$2,500 Championship Event
Day 2 Completed
Hollywood Poker Open Season 4 Championship Event
$2,500 Championship Event
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 2
Hollywood Poker Open Season 4 Championship Event
Buy-in
$2,500
Prize Pool
$1,477,025
Entries
655
Level
31
Blinds
80,000 / 160,000
Ante
20,000
Aaron Mermelstein Leads Final 21 in HPO Championship Event
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
Aaron Mermelstein finished on top of the counts on Saturday night to take the lead into the final day of the Hollywood Poker Open $2,500 Championship Event.
"I feel great," Mermelstein said after bagging up his stack of 1.473 million in chips. "I'm the chip leader, so I'm super happy with how things went today. The cream really rose to the top and there are a lot of good players left, but I feel good. I feel like I'm making good decisions, and I hope I can keep it up tomorrow."
When the day was done, there were 21 players remaining, and Sunday's finale will see a first-place prize of $332,338 up for grabs.
"I feel like I do well in these deep-stacked tournaments," Mermelstein, a two-time World Poker Tour champion, added. "We started with 25,000 chips and it's one-hour levels. It's a great structure and I feel like it kind of plays like a WPT, so I'm super comfortable. We'll see how it goes tomorrow, but this is my first time playing it and it has been a lot of fun so far."
Mermelstein will be joined by another WPT champion in Keven Stammen on Day 3, but more importantly Stammen is the defending champion of this event. Last year, he beat a field of 684 entries and earned $347,045. Stammen finished Day 2 on 225,000 in chips with the hopes of going back to back.
Other headliners included World Series of Poker gold bracelet winner Calvin Anderson and the man who seems to have found the fountain of youth, Pierre Neuville. Those two bagged up 1.112 million and 464,000, respectively.
There was plenty of action on Day 2 of the event, with over 200 players from a starting field of 655 starting the day and the top 63 reaching the money. Some of those to bust before the money was reached included Toby Lewis, Ray Henson, Steven van Zadelhoff, Jeremy Ausmus, Craig Varnell, Connor Drinan, and Scott Davies.
When the players returned from dinner, the money bubble had arrived. Falling in 64th place was Travis Burch. He first lost with pocket kings to Justin Young's 
when an ace hit the flop to fall crippled, and then Mark Herm finished him off despite Burch holding the dominating hand.
Young went on to finish in 27th place for $9,748, and Herm busted in 35th for $8,124.
Others to bust before Day 2 was done, but with a cash, included Adrian Mateos (25th - $9,748), Randal Flowers (30th - $8,124), Joe Serock (47th - $5,760), and 91-year-old Ray Cuny (49th - $5,760).
Cuny had a particularly impressive story having qualified for this event from his home venue of Hollywood Casino Joliet and making the trip after recently being diagnosed with bladder cancer. He's a player who plays poker for the fun and entertainment of the game, but making a great run with nearly $6,000 to show for it is quite the benefit as well.
Instead of the originally scheduled start time of 11 a.m. local time, the final group of players voted to delay Sunday's start time until 12 p.m. That's when we'll see you back here on PokerNews.com for continued coverage of this event as the field plays down to the Hollywood Poker Open Season 4 champion.
