Vegas.  Some other players to take their seat in the field since Level 3 include:

John Depersio
Fabio Pereira
Daniel Shiff
Mark Kerness
Ricardo Eyzaguirre
Michael Chiappetta
Ryan Gianquitti
Kyle Taddei

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Hawkins Returns After Yet Another Great Summer

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 3 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 38

Maurice Hawkins (Plantation, FL)

Players that head out to Las Vegas for the World Series Of Poker all have different views on what makes a successful summer.  For someone who sets their own bar as high as Maurice Hawkins (Plantation, FL) does, returning without a bracelet feels like a disappointment.  Hawkins twice found himself within arms reach of a bracelet, but managed to walk away with two WSOP final table cashes.  His conciliation prize for not getting his hands on some new jewelry...close to $250,000.  

Maurice's first final table of the summer was in the $2,620 No Limit Hold'em Marathon Event (Event #23), which he finished in ninth place for $54,356.  Exactly twelve days later, Hawkins would find himself at the $1,500 No Limit Hold'em "Monster Stack" (Event #47) final table, besting 6,705 entries to get to that point.  Maurice would be the fourth player eliminated that afternoon, as he finished in sixth place, earning $213,591.

Hawkins is now in the Flight 1B field, playing his first post-WSOP tournament, and looking to earn his fifth Isle Casino Poker trophy.

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Gity Joins A Group That Got In Cheap

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 2 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 30

Tom Gity (Pompano Beach, FL)

They famous saying goes, "In this world, nothing can be certain, except death and taxes."  You can add another "certain" to that quote...Tom Gity in attendance at an Isle Casino tournament.  Gity (Pompano Beach, FL) has over $138,000 in live tournament earnings, including an impressive (21) cashes this year alone.  Tom was one of ten players to earn a seat into this event for a fraction of the price (in last night's satellite), only shelling out $130 to get into this $1,100 event.  Tom is one of a a trio of players from last night's satellite to have already taken their seat in the field (with Charlemagne Benjamin and Robert Transue).  

Gity headlines the first group of notables in the field, which includes the likes of:

Gregory Spinder
Michael Graffeo
Ansel Allsop
Terry Siele
Alan Saltzman
Jose Reyes
Quang Pham
Sebastian Kos
Brent Granda

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Official Flight 1A Chips Counts

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 2 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 25

FSPC Event 14 (Flight 1B): Just As Nice, The Second Time Around

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 14 - $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD)
Level 1 (Blinds 25/50)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 21

Flight 1B of Event #14 is now ten minutes into play, and the start is mirroring that of yesterday's action.  Whether it's the fact that player's alarms are going off late, or that they would rather show up after the pre-ante levels, "fashionably late" is just the norm in events with this price point.  If things were to play out exactly like they did yesterday, the field would reach the guarantee first thing tomorrow morning, and we will be looking at yet another massive prize pool.  

Players in today's field are looking to bag chips for Sunday's Day 2, and join the (13) players that successfully navigated those waters yesterday.  Everyone is chasing Alexandre Fradin (Burgues, Spain), who bagged almost three times the chip average (294,000).  For those setting goals, the chip average after one flight is 107,000, with only four players from Flight 1A bagging over that amount.

A full list of yesterday official counts will be posted shortly, with coverage of this second flight to follow, and continue through the conclusion of the bagging process.

Friday, July 21st: Event 14 Following Those That Came Before It

ICYMI: Yesterday was the first of three starting flights for Event #14 of the 2017 Florida State Poker Championships ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $150,000 GTD).  Things looked as if they were going to be slow from the start, but that's only because players in these higher buy-in events choose to enter later than normal.  Many of the poker room's well known players had returned from Las Vegas (and the WSOP) earlier in the week, and chose Flight 1A to play as their first post-WSOP tournament.  Players like Joshua Kay, David Diaz, Ian O'Hara, Andrew Touchette, and Brian Hastings made up the field, which saw a total of (70) entries over the course of the day.  That equates to $68,620 going towards the overall prize pool, and puts the event on pass to cruise past the guarantee, just like so many other events that came before.  

While there were so many familiar names in this third "major" of the series, it would be a relative unknown that would bag the flight's chip lead.  Alexandre Fradin (Brugues, Spain) added a stop at the Isle Casino on his way back to Europe (from the WSOP), and now he'll have to extend his stay a little longer.  Not only because he made Day 2, but because he earned an Event #20 ($1,500 FSPC Main Event) seat as the Flight 1A chip leader (294,000).  Twelve players joined Fradin, heading to Sunday's Day 2, including the likes of David Diaz (222,700), Andrew Touchette (90,800), Brian Hastings (63,700), and Chad Eveslage (22,800).

There was also another satellite into Event #14 last night, guaranteeing (8) seats into the tournament, and attracting many of the notables players followers of the blog have come to know.  There is another satellite this evening, which is the last chance for those looking for a "discounted" route into Event #14.

Tournaments: The second of three Event #14 starting flights is the primary tournament on the schedule today, with things getting underway at 11:00am.  Flight 1B will mirror the structure from yesterday, with players sitting down to starting stacks of 20,000, and playing levels that begin at (40) minutes (and eventually transition to 50 minutes Level 7+).  Play is scheduled to finish after (12) complete levels, or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first).  Players have the option to enter whenever they want during these opening flights, with registration open all day, to include before the cards are in the air for Day 2.  

As mentioned above, the final satellite for this event gets underway at 6:00pm, and is a $130 No Limit Hold'em event, guaranteeing (10) seats into Event #14.

Promotions: The weekend kicks off with a day that's full of bonus high hands, starting the moment the doors open.  From 9:00am-12:00pm, $100 will be awarded every (10) minutes to qualifying high hands, with rollovers.  This promotion is very exciting, as we've seen rollovers that are worth between $500-$1,000 on a consistent basis.  

That period is followed by some "richer" high hands, with $250 awarded every (20) minutes from 12:00pm-4:00pm, and $500 awarded every (20) minutes from 4:00pm-12:00am.  Rollovers apply with this promotion as well, but with so many tables in play, it's not something that happens as often.

11:00am - FSPC Event #14 (Flight 1B): $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD) 

- Players start with 20,000 in tournament chips

- Late and re-entries for the first (12) levels, to include before the 1st card on Day 2

- Alternates and late entries will start with a full stack

- Level will last (40) minutes (Levels 1-6), transitioning to (50) minutes Levels 7+

- All Day 1's will play (12) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

6:00pm - $130 No Limit Hold'em Super Satellite Into Event #14 (10 Seats Guaranteed)

- Players start with 12,000 in tournament chips

- Late and re-entries for the first (8) levels

- Alternates and late entries will start with a full stack

- Level will last (20) minutes throughout the event