FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1D): When Players Are Bypassing Cash, You Know It's A Solid Event

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/200)
Total Flight 1D Entries: 38

Casey Kaplan (Sunrise, FL) is very particular about what tournaments he plays these days, but wasn't going to allow this weekend to pass, without putting at least one entry into Event #9.

During the 2016 SHRPO, there was a $570 No Limit Hold'em event that attracted 2,923 entries, and had an official prize pool of $1,461,500.  Casey Kaplan (Sunrise, FL) would end up one of four players to chop the event, earning himself $134,700, which was his largest tournament cash by far.  The result was followed up by (22) more cashes over the next two years, but Kaplan's tournament volume went down as the time passed.  His focus was more on the cash games, with the balance tipped so far in that direction, that he's only recorded one result this year (during the WSOP Circuit at Coconut Creek).

Now while cash comes first for Kaplan, that doesn't mean he's going to allow an event like this to pass, without firing at least one shot at bagging.  Kaplan is one of the "early birds" in the field, joining the likes of:

Thomas Gari
Gil Aboodi
Bruce Snell
Dylan Drazen
Matthew Lambrecht
Sheldon Gross
Stephen Krackomberger

The field will be heading on their first break at the end of this level, returning to Level 4, and new blinds of 200/300/300.

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1D): Official Chip Counts (Flight 1A-Flight 1C)

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 2 (Blinds 100/100/100)
Total Flight 1D Entries: 30

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1D): No Longer A Warm-Up To The Main Event, Event #9 Has Become A True Headliner...Final Flight Approaches

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 1 (Blinds 100/100)
Total Flight 1D Entries: N/A

After a Flight 1C that saw a total of (103) entries in the field, Event #9 of the 2018 Florida State Poker Championships officially became a "special event."  The tournament, which boasts the second largest guarantee of the series, has already seen the posted number eclipsed.  The official prize pool sits at $224,580, and will very like grow to over $350,000 this evening.  

For that reason, today's final flight is expected to attract a very large field, with the word spreading about the success of the tournament.  Players that enter today's flight are all going to be chasing Evan Teitelbaum (Parkland, FL), who bagged an very impressive stack of 457,500.  During Level 9 of yesterday's play, Evan won a massive three-way all-in, where he flopped trips against the nut-flush draw and over pair.  From there, Teitelbaum would trend in the right direction, and ended up bagging the overall day 2 chip lead.

It's almost like the British Open (which is currently in it's final round), in the sense that those already in the clubhouse with a good score, can wait and see what happens with the leaders.  Players to have bagged already are "already in the clubhouse," and are assured a chance to grab a piece of this massive Event #9 prize pool.  Those that enter today's play are doing the "chasing," and trying to find a number that will put them in a good position for tomorrow's action.

Live blogged coverage will begin with a post featuring the combined chip counts from the first three flights, before shifting focus to the players in today's Flight 1D.

Sunday, July 22nd: With A Prize Pool Expected To Reach $350,000, Sunday Is All About Event #9 Final Chances

ICYMI: Yesterday was all about the third of four starting flights for Event #9, as Flight 1C ended up attracted the largest field to this point in the tournament.  When the bagging process started, the tournament clock would show (103) entries, with (23) players successfully packing away chips for tomorrow's (Monday) Day 2.  Propelled by a big win in a three-way all-in during Level 9, Evan Teitelbaum (Parkland, FL) would earn himself a Florida State Poker Championship Main Event seat, after bagging the Flight 1C chip lead (457,500).  That number was almost 200,000 more than his nearest competitor, with Mark Shulla bagging 271,500.  Former reality show star Albert Destrade rounded out the top three, packing away 265,000 for tomorrow's action.  

The official number after three flights now see a total of (228) entries for Event #9, with (49) players heading to tomorrow's Day 2.  The tournament's guarantee was surpassed yesterday, as the official prize pool sits at $224,580.  With today's flight expected to be the largest of the four, we are looking at an official prize pool that could potentially reach $350,000.  

