Thursday, August 17, 2017

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Official End Of Flight 1C Chip Counts

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 16 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 72
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 10

Flight 1C reached the 13% mark, and play has stopped with 27:35 remaining in Level 16.  Posted below are the official flight chip counts:

Marco Cantizani - 324,000
Dave Becker - 182,000
Seamus Hoban - 169,000
Thomas Gari - 167,500
Erik Brewster - 146,500
Michael Gabrial - 128,000
Nick Baurichter - 109,000
Tom Macey - 87,000
Bruce Snell 75,000
Emanuel Cohen - 52,500


"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): It's All About Marco

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 15 (Blinds 1,500/3,000/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 72
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 11

Marco Cantizani (Brazil)

"Live blogged coverage" is in place to make sure that every has their opportunity to gain "face time," but sometimes the cards have other ideas.  The focus has been on Marco Cantizani numerous times this afternoon, but for a moment it was looking like he'd be back tomorrow on another bullet.  He was below the chip average, and saw his chip leading stack shrink to 70,000.

Many of his chip went the way of Abbey Daniels, who managed to chip up to 160,000.  Not even an hour passed before things completely flip-flopped, and Abbey would be walking away from Table 1, eliminated at the hands of Marco.  He's now over 300,000, and with only one level remaining in the night, is the strong favorite to bag the chip lead.





"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Updated Chip Counts (Full Field)

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 13 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 72
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 20

Marco Cantizani (Brazil)

With there levels left in the flight, posted below are the updated chip counts of those players remaining:

Table 1:

  1. Justin Smith - 36,000
  2. Erik Brewster - 38,000
  3. Dave Becker - 40,000
  4. Bruce Snell - 60,000
  5. Michael Dinardo - 58,000
  6. Tom Gity - 110,000
  7. Abbey Daniels - 99,000
  8. Richard Russ - 45,000
  9. Marco Cantizani - 210,000
Table 3:
  1. Evan Teitelbaum - 45,000
  2. Paul Shafran - 19,000
  3. Emanuel Cohen - 110,000
  4. Mike Gabriel - 52,000
  5. Alan Saltzman - 38,000
  6. Thomas Gari - 128,000
  7. Nick Baurichter - 180,000
  8. Seamus Hoban - 34,000
  9. Frank Scala - 65,000
  10. Tom Macey - 42,000

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Official Chip Counts (Flights 1A-1B)

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 13 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 72
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 20

The remaining Flight 1C players are currently on their final break of the night, and will be returning to Level 13 (1,000/2,000/300).  As a reminder, posted below are the chip counts for the players to bag chips  yesterday:




"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Snell Sends Smith Home, Down To Two Tables

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 12 (Blinds 800/1,600/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 72
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 22


Bruce Snell (Okeechobee, FL)

With three tables still remaining, Bruce Snell would open the action at Table 4 with a raise to 4,000.  Enrique Riesco took a look at his holding, and verbalized announced all-in, while grabbing chips with two hands and pounding them on the felt.  The players behind all folded, and Bruce would make the call for 24,000, having Riesco covered.

Rescue quickly turned over 2♠ 2♣, and would be in rough shape against Snell's 77.  The 5♠ 6 7♠ flop left little hope for Enrique, who was drawing dead on the turn.  Snell chipped up to 57,000 with the pot, and looks to continue the heat down the stretch (with five levels to play).

Bruce Snell - 57,000

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Full Field Lineups, Updated Players Remaining

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 11 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 72
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 23

Play is currently down to three active tables, with (23) players remaining in the field.  Play is scheduled to finish after Level 16, but if this particular flight gets down to (9) players, the clock will be paused (and the bagging process will begin).  Posted below is the full list of table lineups left in the field.

