FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1E): The Big Numbers Are Rolling In

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 4 (Blinds 100/200)
Total Flight 1E Entries: 104

Steve Olivier (Miami, FL) 

We are beginning to get answers to some of the questions that were posed earlier this morning, specifically in regards to field size.  The afternoon flights that came before today's hosted field sizes of 101 (Flight 1A) and 105 (Flight 1B), both very respectable numbers for the days they fell on.  They are going to pale in comparison to this afternoon though, as the tournament clock already shows (104) entries.  It's a great sign that these next three weekend flights will likely churn out some big numbers, which then correlates to a massive prize pool.

One of the players to make up this strong early field is Steve Olivier (Miami, FL), who is coming off of his best statistical year of poker.  Olivier had earnings of over $15,000 last year, which included the largest cash of his career.  Olivier bubbled the final table of Event #10 during the 2016 SHRPO, a tournament that had close to $200,000 up top.  His 16th place finish saw him take home $7,014, but also gave him the confidence that any player needs to make a deep run in a tournament with such a massive field (like this tournament will have).  Adding their names to the long list of notables in the field are:

Luke Rosenberg

Michael Tufaro

Robert Miller

Michael Weinberg

Francois Gagne

Paul Shafran

Edward Jaffe

Peter Bronstein

Alan Saltzman

Players are taking their first break of the day, and will be returning at (10) minutes to Level 5, and new blinds of 150/300/35.

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1E): Pacheco In His Comfort Zone

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 3 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Flight 1E Entries: 75

Hector Pacheco (Lauglin, NV)

This poker blog was launched in October of last year, and is now offering coverage of it's fourth major tournament series.  There have been a few constants over the course of the blog's lifetime, one of which is Hector Pacheco bagging heaps during these "majors."  Hector manages to find his way to the top of the leaderboard on Day 1 seemingly more often than any other player.

What's even more impressive about the Day 1 success, is Hector's ability to follow that up with Day 2 success.  It's something we see all the time...a player bagging heaps, only to earn a min-cash for the efforts.  Pacheco has made a habit of deep runs, and has tournament earnings over $116,000 to show for it.  Pacheco highlighting score came last year, when he shipped a $360 No Limit Hold'em event during the Coco Spring Poker Series (Coconut Creek) for $63,000.  Hector also has a five-figure score from this room, finishing runner-up in last September's $150 No Limit Hold'em "Monster Stack" ($27,513).

Pacheco headlines the first group of notables in this afternoon's field, a list that includes the likes of:

Zakarya Wolgamott

Paula Alabrandi

Kenneth Bruno

Kevin Scarola

Nancy Thomas

James Hamburger

James Womack

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1E): Official Chip Counts (Flights 1A-1D)

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 2 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Flight 1E Entries: 45

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1E): Weekend Action Getting Underway

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 1 (Blinds 25/50)
Total Flight 1E Entries: N/A

The halfway point of the 2017 Florida State Poker Championships Event 1 starting flights has been reached, and to this point there have been (512) entries.  A total of (69) players have successfully bagged chips for Sunday's Day 2, and look to be battling it out for a prize pool that should eclipse the $100,000 guarantee this evening.  

The "weekend flights" during multi-day/multi-flight events are most often the largest of the group, so it will be interesting to see if this 11:00am (Flight 1E) flight bests the numbers from those before (Flight 1A had 101 entries, followed by Flight 1C with 105).  Players in this flight sit down to starting stacks of 20,000 units, and play levels lasting (25) minutes throughout the tournament.  Those players looking for a goal (outside of bagging chips), can either decide to try bag chip average (which is 150,000), or chase the chip lead (held by the following players from each flight):

Flight 1A: Joseph Thomas (374,000)

Flight 1B: Oleg Efremov (500,500)

Flight 1C: Steven Cohen (377,500)

Flight 1D: Scott Sommer (492,500)

Flight 1E action gets underway in just a few minutes, with live blogged coverage continuing through the bagging process (scheduled to begin after 16 levels of play, or until 13% of the field remains).  A list of combined chip counts from the first four flights will be published once play begins, followed by a look at some of the notables in the field to start the day.

Friday, July 7th: FSPC Event 1 Continues, "Turbo High Hands" Return

ICYMI: Yesterday's tournament schedule hosted a second pair of Event 1 flights, with both Flight 1C and Flight 1D besting the numbers from the day prior.  Flight 1C (11:00am) had a total of (105) entries, with (14) players successful in reaching the bagging process.  Steven Cohen used a mixture of aggression and run good on the final hand of the day, to bag the flight's chip lead (377,500).  Cohen earned himself entry in Event 14 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $150,000 GTD), but more importantly, put himself into position to enter Day 2 with a top stack.  Some other notables to bag in the afternoon flight included Jaime Wiegrefe (253,000), Elias Nassif (152,500), and Thomas Gari (106,000).

