FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Thomas Gari Bags Flight 1A Chip Lead, As (12) Players Head To Day

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 16 (Blinds 2,500/5,000/5,000)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 12

Thomas Gari (Hollywood, FL) will now be playing in Event #9 of the Florida State Poker Championships, after bagging the Flight 1A chip lead of Event #1.

Players surely tried their best, but nobody could surpass the stack of Thomas Gari (Hollywood, FL), who bagged the Flight 1A chip lead.  The official counts from the flight are listed below, with the following players returning to Day 2 on Monday:

Thomas Gari - 312,500

Tim Shane - 270,000

Michael Corbett - 228,500

Tom Gity - 209,000

Steve Damsky - 177,500

Adam Kopell - 157,500

Nelson Armas - 136,500

Filomeno Giannino - 136,000

Moses Morales - 134,000

Shlomo Maman - 118,000

Jose Parra - 112,500

Bruce Warren - 89,000

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Entering The Final Level Of Play, Event #9 Seat Up For Grabs

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 16 (Blinds 2,500/5,000/5,000)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 13

Thomas Gari (Hollywood, FL) is the Flight 1A chip leader, with just (25) minutes left in play.

Play just entered Level 16, which is the final scheduled level of the day, pending the field doesn't lose two more players (in the next 15 minutes).  Thomas Gari (Hollywood, FL) is currently pacing the field, and is the favorite to win the chip lead bonus.  Gari enters Level 16 with over 310,000 in front of him, but is still being chased by the following players:

Michael Corbett

Steve Damsky

Tim Shane

Shlomo Maman

Moses Morales

Nelson Armas

Bruce Warren

Tom Gity

Arnold Cohen

Filomeno Giannino

Adam Kopell

Jose Parra

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Krackomberger And Gity Are Happy, Collins Can't Believe What Fell

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/4,000)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 19

Steven Krackomberger (Howell, NJ) is from out of town, but is beginning to like the Isle Casino Pompano Park, as he triples up with just over an hour remaining to play.

There was a commotion at Table 3, as a three-way all-in (pre-flop) was unfolding between Tom Gity, Trevor Collins, and Steve Krackomberger (Howell, NJ).  Krackomberger was a short stack with 35,600, but held a firm lead heading to the runout:

Krackomberger: A♦ A♣
Gity: Q♣ Q♥
Collins: K♠ K♣

Runout: A♠ Q♠ 2♦ 9♥ 3♦

Both Steven and Tom would flop sets, which was significant, because there was a sizable side pot between Gity and Trevor Collins.  Trevor was visibly disgusted by the runout, as the outcome would leave him with less than ten big blinds.

Tom Gity - 162,000 (40bb)
Steven Krackomberger - 115,000 (28bb)
Trevor Collins - 18,000 (4bb )

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Parra Continues To Climb. Leaves Kopell With Crumbs

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 14 (Blinds 2,000/3,000/3,000)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 20

Jose Parra (Hialeah Gardens, FL) is now very much in contention for the chip lead bonus, after taking Adam Kopell to value-town.

Towards the end of Level 13, we caught up to a hand between Jose Parra and Adam Kopell, which was already on the river.  With the board reading K♣ 10♦ 5♦ 3♦ 7♠, Kopell (who was in the small blind) tossed out a bet of 12,000.  Parra then countered with a raise to 30,000, sending Adam deep into the tank.  After counting out his stack a few times, Kopell made the call, only to see Parra turn over A♦ 4♦.  Kopell then flashed K♠ 3♥, mentioning to Parra that they could have got it in on the turn.  Luckily for Adam, that's not how the hand played out, and he'd be left with a stack to try and spin up.

Jose Parra - 225,000 (75bb)
Adam Kopell - 30,000 (10bb)

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Updated Chip Counts Post Final Break, Race For Chip Lead Bonus Heats Up

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 13 (Blinds 1,500/2,500/2,500)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 24

Players are now back from their final break, and the cards are in the air for Level 13.  Some of the larger stacks are posted below, but that doesn't mean those not listed aren't in the running for the chip lead bonus.  We've seen some crazy things happen over these last levels, and wouldn't be surprised by much at this point.

