$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 9: 500/1,000 with a 1,000 Ante
Flight A Entries: 47

The Flight A clock shows 47 participants thus far with just 23 still hanging around. The field has cut in half, but registration is still available through this level and the subsequent break (until about 4:55pm). The tally will likely rise a couple in that time and we’ll provide the official figure when final.

While Wally Maddah, Tony March, Mark “Bud” Wiser, Justin Zaki and Herbert Woodbery are still jockeying for an early bag, Anthony Dianaty, Tom Nguyen and Jeffrey Trudeau, Jr. have found the rail.

Anthony Dianaty – Eliminated
Tom Nguyen – Eliminated
Jeffrey Trudeau, Jr. – Eliminated

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 7: 300/600 with a 600 Ante
Flight A Entries: 41

Tony March — who’s playing for the Pay It Backward Fourndation — sits atop the counts at second break. March started strong and stayed strong through the early stages of play now holding 110,000 midway through Level 7.

Tony March – 110,000

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 6: 300/500 with a 500 Ante
Flight A Entries: 37

In addition to the lion’s share of a $200,000 guaranteed prize pool and a $1,650 entry in the Winter Poker Open Main Event, the winner of the Pinktober $565 goes home with the property’s token prize, a guitar trophy.

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 6: 300/500 with a 500 Ante
Flight A Entries: 36

Level 6 is here and there’s an influx expected in the Pinktober $565. Running alongside the early stages of this event is Day 2 of the series’ $250, $200,000 guarantee. Play resumed in that event at 1pm with 65 still in the game and all of them in the money. With full pockets, many of the Day 2 bustouts should get in Flight A of the $565. One of the first to do so is Anthony Dianaty and he’s already experienced some success.

It was late in Level 5 when Dianaty was in a three-way pot. Action checked to him on board. He bet 5,800 and both players came along.

With the pot building, the river completed the board with the . All three players quickly checked and it was Dianaty’s flush that was best. He scooped the pot and his stack cracked a half century.

Anthony Dianaty – 50,000

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 5: 200/400 with a 400 Ante
Flight A Entries: 35

For those familiar with the Tampa poker scene, it’s no surprise to see Tom Nguyen stacking chips in the early stages of a tournament.

He recently played a pot versus Wally Maddah that saw Wally open to 1,000 from middle position, Nguyen call from the button and two others come along for four-way action.

Flop: – The pair of early-position callers checked to Maddah and he C-bet 1,500. Nguyen called while the early-position players got out of the way. They were heads up.

Turn: – Maddah slowed down, checking it to Nguyen. Nguyen bet 2,400. Maddah verified the bet amount with the dealer, then reached into his stack check-raising to 6,700. Nguyen called and they continued to the river.

Turn: – Maddah was covered by Nguyen. He eyed his opponent’s stack before firing 11,500 at the pot. Nguyen agonized over the call mentioning that he put Maddah on ace-queen. After a minute or so, Nguyen reluctantly plopped calling chips in the middle and Maddah was forced to show his rivered pair of sevens. Nguyen turned over and took the pot with trip queens.

The pair exchanged a laugh while Nguyen stacked much of Maddah’s chips.

Tom Nguyen – 65,000
Wally Maddah – 13,000

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 4: 200/300 with a 300 Ante
Flight A Entries: 32

First break came and went and the field got a nice shot with 32 entries now in the game. Of the new faces, one of the more recognizable belongs to Wally Maddah. Like the aforementioned Tony March, Maddah is a huge supporter of Seminole properties and plays seemingly every tournament here in Tampa.

Maddah recently hit a huge milestone recording his 100th cash at a Seminole property. While the vast majority of his body of work came here in Tampa, it was at Seminole Casino Coconut Creek that he cracked triple digits.

Maddah made it count, too, breaking through for a World Series of Poker Circuit gold ring win in Event 11 ($250 Turbo) carding a score of $6,721. He rode his 100th cash and hot play to a follow-up 101st cash just a day later in the property’s $1,700 buy-in Main Event.

• Link: Maddah’s Gold Ring Recap

With that, the all-time Seminole cashes leader headed back home to Tampa and eyes 102 here in the Pinktober $565.

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 3: 100/200 with a 100 Ante
Flight A Entries: 23

Flight A of the Pinktober $565 cracked 20 entries in Level 3 and there’s a third table of players now in action.

In addition to branding throughout the room with life-size tournament schedules and Pinktober Poker Open step-and-repeats, the property brought in a special felt for the charitable series. The branded table sits in the back in the room and is used throughout the early flights but put on full display for final tables.

With the $565 requiring an additional table, tournament staff opened up the pink-felted table and it’s now in the rotation. Herbert Woodbery is among the newest entries in this event.

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 3: 100/200 with a 100 Ante
Flight A Entries: 20

A Tampa poker series wouldn’t be complete without an entry from Tony March. One of the most staunch supporters of the property’s poker product, March takes to the felt playing not for himself, but for others.

March is the founder of the Pay it Backward Foundation, a Tampa-based charitable organization which “invests itself in the lives of the underprivileged broken, abused, homeless and forgotten.” March came from an impoverished background, and after finding professional success, was compelled to combat poverty in the communities in which he lives. Thus began the Pay it Backward Foundation.

According to the foundation’s website:

“[The][Pay][it][Backward][Foundation] has been created to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, assist the poor and encourage the broken hearted while, at the same time, seeking to enrich their spirits and raise their hopes for a better future.”

March has a passion for poker and uses his skills to provide for his foundation donating all of his winnings to charity. In the Pinktober $565, that means local charities are getting a double bonus receiving any profits March makes along with the contribution from each buy-in benefitting the American Cancer Society.

So far so good for March and his charities as he’s off to a hot start having doubled up in the first 90 minutes of play.

Those looking to learn more about March and the Pay it Backward Foundation can visit the charity’s website at PayItBackwardFoundation.org.

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 2: 100/200
Flight A Entries: 15

The entry count ticked up a few through the first level in the Pinktober $565 with Level 2 now freshly going. There are deep, 30,000-chip starting stacks and registration is available until almost 5pm local time. Those factors lend the event to a late rush of players and we expect the field to grow a good amount as the morning hours turn to the afternoon and evening hours.

$565 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$200,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 1: 100/100
Flight A Entries: 11

After a slight delay to start, cards are in the for Flight A of the Pinktober Poker Open $565 buy-in with a $200,000 guarantee.