ICYMI: With that being said, today's overall schedule should be a very busy one, with two satellites in addition to the final starting flight of Event #9.  The action gets underway at 10:00am, with a $130 No Limit Hold'em Satellite Into Event #9, a 1 in 10 entries will be awarded a seat.  The satellite is structured with 10,000 units, and levels that last (15) minutes, making this a "turbo" format event.  Registration is open through Level 10, allowing players just over three hours to join the action.

As that satellite sees registration wind down, the final flight of Event #9 will begin, with cards in the air for Flight 1D at 1:00pm.  While the time is different than the three that came before it, Flight 1D does have the same structure.  Players will be sitting down to starting stacks of 30,000 units, and playing levels that last (40) minutes (Levels 1-13).  Registration is open throughout the entire day of play, including before the first hand is dealt on Day 2.

The final Event #9 satellite gets underway at 6:00pm, and is of the $250 price point (1 in 5 entries will be awarded an Event #9 seat).  The satellite is structured with starting stacks of 12,000 units, and levels that last (20) minutes.  Registration is open through Level 8, and will stay open through the ten minute break that follows.  

Promotions: From (9:00am-10:00am), the high hand will award $150 every (30) minutes.  The high hands will then transition from 10:00am-6:00pm, with the opportunity to win $400 every (30) minutes.  During that period, the promotion sees tournament players eligible 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.  

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).

10:00am - 2018 Florida State Poker Championship (Satellite Schedule) | $130 No Limit Hold'em Turbo Satellite Into Event #9 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $200,000 GTD) 1 In 10 Wins Seat

- Players start with 10,000 in tournament chips

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

- Alternates and late entries will start with a full stack

- Levels will last (15) minutes

1:00pm - 2018 Florida State Poker Championship Event # 9 (Flight 1D) | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($200,000 GTD)

- Players start with 30,000 in tournament chips

- Late and re-entries for the first (13) levels, including before the first hand on Day 2

- Alternates and late entries will start with a full stack 

- Levels 1-13 will last (40) minutes, Levels 14+ will last (50) minutes

6:00pm - 2018 Florida State Poker Championship (Satellite Schedule) | $250 No Limit Hold'em Satellite Into Event #9 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $200,000 GTD) 1 In 5 Wins Seat 

- Players start with 12,000 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 (20) minutes

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Official Flight 1C Chip Counts, Evan Teitelbaum Bags Chip Lead Bonus

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($200,000 GTD)
Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/2,400)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 103
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 23

Evan	Teitelbaum	457,500
Mark	Shulla	271,500
Albert	Destrada	265,000
Richard	Leger	215,500
Paul	Balzano	195,000
Ronit	Chamani	176,500
Raj	Vohra	152,000
Joe	Boulais	147,500
Sean Syed	Shah	138,000
Yue	Jian Wang	131,500
Jose	Parra	129,500
Loni	Harwood	99,500
Peter	Walsworth	98,500
Andrew	Daire	94,500
Jerry	Wong	92,500
Ken	Bruno	85,000
Eric	Polirer	83,500
Leith	Rashid	67,000
Richard	Rice	56,500
Ivan	Starostin	53,000
Michael	Tait	39,000
Kevin	Chan	24,000
Drew	Johnson	15,500

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Final Level Of Flight 1C Play, Chip Lead Bonus Up For Grabs

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($200,000 GTD)
Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/2,400)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 101
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 34

Play has just entered Level 13, which is the final schedule levels of the flight.  When the tournament clock shows 10:00 minutes remaining, it will be paused, and the remaining players will be informed how many hands remain in the night.  Once those hands are completed at each table, the bags will come out, and those still left will pack up their chips for Day 2 (Monday at 12:00pm).  

Once all of the bags have been verified by tournament staff, we will post the official counts from Flight 1C, along with the winner of the chip lead bonus.

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Schedule Reminder For The Card Player Poker Tour (August 16th-27th)

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em ($200,000 GTD)
Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/2,000)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 99
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 35

The Isle Casino now offers the lowest gaming limits in South Florida, with table limits as low as $5. The CPPT will make its inaugural stop here August 16-27, for a exciting 10-event series that boasts a combined $485,000 in guarantees.

