Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 7: 250/500/75 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 163 | Total Entries: 327

David Prociak, the 2016 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Player of the Year, has already had a nice success at this year’s Winter Poker Open. Just two days ago, he won the series’ $350, besting 546 entries and earning $40,787 in the process.

100k from 30k SS on second break of the $1650 @SHRTPoker $500k. Table full of PLO guys I’ve played with ????

— David Prociak (@DavidProciakPok) December 15, 2017

He’s in Flight B of the Main Event now, and returned from break about 30 minutes with one of the top stacks in the room. He took a hit after a quartet of players got 6,200 in the pot prelop. The flop fell nine-high and Alex Ivan lead for 11,200. Two others players folded and it was on Prociak who had Ivan covered. Prociak put a pile of gray in the middle and Ivan called off.

Ivan: for an over pair
Prociak: for a pair of sevens

The turn and river came blanks and Prociak’s six-figure stack took a notable hit as he shipped about 27,000 chips the way of Ivan.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 6: 200/400/50 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 157 | Total Entries: 321

Defending Winter Poker Open Main Event champion David Bradshaw put a hurt on the early stages of yesterday’s Flight A taking over 200,000 chips to the dinner break. He lead the field by a margin, but got a bit squirrely in a few pots late. Bradshaw got short when he risked a big portion of his stack with his pair and a flush draw, but never improved against an opponent’s two pair.

Bradshaw busted shy of a bag, but is back on the felt mixing it up again here in Flight B.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 6: 200/400/50 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 148 | Total Entries: 312

Flight B is outperforming even the most optimistic of projections.

With 148 entries kicking off Level 6, the most recent Main Event installment is already 32 percent bigger than last year’s same flight (which drew 112 entries). That puts the combined field at 312 entries good for an unofficial prize pool of $468,000. With tomorrow’s Flight C still to come, an $800,000 prize pool is a real possibility in the Winter Poker Open Main Event.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 5: 150/300/25 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 141 | Total Entries: 305

Fresh off a big, $374,000 score in Hollywood, Michael Newman is back to tournament poker. Just about two weeks ago, he defeated a difficult field stacked with pros in the Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open Championship. Newman was rewarded handsomely and makes his way to the Winter Poker Open Main Event with a head of steam.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 5: 150/300/25 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 137 | Total Entries: 301

Seminole Hard Rock Tampa poker ambassador Wally Maddah is never one to take a day off from the felt. He was getting short late in yesterday’s Flight A and joked that he didn’t want to bag because then he’d have nothing to do during Friday and Saturday’s flights. Maddah ultimately found the felt late and is back for a full day of poker here in Flight B. He has a tough table with a slew of Tampa regulars.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 4: 100/200/25 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 130 | Total Entries: 294

Cord Garcia and Rafael Reis each claim some notable tournament titles from their time on the felt. Garcia captured a gold bracelet in the largest tournament by entries in poker history, the 2015 World Series of Poker Colossus event. He maneuvered through a mine field of more than 22,000 players and earned better than $635,000.

Reis, too, owns a “largest ever” win. In November of 2016, he bested 5,018 entries in Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood’s $360 Deep Stack. That event went down as the largest poker tournament ever to take place in the state of Florida and earned Reis better than $155,000.

The pair clearly knows how to make their way through big fields, and they’ll have to learn how to make their way through eachother in Tampa. They are seated side-by-side at Table 12 early in Flight B of the Main Event.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 3: 75/150/25 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 112 | Total Entries: 276

The Flight B entry count just hit the 112 figure which matches last year’s turnout for this same flight. Yesterday’s action enjoyed a year-over-year attendance increase of about 15 percent and today’s installment is on pace to see an even higher percentage increase.

One of the most recent entries in the game is Seminole Hard Rock Poker team member Mike Laake. Laake is a staple at any major SHRP event and has enjoyed nine tournament wins during his time in the game. During this series two years ago, Laake defeated 634 entries in the $570 good for a $54,756 payday.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 2: 75/150 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 83 | Total Entries: 248

Brian Reinert followed a bit of yesterday’s Winter Poker Open Main Event Flight A from his home in Atlanta. When he saw on Twitter the opener drew 164 entries generating a $246,000 prize pool with two flights still to come, the gears started turning.

164 with two more flights to go? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ????

— Brian Reinert (@BrianReinert1) December 15, 2017

He booked a flight, secured a room in downtown Tampa and less than 24 hours later found a seat in today’s Flight B. Reinert has five reported tournament victories along with more than $560,000 in earnings. He hopes to add to those figures in this Main Event.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 2: 75/150 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 83 | Total Entries: 248

Tampa regular Marie Harrell is out of town and unable to make the Winter Poker Open Main Event, but that’s not to say she doesn’t have any skin in the game. Her son, Trey, satellited in last night and is in the action here in Flight B. He took a brutal beat early when his aces were bested by Jake Snider’s pocket tens on a ten-high flop (reported below), but he stayed collected and is looking to chip back up here during the early stages of the event.

Winter Poker Open Main Event
$1,650 Buy-In, $500,000 Guaranteed
Level 1: 50/100 | Structure
Flight B Entries: 66 | Total Entries: 230

The board was complete — . Jake Snider was in the small blind facing off against Trey Harrell in middle position. Snider checked and Harrell bet 5,500. It was back on Snider and he check-raised making it 15,000 total. Harrell went into the tank for a few moments before he found a call.

Snider: for a boat
Harrell: for aces-up

It was a brutal beat for Harrell, but he lived to fight another day. Snider stacked a nice pot and got his Winter Poker Open Main Event started off in style.