Flight 1D earned the distinction of being the largest flight of the four to have been played, with a total of (160) entries making up the field.  After sixteen complete levels of play, (22) players remained when the bagging process began.  Scott Sommer (Jupiter, FL) earned the chip lead bonus after bagging 492,500, besting his nearest competitor by over 100,000 chips (Pedro Palacio - 363,000).  Some others to bag from Flight 1D included Andrew Blake (160,500), Michael Marks (143,500), and Russell Stampler (58,500).

At the midway point of Event 1 starting flights, there has been a total of (512) entries, with (69) players already having booked tickets to Sunday's Day 2.  That equates to $71,680 towards the overall prize pool, and a pace that may see the tournament's guarantee eclipsed today, with two more flights on the schedule.

Tournaments: The first of those two flights begins at 11;00am, when the cards get in the air for Flight 1E.  The afternoon flight will have "live blogged coverage," and will continue with the same structure as the completed flights to come before it.  Those who are unable to make it to the poker room during the day, can look forward to entering the evening flight (Flight 1F), which gets underway at 6:00pm (and has open registration until just before 9:00pm).

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 #1 (Flight 1E): $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

- Level will last (25) minutes throughout the event

- All Day 1's will play (16) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

6:00pm - FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1F): $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

- Level will last (25) minutes throughout the event

- All Day 1's will play (16) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

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

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 16 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Flight 1D Entries: 160
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 22/160

Scott	Sommer	492,500
Pedro	Palacio	363,000
Ryan	Ricci	269,500
Charles	Odenz	247,000
Andrew	Blake	160,500
Zack	Milchman	152,000
Michael	Marks	143,500
Armando	Rojas	134,000
Elliot	Goldman	127,000
Martin	Markov	117,000
Jeffrey	Lutin	115,000
Pantelis	Hatzkontos	113,500
Manuel	Soltero	112,500
Jeffrey	Keiser	101,500
Emanuel	Cohen	93,000
Gail	Lutin	79,000
Blake	Robbins	78,500
Erik	Reed	71,000
Russ	Stampler	58,500
John	Bikas	58,000
Roberto	Schmeda	58,000
Perry	Werbel	55,000

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

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 16 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 14/105

Steven	Cohen	377,500
Jaime	Wiegrefe	253,000
Troy	Parra	207,000
Diane	Schmidt	196,500
Kyle	Maistri	182,000
Elias	Nassif	152,500
Pasquale	Caiazza	152,500
Kenneth	Carl	109,000
Thomas	Gari	106,000
Eli	Math	103,000
Roberto	Riva	103,000
Aaron	Friedman	61,500
Jose	Parra	57,000
Edward	Salaga	39,500

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Steven Cohen Bags Chip Lead With Final Hand Fireworks

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 16 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 14/105

Flight 1C hung on to become the first flight to play through the scheduled sixteen levels, and it took each and every hand to determine the chip leader.  It looked as if Jaime Wiegrefe was going to walk away with the Event 14 seat, but that was until Steven Cohen and Roy Paulena got locked up on the last hand of the afternoon.  

Action in the hand was caught on the turn of a board reading 3♥ 5♦ 4♠ K♥, with Cohen placing forward a bet of 35,000.  Paulena casually made the call, and the two would watch as the dealer placed down the 9♣ on the river.  With the pot already over 100,000, and Paulena sitting with close to 70,000 behind, Cohen announced that he was all-in.  "It just feels like you're continuing a bluff...I've made it this far, I call," said Paulena.  Cohen then rolled over 9♥ 9♠, riveting a set, and garnering a collective reaction from the table.  Paulena flashed his hand (3♠ 5♠), having flopped two pair, but it was all window dressing.  

Tournament Director Ralph Brandt then broke out the bags, and the remaining (14) players began to pack up their chips.  The official counts will be posted shortly, but Steven Cohen is officially the Flight 1C chip leader, earning the $1,100 seat.