Nelson Armas - 250,000 (100bb)

Moses Morales - 200,000 (80bb)

Jose Parra - 190,000 (76bb)

Tom Gity - 130,000 (52bb)

Tim Shane - 110,000 (44bb)

Thomas Gari - 105,000 (42bb)

Michael Corbett - 100,000 (40bb)

Filomeno Giannino - 100,000 (40bb)

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Three Tables Remain, Lineups From Each

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/2,000)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 27

Action is now half the way through Level 12, with the final break of the flight to follow at it's conclusion.  Players will return for the final four scheduled levels, with action scheduled to pause earlier, only if the field reaches the 10% mark (11 players).  The remaining Flight 1A players are listed below (by seating assignment):

Table 1

1. Bruce Snell
2. Michael Corbett
3. Steve Damsky
4. Henry Billete
5. Shlomo Maman
6. Moses Morales 
7. Robert Dobbs
8. Evan Teitlelbaum

Table 3

1. Dan Diamond
2. Bruce Warren
3. Arnold Cohen
4. Kerry Tkachyk
5. Steve Serle
6. Adam Kopell
7. Steve K.
8. Jose Parra
9. Filomeno Giannino

Table 9

1. Frank Scala
2. Nelson Armas
3. Tom Gity
4. Tim Shane
5. Steve Cardarelli
6. Trevor Collins
7. Tom Puccio
8. Thomas Gari

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Updated Chip Counts From The Flight 1A Field

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/1,200)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 48

Tim Shane (Boca Raton, FL) happened to go super deep in one of the only tournaments (multi) that didn't have live blogged coverage...as the blogger was getting shoulder surgery that weekend.

The top of the leaderboard is beginning to get crowded, as players have caught up to Nelson Armas, who has hovered around the 115,000 mark he reached earlier in the afternoon.  Tim Shane (Boca Raton, FL), who took second place in the $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD) that ran the first week of May, is now in contention for the overall chip lead.  That tournament was chopped six ways, with Shane earning $12,703 for his second place share.

Nelson Armas - 110,000 (91bb)

Tim Shane - 100,000 (83bb)

Moses Morales - 95,000 (79bb)

Jose Parra - 75,000 (62bb)

Frank Scala - 70,000 (62bb)

Adam Kopell - 70,000 (62bb)

Shlomo Maman - 70,000 (62bb)

Trevor Collins - 65,000 (54bb)

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Official Numbers In For Opening Flight Of Event #1, As FSPC Is Off To Strong Start

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/1,000)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 104
Flight 1A Players Remaining: 50

With the cards now back in the air for Level 9, registration is now closed for Flight 1A of Event #1 ($175 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD).  The field closed with (104) total entries, and a prize pool of $14,040.  If we moved forward with this pace alone, the guarantee would be surpassed over the course of eight flights...but things are only going to grow larger from here.  As impressive as last year's number was ($223,160), we could be in for something even larger this time around.  

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Jose Parra Straight Flushes His Way To An 80,000 Chip Stack

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/800)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 102

Jose Parra (Hialeah Gardens, FL) not only chipped up to double the average stack, but also had an opportunity to win the half hour's high hand.

"High hand, Table 3," could be heard across the poker room, as the dealer was notifying a supervisor about Jose Parra's ten-high straight flush.  The table was approached just as the stacks were being counted down, with the following hands face up:

Jose Parra: 6♣ 9♣
Richard Wetter: 6♦ 9♦
A. Nonymous: J♠ 8♠

Board: 6♠ 10♣ 9♥ 7♣ 8♣

It was an adventurous hand for Parra, who flopped a combo draw, and rivered the straight-flush.  Parra knocked out the unknown player from Flight 1A action, while seeing his 30,000 chip stack matched by Richard Wetter.

Jose Parra - 82,000 (102bb)

Players will be taking their second break of the day after this level, with the registration window closed for Flight 1A, once the cards get in the air for Level 9.

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Nelson Armas The First To Eclipse The Century Mark

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/600)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 101

Nelson Armas (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) is all smiles as the early Flight 1A chip leader, already looking forward, towards the "chip lead bonus."

The first player to reach the century mark is a milestone in each opening flight that is covered on the blog, with Nelson Armas (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) claiming stake to that title today.  Armas could be seen motioning to his friend a few tables away, showing his buddy the stack that sat in front of him.  Armas sits comfortably with 128,000, which is far and away the largest total at the moment.  Research shows that Armas has over $32,000 in live tournament earnings, all of which came from one result.  Nelson took second place in the $545 No Limit Hold'em event that ran during the 2017 Wynn Fall Classic ($32,071).  He would fall to notable poker professional Scott Clements, but still walk away with a very respectable number.  