Table 1:

  1. Justin Smith 
  2. Erik Brewster
  3. Dave Becker
  4. Michael Dinardo
  5. Tom Gity 
  6. Abbey Daniels
  7. Richard Russ
  8. Marco Cantizani
Table 3:
  1. Evan Teitelbaum
  2. Paul Shafron
  3. Emanuel Cohen
  4. Thomas Gari
  5. Seamus Hoban
  6. Frank Scala
  7. Tom Macey
Table 4:
  1. Alan Saltzman
  2. Zaki Lichaa
  3. Nick Baurichter
  4. Javier Sarache
  5. Mike Gabriel
  6. Ross Ramlal
  7. Bruce Snell
  8. Enrique Riesco

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): First Look At Updated Chip Counts

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 9 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 70
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 30

Emanuel Cohen (Sunny Isles Beach, FL)

Players are back from break, and are now posting blinds of 400/800/100 in Level 9.  The numbers have been made official for the third flight of the event, with a total of (72) entries.  That brings the combined total entries to (155), which is well on pace to eclipse the $150,000 guarantee posted for the tournament.  Listed below are updated chip counts from the field, tallied one the cards we back in the air.

Marco Cantizani - 145,000
Evan Teitelbaum - 130,000
Richard Russ - 120,000
Alan Saltzman - 98,000
Seamus Hoban - 44,000
Tom Gity - 40,000
Thomas Gari - 39,000
Frank Scala - 30,000

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Registration Window Closing For Flight 1C

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 8 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 70

Marco Cantizani (Brazil)

Players will be heading on their second break of the day (in 15 minutes), and when the cards return to the air for Level 9, Flight 1C registration will officially be closed.  Leading the way as players head to break is Marco Cantizani (Brazil), a relative unknown when it comes to tournament poker here in Florida.  Marco has over $42,000 in live tournament earnings, all of which came in Brazil, over the course of that last five years.  His most recent result was March of this year, when he finished 39th in the Brazil Series Of Poker (a PokerStars festival).  Cantizani heads to break with over 150,000, but is trailed closely by Evan Teitelbaum.

Updated chip counts will be published in the first post returning from break (Level 9).



"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Late Arrivals Looking To Find A Bag

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 7 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 66

Zoltan Czinkota (Davie, FL)

Zoltan Czinkota (Davie, FL) is coming off a final table, just two days ago, during one of the final events of the SHRPO (Event #18 - $250 No Limit Hold'em DeepStack Turbo).  His fourth place finish would bring back a return of $4,126, and helped his lifetime earnings eclipse the $320,000 mark.  Czinkota is one of a group of players to arrive late, all hoping they can navigate their way to the bagging process.

Justin Smith
Eddie Uehara
Frank Scala
Seamus Hoban
Tony Mucci
Luis Cristobol
David Gelley


"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Braunstein Knocked Out By Rich Glabman

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 6 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 65


Evan Braunstein (Lighthouse Point, FL)

Evan Braunstein (Lighthouse Point, FL) was a trophy winner during the Battles At The Beach earlier this year, taking down the opening event for over $22,000.  Having just over four big blinds, Braunstein shoved moments ago, after action at Table 5 folded to him.  Rich Glabman (Coral Springs, FL) was next to act, and after asking for an exact count, he'd three-bet shove for just under 10,000.  The button and blinds folded behind, and with Braunstein flipping for his tournament life.  Evan's 8 8 held a slight lead agains the A♠ K of Glabman, but after Rich flopped an ace, things looked bleak for Braunstein.  The turn and river would fall without make Evan a set, and he'd bust his first Flight 1C shell.

Glabman is still below the starting stack, but is still played with over (30) bigs.


"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Teitelbaum Gets A Needle After Recent Tournament Win

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 5 (Blinds 150/300/25)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 63


Evan Teitelbaum (Parkland, FL) 

Evan Teitelbaum (Parkland, FL) has been recording tournament results since 2010, and has amassed earnings over $750,000.  The result that helped him eclipse the $750,000 mark was a recent win, during the Hard Rock's SHRPO.  Evan took down Event #7 ($570 No Limit Hold'em) for over $18,800, with the tournament ending late into the night.  The next morning he was excited to show his daughter the trophy pic on the blog, but didn't quite expect the reaction he got:


"Age is only a number."