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Schmidt Looking To Hold It Down For The Ladies

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 16 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 16/105

Diane Schmidt (Ft. Myers, FL) 

Diane Schmidt (Ft. Myers, FL) just went from trying to be the only woman to bag chips in this flight, to trying to bag the chip lead.  After the player UTG opened to 8,000, and four players called behind, Diance Schmidt decided to come along from the big blind.  She'd fire out a bet of 15,000 into the field after the K♦ 10♦ 5♠ flop, clearing all but one player out of the hand.  Her line changed after the 9♥ on the turn, check-calling a 20,000 bet from her opponent.  With the 2♦ on the river completing the diamond draw, Diane announced she was all-in, putting her opponent to a decision for his stack.

Schmidt's adversary was visibly frustrating, feeling that he had the best hand until the river.  After three minutes in the tank, he would release his hand, and Diane would scoop 120,000 pot without contest.  She's up to 180,000, and just one sizable pot away from becoming the flight's chip leader.

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Two Tables...One With All Of The Chips

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 15 (Blinds 1,500/3,000/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 17/105

Pasquale Caiazza (Davie, FL) 

The Flight 1C field is on the "end of flight bubble," with action to conclude after three more eliminations.  There are (30) minutes remaining of play, so it's really anyone's guess to as when the flight will end.  Kyle Maistri is hoping the proceedings stop as soon as possible, as he is the chip leader with 220,000.  He shares the felt (Table 1) with a handful of his closest competitors on the leaderboard, including:

Steven Cohen - 185,000

Roberto Riva - 165,000

Pasquale Caiazza - 160,000

Roy Paulena - 130,000

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Cohen Climbing, While Davis Somehow Stays In

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 14 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/400)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 22/105

Steven Cohen assumed the chip lead just a few minutes ago, after his A♠ J♥ held against Smith's A♦ 9♦ on an A♣ 6♥ 7♠ flop.  Smith was all-in for about half the average (50,000), but was unable to come from behind to steal the pot away.  That pot brings Cohen just over 200,000, making him the only play above that mark in the field.

Richard Davis continued his roller coaster day after losing a hand to Kyle Maistri, but he must feel like he'd free rolling after having not been eliminated.  In a blind v. blind situation, Davis called a raise from Kyle pre-flop, and decided to call the flop and turn with 5♥ 6♣ on a 6♥ 7♠ 10♣ 4♦ board (having flopped a pair, and turned open-ended).  The board would complete with an 8♦ on the river, giving Davis the straight, but he chose to check-back after Maistri checked river.  Davis rolled over his hand, but Kyle showed 8♣ 9♠, having flopped the straight and besting Richard's eight-high straight.

Steven Cohen - 219,000
Kyle Maistri - 160,000
Richard Davis - 55,000

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Even Playing Field As Race Heats Up

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 13 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 23/105

Steven Cohen (Florida)

With only (23) players remaining as the level transitions (Level 14 began minutes ago), it's becoming more and more likely that the flight will end at the 13% mark (14 players).  The landscape of the leaderboard has changed dramatically, with the chip lead bonus a potential reality for more than half the field.

Roy Paulena - 145,000
Jaime Wiegrefe - 140,000
Steven Cohen - 135,000
Rick Kalgstein - 130,000
Richard Davis - 125,000
Aaron Friedman - 125,000
Kyle Maistris - 120,000
Elias Nassif - 118,000
Thomas Gari - 105,000

If the flight ends at the 13% mark, the player who holds the chip lead at that point will earn the Event 14 seat ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $150,000 GTD).

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Three Tables Remain At Final Break

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 12 (Blinds 800/1,600/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 30/105

Players are heading on their final break of the flight, and will return to finish off the final four scheduled levels. The likelihood is slim that sixteen levels will be played in this flight though, as action would also stop if (14) players remain.  Both flights from yesterday finished "early," with Flight 1A stopping late in Level 16, and Flight 1B finishing with a majority of Level 15 remaining.

While Kyle Maistri is still leading the way, there is a group of players that are looking to challenge that number as the flight winds down.  Elias Nassif (Plantation, FL) finds himself in the top five (130,000), along with Richard Davis (165,000) and Steven Cohen (115,000).  Updated chip counts from the field will be posted when action resumes after break.

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Parra Shuts The Door On The Turn

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 11 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 40

Jose Parra (Hialeah, FL) 

After a player in the hijack shoved for 11,600, Nancy Thomas re-shoved for 15,200 from the button.  Jose Parra (Hialeah, FL) was next to act, and he'd join the action by shoving all-in as well (having both players covered), with the big blind folding behind.

