The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, in Hollywood Florida, hosted the Lucky Hearts Poker Open (LHPO) Championship on January 24. The tournament had $3,500 buy-ins, lasted for five days, and attracted 1,692 entrants who created a $5,414,400 prize pool.
Marius Gierse beat all his opponents and won the $605,000 top prize. 212 players won $5,915 or more in the event. They included Matthew Wantman, James Carroll, Joe McKeehen, Chris Tryba, Jon Borenstein, Andrew Ostapchenko, Jacob Ferro, Jesse Lonis, Joey Weissman, Darren Rabinowitz, Jeremy Ausmus, Alex Foxen, and Billy Pilossoph.
Gierse hadn’t participated in a live poker event for six months. But he didn’t let his supporters down, as he finished fifth last week in a $25,500 buy-in tournament. His recent victory increased his tournament earnings to more than $5 million, and it was his second biggest cash after the $1,005,740 he won in the 2022 European Poker Tour Monte Carlo tournament series’ €100,000 buy-in event.
What Did the Tournament’s Top Nine Players Win?
1. Marius Gierse-$605,000 and 1,620 POY points
2. Brian Scott-$555,078 and 1,350 POY points
3. Peter Mugar-$500,000 and 1,080 POY points
4. Jacob Powers-$498,177 and 810 POY points
5. Martin Carnero-$238,635 and 675 POY points
6. Taylor Wilson-$181,950 and 540 POY points
7. Daniel Clifford-$140,055 and 405 POY points
8. Leonard Hermann-$108,850 and 270 POY points
What Transpired on the Final Day?
Only 16 out of the 1,692 players advanced to the final day, and they drastically reduced to nine, who formed the final table. The eventual champion was fifth in the chip standings when the day’s action began and sixth when the dealer dealt cards at the table.
The final table’s action lasted for more than six hours. Jerry Wong got busted first and exited the tournament in ninth place after Jacob Power’s pocket queens beat his pocket nines in a preflop. Leonard Hermann’s pocket tens lost to Brian Scott’s A-K after a few minutes.
An ace held and sent Hermann packing in the eighth position. The other players went on a brief dinner break. When action resumed, Daniel Clifford finished seventh after Gierse’s suited A-K defeated his pocket queens after making a flush on the river.
The poker room’s atmosphere changed fast as Taylor Wilson’s run ended in sixth place after Scott’s pocket tens held his pair of sevens. Gierse reclaimed the stack lead in the table’s last elimination.
Martin Carnero used A-10 to stand in the hole, and Gierse used pocket jacks to cover him. Yet, jacks held, thus sending Carnero home in the fifth position. The other finalists played several double-ups for an hour and a half.
Gierse informed Seminole Hard Rock Poker reporters after the tournament that the last four days were tough for him but he was glad to win the top prize. He started playing with five million chips, increased them to 10 million, lost 5.5 million chips, and later increased them to 17 million before they dropped to 7 million. The Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown is the next competitive tournament series at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, and it will occur between April 13 and May 2, 2023.
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