Tag Archives: Event 12

Matthew Bretzfield Wins Big O Title in Four-Way Deal!

2024 Tampa Signature Poker Series
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Tampa, Florida
Event 12

$400 Big O (Re-Entry)
Entries: 78

Prize Pool: $26,130
September 22, 2023

Matthew Bretzfield, 2024 SPS Event 12 champ
PlaceFirst NameLast NameCityState Prize Amount
1MatthewBretzfieldHollywoodFL$6,880 *
2JoshuaRobertsPort CharlotteFL$4,500 *
3MichaelRosenbergMariettaGA$4,500 *
4AlexanderOrlovMoscowNV$3,500 *
5MikkoIlonenTurku$1,790
6ChristopherLabrieWaterfordCT$1,360
7HyndiKhomutetskyOrlandoFL$1,090
8AaronHernandezNewnanGA$910
9JoshuaNicholsonWinter HavenFL$800
10MichaelDreeseNewtonMA$800

* Denotes results of a four-way deal

Event 12: Prize Pool and Payouts with $8K to Big O Champ

2024 Tampa Signature Poker Series
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Tampa, Florida
Event 12

$400 Big O (Re-Entry)
Entries: 78

Prize Pool: $26,130
September 22, 2023

Registration close for the $400 Big O with 78 entries creating a prize pool worth $26,130. Coincidentally, the exact same numbers as the $400 Five-Card PLO tournament yesterday. The last ten spots will be paid with $800 for a min-cash and $8,010 up top for the Big O champ.

1st: $8,010 + SPS trophy
2nd: $5,340
3rd: $3,560
4th: $2,470
5th: $1,790
6th: $1,360
7th: $1,090
8th: $910
9th-10th: $800

Event 12: Big O Time

$400 Big O (Re-Entry)
Structure
Level 1:  100/200 with a 200 ante

We’ve been running a one-day Omaha trophy event every day over the last week or so and today it’s time for a $400 Big O at 5 pm. A perfect spot for those who drop out of the Event 7 restart or those looking for a lot of action. Or both.

Players sit down to 25K in their stacks and the first 18 levels last 20 minutes before increasing to 30 for the duration. Late registration and unlimited re-entries are available until the start of Level 9 at 7:15 pm.

  • Players begin with 25,000 in chips
  • Levels 1-18 last 20 minutes; Levels 19+ last 30 minutes
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9 (7:15pm)
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays to completion
  • Event 12 Structure Sheet

SPS Day 12 Schedule

Primary Event Schedule

11AM: Event 7 Day 2 – $1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)

1PM: Event 11 – $200 No-Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)

  • $20,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool
  • Players begin with 25,000 in chips
  • Levels last 25 minutes
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9 (4:50pm)
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays to completion
  • Event 11 Structure Sheet

5PM: Event 12 – $400 Big O (Re-Entry)

  • Players begin with 25,000 in chips
  • Levels 1-18 last 20 minutes; Levels 19+ last 30 minutes
  • Late registration/re-entry available until start of Level 9 (7:15pm)
  • This is a one-day tournament and plays to completion
  • Event 12 Structure Sheet

2024 Tampa Signature Poker Series Schedule

Frank Brannan Weathers Some Tilt to Win Event 12 Against a Talented Final Table

2023 Tampa Poker Classic
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Tampa, Florida
Event 12

$2,200 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
$75,000 Guaranteed
Entries: 46
Prize Pool: $92,000
September 13, 2023

Frank Brannan

Frank Brannan topped the field at a talented final table that included runner-up Paul Snead, AJ Kelsall (who was multi-tabling two final tables along with Event 13), and Joe Serock to take home the tournament title in Event 12 at the SPS tournament series. Brannan was awarded the top prize worth $32,710 along with the SPS guitar pick trophy. He now holds more than $460,000 in career tournament earnings.

Here is what Brannan had to say after the win, “It feels good, I haven’t won a tournament since a deuce-to-seven triple draw. I haven’t won a hold’em tournament since like 2020 or something.”

He continued, “I’ll play anyone, I don’t really care. I just tried to play as optimally as possible short-handed. I’m pretty well studied sub-15 big blind poker, it’s not that difficult. Everyone was pretty even, so there weren’t really many strong ICM spots because we were all equal in chips.”

