HPO Charles Town Regional Championship | 2014 Hollywood Poker Open Charles Town Regional Event

03-30-2014 21:25 UTC-4

Lackey Lacking

[user253757]

Level 19 : 4,000/8,000, 500 ante

The board read by fourth street and Mark Castaldo had a bet of 15,000 pushed in front of his stack.

David Lackey responded with a raise to 45,000, forcing Castaldo to a tough decision. After asking for a count of the raise, Castaldo opted to flat the bet and take the river, which came down .

Pausing a beat to ponder his options, Castaldo suddenly announced himself all in for approximately 114,000, which was effectively an all-in bet for Lackey as well, who held 120,000 behind.

After squeezing and re-checking his hole cards, Lackey appeared to be pained by the bet, and he flashed the before announcing the fold.

Player	Chips	Progress
Mark Castaldo	245,000 73,000	73,000
David Lackey	121,000 -86,000	-86,000

03-30-2014 21:13 UTC-4

Mike Summers Eliminated in 7th Place ($5,846)

[user253757]

Level 19 : 4,000/8,000, 500 ante

The first payout slip has been claimed here at the final table, and it was Mike Summers who took the lonely walk to the cashier's cage.

Summers moved in for about 75,000 or so holding , and Mark Castaldo shoved for slightly larger stack when he woke up with .

The final board rolled out to leave Castaldo's ladies out in front, and Summers hit the rail with a 7th place finish.

Player	Chips	Progress
Mark Castaldo	172,000 75,500	75,500
Mike Summers	Busted

Tags: Mark Castaldo Mike Summers

03-30-2014 20:51 UTC-4

Cavaliere Flops the Joint to Stay Alive

[user253757]

Level 18 : 3,000/6,000, 500 ante

After a 13,000 opening raise from Lee Childs in early position, a short-stacked Brian Cavaliere three-bet shoved for 55,000 more.

Childs went deep into the tank and cut out a stack of calling chips to assess the damage should he wind up second-best.

"Well, if I'm gonna lose, it might as well be to you Lee..." said Cavaliere. "I took you out in the last one."

Childs only grinned in response, before saying aloud "you might've cost yourself some action there."

Eventually though, after a tank that spanned more than three minutes, Childs made a reluctant call with , finding himself drawing thin against the Day 1 chip leader's .

Standing to sweat the flop, Cavaliere watched the rain down, giving him a full house and a near lock on the hand. The turn card came to leave Childs drawing dead, and the came on the river to make things official.

Player	Chips	Progress
Lee Childs	350,000 -62,000	-62,000
Brian Cavaliere	142,000 67,000	67,000

Tags: Brian Cavaliere Lee Childs

03-30-2014 20:42 UTC-4

Lost Their Gamble

[user253757]

Level 18 : 3,000/6,000, 500 ante

The play has slowed to a crawl here at the final table, with the following series of hands representing the general vibe during the last level.

First, Jim Boyd came over the top of Joseph Stiers opening raise, making a sizable three-bet and bantering with the young semi-pro thirty years his junior.

"I'll show if ya fold Joe..." Boyd told Stiers. "I only bet big when I got it."

Stiers was convinced by the bluster and flashed an as he folded, saying "I lost my gamble somewhere" softly to himself.

Boyd returned the favor by turning his face up on the felt.

"I hate that hand," offered Boyd, glad to take down a pot without a fight.

A few hands later, the action folded around and Stiers received a walk in the big blind. Squeezing his hole cards, Stiers winced and grinned, showing the table the he had been waiting to wake up with.

The vast majority of hands during this level have been won by open-shoves from the shorties, or three-bets from the big stacks, and nobody appears willing to mix it up without a premium holding.

Tags: Jim Boyd Joseph Stiers

03-30-2014 20:21 UTC-4

The Prizes Awaiting the Final Seven

[user253757]

Level 18 : 3,000/6,000, 500 ante

The Stakes Are High Here at the HPO Charles Town Regional Championship

Take a look at the table below to see the prizes each player left in contention is vying for:

Place	Payout
1	$39,756
2	$24,555
3	$18,708
4	$11,693
5	$9,354
6	$7,016
7	$5,846

03-30-2014 19:57 UTC-4

Current Chip Counts Back From Dinner Break

[user253757]

Level 17 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

Lee Childs is Atop the Counts as Play Resumes

With the tournament set to commence in one minute, here are the updated counts for the remaining seven runners.

Player	Chips	Progress
Lee Childs	412,000 128,000	128,000
Joseph Stiers	333,500 139,500	139,500
David Lackey	207,000 -117,000	-117,000
Jim Boyd	177,500 17,500	17,500
Mike Summers	126,500 -29,500	-29,500
Mark Castaldo	96,500 -82,500	-82,500
Brian Cavaliere	87,000 -134,000	-134,000

03-30-2014 18:50 UTC-4

Michaelann Moser Eliminated, Bubble Bursts

[user253757]

Level 17 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

With her stack dwindling by the orbit, as the inexorable toll of blinds and antes whittled her down to just 4 big blinds, Michaelann Moser made her stand with an open-jam from the hijack.

