Less than 40 players remain in contention in the H.O.R.S.E. event, and players have gone on a 15-minute break. Chris Tryba remains in contention with a stack of 56,500, and Amnon Filippi is still in as well. The leader appears to be Shawn Ryan, who has 157,000. When the players return, the bets will be 4,000-8,000.
Ryan Michael took a pretty good hand up against Abdul Amer, but his 
was still vulnerable to the 
.
When the flop came 
Michael stood in acknowledgement that his tournament life would soon be over, and sure enough, the turn (
) and river (
) failed to bring any miracles.
Michael earned $7,989 for his deep run here in Event 3, but it was clear that he expected to finish a bit higher after taking cowboys up against an ace-high hand.
We missed the bustout hand, but a short-stacked TJ Hong moved has last few big blinds in against Vladimir Peck, only to fall short.
Hong earned $5,607 for his 9th place finish, while Peck improved his chip position with the smallish pot.
With one of the shortest stacks at the final table, Jerome Makonen needed to make his move, and after action folded to him in late position, he took his 
to war.
Unfortunately for Makonen, Joe Mckeehen woke up with 
in the big blind, and he snapped the bet off in an instant.
The king-high, all-diamond flop brought a little for both players, as Makonen found a pair and Mckeehen a four-flush, and the 
on the turn improved both players as well. When the river came 
, however, Makonen's tournament came to an end.
The final ten players in Event 3 have reconvened and the unofficial final table lineup is now set. Below you will find each player, their current chip count and their seat assignment:
| Player | Chip Count | Seat |
|---|---|---|
| Joe Mckeehen | 1,350,000 | 1 |
| Jerry Maher | 1,380,000 | 2 |
| Andy Hwang | 1,800,000 | 3 |
| Dimitrious Goranitis | 925,000 | 4 |
| Abdul Amer | 1,300,000 | 5 |
| Ryan Michael | 1,750,000 | 6 |
| TJ Hong | 400,000 | 7 |
| Ray Ross | 2,200,000 | 8 |
| Jerome Makonen | 600,000 | 9 |
| Vladimir Peck | 1,700,000 | 10 |
When the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa held the inaugural poker tournament in the casino’s new poker room back on June 30th, 2006, Theodore “Ted” Goldbergh made his way from Manhattan to take a shot. After it was all said and done, Ted took the whole thing down, earning $38,062 for his 1st place finish.
Since then, Ted and his wife Debbie have made it a point to head out to Atlantic City as often as their professional duties allow. Ted practices law as a litigation attorney – both civil and criminal – in private practice, and in his spare time he’s a USTA ranked tennis player. After performing as an actress in Boston and New York, Debbie entered the literary world as Copy Director for Kensington and Penguin Putnam, creating flap and back cover copy for the likes of E.L. Doctorow, Stephen King, Toni Morrison, Joyce Carol Oates, and many others. She is also an accomplished author in her right, with a thriller novel already in the publication stage, and another in the works.
After competing in Event 1 of the 2014 Winter Poker Open, making a run to Day 2 before falling short courtesy of a brutal beat. Despite the painful exit from one of the biggest tournaments of his life, Ted was nice enough to agree to a brief email exchange – with his wordsmith wife acting as an intermediary – and this poker pair provided a glimpse into the lives of local players who play the game for all the right reasons.
PN: Tell me a little more about the experience of winning the first event held at the Borgata’s new poker room. That must have been quite the experience.
Debbie: “The ribbon-cutting line was on the walkway in the casino leading to the poker room, and the gauntlet of 525 entrants/players (waiting to take their seats) ran the gamut of the casino. The thrill of victory for Ted was “an out-of-body experience” and Ted remembers the feeling of seeing the table and players with incredible clarity and playing out the final hands with a Zen-like serenity and a feeling that the win was inevitable. When he won, he felt exhilarated and liberated – and physically as if he were floating, followed by a sense of deep satisfaction and accomplishment.”
PN: What does the game of poker mean to the both of you, two people with fulfilling professional lives and a romance that is obviously in full bloom?