Parra: A♠ J♥

Thomas: A♥ 3♥

Player X: J♣ 8♥

Parra held a lead against both of his opponent's hands, with that lead getting strong after a K♦ 10♦ 7♠ flop.  The dealer then placed down the Q♠ on the turn, giving Parra a straight, and leaving Thomas drawing only to a chop.  The 4♥ on the river sealed the pot for Parra, who finds himself above average with 73,000.

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Maistri Currently Pacing the Field

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 10 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 48

Kyle Maistri (Florida)

The race for the chip lead bonus doesn't really take true form until after the final break of the flight, but one player has made sure that he's considered the favorite at the moment.  Kyle Maistri sits with just over 170,000 in front of him, which leads the field by a wide margin.  Of the chip leaders from earlier (Kalgstein, Smith, and Friedman), only Aaron Friedman has maintained a stack above 100,000.

One of the most common questions from players in flights that offer a bonus is, "What did the chip leaders bag yesterday (or up to this point)?"  The top stacks from yesterday's action were held by Joseph Thomas (374,000 from Flight 1A) and Oleg Efremov (505,000 form Flight 1B), with Flight 1C's eventual leader likely to fall more in the range of Thomas (considering field size).

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Updated Chip Counts Post-Break

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 9 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 105

Roy Paulena (West Palm Beach, FL) 

Players are just returning from break, and the numbers are now official for the third of eight Event 1 ($175 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD) flights.  A total of (105) entries made up the flight, with $14,700 going towards the overall prize pool ($49,280 combined pool).  There are currently (59) active players in the field, with some of the larger stacks tallied during break posted below.

Rick Kalgstein - 110,000
Aaron Friedman - 96,000
Bradford Corner - 80,000
Roy Paulena - 75,000
Jose Parra - 70,000
Thomas Gari - 52,000
Tom Gity - 48,000

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Kalgstein The First To Eclipse Century Mark

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 8 (Blinds 300/600/75)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 101

Players are about half the way through Level 8, signifying the close of this flight's registration.  Those still wanting to can enter Flight 1C up until the moment Level 9 starts (there is a 10 minute break after this level), which is at 2:45pm.  The official number may change just a bit over the next (30) minutes, but this flight's attendance is very similar in numbers to yesterday's opening flight (which had 101 entries).  As the word begins to spread about the potential size of this prize pool, we should see some bloated numbers over the next couple of days.

Rick Kalgstein (Sunrise, FL) just became the first players to see their stack move north of 100,000.  Already holding one of the top stacks in the field, Kalgstein had an opponent at risk for a 30,000 pot, holding K♠ K♦ against 9♥ 9♣.  The runout stayed clean for Rick, who pulled back his chips, and began collecting some new ones pushed his way by the dealer.

Rick Kalgstein - 108,000

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Gari Is The Picture Of Consistency

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 7 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 96

Thomas Gari (Hollywood, FL) 

The action was approached at Table 4 with action on the flop, and Hosney Boutros and Thomas Gari checking a board of K♠ 9♦ 4♣.  An unknown player then shoved for 6,100, with Joseph Duchman just flatting behind.  Boutros then re-shoved for 6,350, with both Thomas Gari and Duchman calling behind.  

Four players would be heading to the turn, with two of those players all-in.  Both active players (Gari and Duchman) checked the turn (4♦) and river (6♥), and Gari quickly tabled K♥ 8♠.  The pair of kings would be good enough for the pot, and Gari would go from 18,000 to 46,000.

Thomas Gari has made a career of playing these smaller buy-in (large guarantee) tournaments, and has a pretty impressive resume to show for it.  He has (71) recorded results since 2014, totaling just over $80,000.  

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Davis Leads Group Charging Up The Leaderboard

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 6 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 87

Richard Davis (Jupiter, FL) 

It was right around this point yesterday that we began to see some players separate themselves from the field, one of which bagged a top three stack for the flight (Zoltan Czinkota - 203,500).  There are three players in this early Flight 1C field that have started very strong, one of which is Richard Davis (Jupiter, FL).  

Davis has six cashes on his Hendon Mob tournament resume, the first of which was a final table in the $580 No Limit Hold'em ($500,000 GTD) event at Palm Beach Kennel Club, during a WSOP Circuit stop in 2014.  Davis finished in seventh place, earning $14,645 for his efforts, and kickstarting a promising two years of tournament poker.  Richard went on to cash in three more WSOP Circuit events, along with last year's Colossus II event during the WSOP.

