$150 Big Stack No Limit Holdem (Re-Entry) Level 11: 8,000/16,000/200 Ante
Douglas Decker pictured in Seat 8 (tables are 10-handed).
With less than two tables remaining, Douglas Decker is your chip leader in Flight A of Event 4. He’s over 200,000 chips after coming out on the winning end of a handful of all in battles. Decker, who yesterday finished in the money of the $150 turbo tournament, is poised for another deep run as he sets the pace late on the opening day of play.
With just 17 players remaining, tournament staff expects to hit the 11 percent hard stop before the 14 scheduled levels. Complete chip counts will be posted later this evening.
$150 Big Stack No Limit Holdem (Re-Entry) Beginning of Level 9: 500/1,000/100 Ante
Registration is closed in the first of four starting flights in Event 4 of the Winter Poker Open, a $150 big stack no limit hold’em tournament. The opener drew a field of 102 entries that will pair with tonight’s Flight B and tomorrow’s Flight C and Flight D to create the complete player pool.
With eight levels in the books in Flight A, it’s Palm Beach Garden, Fla.’s John Pishos who leads the way. He claims 95,500 chips and is trailed by Glenn Kelly (75,000), Dave Ormsbee (72,000) and others.
John Pishos (Palm Beach Gardens, FL)Glenn Kelly (Sarasota, FL)Dave Ormsbee (FL)
$150 Big Stack No Limit Holdem (Re-Entry) Level 7: 300/600/75 Ante
With just a few minutes remaining in Level 7, the field in Flight A of Event 1 has officially crossed 100 entries. The tournament needs to average more than 104 per flight to hit the $50,000 guarantee and it appears the first starting day will do its part to surpass the $50,000 milestone.
Players are set to take their next break shortly after 3:15 p.m. ET. Registration closes when they return and the complete attendance figure will be posted shortly thereafter.
$150 Big Stack No Limit Holdem (Re-Entry) Level 5: 150/300/25 Ante
Players are freshly back in their seats following the first break in Event 4 of the 2015 Winter Poker Open. The field sits at 84 entries with just over two hours of late registration/re-entry remaining.
A couple of the big stacks in the room belong to Dave Ormsbee and Max Young. Ormsbee holds 49,500 and has more than tripled his starting stack after turning two pair just moments ago. Young, meanwhile, claims 39,500.
Yesterday’s Event 3 winner, John Duhig, has pretty much cut his stack in half. He’s currently working with about 8,000 chips.
We will update you again after registration closes and the field is finalized.
$150 Big Stack No Limit Holdem (Re-Entry) Level 4: 100/200
Level 4 is underway in Flight A of today’s $150 big stack no limit hold’em tournament. The clock reads an unofficial 77 entries to this point. Among those in the field is John Duhig who just last night claimed the top spot in Event 3, a $150 deep stack no limit hold’em event. Duhig is a new entry and sits with about starting stack.
Players are set to take their first break in about 25 minutes. A closer look at the field will be provided at that time.
The clock strikes 11 a.m. and the poker room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino is bustling again as the first of four starting flights in Event 4 of the 2015 Winter Poker Open is underway. The $150 big stack no limit hold’em re-entry tournament boasts a $50,000 guarantee. Players begin with 15,000 chips and the tournament features 30-minute levels throughout. Late registration/re-entry is permitted through Level 9 while Day 1s are set to wrap following Level 14 or at the tournament director’s discretion.
Subsequent flights begin today at 6 p.m. ET and tomorrow at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. respectively. Those players fortunate enough to advance reconvene for Day 2 Wednesday at 11 a.m.
The series’ previous multi-flight event — Event 1 — saw its guarantee get smashed and the same is expected from today’s Event 4.
Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Deep Stack Spring Poker Series
$150 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry) $100,000 Guaranteed May 11-14, 2015
Total Entries: 875 Total Prize Pool: $105,000
Norbert Kara -1st Place
RECAP
Norbert Kara has been playing poker semi-professionally for several years and has amassed career earnings close to $100,000. Today he flew under the radar for most of the day, avoiding confrontations, until a key hand at the final table.
On a flop of 6 4 3 — all spades — Kara was all-in for 3.09 million holding two red Aces. The other two players remaining at the table also piled in. Greg McNealy had an open-ended straight draw and Claudemir Osorio had the Ace of spades for the nut flush draw.
Kara managed to fade all their outs to win the huge pot, take the chip lead, and bust Greg McNealy in the process. The retired fire-fighter finished 3rd.
Osorio had been in the chip lead or close to it for most of the final three tables, but suddenly he found himself at a disadvantage with about 7 million chips to Kara’s 10 million chips. After a short heads-up match, the final two agreed to chop up the remaining prize pool and call it a day.
Through nine starting flights over three days, a total of 875 entries generated a prize pool of $105,000, neatly covering the $100,000 guarantee. The final 81 players earned a share.
The last woman remaining in this event was Barbara Cardin, who busted out 27th ($525). Elizabeth Blalock was the chip leader at the start of Day 2. She was eliminated in 44th place ($399).
This is Kara’s first win in a trophy event here at Seminole Hard Rock Tampa. The Clearwater resident, who is originally from Hungary, can be found practicing his craft here on the felt several days a week.
$150 Deep Stack NLH (Re-Entry) $100,000 Guaranteed
Level 29: Blinds 150k/300k/20k ante
Total Entries: 875 Players Remaining: 2 Average Stack: 8.75 million (29 big blinds)
Greg McNealy – 3rd Place
On a flop of all three players got their chips in the middle. Greg McNealy had a 5 for the open-ended straight-draw. Claudemir Osorio had for the nut-flush draw, and Norbert Kara had pocket Aces and a lot of outs to fade.
The last two cards fell and changed nothing.
Norbert’s all-in of 3.09 million had Greg covered, so Greg busted out in 3rd place, earning $8,610.
Norbert had more than 10 million chips after that pot. Heads-up play began with Claudemir holding about 6.95 million.
all three players got their chips in the middle. Greg McNealy had a 5 for the open-ended straight-draw. Claudemir Osorio had 
for the nut-flush draw, and Norbert Kara had pocket Aces and a lot of outs to fade.
and changed nothing.