Debbie: For Ted, poker is a path for personal achievement, which has always been what drives him. The game calls into play all of one’s best attributes and deep sense of self, and places you in command of your own destiny. A truly individualistic pursuit where the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is an additional enticement. No Limit Texas Hold-‘Em is above all other forms of poker in our opinion, because it requires the most creativity and skill. For me, while I don’t play professionally – although I do love card games – it’s an opportunity to observe human nature. As Ted and I have discussed, this game and these tournaments are deeply psychological and reveal so much about the players and their outer and inner personas.”
PN: What keeps you coming back to the Borgata?
Debbie: Since Ted’s first-place win, the Borgata has always been our favorite casino. Ted feels they present the best tournament structures and professionalism and are clearly dedicated to being the best no-limit poker casino on the East Coast. We also love the hotel, itself – the rooms, which have been nicely upgraded, the restaurants, everything, and the staff is very nice. Ted also loves the blog and the fact that Borgata is committed to sharing the poker experience and reaching out to the world.”
PN: How has the game of poker impacted your lives?
Debbie: We travel to the Borgata together and Ted always says that when he plays, he’s playing for both of us. Whatever your individual pursuits may be, sharing them with your life partner is the greatest reward of all. Poker has given Ted and me that opportunity. We’ve met many wonderful people along the poker path, from players to Borgata employees to friends back home who have helped make the journey even richer.
Below you find the amounts awaiting the final fifteen here in Event 3 ($560 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold'em Re-Entry):
| Place | Payout |
|---|---|
| 1 | $69,808 |
| 2 | $39,246 |
| 3 | $25,230 |
| 4 | $20,044 |
| 5 | $15,698 |
| 6 | $12,895 |
| 7 | $10,232 |
| 8 | $7,989 |
| 9 | $5,607 |
| 10-12 | $3,644 |
| 13-15 | $2,803 |
We missed the preflop betting action, but Joe Mckeehen and Vladimir Peck got into an all-in confrontation, with Mckeehen's 
needing help against Peck's 
.
Flop: 
Turn: 
River:
Peck's hand stayed in front through all five cards, and he survived to keep himself in contention for the five-figure score.
A hand just went down that could have shifted the balance of power in this tournament with just 16 players remaining... had Vladimir Peck simply mucked his hand without exposing his cards.
Obviously the faux pas was inadvertent, but when Peck folded the and accidentally exposed his cards to the table, everything changed for this series' defending Main Event champion Andy Hwang.
Here's what went down: Peck's cards went face up after Luther Lewis shipped his last 202,000 into the middle, and Hwang, who is one of the most experienced and talented players left in the field, decided to simply smooth call the bet. After folds around the table, Ray Ross - member of Pennsylvania poker crew Team Kitten - made his stand, however, moving all in over the top for 893,000 more.
Hwang was then put to a major decision, and he tanked for a long while trying to compute and calculate his way to the optimal decision. Eventually, after lamenting the fact that he had just been moved to a new table and put in such a difficult spot, Hwang decided to muck his hand, showing the table his in the process. Understandably, having seen the already moved into the discard pile, Hwang's affection towards his suited big slick had waned somewhat, and despite waking up with a monster he elected to get out of the way.
Showdown:
Ross: 
Lewis: 
Hwang's reaction was calm and composed when he saw the news, but when the arrived in the window on the flop of 
, it was obvious he was dismayed by the result. The turn (
) and river (
) changed nothing, and Ross won the hand with a pair of queens. Having had the perfect sequence of events transpire to keep him in the tournament, Ross stood up and exhaled, asking Hwang "can I thank you man, for being good enough to fold that hand?"
Hwang could only smile in response, remaining the consummate pro despite having missed a chance to put a stranglehold on the tournament.
Stud
Amnon Filippi raised a bet from Chris Reslock on third, only to see another player behind him make it three bets. Reslock folded, and Filippi called. He also called fourth and fifth before taking the betting lead when he caught queens on sixth.
Opponent: 
/
Filippi: /
Filippi's opponent called, and he called the end as well. Filippi turned over 
for queens up, and his opponent couldn't beat it. Filippi now has 53,500.