When he was asked about the heads-up final, here were Brannan’s thoughts “Nothing crazy, and I think heads-up I was just more prepared. He had more chips, but he was doing weird things, he kept four x-ing . I had the more solid strategy, I’ve played a lot of heads-up, I used to play heads-up sit-and-go’s.”

Eight-handed play uncannily lasted for more than three hours, and Brannan took a bad beat during the slow period of play. He offered some interesting thoughts on keeping his composure during that stretch of play.

“I was actually so tilted because I lost a chip lead pot there with jacks versus A-9 there. We were eight-handed for like three hours. I went from being the chip leader to almost the soft bubble, I honestly normally don’t get titled, but I hadn’t eaten yet today because I fasted. I was a little hangry plus tilted. I try not to get emotional. I mean I will get mad, but I don’t let it affect the way I play my hands. It will never change how I play. I’m going to play exactly the way I’m going to play. I’m a big tilter, but if I’m tilted I will just go home, I’ve always good been with that,” said Brannan.

Final Results:

1st: Frank Brannan – $32,710 + SPS Trophy
2nd: Paul Snead – $21,810
3rd: AJ Kelsall – $14,540
4th: Mostafa Aboalmajed – $10,090
5th: Elliot Smith – $7,310
6th: Tim Mina –  $5,540

Event 12: Frank Brannan Wins ($32,710); Paul Snead – 2nd ($21,180)

$200 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 25:  30,000/60,000 with a 60,000 ante
Players Remaining: 1 of 973

Frank Brannan had gained the upper hand in the heads-up final when all the chips went into the middle and he held 10c9s against the Jc5c of Paul Snead on a final board reading QdJs5dKc9c. Snead was eliminated in second place, good for $21,810, and Brannan was awarded $32,710 for the win along with the SPS guitar pick trophy.

Stay tuned for a winner’s photo and interview later tonight.

Event 12: Results Update Down to Heads-Up Play

$200 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$100,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 25:  30,000/60,000 with a 60,000 ante
Players Remaining: 2 of 973

The final match has been set between Paul Snead (925,000) and Frank Brannan (455,000). Here is a look at the results that took things down to heads-up play while action was flying at the two other final tables as well.

3rd: AJ Kelsall – $14,540
4th: Mostafa Aboalmajed – $10,090
5th: Elliot Smith – $7,310
6th: Tim Mina –  $5,540

Event 12: Tim Mina – 6th ($5,540)

$2,200 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
$75,000 Guaranteed | Structure | Payouts
Level 18:  5,000/15,000 with a 15,000 ante
Entries: 5 of 46

Paul Snead

Tim Mina got all in with Kc7c in the hole UTG+1, and Paul Snead had him covered holding AsQs from the big blind.

The final board read Js9d2c4c9s, and Mina was eliminated in sixth place, good for $5,540. Snead stacked up 225,000 after collecting the pot.

Paul Snead – 225,000 (15 bb)
Tim Mina – Eliminated in Sixth Place ($5,540)

Event 12: Final Table Seating Chart with Chip Counts

$2,200 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
$75,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 6:  400/800 with a 800 ante
Entries: 8 of 46

Here is a look at the final table seating chart with chip counts for Event 12 with some heavy hitters still in the mix:

Seat 1: Elliot Smith – 360,000
Seat 2: Paul Snead – 150,000
Seat 3: AJ Kelsall – 170,000
Seat 4: Tim Mina – 105,000
Seat 5: Sam Magd – 225,000
Seat 6: Joe Serock – 62,000
Seat 7: Frank Brannan – 170,000
Seat 8: Mike Phillips – 80,000

Event 12: Joe Serock and AJ Kelsall Making a Run in the $2,200

$2,200 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry)
$75,000 Guaranteed | Structure
Level 6:  400/800 with a 800 ante
Entries: 12 of 46

AJ Kelsall

The field is on dinner break in Event 12, and two notables making a deep run in the tournament include AJ Kelsall and Joe Serock. Kelsall won Event 11 last night for a payday of $28,420 and the SPS guitar pick trophy. You can read the winner’s interview from last night right here. The local pro increased his career earnings to well over $2.8 million with the victory.

Serock holds more than $4.3 million in career earnings, and original resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico now lives in San Diego. Serock has three tournament victories to his credit, and he is a former World Poker Tour Player of the Year. He has 15, six-figure scores, with the largest weighing in at $804,191 for a fifth-place finish at the World Series of Poker Online Main Event in 2021.