Nelson Armas - 128,000 (213bb)

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Frank Scala Climbs The Leaderboard, Sends Nakonechnny To The Rail

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 5 (Blinds 300/500/500)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 98

Frank Scala (Boca Raton, FL) hopes to emulate his run from Event #1 of the 2018 Battles At The Beach, when he took fourth place money, in a five-way chop (worth $10,578).

Frank Scala (Boca Raton, FL) was standing at Table 1, clearly interested in the hand unfolding in front of him.  Frank was all-in against Yaroslav Nakonechnny, but was not at risk, just looking for his hand to hold up.  The two players got it in on a flop of A♣ 7♣ 6♠, with Scala holding A♠ 6♣, against Yaroslav's J♣ 4♣.  The turn and river would run out clean for Scala, who picked up the 20,000 chip pot, bringing his total stack to 75,000.  That is currently one of the largest stacks in the field, as the registration window begins to close (two full levels of open registration remain).

Frank Scala - 75,000 (150bb)

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): No Days Off For Tom Gity, Who Gets Right Back On The Horse

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 5 (Blinds 200/400/400)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 92

Tom Gity (Pompano Beach, FL) has a plan to get his body clock back on east coast time, and it involves playing Flight 1A this afternoon.

The single-ante structure threw even the blogger for a loop, as the first break of the day is actually after this level (Level 5).  The most recent entry into the field was Tom Gity (Pompano Beach, FL), who is just a few hours removed from his return flight from Las Vegas (red-eye).  Opposed to taking the day off, Tom has decided to jump into today's Flight 1A, and hopefully earn three days off (after bagging chips).  While Gity's WSOP $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event experience ended well short of his intended goal, Tom did leave Las Vegas a winner.  Upon arriving out west, Gity entered a $1,100 No Limit Hold'em event, that was part of the 2018 Wynn Summer Classic.  His run in that event would see him eliminated in 20th place, which was worth $14,029.  It will be interesting to see how Tom plays on little sleep...maybe he will take a quick nap during the upcoming ten minute break.

Players will head on their first break of the day, returning to Level 6, and new blinds of 300/500/500 (26,000 chip average).

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Long List Of Notables Grow, As We Head To The Day's First Break

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 4 (Blinds 200/300/300)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 70

Arlene Vazquez (Parkland, FL) has been on a tear this year playing recurring events, but is still looking for that highlighting score in a multi.

The Flight 1A field continues to grow at a rapid pace, as two new tables have recently opened up in the tournament area.  One of the most recent entries to the field was Arlene Vazquez (Parkland, FL), who has been just crushing the recurring events this year.  Since the calendar turned, Arlene has recorded (16) results, (12) of which came here at Isle Casino Pompano Park.  What's even more impressive about those numbers, is the fact that all but three of those results were final table finishes.  Arlene's largest score in this poker room came back in 2011, when she chopped up the $340 No Limit Hold'em Seniors Events (5th place for $3,908).  Vazquez continues our long list of notables in this Flight 1A field, joining the likes of:

Rick Kalgstein
Hugh Hardy
Morris Heider
Jose Parra
Thomas Gari
Michael Corbett

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Turning Daily Success Into "Multi Money"

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/200)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 61

Brain Haines (Southwest Ranches, FL) usually sports his patented fedora at the tables, but has decided to let the locks flow this afternoon.

If you follow the blog on a daily basis, then you know that each and every tournament that is run in the poker room, has it's results posted the next day (either final table or full results, depending on tournament size).  Those dedicated followers would surely know the name Brian Haines (Southwest Ranches, FL), who has made a habit of cashing in the recurring events on the monthly calendars.  Brian then experienced his breakout score during this year's Battles At The Beach, taking fourth place money in a four way chop of Event #16 ($360 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD).  The result would see Haines walk away with $12,728, which was almost four time larger than his previous career high.  Brian may not be wearing his patented fedora this afternoon, but he was spotted during our lap for the second group of notables in the field:

Pasquale Calabria
Brett Feldman
Frank Scala
Maan Thakur
Terry Siele
Trevor Collins
Nam Ngo
Eddie Turner

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): Drazen Looking To Continue Good Form, And Gets Hands On First Major Title

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 2 (Blinds 100/200)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 50

Stanton Drazen (Delray Beach, FL) made sure to be on time for the first hand of Flight 1A, as he hopes to make another deep run in a large field multi.