STORY: https://t.co/1KfoyxDmNZ pic.twitter.com/1Oxt0vESA6

— Card Player (@CardPlayerMedia) July 18, 2018

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Notables Names Still Alive, Looking To Find Themselves A Bag

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 11 (Blinds 800/1,600/1,600)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 99
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 38

Jerry Wong (Margate, FL) had three final table finishes during this WSOP, all in $10,000 buy-in events, totaling over $455,000 in earnings over the five week series.

With now three levels remaining in the night, Flight 1C still has a lot of well known players in the field, some of which weren't mentioned earlier in the day.  One of those players is Jerry Wong (Margate, FL), who is coming off a very solid summer at the WSOP.  Jerry cashed in five events, with three of those results of the final table variety:

$10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Championship (Event #49) - 4th Place ($303,491)
$10,000 Razz Championship (Event #56) - 5th Place ($71,014)
$10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo Championship - 6th Place ($75,855)

Overall, Wong would leave Las Vegas with over $455,000 in combined earnings, but is still looking for the ever elusive WSOP bracelet.  Some other notables still remaining in Flight 1C include:

Loni Harwood
Phil Hui
Robert Transue
Andrew Daire
Richard Rice
John Magnetta

Players will be heading on their final break of the flight after this level, returning to Level 12, and new blinds of 1,000/2,000/2,000.

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Updated Chip Counts From Break, Four Levels Of Play Remain

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/1,200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 93
Flight 1C Players Remaining: 46

Thanks to pocket aces against pocket queens (on an eight high flop), Eric Polirer (Coral Springs, FL) jumped to the top five on the leaderboard.  With a cash in this tournament, Eric will eclipse the $100,000 mark in lifetime earnings. 

Just over half of the field remains, as players are about to return from their ten minute break.  The $200,000 guarantee has officially been surpassed, with tomorrow's flight just padding the final number, which will also help out the final table payouts.  The Flight 1C chip lead has changed hands numerous times over the last hour, with Richard Leger back on top, as action is set to resume.

Richard Leger - 212,000 (176bb)
Evan Teitelbaum - 190,000 (158bb)
Eric Polirer - 170,000 (141bb)
Albert Destrade - 166,000 (138bb)
Josh Milrad - 135,000 (112bb)
Ronit Chamani - 120,000 (100b)
Jose Parra - 110,000 (91bb)
Michael Tait - 105,000 (87bb)
Kevin Chan - 90,000 (75bb)
Dmitrii Perfilov - 90,000 (75bb)

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Evan Teitelbaum Takes Down Massive Pot, Vaults To The Top

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/1,000)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 89

Evan Teitelbaum (Parkland, FL) won the largest pot of the flight just moments ago, and will likely head to the next break as the overall chip leader.

There was a hand playing out a Table 9 that we were paying attention to, until the largest pot of the tournament was spotted at Table 4.  On a flop of 8♥ 8♠ 7♥, Raj Vohra had 20,000 in front of him, with both Patrick Biancone (54,000) and Evan Tietelbaum (90,000) all-in.  Vohra only had 15,000 behind (with the 20,000 committed), but he went into the tank for a solid four minutes.  He'd eventually make the call, and the hands would be tabled:

Teitelbaum: 10♠ 8♦
Vohra: A♥ 10♥
Biancone: K♦ K♣

Turn: 6♦ 
River: 4♦

Raj thought he may be drawing dead, but when the hands were tabled, he learned that his flush draw was very live.  Patrick needed one of the two remaining kings to grab the lead, while Evan just needed things to run out clean...which is exactly what happened.  Teitelbaum would knock out both players, and chip up to 190,000 in the process.

Evan Teitelbaum - 190,000 (190bb)

Players will be on break after this level, returning after ten minutes, to new blinds of 600/1,200/1,200.

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Richard Leger Leaps To The Top Of The Leaderboard

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/800)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 82

Richard Leger (Lighthouse Point, FL) has climbed to the top of the leaderboard, and hopes to join Alan Ramkhalawn and Tom Gity, as chip lead bonus winners in this event.

