Calvin Snead Defeats Greg Raymer Heads Up for HPT Meadows Win
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The HPT Meadows Main Event has concluded after four hours of final table action. Emerging as the winner was Calvin Snead who took home the HPT trophy and the $61,080 first-place prize as well as the $3,500 prize package for the HPT championships in St.Louis.
“It was exciting to play Greg. I watched Greg on TV.”
The Pittsburgh local, electrician by trade, whose previous most significant cash was for a little over $12,000, could not believe the moment he found himself in today.
“It was exciting to play Greg, I watched Greg on TV,” said Snead as he discussed the big moment defeating Greg Raymer heads up.
He then went on to discuss how he rode a great run on Day 1 and 2 to put himself in a good position for the victory at the final table. “I’m not sure yet, I’m just gonna let this soak in,” Snead said when asked what he would be doing with the newly acquired $61,080 in his pocket.
One thing that Snead could do with some of his new money is to play more poker. That'll include the HPT championship that he is now qualified for. "Oh yeah, I can’t wait to play that, see Greg again and hopefully do it again!" Snead said.
HPT Meadows Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calvin Snead | Pittsburgh,PA | $61,080 |
| 2 | Greg Raymer | Raleigh,NC | $37,669 |
| 3 | Frank Bonacci | Pitssburgh,PA | $25,452 |
| 4 | Mike O'Neill | Royal Oak,MI | $18,071 |
| 5 | David Santucci | Monoreville,PA | $13,999 |
| 6 | Bill Dopico | Pittsburgh,PA | $11,453 |
| 7 | Bobby Noel | Johnstown,PA | $9,545 |
| 8 | Mike Iacovone | Cleveland,OH | $8,017 |
| 9 | Thomas Gustovich | N/A | $6,618 |
HPT Meadows Final Table Action
The day began with Thomas Gustovich being eliminated on the very first hand of play. From the cutoff, he shoved his short stack with six-deuce suited, and Mike O'Neill called with queen-three suited in the big blind. No help for Gustovich, and after only one hand, the final table was down to eight.
The action did not slow as the field was suddenly cut to five in barely over an hour thanks to rapid eliminations of Mike Iacovone (ace-queen to Raymer's ace-seven, seven on the flop), Bobby Noel (ace-ten into Frank Bonacci's ace-king), and Bill Dopico (queens versus ace-king pre-flop all-in, set versus flopped flush.)
The field was cut from five to three in no time as one of the most dramatic hand occurred when Raymer knocked out both David Santucci and Mike O’Neill in the same hand. Raymer held pocket kings preflop all in to against O'Neill's jacks and Sabtucci's ace-queen to give Raymer the chip lead heading into three-handed play.
Three-handed things slowed down considerably as it took nearly three hours of trading chips and moderate to small hands before Frank Bonacci was eventually eliminated in third place. It was Snead who did him in, winning sixes against Bonacci's king-queen.
Heads up play took exactly one hand as Snead got it in ahead with nine-five on a deuce-five-eight flop against Raymer, who had bet-called with ace-six off. He could practically feel the trophy in his hands, but the ace on the turn snatched it away as it sent Raymer into the lead. But the dramatic nine on the river gave Snead the title as he threw up his hands in celebration.
That wraps up PokerNews coverage of HPT Meadows. The coverage of the HPT will pick back up in Daytona Beach later in October.