Richard Davis - 68,000

Stephen Smith - 65,000

Aaron Friedman - 62,000

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Lots Of Wheel Cards

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 5 (Blinds 150/300/25)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 73

Aaron Friedman (Boca Raton, FL) 

When are group of people are surrounding a table four minutes into break, it's usually a sign that something is unfolding.  The hand just finished by the time the table was approached, but the players continued to talk about it as they headed to break.  Aaron Friedman was holding A♥ A♠ on a flop of A♣ 3♥ 4♠, with three other players deciding to get their chips all-in at that moment.  Friedman has all but one opponent covered (Hosney Boutros), but seemed in line to scoop a large pot.  Aaron was up against 5♠ 5♥ and 2♠ 3♣, so he needed to fade certain wheel cards in order for his hand to hold.  

The turn and river both bricked Aaron's opponents, and he'd be awarded the pot, worth over 50,000 (135bb).  Aaron is coming off of a tournament win at Borgata (in June), shipping the $150 No Limit Hold'em event during their Borgata Deepstack Challenge.  The $4,314 Friedman earned for first place was the largest score of his tournament career, bringing his total earnings to $10,000.

Aaron Friedman - 57,000

Hosney Boutros - 8,500

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Couple Of Buddies Just Looking To Find A Bag

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 4 (Blinds 100/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 58

Harry Freeman (pictured left) and Hosney Boutros

Harry Freeman (Boca Raton, FL) and Hosney Boutros (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) have spent many hours at the poker table together, both staple figures in the daily tournaments run each day.  Freeman has compiled a tournament resume with over $5,600 in tournament earnings, including his first recorded final table cash just one month ago ($100 No Limit Hold'em "Monster Stack" 2nd Place $1,241).

Hosney, otherwise known as "Tony," has a tournament resume with just under $20,000 in recorded earnings.  Each and every of his (19) recorded cashes have come at the Isle, including a final table in the 2010 Florida State Poker Championships Main Event ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em - 10th Place $7,876).

Both players have been playing in this poker room for years, and one can be sure that a deep run in this event, would deb a highlighting moment in either of their poker careers.  Also joining Freeman and Boutros in the Flight 1C field are:

Tayfun Akbasli

Carey Pickus

Shlomo Maman

John Page

Kevin Scarola

Moshe Wasser

David Coughlin

Tom Gity

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

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Rick Is Leading The "Kalgstein Crew"

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 3 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 50

Rick Kalgstein (Sunrise, FL) 

A common story heard from poker players has to do with when they learned the basics of the game, playing at home with either their grandparents, parents, or family.  The idea of "family" in poker is very prevalent at the Isle, as we see tournament results with all different combos (father/son, husband/wife, brother/sister, brother/brother).  The idea of a poker family "trio" isn't something you'll see often, but one third of the Kalgstein crew is currently in the field, coming off a tournament win just three days ago.

Rick Kalgstein (Sunrise, FL) boasts the strongest tournament resume in comparison to his brother (Brandon) and father (Lawrence), and gained even more separation after the win in Monday's $60 No Limit Hold'em ($12,000 GTD).  Rick earned first place money worth $2,000 in a seven-way chop that ended the tournament, his first ever recorded tournament win (after four runner-ups on the resume).  The cash brings his career earnings close to $15,000, and gives Kalgstein an new goal to shoot for...the first five-figure score.  It's a moment that every poker player remembers, and something that is attainable in this particular event.  Joining Rick in this early Flight 1C field is:

Thomas Gari
Kenneth Bruno
Stephen Smith
Nancy Thomas
Joseph Mancuso

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Official Chip Counts (Flights 1A-1B)

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 2 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 27

Posted below are the official chip counts of the two flights from yesterday (Flight 1A-1B), including information in regards to total entries, players remaining, and chip average.

FSPC Event 1 (Flight 1C): Shaping Up To Be A Big One

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 1 (Blinds 25/50)
Total Flight 1C Entries: N/A

The opening day of the 2017 Florida State Poker Championships hosted two Event 1 ($175 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD) flights, attracting a total of (247) entries.  The combined total going towards the prize pool from the pair of flights is $34,580...over a third of the way to the guaranteed numbers of $100,000.  At that pace, the overall prize pool would end up somewhere in the $150,000 range, but it would come as no surprise if the number closed even higher than that.

Of the (247) entries, a total of (33) players were successful in bagging chips for Day 2, led by Oleg Efremov (Oakland Park, FL).  Efremov, a player who frequents many of the recurring events on the monthly schedule, was able to put 500,500 in the bag after Flight 1B.  He is over 100,000 clear of his nearest opponent (Willie Wiggins - 395,500), and even further ahead from the Flight 1A chip leader, Joseph Thomas (374,000).  Both Efremov and Thomas earned the "chip lead bonus," and can look forward to playing in Event 14 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $150,000 GTD).

