Event 15: $200,000 Guarantee Six-Max NLHE Re-Entry | 2014 Borgata Winter Poker Open

01-25-2014 21:50 UTC-4

Like a Brik(is) House... Just Letting it All Hang Out

[user253757]

Level 21 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante

Josh Brikis is Taking Over the Six-Max Event, Busting Two Players in One Orbit

Josh Brikis has quietly built a massive chip stack, avoiding major confrontations while pushing his opponents around throughout this second day of play.

In the last few minutes, however, he has put his big stack to use in a big way, eliminating Day 1 chip leader Andrew Kelsall and experienced grinder Ronit Chamani in a single orbit.

First, Kelsall made his stand with but he ran smack into the Brik Wall, as Brikis held . The flop further confirmed that it just might be Brikis' day, coming to end any chance at a comeback for Kelsall - who entered the day as the chip leader.

Just a few hands later, it was Chamani's turn to slide her stack over to Brikis, after she fell victim to runner-runner quads of all things. Brikis and Chamani both checked the flop and the dropped in on the turn. Brikis flatted a turn bet and the river card came , making a four in hand appear to be the immortal nuts.

Chamani fired away - why wouldn't she, holding - but Brikis decided to move all-in over the top. The snap-call by Chamani was greeted with a rude awakening, as Brikis tabled the for quads, sinking Chamani's boat and soaring to nearly 2 million chips to open up a huge lead on the field.

Player	Chips	Progress
Josh Brikis	1,850,000	610,000
Andrew Kelsall	Busted
Ronit Chamani	Busted

Tags: Andrew Kelsall Josh Brikis Ronit Chamani

01-25-2014 21:37 UTC-4

Hwang on Right End of Brutal Cooler, Yarlapati Busts Soon After

[user253757]

Level 21 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante

Maruti Yarlapati Just Ran Kings Into Aces to Fall Short of the Final Two Tables

The preflop action on a recent hand was a textbook display of two skilled players trying to outwit one another, but in the end, the cards played themselves.

Andy Hwang three-bet to 60,000 from the big blind after an open to 28,000 from Maruti Yarlapati in the cutoff. The action back on him, Yarlapati took his time before cutting out a four-betting stack of 140,000. From there, the theatrics were, while unnecessary considering the situation, fun to watch firsthand.

After the sizable four-bet by Yarlapati, Hwang winced and appeared to all the world to be a frustrated man, one who did not expect to be played back at. Feigning displeasure at the spot he was now put in, Hwang checked his cards once or twice and cut out a calling stack, only to put the chips back in their rightful spot as if ready to concede the hand.

Instead, Hwang grabbed the stack and placed it in the middle, simply smooth-calling the big bet and taking the flop out of position. When the first three cards were spread Hwang tapped the table silently for a check, and soon Yarlapati's chips were all pushed forward for the all-in move.

Hwang beat him to the pot and both players tabled their holdings.

Showdown:

Hwang:
Yarlapati:

Both players had picked up premium pocket pairs, and despite the protracted drama with played out preflop, the pot was preordained to be played for all the chips.

The turn () and river () changed nothing and Hwang doubled through for a huge win, while Yarlapati was left on life support. His last 100,000 or so was shipped with , but Yarlapati failed to catch up to Christopher Leon's when the flop came .

Player	Chips	Progress
Andy Hwang	820,000	625,000
Maruti Yarlapati	Busted

Tags: Andy Hwang Christopher Leon Maruti Yarlapati

01-25-2014 21:10 UTC-4

AbracaChhabra... Rogen Disappears

[user253757]

Level 21 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante

Rogen Chhabra Just Vanished With a 14th Place Finish

Just two hands were dealt after the dinner break before we lost a player, and it was Rogen Chhabra who was headed to the payout desk when it was all said and done.

Chhabra found and shoved for his last 120,000 or so, only to see Christopher Leon call with .

The final board ran out clean for Leon and ace-high took the pot, leaving Chhabra to claim a 14th place finish and $3,437 in prize money.

Player	Chips	Progress
Christopher Leon	682,000	122,000
Rogen Chhabra	Busted

Tags: Rogen Chhabra Christopher Leon

01-25-2014 21:02 UTC-4

Back to the Grind

[user253757]

Level 21 : 6,000/12,000, 2,000 ante

The game is on and cards are back in the as the Six-Max event.

