Event #17: $3,125 Heads-Up NLH
Day 2 Started
2020 Borgata Winter Poker Open
Event #17: $3,125 Heads-Up NLH
Day: 2
Noon Start for Event #17: $3,125 Heads-Up Quarter Finals
At noon local time, Day 2 which is the final day of Event #17: $3,125 Heads-Up resumes play at the Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa with 8 players out of 58 entries returning to the felt to battle each other in four heads-up matches. All those entries created a total prize pool of $168,780 with the winner taking home the first-place prize of $67,512 while all eight are already guaranteed at least $8,439.
Who will follow in Phil Hellmuth’s footsteps? The following quarter-finals are to take place so these are the players still in with a short at that wonderful first-place prize:
- Arian Stolt vs Matthew Emmel
- Christopher Abela vs Jeffrey Hong
- David Forbes vs Sandeep Pulusani
- Timothy Rutherford vs Qi Hu
Level duration will remain at 15 minutes with an increase to 30 minutes once the final has been reached. Players start with 20,000 in chips for each heads-up match and need to win two out of three games to advance to the next round.
The PokerNews live reporting team will be there from the start until the trophy can be handed over to the champion so sit tight while the updates can be found right here from the Borgata Winter Poker Open.
And Off They Go!
Seven out of eight players have arrived and the matches have started. Qi Hu is still waiting for Timothy Rutherford to show up before they can start their heads-up battle.
All Four Matches in Progress
With the arrival of Timothy Rutherford, all four heads-up matches are now in progress.
The Quarter-Finalists
Two Shoves, No Calls
Arian Stolt raised to 600 on the button and Matthew Emmel responded with a shove. Stolt asked for a count and the dealer confirmed Emmel had 4,100. Stolt closed his eyes, opened them, looked up, and then folded.
On the other table, David Forbes had raised to 1,000 on the button and Sandeep Pulusani called. The flop came 
for Pulusani to check-shove when Forbes continued with a bet of 3,000. Forbes asked for a count, the dealer confirmed Pulusani had 13,200. Forbes looked at his cards once more before folding them.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
35,300 | 15,300 |
|
24,800 | 4,800 |
|
15,200 | -4,800 |
|
4,700 | -15,300 |
Pulusani Doubles Up
The board read 
when Sandeep Pulusani had checked and David Forbes shoved on the button with the bigger stack. Pulusani called for the 15,600 he had behind and tabled 
for the turned two pair. Forbes held 
for the pair of jacks and was drawing dead.
The river completed the board with the 
as a formality as Pulusani doubled up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
35,800 | 20,600 |
|
|
4,200 | -20,600 |
Emmel Stays Alive
The flop read 
when Matthew Emmel shoved with 3,000 in the pot already and Arian Stolt called on the button.
Matthew Emmel: 
Arian Stolt: 
Emmel was ahead with ace-high but Stolt had a flush draw.
The turn was the 
to pair the board up but not change the situation.
The river completed the board with the 
to give Emmel two pair to stay alive.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
29,400 | -5,900 |
|
|
10,600 | 5,900 |
Forbes Coming Back
David Forbes had doubled up a bit earlier after paying Sandeep Pulusani a double-up but is getting his stack back to the starting point.
The board read 
when Forbes checked, Pulusani bet 2,000 on the button. Forbes raised to 6,000 and Pulusani called. Forbes tabled 
for two pair.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
21,000 | -14,800 |
|
|
19,000 | 14,800 |
Updated Chip Counts
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
23,000 | 3,000 |
|
22,600 | 2,600 |
|
17,400 | -2,600 |
|
17,000 | -3,000 |