The dinner break (and post dinner break) additions have seen the Flight 1C field grow to (82) entries, which makes this the largest Event #9 flight.  The overall prize pool is just short of the $200,000 guaranteed number, but it should be eclipsed before play ends for the night.  There is a new chip leader to speak of, and it is someone who wasn't even mentioned earlier, when some of the larger stacks were posted.  Richard Leger (Lighthouse Point, FL) is another regular to these multi-flight tournaments at the Isle, and is just a month removed from a final table finish in one of the headline events on June's calendar ($360 No Limit Hold'em $50,000 GTD).  Richard finished in fourth place, which saw him earn $3,955, an amount that helped his career earnings cross the $549,000 mark.

Richard Leger - 160,000 (200bb)

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Players Heading On Dinner Break, With Play To Resume At 7:00PM

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/600)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 65

Players in the Flight 1C field of Event #9 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $200,000 GTD) are on dinner break, and will be returning at 7:00pm.  When play resumes with Level 7, the new blinds being posted will be 300/600/600.

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Updated Chip Counts, Michael Tait Leads Before Dinner Break

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 6 (Blinds 300/500/500)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 65

Michael Tait (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) has gotten as close as one can to an Isle Poker trophy on two occasions this year, and hopes this can be the event that he brings home the hardware.

Play has just transitioned into Level 6, with players heading on their (50) minute dinner break, at the level's conclusion.  The field has yet to have seen a player eclipse the century mark, but there is a group of players that are right on the precipice.  Michael Tait (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) currently leads the field with 70,000, but has numerous players on his tail.  Michael has seen a lot of success in tournament this year, specifically those held here at the Isle.  He has a second ($250 No Limit Hold'em $100,000 GTD) and third ($360 No Limit Hold'em Battles At The Beach $100,000 GTD) place finish under his belt already (both chops), totaling a combined $32,000 from those results alone.  Michael already has a cash in this series (Event #1), and hopes to continue this trend towards a bag, which could lead to FSPC result number two.

Michael Tait - 70,000 (140bb)
Sean Shah - 68,000 (136bb)
AJ Gambino - 66,000 (132bb)
Kenneth Bruno - 65,000 (130bb)
Kevin Chan - 62,000 (124bb)
Ronit Chamani - 56,000 (112bb)
Yue-Jian Wang - 55,000 (110bb)
Albert Destrade - 47,000 (94bb)

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Albert Destrade Playing On His Own Terms, But Still Has The Same Goal

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 5 (Blinds 200/400/400)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 60

Albert Destrade (Plantation, FL) sits down to the tables with something on his resume that nobody else can match...time spent on the hit reality show Survivor.

Albert Destrade (Plantation, FL) has a Twitter handle of @Zero_Votes, which references his time on the hit reality show Survivor.  Destrade was on Survivor: South Pacific, and ended up reaching the final three, but ended up receiving zero votes at the final tribal council (hence his Twitter handle).  After returning from Samoa, Destrade shifted his focus on poker, which has been a pretty successful venture for him.  While his time is spent more at the cash tables, Albert does have just under $180,000 in lifetime tournament earnings, including an Isle Classic Main Event win (2015 $1,200 No Limit Hold'em Main Event, worth $105,000).  His last Isle Poker tournament cash came back in 2015, when he bubbled the final table of Event #8 ($350 No Limit Hold'em), during the Florida State Poker Championships (11th place for $4,633).

It's been a little while since we've seen Destrade at the tournament tables, with his last result coming in November of last year ($2,500 No Limit Hold'em Borgata Fall Poker Open Championship Event).  While his fate in today's tournament may not fully be under his control, Destrade doesn't have to worry about anyone at the table voting him off.  Albert headlines a list of late arriving players to the Flight 1C field, joining the likes of: 

Sean Shah
Antoine Bahi
Ray Millard
AJ Gambino
Kevin Chan
Anthony Utnage

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): The Trend Of New Notables Continues, As Ronit Chamani Looks To Continue Solid Summer

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 4 (Blinds 200/300/300)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 53

Ronit Chamani (Las Vegas, NV) doesn't frequent many events here at the Isle Poker Room, but does have history during this particular series.

With the Florida State Poker Championship coming up next week, it's no surprise that we are seeing a crop of new players in this opening flight of Event #9.  It's been almost six years since Ronit Chamani (Las Vegas, NV) has cashed at an event here at the Isle Casino Pompano Park, but she's currently seated at Table 6, hoping to put herself in position to change that.

