Saturday, December 30th: After Numerous Close Calls, Richard Kirsch Wins The $2,500 Single-Ante, Poker Room Closes Out The Year Strong

ICYMI: The last few months have been all about close calls for Richard Kirsch (Ft. Lauderdale, FL). His most recent came just a few weeks ago, when he reached the final table of the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic $10,000 Main Event, finishing in sixth for $271,736.  While that score was the largest of his impressive tournament career, Kirsch went into the day expecting a better result. On a smaller scale, Richard came just a few spots short of winning the $2,500 No Limit Hold'em Single-Ante.  He'd finish fourth in the initial running of the tournament ($15,525), and did even better during October's installment, making the final three ($16,284).  Just after midnight, Kirsch was able to best Anthony Utnage (Bloomington, IN) during heads-up play, to take down the $2,500 No Limit Hold'em Single-Ante ($100,000 GTD).  The event attracted a field of (41) entries, which equated to a $100,000 prize pool, and saw a mix of players.  Along with the satellite winners from Thursday night, there were also some new face to join the "regulars" that have frequently attended this particular tournament.  If Kirsch's heads-up opponent sounded familiar, that's because Utnage won the $1,100 No Limit Hold'em Single-Ante event during the most recent Isle Classic.  The full results from yesterday's tournament are listed below:

1. Richard Kirsch (Pompano Beach, FL) $42,000
2. Anthony Utnage (Bloomington, IN) $24,000
3. Brett Bader (Boca Raton, FL) $14,000
4. Joseph Levitt (Delray Beach, FL) $9,000
5. TJ Shulman (Boynton Beach, FL) $6,000
6. Adam Adler (Hallandale Beach, FL) $5,000

The "Single-Ante" was followed at 6:00pm, by the $75 No Limit Hold'em ($10,000 GTD), a tournament that crushed the numbers just a week ago.  The same thing happened last night, as the field was comprised of (187) total entries, and an official prize pool of $11,090.  There would be (24) players to reach the money, with the event ending in a six-way deal, headed my Misty Abeln (Parkland, FL).  The full results of the deal, along with the rest of the final table payouts, are listed below:

1. Misty Abeln (Parkland, FL) $2,000
2. Evan Kahan (Boca Raton, FL) $1,747
3. Michael anderson (Sunrise, FL) $1,272
4. Kao Saechao (Portland, OR) $1,161
5. Paul Hosch (Boynton Beach, FL) $774
6. Barry Chazen (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) $577
7. Millicent Berman (Hollywood, FL) $377
8. Ivan Michel (Deland, FL) $329
9. Tracy Brown (Coral Springs, FL) $282
10. Farrell Lapi (Coconut Creek, FL) $243

Tournaments: The 2018 tournament calendar wraps up in strong fashion today, with two events on the schedule.  The 11:00am time slot hosts the $100 No Limit Hold'em "Big Stack Turbo Bounty," which boasts a $3,000 guaranteed prize pool.  The tournament is structured with 18,000 unit starting stacks, and levels that last (15) minutes.  There is an optional add-on at the end of the registration period (after Level 10), which allows players to grab another 10,000 units for $25 (100% of add-on money goes towards the prize pool).

That event is follows (at 6:00pm) by a $130 No Limit Hold'em tournament, with a $15,000 guaranteed prize pool.  The final event of 2018 is structured with 16,000 unit starting stacks, and levels that last (20) minutes over the course of the evening.

Promotions: From (9:00am-10:00am), the high hand will award $150 every (30) minutes.  The high hands will then transition from 10:00am-12:00am (midnight), with the opportunity to win $400 every (30) minutes.  During that period, the promotion sees tournament players eligible (Isle Open events not eligible for high hand) each half-hour for $100 high hands, 2/2 limit hold'em players eligible for $200 high hands, 2/4 limit hold'em players eligible for $300 high hands, and all other raked games (1/2-5/10 NLH, 4/8 Omaha 8B, 6/12 O.E., etc.) eligible for $400 high hands.  From 12:00am-9:00am, players are eligible for $100 high hands every hour.

It should also be noted that started back on November 1st, players are able to win the high hand using only one card in their hand!!!  The payouts for those that use one card are different than the standard numbers listed above, and can be found (full listing of one-card payouts on flyers in the poker room).

11:00am - $100 No Limit Hold'em "Big Stack Turbo" w/ $25 Bounties ($3,000 GTD)

- Players will begin with a 18,000 starting stack

- Late and re-entries for the first (10) levels

- Levels are (15) minutes in length

- Option player "add-on" at the end of Level 10 ($25 for 10,000 tournament chips), with 100% of the "add-on" going to the prize pool 

6:00pm - $130 No Limit Hold'em ($15,000 GTD)

- Players will begin with a 16,000 starting stack

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

- Levels are (20) minutes in length

- All late registrants and re-entries will receive a full stack