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Taking The First Break Of The Day

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 4 (Blinds 100/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 54

Jeffrey Burdeen (Delray Beach, FL)

Last year was Jeff Burdeen's breakout...well really, it was his introduction to the tournament community. Burdeen had not one recorded result between 2008-2016, but ended up finishing last year with over $55,000 in live tournament earnings.  Those results included a trophy win here at the Isle, during the Florida State Poker Championships ($140 No Limit Hold'em Event #2).  That win was worth $20,102, and stands as his second largest tournament score.  

This year has been a different story for Jeff, who's recorded just one result, from January's Isle Poker Classics series.  While all tournament players will experience the wrong side of variance at some point, Burdeen has taken action, going "back to the lab."

"I've been gone for a while," Jeff said as we passed his table, "re-working the game."  There is an infinite amount of studying that can be done in regards to tournament poker, so only time will tell if Burdeen's efforts come to fruition.

Players are taking their first break of the day, and will be returning to Level 5, and new blinds of 150/300/25.

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Poljak Loves The River, So Does Haim

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 3 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 46


Luke Poljak (Pittsburgh, PA)

The action at Table 5 was approached on the river, in a heads-up hand between Luke Poljak and Haim Toorgeman.  The full board read 4 6K♠ Q K, with Tooregman announcing himself all-in just as we walked up.  Poljak immediately called, and rolled over K♣ K, having rivered quads.  Haim stood from the table and tossed his hand in the muck, with the deal informing him that his holding had to be tabled (because of an all-in and call situation).

"I don't care what you do, you can show whatever you want," Haim said, as the dealer flipped up J 7, with Toorgeman having rivered a flush.  Haim quickly walked to the cage to re-enter, while Poljak stacked up his chips, totaling over 42,000.

Luke Poljak - 42,000

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Tournament Reminder, $2,500 NLH "Single-Day Series" Less Than A Week Away

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 2 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 39




(POMPANO BEACH, FL) August 16th, 2017 - The Isle Casino Poker Room is proud to announce the first installment of the "Single-Day Series," a $2,500 No Limit Hold'em event to be held on Tuesday, August 22nd.

Months of discussions and planning have come to fruition, with a tournament that offers a higher buy-in, and convenience of a one-day event.  The Isle Poker Room "brain trust" listened to player's comments and suggestions throughout the planning process, and have put forth a product that is sure to be well-received by the poker community.  

This initial tournament begins at 12:00pm on August 22nd, and offers a great structure for an event of it's kind.  Entrants begin with 100,000 unit starting stacks, and will be playing (30) minute levels throughout the tournament.  Registration is open through the first eight levels (closing at approximately 4:20), allowing those that choose to enter late the opportunity to still sit down with twenty big blinds.

There have been commitments made by numerous players in regards to attendance for this opening event of the "series," all interested in taking home a five-figure score in less than (14) hours.  Beyond those already to have stated their intention to play, there will be a satellite run for the event on Monday, August 21st.

The satellite will have a $275 buy-in (NLH), and guarantees one seat into the following day's tournament.  While one seat will be awarded through the guarantee, players can expect multiple seats up for grabs once registration closes for the satellite, as (10) seats will be awarded to that satellite via high hand winners on Sunday, August 20th.

The promotion that normally runs on Sunday, begins at 10:00am, and awards $100 to the qualifying high hand every (10) minutes.  In addition to the $100 cash prize, the first ten high hand winners will also be awarded a seat into Monday's $275 No Limit Hold'em Satellite into the $2,500 NLH "Single-Day Series."

It's the beginning of something special here at the Isle Casino Poker Room, with even more announcements to follow in the coming weeks regarding the "Single-Day Series."

