Barry Schultz raised to 200 in late position, Toby Mathews three-bet to 400 on his direct left, and BJ McBrayer cold-called out of the small blind. Schultz called as well, and the trio took a flop of . McBrayer and Schultz both checked, Mathews continued for 800, and only Schultz called.
The turn was the , Schultz check-called another 1,600, and both players checked after the completed the board. Mathews showed for queens and jacks, and Schultz flashed before mucking.
It's just Rich and Donnie this week, and the duo recaps the 2014 Aussie Millions, including the AU$100,000 and AU$250,000 Challenges, and the Main Event. Then, NL.PokerNews editor Frank op de Woerd talks with Mike "Timex" McDonald about his hot start, running good, and the value of WSOP bracelets.
Barry Schultz opened for a raise to 150 from under the gun, BJ McBrayer three-bet to 350 on the button, and both blinds released. Schultz came along for the ride and knuckled on a flop of . McBrayer checked behind.
The turn was the , Schultz check-called a bet of 400, and the completed the board. The two players checked again.
Registration for this event is open for six levels, and players who are eliminated during the first six levels may reenter as many times as they wish.
We saw a few players floating around who have not registered yet, including 2013 World Series of Poker bracelet winner Jonathan Taylor and seven-time WSOP Circuit ring winner Kyle Cartwright.
Lee Childs, who finished seventh in the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event, spoke with PokerNews about why he frequents Hollywood Poker Open Regional events. This is a snipped of the interview, for the full version head here.
What's should people know that's different about the HPO that would make them stand apart from other tournament series?
Structures, value and personnel. Give me a good-structured tournament and some nice people to be around all day long and I am there. And its not only the staff. The players down here in Tunica have been awesome. Turnouts are way lower than I had hoped for and that’s too bad because there are too many poker players missing out on a great experience. So many players want to chase the biggest prize pools and they end up missing out on a lot of fun and more time playing in an environment that most of us started in and got us loving the game in the first place. On top of that, you have some of the most experienced tournament professionals running the events and I’ve been able to spend some time with them and hear some great poker stories from over the years.
What sort of expectations do you have for this weekend's HPO event in Tunica?
Well, first of all and most importantly, I know that I am going to enjoy it because of all the reasons I have already mentioned. I have no idea how many players we will get since the other fields have been small, but hopefully there are a lot of folks that are still planning on coming in for this main event. I have not been playing as many WSOP Circuit events because I think the structures should be a little better. I think a championship event with a buy-in over $1,500 should always give us at least one-hour levels and should have small increments for the blinds and antes. The HPO structures do that, and it's another major factor why I am excited about these events. This main event starts with 20,000-chip stacks, gives us the 100/200 and 100/200/25 levels, the 250/500 level and even a 700/1,400 level. We just get so much more play for the money and I think poker players deserve that. So many venues are too focused on how much money they can make and how quickly they can get the tournament done these days. $1,800 is a lot of money to put up for a poker tournament for most players, especially those that are purely recreational players and giving us a good structure like this is something that we should all appreciate and support.
Good morning and welcome to the Hospitality State of Mississippi for the Hollywood Poker Open Tunica Regional Main Event. This two-day event features 11 hours of 60-minute play on Day 1 with a one-hour dinner break after Level 7, and on Day 2 the surviving players will battle for as long as it takes to crown a champion.
The winner will not only receive the highest percentage of the prize pool, but he or she will also walk away with a $2,500 buy-in for the Hollywood Poker
Open Championship at The M Resort Spa Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 26.
Spanish poker pro Ana Marquez took down the inaugural HPO Championship last year, outlasting 631 players to earn $320,189. Joining her at the final table were fellow pros Ramzi Jelassi, Sam Stein, and Max Greenwood.
This is the second of six regional events for the HPO in 2014. PokerNews will proudly be present for the whole lot; St. Louis, MO, Grantville, PA, Charles Town, WV, and Columbus, OH.
The cards will be in the air in roughly 20 minutes, so be sure to stay tuned to PokerNews for all of your live updates straight from the floor.
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. McBrayer and Schultz both checked, Mathews continued for 800, and only Schultz called.
, Schultz check-called another 1,600, and both players checked after the 
completed the board. Mathews showed 
for queens and jacks, and Schultz flashed 
before mucking.
. McBrayer checked behind.
, Schultz check-called a bet of 400, and the 
completed the board. The two players checked again.
.