Chamani is a well-traveled tournament professional, with over $648,000 in career earnings.  She had her breakout in 2014, a year in which she amassed tournament earnings of $256,402.  Ronit's highlighting score came during the WPT Bay 101 series, when she would ship the $2,000 No Limit Hold'em Shooting Starts event, for just over $152,000.  Chamani is coming off a solid summer, in which she recorded four cashes (two WSOP events), totaling over $16,000 in combined cashes.  As mentioned earlier, Ronit's last Isle Poker tournament score came in 2012, when she final tabled the $1,600 No Limit Hold'em Bounty event (8th place for $3,932).

Continuing the list of notables in the Flight 1C field, we have seen:

Francis Margaglione (Event #4 trophy winner)
Kenneth Bruno
Sheldon Gross
Jose Parra
Nissim Gozlan
Michael Marks
Richard Leger
Jose Ordonez
David Tiderman
Ory Hen

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): New Faces In The Crowd, Drazen Almost A Year Removed From Dream Run

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/200)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 37

Dylan Drazen (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) lived a poker player's dream, winning a satellite into one of the biggest events of the year, and turning that into a score worth over a half-million dollars. 

There are few differences in today's flight, with the pace well ahead of the first two flights (which was expected), and a bunch a new faces to the Florida State Poker Championships.  One of those players in today's field (that is in action for the first time this series) is Dylan Drazen (Ft. Lauderdale, FL), who is about a year removed from a life changing score.

Dylan entered a $560 No Limit Hold'em satellite into last year's SHRPO $5,250 No Limit Hold'em Championship Event, and was able to earn a seat into the prestigious event.  That was the beginning of what turned into a wild ride for Drazen, as he reached the live streamed final table.  At that point, he was guaranteed over $75,000, which was already going to be a career best cash.  It went much further than that though, as Dylan got heads-up for the title, but fell to Martin Kozlov.  The result was still a dream though, as Drazen earned over $528,000 for second place, essentially changing his life.

Drazen's tournament volume has been down since the score, but he still plays the prestigious events in the area, as well as events during the WSOP.  Some other players in the field for the first time this series include:

Matthew Lambrecht
Drew Johnson
Eric Polirer
Paul Balzano
Rayan Nahle
Stuart Elkin

Players are heading on their first break of the day at the end of this level. returning to Level 4, and new blinds of 200/300/300.

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Official Day 2 Chip Counts (Flight 1A-Flight 1B)

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 2 (Blinds 100/100/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: 40

FSPC Event #9 (Flight 1C): Third Event #9 Flight About To Begin, With Big Numbers Expected Over The Next (48) Hours

2018 Florida State Poker Championship
Event #9 | $1,100 No Limit Hold'em | $200,000 GTD
Level 1 (Blinds 100/100)
Total Flight 1C Entries: N/A

Two Event #9 ($1,100 No Limit Hold'em $200,000 GTD) are now in the books, with two remaining to be played...one of which is about to get underway.  Players are taking their seats in the tournament area at a rapid pace, with today and tomorrow's flights expected to be much larger than the two that came before.  

To this point in the tournament, there have been a total of (115) entries, with (26) players bagging chips for Monday's Day 2.  Alan Ramkhalawn bagged the Flight 1A chip lead (427,000), which is becoming more impressive as time passes, considering the Flight 1B chip leader (Tom Gity) bagged 270,500.  Both players have earned a seat into next week's Florida State Poker Championship Main Event ($1,500 No Limit Hold'em $500,000 GTD), with two more seats to be awarded over the next (48) hours.

Today's structure stays the same as the pair of flights to have been completed, with players sitting down to starting stacks of 30,000 units.  Levels over the course of Flight 1C will last (40) minutes, and will eventually transition, moving to (50) minutes on Day 2.  Registration is open throughout the afternoon/evening, and will stay open on Day 2 (until the first hand of the day is dealt, at 12:00pm).

Live blogged coverage will begin with the official chip counts to this point, with the focus then shifting to play at the tables (and players in the field).