Event 1: $560 $1 Million Guaranteed Deep-Stack NLHE Reentry
Day 1a Started
2014 Borgata Spring Poker Open
Event 1: $560 $1 Million Guaranteed Deep-Stack NLHE Reentry
Day: 1a
Welcome to the Borgata Spring Poker Open!
![[user253757]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
In just under an hour one of the most anticipated series on the tournament circuit kicks off, as the Borgata Spring Poker Open begins in grand fashion. Event 1 of the series - which spans nearly three weeks of flops, folds and fun - is set to start at 11am local time, with a $1 million guaranteed prize pool awaiting the thousands of hopefuls who are sure to show up.
Sporting a $560 buy-in and offering unlimited re-entries over four starting flights, the size and scope of Event 1 demonstrates the Borgata's ongoing commitment to running the best tournaments on the East Coast. Thousands of individual players are expected to try their hand over the course of the four starting flights, and with unlimited re-entries during the first nine levels of each, those with big bankrolls will be firing multiple bullets as they attempt to bag and tag a big stack.
We expect a packed house here today despite the inclement weather outside, with accomplished local players like Amanda Musumeci, Will "The Thrill" Failla, Joe McKeehen, Joseph Stiers, Alyson Parker, and several others likely to be in attendance. As concurrent tournament series on the national schedule come to a close, the poker world's elite will eventually converge at the Borgata, with the World Poker Tour World Championship set to close out the Borgata Spring Poker Open.
The tournament staff is busily setting up for the stampede of players which will begin at any moment, and PokerNews is proud to provide continuous live coverage of the entire series, so keep it here throughout the day to follow the action.
Level: 1
Blinds: 50/100
Ante:
Let's Play Some Poker
Level 1
: 50/100, 0 ante
Veteran tournament director Tab Duchateau just gave his blessing and play is now underway in Event 1.
Players are still streaming into the room, however, and many tables are delayed while awaiting the arrival of enough players (four or more) to begin.
Local Flavor
Level 1
: 50/100, 0 ante
We've spotted a few familiar faces in attendance already, with local grinders Megan Milburn, Natale Kuey and Michael Marder mixing it up in the first level of play.
Milburn is no stranger to success here the Borgata, after scoring a runner-up finish in the Ladies event at the recently concluded Spring Poker Open.
Kuey is another runner-up finisher from the Spring Poker Open, after taking home $13,012 in a side event.
Marder is an East Coast grinder who came up cutting his teeth against the region's best players, and helped in paying homage to the recently deceased local legend Mike "Little Man" Sica during the Spring Poker Open.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
25,000 | 25,000 |
|
25,000 | 25,000 |
|
25,000 | 25,000 |
Buzgon Drags an Early One
Level 1
: 50/100, 0 ante
We're still in our infancy here on Day 1a of Event 1: $560 $1 Million Guaranteed Deep-Stack NLHE Reentry, but we've already spotted a few familiar faces. Among them are World Series of Poker Bracelet winner Chris Tryba, 2011 Borgata Fall Poker Open Ladies Event champion Lana O'Brien, and 2011 WPT Borgata Poker Open finalist Daniel Buzgon.
Buzgon just pulled in an early pot, betting into two opponents on a flop of 
and after the 
fell on the turn. Both players called on the flop, but released their hands on the turn.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
25,000 | |
|
25,000 | |
|
25,000 |
Level: 2
Blinds: 75/150
Ante:
Martino... Shaken, Not Stirred
Level 2
: 75/150, 0 ante
With the first level of play in every poker tournament consisting of a feeling out process, as players test the waters and probe for information, major chip movement is rare in the early going.
Martino Scuturro must have missed that memo though. Just a few orbits into the tournament Scuturro has chipped up quite nicely, first making two pair with 
and extracting value from an opponent with top pair/top kicker.
A few hands later, we watched Scuturro take a flop of 
against two opponents, before taking the pot down with a c-bet.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
34,000 |
Set of Ducks
Level 2
: 75/150, 0 ante
Megan Milburn fired out 400 on a board of 
, and only one of her three opponents made the call. The river was a third diamond - the 
- and both Milburn and her opponent checked.
Milburn rolled over 
for a set of deuces, winning the pot.
Kenneth Natal Notches Early Double
Level 2
: 75/150, 0 ante
A starting stack of 25,000 is usually enough to sit on during the first few levels of a tournament, but with unlimited re-entries available in this $1 million guaranteed opening event, some players are willing to risk them all early on.
Kenneth Natal is appreciative of that fact, after notching a full double up and sending an opponent to the registration desk in the process.
Natal held the 
and hit his gin card on fourth street with the board reading 
. Armed with a full house, Natal was more than willing to risk his first 25,000-chip bullet, as was an unfortunate player holding 
in the hole.
Although his opponent had flopped trip sevens, Natal caught up with a boat on the turn, and the on the river kept his hand in front. With more than 50,000 to work with now, Natal is the early chip leader, so we'll be sure to track his progress as the day continues.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
51,000 | 51,000 |