It didn't take long for the tournament tables to get crowded, as the field almost tripled in size over the first thirty minutes of the day.  One of the early bird entries was Stanton Drazen (Delray Beach, FL), who is a tournament regular here at the Isle Casino Poker Room.  Stanton is pushing $30,000 in career tournament earnings, thanks to his most recent result, chopping the $200 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD) two weeks ago.  Drazen would earn eighth place money (in the eight-way deal), taking home $5,176 for his efforts (his second largest tournament cash).  Some other notables tossing chips around in this opening flight include:

Shlomo Maman
Moses Morales
Richard Wetter
Craig Witz
Thomas Puccio
Joshua Rittenberg
Kenneth Berman
Tim Shane

FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1A): The 10th Anniversary Of The Florida State Poker Championships Is Officially Underway

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #1 | $175 No Limit Hold'em | $100,000 GTD
Level 1 (Blinds 100/100)
Total Flight 1A Entries: 14

Players began taking their seats in the tournament area just a short while ago, ready for the first hand of the 2018 Florida State Poker Championship to be dealt.  Event #1, which is a $175 No Limit Hold'em, boasts a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool.  It's the tournament which sets the tone for the rest of the series, as it did last year, with over 1,590 entries (and an official prize pool of $223,160).

The tournament is structured with 20,000 unit starting stacks, and levels that will last (25) minutes over the course of the event.  Registration for each flight is open through Level 8 (and the break that follows), meaning players have almost four hours to join the action.  Play is scheduled to conclude after Level 16, or when the 10% point is reached (players remaining), with those that bag returning on Monday (Day 2).  The chip lead bonus is back, as each flight leader with earn entry into Event #9, which is an $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($200,000 GTD).  This tournament has adapted the single-ante format structure, which players will see on a majority of the events during this series.

Ralph Brandt made the rules announcements for the players in the Flight 1A field just moments ago, and the cards are now in the air for the 10th Anniversary Florida State Poker Championship.

Thursday, July 5th: It's Time!!!! The 2018 Florida State Poker Championship Kicks Off Today

ICYMI: While today is the official start of the 2018 Florida State Poker Championships, the action for the series technically started yesterday.  There were two $45 No Limit Hold'em satellites into Event #1, guaranteeing a combined total of (15) seats into the opening tournament of the series.  There would be (22) seats awarded between the two satellites, as the 11:00am installment saw registration close with (73) entries, and the 6:00pm installment close with (33) entries.  The full list of players to earn a seat into Event #1 ($175 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD), for a fraction of the price, are listed below:

1. Steve Lamm (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
2. Samuel Borger (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
3. Yolvin Hernandez (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
4. Dillon Bindewald (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
5. Kevin Montagna (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
6. Robert Dobbs (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
7. Elissa Halbreich (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
8. Lloyd Nastase (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
9. Felipe Martinez (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
10. Willie Wiggins (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
11. Frank Traino (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
12. Douglas Decker (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
13. Frank Leisner (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
14. Debra Neser (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
15. Marc Freund (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
16. Mihaly Lukacs (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
17. Samuel Sternfield (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
18. Teddy Mendesse (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
19. Leonard Murray (FSPC Event #1 Seat)
20. Helen Beyer (FSPC Event #1 Seat)

Tournaments: Today's schedule hosts the opening flights for Event #1 of the 2018 Florida State Poker Championship, which is a $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD).  There will be eight starting flights over the next four days (Thursday through Sunday), with players that bagged chips returning on Monday, for Day 2 action.  Each of the flights have the same structure, with players sitting down to starting stacks of 20,000 units, and levels during the tournament that last (25) minutes.  Registration for each flight is open through Level 8 (and the break that follows, allowing almost four hours for players to join the action.  The "chip lead bonus" is back, as each of the flight's chip leaders will earn a seat into Event #9, which is an $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($200,000 GTD).

Each of the afternoon flights will have live blogged coverage, kicking off at 11:00am, and offering updates through each of the flight's bagging process.  Evening flights will have official counts posted at their conclusion, with follower's getting wall-to-wall coverage during Monday's Day 2.

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 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 - 2018 Florida State Poker Championship Event #1 (Flight 1A) | $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD) 

- 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

- Levels will last (25) minutes

- All Day 1's will play (16) complete levels or until 10% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

6:00pm - 2018 Florida State Poker Championship #1 (Flight 1B) | $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD) 

- 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

- Levels will last (25) minutes

- All Day 1's will play (16) complete levels or until 10% of the field remains (whichever comes first)