Friday, March 30, 2018

Friday, March 30th: Jerry Wong Wraps Up The Battles At The Beach With Second $2,500 NLH Single-Ante Title

ICYMI: The 2018 Battles At The Beach wasn't going to go out quietly, as the largest buy-in event of the series, also happened to be the final event on the schedule.  Event #18 ($2,500 No Limit Hold'em Single-Ante) got underway at 11:00am, and it was clear right away, that this was going to be a special tournament.  Not only were the big names in action, they were there early...and ready to win.  Joining the twelve players to have earned the seat through a chip lead bonus (including Event #16 champion Joshua Hillock and Jerry Wong) were names like Jake Schwartz, Sam Panzica, Joseph Couden, Loni Harwood, Richard Kirsch, Joshua Kay, Chris Bolek, and Chad Eveslage.  After ten levels of open registration, the field would close with (52) entries, which equated to a an official prize pool of $119,600.  Eight players were scheduled to get paid, with the money bubble reached just before 5:00pm.  One body at the nine-handed final table would walk away empty handed, with that player being Daryl Jace.  Jace entered the final table with over sixty big blinds, but found himself spiraling downward, eventually exiting the tournament short of the money.  Once in the money, play would continue until things were three-handed, at which point a deal was made.  With a lot of tournament and cash history together, the three players (Jerry Wong, Sam Panzica, and Joseph Couden) had an easy decision to walk away with five-figures each.  By topping the chop, Jerry Wong became the first players to ever win the $2,500 No Limit Hold'em Single-Ante twice.  The official results from Event #18 are listed below:
  1. Jerry Wong (Margate, FL) $30,887
  2. Samuel Panzica (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) $29,730
  3. Joseph Couden (Coconut Creek, FL) $23,103
  4. Ruslan Dyshteyn (Hollywood, FL) $9,568
  5. Joshua Hillock (Lighthouse Point, FL) $8,372
  6. Marc Sacheli (Miami, FL) $7,176
  7. Samuel Ganzfried (Miami, FL) $5,980
  8. Tony Utnage Jr. (Hallandale Beach, FL) $4,784
The recurring schedule returned at 6:00pm, with the $150 No Limit Hold'em "Double Green Chip Bounty," which has a $5,000 guaranteed prize pool.  The field would close with (50) entries, and an official prize pool of $3,100 (not including bounties).  A total of five players would reach the money, with the event ending in a heads up chop.  Marlon Ramos and Steve Raeman split the top two spots evenly, both walking away with $1,007.  The results from the tournament are listed below:
  1. Marlon Ramos (Brazil) $1,007
  2. Steve Raeman (Pompano Beach, FL) $1,007
  3. Danny Blackburn (Deerfield Beach, FL) $497
  4. Jason Young (Suffern, NY) $341
  5. Linzell Borders (Tamarac, FL) $248
Tournaments: The day kicks off with the $120 No Limit Hold'em "Monster Stack" ($3,000 GTD), which boasts one of the best recurring tournament structures around. Players in the event sit down to starting stacks of 25,000 units, and play levels that last (20) minutes over the course of the afternoon.  Registration for the event is open through Level 8 (and the break that follows), which is approximately 3:00pm.

The "Monster Stack" is followed by an $80 No Limit Hold'em event, which carries a $5,000 guarantee.  The tournament is structured with starting stacks of 12,000 units, and levels that last (20) minutes.  Registration is also open through Level 8 (and the break that follows), which allows players the opportunity to join up until approximately 9:00pm.
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 - $120 No Limit Hold'em "Monster Stack" ($3,000 GTD)

- Players start with 25,000 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

6:00pm - $80 No Limit Hold'em ($5,000 GTD)

- Players will begin with a 12,000 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