A round-up of the action from the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open Big 4 including victories for Martin Kozlov, John Andress, William Foxen, Brian Altman, and two final table appearances for Joe Kuether.
For the third year running, the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open (SHRPO) in Hollywood, Florida, rolled out their Big 4 concept, and once again it went down a treat.
All told, there were 18 events, and $9.3m in guarantees, with $6.5m guaranteed for the Big 4, where the final tables of four of the biggest events played out simultaneously, streamed live and filmed for TV.
Martin Kozlov Wins The $5,250 No-Limit Hold’em SHRPO Championship
887 entrants ensured organisers smashed the $3m guarantee in this one, with $4.3m entering the SHRPO coffers.
In a week that saw Australian based poker players lose their ability to play online poker on fully licensed and regulated online poker rooms in the nation, Martin Kozlov once again showed that with the right talent, dedication, and sprinkling of luck, you could create a profitable live game.
Kozlov defeated Dylan Drazen in heads-up action to take the $754,083 first prize. It was the second time in successive years Kozlov has won an event for over half a million dollars after picking up the win in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) No-Limit Hold’em 6-Handed Championship for $665,709 last year.
Of interest, high stakes cash pro, Matt Berkey, finished seventh. It’s Berkey’s third deep run since forging the Solve For Why Academy, showing how focused learning turns into tangible results.
Final Table Results
1. Martin Kozlov – $754,083
2. Dylan Drazen – $528,322
3. Matt Berkey – $341,618
4. Yi Li – $252,481
5. Michael Aron – $191,437
6. Aaron Mermelstein – $152,547
7. Adam Levy – $126,305
8. Luke Brereton – $100,408
9. Joe Kuether – $75,413
Other players who ran further than Zola Budd were David Sands (21st), Shannon Shorr (22nd), and Scott Clements (24th).
John Andress Wins The $25,500 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller
Moving on to the largest buy-in of the Big 4 and John Andress picked up most of the greenbacks in the $25,500 buy-in High Roller. 117 entrants ensured the event surpassed the $2m guarantee by $900,000.
Andress beat the talented Mike Leah, in heads-up action, to claim only his second major live score of his career, after defeating the likes of Mike McDonald, Philipp Gruissem, Luke Schwartz, and Kristijones Andrulis to win a €10k event at the European Poker Tour (EPT) Prague back in 2011.
Final Table Results
1. John Andress – $801,450
2. Mike Leah – $561,600
3. Brandon Adams – $351,000
4. Chris Hunichen – $242,775
5. Tom Marchese – $155,025
6. Omaz Zazay – $114,075
7. Chance Kornuth – $93,600
8. Sam Panzica – $78,975
9. Matt Glantz – $76,050
Other super stars who twinkled long in the night in this one were Joseph Cheong (10th), Alex Papazian (11th), and Jeff Gross (12th)
William Foxen Wins The $2,650 No-Limit Hold’em
The World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) gold ring winner, William Foxen, earned his first big money live tournament win with victory in the $2,650 buy-in event.
395 entrants ensured the event met the $1m guarantee. Foxen waded through a tough final table featuring the likes of Jason Koon and Faraz Jaka on his way to an impressive victory.
Final Table Results
1. William Foxen – $204,600
2. Charles Gomez – $143,340
3. Jason Koon – $92,150
4. Paul Balzano – $61,550
5. Jack Duong – $47,350
6. Faraz Jaka – $39,250
7. Darryl Ronconi – $32,950
8. Tom Thomas – $26,700
9. Jacquelyn Scott – $20,460
Other notables who fell close to the summit of this particular mountain were Aaron Massey (14th), Curt Kohlberg (15th), and Barry Hutter (19th).
Brian Altman Wins The $1,100 No-Limit Hold’em Event
Finally, the former World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event and WSOPC gold ring winner, Brian Altman, won the $1,100 buy-in event. 633 entrants ensured the event smashed through the $500,000 guarantee by $133,000.
The victory was Altman’s second of the year after defeating 508 entrants to win a Venetian Deepstack event for $106,479 in May.
A special shout out must go to Joe Kuether for making two of the Big 4 final tables, although he will be disappointed, finishing eighth in this one, and ninth in the Championship event.
Final Table Results
1. Brian Altman – $118,157
2. Phong Nguyen – $82,834
3. Marc MacDonnell – $53,349
4. Narimaan Ahmadi – $38,581
5. Je Wook Oh – $29,605
6. Nigel Murray – $23,782
7. Nicholas Chiappetta – $19,762
8. Joe Kuether – $15,749
9. Phil Rigby – $11,818
Other players who rooted deeper than a mole in this one were Dermot Blain (12th), Sunny Patel (13th), and Anton Astapau (14th).