"August $150,000" (Flight 1C): Yesterday Was A Simmer, The Boiling Now Begins

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 1 (Blinds 25/50)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 37

Andrew Blake (Delray Beach, FL) 

While the pair of opening flights from yesterday saw numbers that were surprisingly light, it's clear that player's were just experiencing the "poker hangover" from over six weeks of major tournament series (between the Isle and Hard Rock).  There were already more entries in the first level today, than all of last night's flight (Flight 1B).

Andrew Blake (Delray Beach, FL) makes his return to the tournament felt for the first time since the FSPC, and is looking to continue towards making 2017 his best year of tournament poker (statistically).  Blake has $32,504 in live tournament earnings since the beginning of the year, including two trophy wins during the Isle Poker Classic (January), and a stand-alone with from the "June $50,000" ($75 No Limit Hold'em $50,000 GTD).  Blake headlines the early field, which includes names like:

Paul Shafron
Tom Gity
Zachary Mullinex
Jose Parra
Tracy Scala

Thursday, August 17th: The "August $150,000" Continues, Full House And "Turbo" Promos

ICYMI: Yesterday was he opening day of the "August $150,000," with the first two starting flights (of eight total) on the schedule.  Things got off to a relatively slow start, when considering the history of this particular multi-flight event (at the $360 prize point).  Flight 1A and Flight 1B saw a combined total of (83) entries, with (12) players successfully bagging chips for Day 2.  We saw numerous notables in the opening flight's field, including the return of Megan Endres, who chopped the $360 No Limit Hold'em event during the most recent Florida State Poker Championships.  Players like Michael Tait, Nader Bahhur, Steven Bennett, and Paula Alibrandi were all in the field at one point, but were unable to reach the bagging process.  Fausto Tersigni (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) grabbed the chip lead towards the middle of the day, and never looked back, bagging the overall lead for the day.  Listed below are the complete (combined) counts for the players that bagged chips from yesterday's pair of flights:


Fausto Tersigni 212,500
Richard Leger 205,000
Martin Markov 193,000
Steven Sondak 154,500
Thomas Cuce 154,000
Justin Levy 150,000
Jennifer Parker 131,000
James McCaffrey 113,000
Jose Reyes 103,000
Jay Feierstadt 87,000
Myles German 85,000
Manny Perez 73,000

Tournaments: Today's sees the second pair of "August $150,000" flights on the schedule, with the first (Flight 1C) beginning at 11:00am.  The structure for the $360 No Limit Hold'em ($150,000 GTD) event is the same as yesterday, with players sitting down to 20,000 unit starting stacks, and playing levels of (30) minutes.  The day's play is scheduled to conclude after Level 16, or until 10% of the field remains (whichever comes first).  The second flight (Flight 1D) will follow at 6:00pm, with the tournament's opening flights reaching their halfway point at it's conclusion.  "Live blogged coverage" will be available during the afternoon flight (Flight 1C), with official chip counts from the end of Flight 1D posted once the bags/stacks have been verified.

Promotions: The Full House Early Bird promotion is in it's regularly scheduled spot this morning, but it's no longer just for limit hold'em players.  Every table in the poker room (excluding time raked games) is eligible for the promotion, which pays out the first (50) full houses (payout depends on which stakes are being played).  Similar to what is run on Friday's, there will also be $300 awarded to qualifying high hands every (15) minutes (from 12:00pm-4:00pm).



- Players start with 20,000 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 (30) minutes during Day 1 flights, transitioning to (40) minutes on Day 2
- All Day 1's will play (15) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)


- Players start with 20,000 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 (30) minutes during Day 1 flights, transitioning to (40) minutes on Day 2
- All Day 1's will play (15) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

"August $150,000" (Flight 1B): Official End Of Flight 1B Chip Counts

"August $150,000 GTD"
$360 No Limit Hold'em (Re-Entry)
Level 16 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 33
Flight 1B Players Remaining: 6

Steven Sondak - 154,500
Jennifer Parker - 131,000
James McCaffrey - 113,000
Jose Reyes - 103,000
Jay Feierstadt - 87,000
Manny Perez - 73,000