Level: 21

Blinds: 6,000/12,000

Ante: 2,000

01-25-2014 19:57 UTC-4

Current Chip Counts at Dinner Break

[user253757]

Level 20 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante

Josh Brikis on Day 2 of the Borgata Winter Poker Open Six-Max Event

With the players off in search of sustenance, feast on this updated list of chip counts for the final 14 players left in the Six-Max event.

Josh Brikis is still the overwhelming chip leader with more than 1.2 million, good for more than double the current average of 533,000 and about 500,000 more than his closest competitor.

Player	Chips	Progress
Josh Brikis	1,240,000
Tony Sinishtaj	775,000	10,000
Maruti Yarlapati	730,000	100,000
Jesse Cohen	627,000	-68,000
Christopher Leon	560,000	115,000
Andrew Kelsall	515,000	-127,000
Byron Kaverman	420,000	-95,000
Robert Portas	385,000	20,000
Chris Moon	340,000	5,000
Matt Affleck	291,000	11,000
Caufman Talley	285,000	-240,000
Ronit Chamani	195,000	-120,000
Andy Hwang	195,000	-145,000
Rogen Chhabra	122,000	-143,000

01-25-2014 19:48 UTC-4

Chow Time

[user253757]

Level 20 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante

The remianing 14 players have departed for a 60-minute dinner break, and play will resume one hour for now. Stay tuned for a full chip count update in a matter of minutes to see where the final 14 stand heading into the break.

01-25-2014 19:39 UTC-4

Kandris Canned

[user253757]

Level 20 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante

Athanasios Kandris Just Went Bust in 15th Place

Athanasios Kandris was riding the micro-stack for nearly the entire level, grinding away and watching as clashes between big stacks helped him climb a rung or two on the payout ladder.

Kandris' short-stack survival came to an end though, as his seat is now empty.

The last 40,000 chips Kandris had left are now the property of Robert Portas, after the latter notched the knockout to push over 365,000 with the final table in sight.

Player	Chips	Progress
Robert Portas	365,000	41,000
Athanasios Kandris	Busted

Tags: Athanasios Kandris Robert Portas

01-25-2014 19:25 UTC-4

Musumeci Clubbed by the Kaverman

[user253757]

Level 20 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante

Byron Kaverman Just Busted a Dangerous Opponent in Amanda Musumeci

Amanda Musumeci's last hand of the tournament just went down, and interestingly enough, when she and Byron Kaverman tabled their cards on the flop, neither player could produce a pair.

According to Kaverman, the two took a flop after he flatted a 23,000 open from Musumeci, and when the first three cards hit the table he checked it her way.

Musumeci decided to fire a small feeler bet, only to see Kaverman check-raise. This prompted an all-in shove from Musumeci and a quick call from Kaverman.

Showdown:

Musumeci:
Kaverman:

Musumeci was on the move with just queen-high and a gutshot straight draw, while Kaverman was hoping to hit a flush with his king-high heart draw. Fortunately for him, the draw was not even needed, and Kaverman simply needed to hold up to notch the knockout.

The turn () paired Kaverman and the river () missed both players, leaving Musumeci with no pair, no hand and no chips.

Player	Chips	Progress
Byron Kaverman	515,000	240,000
Amanda Musumeci	Busted

Tags: Amanda Musumeci Byron Kaverman

01-25-2014 19:13 UTC-4

Kelsall Shows Killer Instinct

[user253757]

Level 20 : 5,000/10,000, 1,000 ante

Andrew Kelsall on Day 2 of Event #15 at the 2014 Borgata Winter Poker Open

With the flop of already spread across the felt, we watched as Andrew Kelsall and Chris Moon contested a pot with pure power, each player trying to push the other off with increasingly large reraises.

After an undetermined bet by Moon to start the post-flop action, Kelsall decided to put his man to the test, raising to 76,000 and staring Moon down.

Moon was not impressed though, and he calmly cut out enough chips for a three-bet to 131,000. Kelsall deliberated for a long minute, studying both the board and Moon's chip stack, before ultimately refusing to surrender so easily. His four-bet to 226,000 put much of his stack at risk and effectively threatened Moon's as well.

The pressure play worked to perfection, as Moon eventually opted to release and retreat, saving his now below-average stack to fight another day.

As Moon's cards went into the muck, Kelsall's were tabled to prove a point: .