Her last 22,500 went into the middle on the strength of an ace, but Moser's was in bad shape when Jim Boyd looked her up with . Although the most likely scenario in this spot was a chopped pot, Moser knew the sight of a six on board would spell disaster.

Flop:

Moser winced when the flop paired Boyd's hand and not her own, and while the turn was the best card in the deck for her (giving her outs to the remaining fours in the deck, as well as spade flush possibilities), the river card came to give both players two pair.

Showing the generosity of true gentlemen, the remaining seven players immediately ponied up $200 each in cash or chips, providing Moser with a parting gift to ease the pain of bubbling.

Boyd, meanwhile, continued his volatile ride, as his chip stack has fluctuated wildly during the last level.

Player	Chips	Progress
Jim Boyd	160,000 45,000	45,000
Michaelann Moser	Busted

Tags: Michaelann Moser Jim Boyd

03-30-2014 18:32 UTC-4

Monsters Inc.

[user253757]

Level 17 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

Lee Childs Brought a Big Hand to Bear Against Jim Boyd

On a flop of Jim Boyd led out for 19,000 and Lee Childs flatted to take the on the turn.

Boyd slowed down with a tap of the table, and Childs pounced on the sign of weakness with a 32,000 wager.

Wanting to peel off one last card, Boyd called and then checked dark before the fell in on fifth street.

Before he checked in the dark, Boyd told tried to intimidate Childs just a bit, telling the 2007 WSOP Main Event final table member "If you have those kings again boy, watch out. Might not be good."

Childs checked back on the river and sure enough, he tabled for an overpair to the board.

"I knew it..." offered Boyd, flashing his to the table while acknowledging the obvious. 'Nice hand sir."

Player	Chips	Progress
Lee Childs	284,000 53,000	53,000
Jim Boyd	115,000 -53,000	-53,000

Tags: Jim Boyd Lee Childs

03-30-2014 18:21 UTC-4

Castaldo Doubles Through Boyd

[user253757]

Level 17 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

Mark Castaldo Couldn't Bear to Look, but a Safe Final Board Was a Sight for Sore Eyes

We saw a raising stack pushed forward in front of Jim Boyd's chip castle, and Mark Castaldo announce himself all in for his last 78,500.

Joseph Stiers had opened the action but he quickly got out of the way, and after a bit of deliberation Boyd decided to look Castaldo up.

"I'll gamble with ya..." said Boyd. "Let's go."

Boyd's enthusiasm was dampened significantly when he saw Castaldo's , and he announced "ahh, ya got me" while tabling his .

Needing an ace to catch up (along with a miraculous four-flush or straight), Boyd could only watch as the final board rolled out to send the pot in Castaldo's direction.

The bubble remained intact after Castaldo survived his brush with the brink, and eight-handed play continues with seven paydays waiting to be called.

Player	Chips	Progress
Mark Castaldo	179,000 89,000	89,000
Jim Boyd	168,000 -95,000	-95,000

Tags: Jim Boyd Joseph Stiers Mark Castaldo

03-30-2014 18:09 UTC-4

Scared Money Don't Make Money

[user253757]

Level 17 : 2,500/5,000, 500 ante

Minutes after uttering those titular words of wisdom, the boisterous Jim Boyd put his money where his mouth is.

After four players committed 9,000 before the flop (this hand occurred just before the blinds jumped to 2,500/5,000) - including Boyd and Joseph Stiers - the dealer fanned the across the felt.

Stiers was acting from under the gun, and he led out for a 11,000 feeler bet. Boyd decided to show that his earlier boast was not merely bravado, and he raised the action to 29,000. Stiers shot a look across the table and studied his man, eventually going toe to toe with Boyd by reraising to 45,000.

Without much hesitation at all, Boyd pushed his whole stack into the middle, and after Stiers asked for a count it turned out his wager was for 161,500.

Stiers had that amount covered, but only barely, meaning a call here would effectively put both players at risk of bubbling. Talking himself through the hand, Stiers mentioned a "set of sevens, ace-seven and ace-jack" as possible holdings he was up against.

"It's not a bluff board though..." said Stiers to himself, still trying to determine what the unpredictable Boyd was playing back at him with. "You could be bluffing, but it'd be crazy..."

Eventually, after a lengthy tank, Stiers surrendered the pot and slid his cards into the muck. Boyd just grinned and repeated his mantra, telling the table "scared money don't make no money boys!"

Player	Chips	Progress
Jim Boyd	263,000 81,000	81,000

Tags: Jim Boyd Joseph Stiers