The 2015 World Series of Poker Main Event winner Joe McKeehen arrived at Borgata yesterday in time for some Ultimate Werewolf, but not for the Almighty Stack. The SixMax is his first event of the 2020 Borgata Winter Poker Open.
After winning the 2015 WSOP Main and more than $7.6 million, McKeehen went on to prove that he wasn't a one-hit-wonder, winning the $10,000 Limit Hold'em Championship and another bracelet in 2017. He has run up more than $16 million in live tournament earnings, putting him 38th in the world in total earnings.
MGM East Coast Poker Tour (ECPT)MGM East Coast Poker Tour (ECPT)
There’s a new poker tour in town as a trio of MGM properties – MGM National Harbor, MGM Springfield, and Borgata – have joined forces to establish the MGM East Coast Poker Tour (ECPT).
The tour will consist of the following stops:
Potomac Winter Poker Open at MGM National Harbor February 5-17
Borgata Spring Poker Open April 7-24
Borgata Summer Poker Open July 7-24
Potomac Summer Poker Open at MGM National Harbor July 22-August 3
The Armory Classic at MGM Springfield August 12-24
“MGM Resorts offers players the best poker product on the East Coast,” said Jorge Perez, Portfolio President. “Our East Coast Poker Tour is a great way for us to showcase three of our industry-leading properties while creating an exciting tournament series for our guests and poker enthusiasts.”
The Points Leaderboard
Linking the five events will be a leaderboard where players can earn points by participating in any qualifying events.
Leaderboard prizes consist of the following: the top 90 finishers on the leaderboard will earn entry into Borgata Fall Poker Open/MGM Resorts East Coast Poker Tour $2,000,000 Guaranteed Championship on November 15-20, 2020 ($3,500 value) including complimentary overnight stays. Others can win $250 room credits, Cartier watch ($2,500 value) and $500 MGM Resorts promotional gift cards.
Players can earn points in a variety of ways including “Participation Points” for buying into tournaments, “Entry Points” based on field sizes, and “Placement Points” for making the final table. Click here for more details on the point system.
The leaderboard will be posted to MGMECPT.com and updated daily when qualifying events are occurring. Points for the leaderboard will be finalized on August 25, 2020.
Previewing the Potomac Winter Poker Open
The upcoming Potomac Winter Poker Open at MGM National Harbor, which runs from February 5-17, 2020, will offer over $1,000,000 in guarantees over 14 events. It marks the first time a winter edition of the PPO has been held to complement its annual late-summer series.
Highlights on the schedule include the $400 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed Opener and the $3,000 buy-in, $500,000 guarantee Main Event. What’s more, PokerNews is slated to be on-site to offer live updates from both of those events as well as the $400 Large Stack BB Ante from February 12-13.
Anthony Zinno arrived at Borgata in time to get chips in a bag for Day 2 of the Almighty Stack, but he busted out short of the money. Now he's settled into Day 1 of this two-day SixMax event for a long grind until the bag & tag at about 2am.
He's been cashing in tournaments since 2007, but his big breakthrough came right here at Borgata when he beat Vanessa Selbst heads-up at the end of the 2013 World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open Championship event, earning more than $825,000. He's gone on to travel the world playing poker and amassed more than $10 million in earnings, with three WPT titles and two World Series of Poker bracelets to his credit.
Ari Engel has arrived at Borgata and joined the SixMax as his first BWPO event. He just returned from Australia where he won the Aussie Millions A$ 2,250 + 250 No Limit Hold'em event, earning US $97,473, just a few days ago.
His lifetime earnings now exceed $6.9 million and he's won tournaments on at least four of the seven continents!
Ryan Eriquezzo photo-bombs Michael Azzaro as he 3-bets
On a hand that ran over into the break, Arian Stolt (cutoff) and Michael Azzaro (button) both checked the flop of to see the land on the turn.
Stolt checked it over to Azzaro, who tossed in a 3,000 bet. After some thought, Stolt let it go and both players headed out for what was left of their break.
and was well ahead of Greg Fishberg's 
.
giving Fishberg the club flush and the pot. His opponent was sent to the rail, but still has the option to re-enter.
to see the 
land on the turn.
