2020 Winter Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Tampa, Florida
Event 5
$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Entries: 155
Prize Pool: $51,150
December 8, 2020

Tuesday boosted up the WPO tournament buy-in and it turned into another fun day of poker. Event 5 had a $400 buy-in tournament with a great story at the end. Last night, Alex Vazquez outlasted all but one player in Event 4 to finish second but tonight he closed it out to take home the guitar in Event 5 after a five-way deal.

The tournament drew 155 entries to push the prize pool over $50,000 with 16 getting a share. The deep stacks and slow structure meant a longer than normal bubble, more than a level of hand-for-hand, but they got there and down to the final table.

Big-time players Trung Pham and Austin Reilly were eliminated followed by Peter Guillette before the five remaining players decided to call it a night. No chip counts or ICM numbers were needed; they divided the money right down the middle with each getting $6,936.

Vazquez held a nice chip lead at that point and was more than happy to take top honors while looking to hold that guitar. After a second-place finish and a win in back-to-back nights, Vazquez is running hot at the right time with the Main Event right around the corner.

Congrats to Alex and good luck the rest of the series

Event 5 results:

1st: Alex Vazquez – $6,936 + Guitar Trophy *
2nd: Michael Scott – $6,936 *
3rd: Alex Ivan – $6,936 *
4th: Carlos Loving – $6,936 *
5th: Frank Menendez – $6,936 *
6th: Peter Guillette – $2,404
7th: Austin Reilly – $1,944
8th: Trung Pham – $1,688
9th: Joao Figueiredo – $1,483
10th: Rolands Norietis – $1,381
11th: Lahcen Imkaoun – $1,381
12th: Wilfor Marentes Pinto – $1,381
13th: Raminder Singh – $1,228
14th: Truyen Nguyen – $1,228
15th: Luis Torres – $1,228
16th: James Trott III – $1,125
* – denotes results of a five-way deal

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 22:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante

After Peter Guillette was eliminated, the last five players counted up the stacks and decided to split the remaining prize pool right down the middle. Each of the five took home $6,936 but Alex Vazquez added the Guitar Trophy that he came one spot from winning last night in Event 4.

Below are the chip counts and results of the deal:

Alex Vazquez – 860,000
Michael Scott – 760,000
Alex Ivan – 545,000
Carlos Loving – 520,000
Frank Menendez – 415,000

1st: Alex Vazquez – $6,936 + Guitar Trophy
2nd: Michael Scott – $6,936
3rd: Alex Ivan – $6,936
4th: Carlos Loving – $6,936
5th: Frank Menendez – $6,936

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 22:  10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 ante
Players Remaining:  5 of 155

Peter Guillette did not have any luck at this final table. The biggest was getting it all in against Frank Menendez having the bigger stack and best hand with the board reading .

Menendez:
Guillette:

Guillette flopped Broadway against Menedez’s aces up and the turn was not the problem. That came on the river to fill the board for Menendez.

Guillette stuck around for a few hands, including one where he got his short stack all in with aces only to have Carlos Loving wake up with aces as well. He eventually succumbed to Menendez who took the his last few chips.

Frank Menendez – 510,000 (26 bb)
Peter Guillette – Eliminated in 6th place ($2,404)

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  10,000/15,000 with a 15,000 ante
Players Remaining:  7 of 155

With the elimination of Trung Pham, Event 5 is down to final table seven. This is back-to-back final tables for Alex Vazquez after his runner-up finish last night in Event 4.

Seat 1: Alex Ivan
Seat 2: Austin Reilly
Seat 3: Peter Guillette
Seat 4: Alex Vazquez
Seat 5: Michael Scott
Seat 6: Carlos Loving
Seat 7: Frank Menendez

Remaining payouts:

1st: $13,810 + Guitar Trophy
2nd: $8,696
3rd: $5,268
4th: $3,836
5th: $3,069
6th: $2,404
7th: $1,944

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 20:  6,000/12,000 with a 12,000 ante
Players Remaining:  8 of 155

Event 8 is down to the final table bubble with eight remaining and seven seats waiting. They are taking a 15-minute break as the 1K chips come out of play and the 25K are introduced.

When they return, blinds will be 10,000/15,000 with a 15,000 ante and the average stack 390,000 (26 bb). Action should pick up at that point.

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  5,000/10,000 with a 10,000 ante
Players Remaining:  11 of 155

Event 5 lost two players over the last level for a little more progress towards the final table. Raminder Singh fell short of adding another trophy to his case and he was followed by Wilfor Marentes Pinto.

Blinds are now 5,000/10,000 with a 10,000 ante and the average stack is 282,000 (28 bb) with 11 players remaining.

12th: Wilfor Marentes Pinto – $1,381
13th: Raminder Singh – $1,228

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  4,000/8,000 with a 8,000 ante
Players Remaining:  13 of 155

Another level is in the books and only one player was sent to the payout desk, Truyen Nguyen, so those stacks are starting to become a little more shallow.

Blinds are now 4,000/8,000 with an 8,000 ante and the average stack is 238,000 (30 bb) with 13 players remaining.

14th: Truyen Nguyen – $1,228

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 17:  3,000/6,000 with a 6,000 ante
Players Remaining:  14 of 155

The 30 minutes between the bubble and break only saw two players hit the rail, still not a surprise until the stacks thin a bit.

We have a new leader with Rolands Norietis sitting with 401,000 followed by Alex Ivan at 381,000. Norietis’ most recent score came across the state in Hollywood when he finished third in their December Deep Stacks for $8,566.

Blinds are now 3,000/6,000 with a 6,000 ante and the average stack is 220,000 (37 bb) with 14 players remaining.

Results so far:

15th: Luis Torres – $1,228
16th: James Trott III – $1,125

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 15:  2,000/4,000 with a 4,000 ante
Players Remaining:  16 of 155

With the average stack sitting at nearly 50 big blinds, it was no surprise that the bubble took a long long time to play out. To be precise, it took 17 hands before an all in was even called to put someone at risk, more than one full level going two minutes per hand.

The one that got there was a four-way pot to a flop. The small blind checked, Alex Ivan bet 12,000, one player called, a short-stack called all in for 7,000, and the small blind folded. That left two live players who checked down the turn and river.

Ivan tabled for jacks up, the other live player showed for a busted flush draw, and the short stacked player had . He missed his flopped flush draw and was eliminated on the bubble putting everyone else in the money.

Payouts:

1st: $13,810 + Guitar Trophy
2nd: $8,696
3rd: $5,268
4th: $3,836
5th: $3,069
6th: $2,404
7th: $1,944
8th: $1,688
9th: $1,483
10th-12th: $1,381
13th-15th: $1,228
16th: $1,125

$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
Structure | Payouts
Level 14:  2,000/3,000 with a 3,000 ante
Players Remaining:  17 of 155

With only a few minutes remaining in Level 14, two players were sent out to level 17 in the game. Tournament staff paused the clock to begin hand-for-hand action on the bubble.

Each of the three tables will play one hand at a time with two minutes coming off the clock for each hand until one player is eliminated putting the field in the money.