Final Day Seat Draw and Chip Counts
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
| Table | Seat | Name | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 1 | Julian Parmann | 281,000 |
| 5 | 2 | Calvin Anderson | 1,112,000 |
| 5 | 3 | Michael Tureniec | 1,136,000 |
| 5 | 4 | Philip Randazzo | 260,000 |
| 5 | 5 | Michael Aron | 530,000 |
| 5 | 6 | DeJuante Alexander | 762,000 |
| 5 | 7 | Dan O'Brien | 389,000 |
| 6 | 2 | Nathan Bjerno | 661,000 |
| 6 | 3 | John Creed | 322,000 |
| 6 | 4 | Aaron Mermelstein | 1,473,000 |
| 6 | 5 | Thomas Muehloecker | 1,402,000 |
| 6 | 7 | Mark Castaldo | 1,273,000 |
| 6 | 8 | Keven Stammen | 225,000 |
| 6 | 9 | Bryan Picioli | 944,000 |
| 7 | 1 | Pierre Neuville | 464,000 |
| 7 | 2 | Jesse Cohen | 898,000 |
| 7 | 3 | Anthony Vaughn | 1,341,000 |
| 7 | 5 | Duke Lee | 284,000 |
| 7 | 6 | Brady Bullard | 1,052,000 |
| 7 | 8 | Tobias Ziegler | 700,000 |
| 7 | 9 | Jim Kasputis | 716,000 |
End-of-Day Chip Counts (full)
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,473,000 | 123,000 |
|
1,402,000 | 352,000 |
|
1,341,000 | 41,000 |
|
1,273,000 | 568,000 |
|
1,136,000 | 296,000 |
|
1,112,000 | -388,000 |
|
1,052,000 | 112,000 |
|
944,000 | -56,000 |
|
898,000 | -12,000 |
|
762,000 | 10,000 |
|
716,000 | 166,000 |
|
700,000 | -270,000 |
|
661,000 | 196,000 |
|
530,000 | 30,000 |
|
464,000 | -111,000 |
|
389,000 | -71,000 |
|
322,000 | -78,000 |
|
284,000 | 84,000 |
|
281,000 | -259,000 |
|
260,000 | -2,000 |
|
225,000 | -80,000 |
Aron Doubles Through Randazzo
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
Calvin Anderson raised to 30,000 and Philip Randazzo three-bet to 80,000 before Michael Aron moved all in from his direct left for 244,000. Anderson folded and Randazzo made the call.
Randazzo: 
Aron: 
The board ran out 
and Aron received a full double up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,500,000 | 20,000 |
|
|
500,000 | 250,000 |
|
|
262,000 | -328,000 |
Anderson Climbs In Front
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
Calvin Anderson had just picked off a Michael Tureniec bluff to drag a big pot when he called an Dejuante Alexander opening raise in position.
Michael Aron defended his big blind and they went three ways to an 
flop. It checked to Anderson and he bet 43,000. Only Aron called, and he checked the 
turn. Anderson bet 71,000 and Aron called again.
Aron checked the river and Anderson pulled out the big guns, making it 220,000. Aron tossed a single chip in, signifying a call, and was forced to pay the rest when Anderson showed the 
.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,480,000 | 880,000 |
|
|
840,000 | -360,000 |
|
|
250,000 |
Dermot Blain Eliminated in 22nd Place ($9,748)
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
Pierre Neuville raised to 40,000 from the hijack seat, and Dermot Blain reraised all in for 240,000 from the small blind. Neuville made the call with the 
and had Blain's 
dominated.
The board ran out 
, and Blain was eliminated in 22nd place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
575,000 | 215,000 |
|
Busted |
Alexander Four-Bets Anderson
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
From under the gun, Dejuante Alexander raised to 32,000. Calvin Anderson reraised to 75,000 on the button, and action folded back to Alexander. He reraised to 190,000 with 439,000 behind, and Anderson gave it up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
752,000 | 152,000 |
|
|
600,000 | -50,000 |
Tureniec Can't Bluff O'Brien
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
From the hijack seat, Dan O'Brien raised to 38,000. Michael Tureniec called from the big blind, and the flop fell 
. Both players checked, and the turn was the to pair the board. Again, both checked.
The river was the , and Tureniec led with a bet of 45,000. O'Brien mulled it over for a short period of time, then called with the 
. Tureniec was bluffing with the 
, and O'Brien won the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,200,000 | 150,000 |
|
|
460,000 | 100,000 |
Javier Gomez Eliminated in 23rd Place ($9,748)
Level 22
: 8,000/16,000, 2,000 ante
Bryan Piccioli made it 38,000 and Javier Gomez three-bet to 78,000.
It folded back to Piccioli and he jammed for 550,000 total. Gomez called off for less and was in big trouble with the versus Piccioli's .
However, the 
flop turned things around for Gomez, putting him ahead with a set. The 
turn gave Piccioli runner-runner possibilities, and sure enough, the river made him Broadway.
Gomez busted and Piccioli is suddenly up to the one-million mark.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,000,000 | |
|
Busted |