Another group of players have been taking their seats over the past few minutes, as the cards will be in the air for Flight 1C momentarily.  Players in Flight 1C will be sitting down to starting stacks of 20,000 units, and will try and navigate (16) levels, lasting (25) minutes each.  The first two flights reached the 13% mark prior to (16) levels being completed, so it will be interesting to see how things shape up as the flight enters it's later stages.  A tournament will never be won during an opening flight, but what happens over the first sixteen levels surely sets the tone for things to follow.

Thursday, July 6th: FSPC Event 1 Already On Pace For Something Special

ICYMI: Yesterday marked the beginning of the 2017 Florida State Poker Championships, as the cards got in the air for Flight 1A (11:00am) and Flight 1B (6:00pm) of Event 1 ($175 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD).  The afternoon flight started off on the slow side, but began to pick up after the first break (Level 4), and ended up eclipsing the century mark before registration's close (101 entries).  The opening flight of these multi-day/multi-flight tournaments is most commonly going to host the most "reg-heavy" crowd, and while we saw many loyal Isle Poker tournament players, it looked at if Zoltan Czinkota was going to steal the show (and the award for the flight's chip lead).  After breezing through two entries in a matter of an hour, Zoltan began to find some traction, and led the field for most of the day.  Unfortunately for Czinkota, his number would be eclipsed by Joseph Thomas (Jupiter, FL), who ended up bagging a stack that was just out of reach for the remaining Flight 1A players (374,000).  A total of (14) players booked their tickets to Sunday's Day 2, including Daniel Genacthe, Paulius Bikus, Joseph Ritzie, and Gail Sandler.

It was clear from the start of Flight 1B, that the field was going to surpass the numbers from the afternoon, and ended up with a total of (146) entries.  A handful of players from the earlier flight (that didn't bag) gave things another try, and joined a majority group that was entering the event for the first time.  The field reached the 13% point with a few minutes remaining in Level 15, so the clock was paused, and the bagging process began.  Oleg Efremov (Oakland Park, FL) earned himself an Event 14 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $150,000 GTD) seat after bagging the flight's chip lead, with just over 500,000.  Also included in the group that bagged chips from Flight 1B were Danielle Bastarache, Michael Corbett, Willie Wiggins, and Eric Kessler.

Tournaments:  Event 1 of the Florida State Poker Championships continues this afternoon/evening, as Flight 1C gets underway at 11:00am, followed by Flight 1D at 6:00pm.  All of the same rules/structure applies, with players sitting down to starting stacks of 20,000 units, and playing levels of (25) minutes.  "Live blogged coverage" of Flight 1C begins the moment the cards get in the air, and will continue through the flight's bagging process.  An update will be posted with a full list of chip counts from yesterday's pair of flights, and will then shift focus to the matter at hand (Flight 1C).

Promotions: Today's "special" promotion (outside of the standard high hands), is the Limit Hold'em Early Bird, in which the first (50) full houses (in a limit hold'em game) are paid the minimum buy-in for the designated game.  Those players in the 2/2 LHE game will receive $20 for each "winning" full house (or better), while those in 2/4 LHE will receive $40.

11:00am - FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1C): $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

- Level will last (25) minutes throughout the event

- All Day 1's will play (16) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

6:00pm - FSPC Event #1 (Flight 1D): $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

- Level will last (25) minutes throughout the event

- All Day 1's will play (16) complete levels or until 13% of the field remains (whichever comes first)

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

2017 Florida State Poker Championships
Event 1 - $175 No Limit Hold'em ($100,000 GTD)
Level 15 (Blinds 1,500/3,000/500)
Total Flight 1B Entries: 146
Players Remaining: 19/146

Oleg	Efremov	500,500
Willie	Wiggins	395,000
Alex	Shafran	241,000
Michael	Corbett	205,500
Corey "Max"	Martin	203,000
Seamus	Hoban	182,000
Ghassan	Toubia	175,500
Muzaffer	Yesilce	148,500
Alfredo	Guevara	125,500
Danielle	Bastarache	124,500
Eric	Kessler	104,000
Ryan	Bunes	98,500
Jacki	Cohen	98,000
James	Newcomb	88,500
Susan	Lichtenstein	72,500
Jean	Zabin	56,000
Robert	Arahovites	53,000
Marcus	Wu-Hamel	45,500
Didier	Bramy	42,000