Event #2: $6,400 GTD Heads-Up (64 Max) | partypoker US Network Players Choice Series (Dec.13-20)

12-15-2020 01:25 UTC-4

"BigDickRick" Eliminated in 4th Place ($528)

HillKerby

Blinds: 400/800

"BigDickRick" was on the button and raised their option to 1,600. They were three-bet to 4,400 by "madroc" in the big blind and called, bringing a flop of .

"madroc" checked and "BigDickRick" bet 3,200. "madroc" check-raised to 9,200, sending action back over to "BigDickRick," and they three-bet shoved for 21,345. "madroc" called.

"BigDickRick":
"madroc":

"BigDickRick" was ahead with a chance to bring stacks back to level, but despite the safe turn , they were unable to do so as the river gave "madroc" Broadway to result in their elimination from the tournament in fourth place. They earned $528 for their performance, while "madroc" has become the first of two players to make it into the finals, and now awaits the result of the other semifinal match between "MegaWinner" and "pay4medsch00l", where the former has just found a double and has taken the chip lead. Chip stacks have been provided below.

Player	Chips	Progress
madroc	100,000 21,105	21,105
MegaWinner	57,066 21,418	21,418
pay4medsch00l	42,934 -22,338	-22,338
BigDickRick	Busted

12-15-2020 01:21 UTC-4

Margins Widening

HillKerby

Blinds: 400/800

A full level of back-and-forth play on both tables has seen "madroc" and "pay4medsch00l" take leads over their respective opponents with fast-paced play the norm across both remaining tables and aggression earning the lead for both players that have it.

Player	Chips	Progress
madroc	78,895 19,300	19,300
pay4medsch00l	65,272 20,532	20,532
MegaWinner	35,648 -19,612	-19,612
BigDickRick	21,105 -19,300	-19,300

12-15-2020 01:13 UTC-4

"BigDickRick" Gets Some Back

HillKerby

Blinds: 300/600

A limped pot preflop between "BigDickRick" in the big blind and "madroc" on the button brought a flop of , where both players put 1,500 into the middle.

Both players checked the turn and the river came . "BigDickRick" bet 3,000 and "madroc" raised to 9,300, sending "BigDickRick" into the tank for a few moments before calling.

"madroc" showed for a rivered king-high straight, but it was no good to the of "BigDickRick", who rivered Broadway to earn the pot, and after dropping below 30,000 is now back up to 40,000.

Player	Chips	Progress
madroc	59,595 -6,415	-6,415
BigDickRick	40,405 6,415	6,415

12-15-2020 01:08 UTC-4

Early Back-and-Forth

HillKerby

Blinds: 300/600

Both matches have seen stacks fluctuate within 25% in either direction in the first level-and-a-half of the semifinal round.

Player	Chips	Progress
madroc	66,010 16,010	16,010
MegaWinner	55,260 5,260	5,260
pay4medsch00l	44,740 -5,260	-5,260
BigDickRick	33,990 -16,010	-16,010

12-15-2020 01:05 UTC-4

Join the PokerNews Discord Server Today!

HillKerby

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12-15-2020 00:57 UTC-4

Semifinal Matches

HillKerby

Player 1	Player 2
madroc	BigDickRick
pay4medsch00l	MegaWinner

Player	Chips	Progress
madroc	50,000 -50,000	-50,000
BigDickRick	50,000 -50,000	-50,000
pay4medsch00l	50,000 -50,000	-50,000
MegaWinner	50,000 -50,000	-50,000

12-15-2020 00:56 UTC-4

Sewnig Gets Flushed Out in Fifth

HillKerby

Blinds: 600/1,200

"BigDickRick" opened to 2,400 on the button and Dan "mj23style" Sewnig three-bet jammed for his last 25,585. "BigDickRick" called.

Dan "mj23style" Sewnig:
"BigDickRick":

Sewnig had plenty of life and picked up even more on the flop as he found himself with a gutshot straight flush draw. The flush landed on the turn , but the river put one too many spades on board for him as it also gave "BigDickRick" the nut flush to re-improve to the best hand and eliminate Sewnig in fifth place.

The semifinals has begun and matchups will be posted momentarilh.

Player	Chips	Progress
BigDickRick	100,000 31,025	31,025
Dan "mj23style" Sewnig	Busted

12-15-2020 00:50 UTC-4

Back and Forth

HillKerby

Blinds: 500/1,000

A full level has gone by with back-and-forth action between Dan "mj23style" Sewnig and "BigDickRick", with Sewnig climbing back and threatening to take the chip lead before "BigDickRick" reclaimed a pot that brought stacks close to where they were at the start of the level.

Player	Chips	Progress
BigDickRick	68,975 -6,510	-6,510
Dan "mj23style" Sewnig	31,025 6,510	6,510

12-15-2020 00:40 UTC-4

"upayformypennys" Counterfeited; Busts In Sixth

HillKerby

Blinds: 400/800

All of the chips went into the middle before the flop with "upayformypennys" being the one on the button and at risk for their last 21,670. "MegaWinner" was in the big blind and the two were in a coin-flip situation.

"upayformypennys":
"MegaWinner":

A flop of left "upayformypennys" out in front but gave them three more outs that they needed to fade due to a potential double-paired board bringing a counterfeit. Such a possibility came true on the turn , and they were unable to find any help of their own on the river to become the third elimination of the round, taking sixth place and earning $336 for their efforts.

One more match remains between "BigDickRick" and Dan "mj23style" Sewnig, with the winner due to set the lineup for the semifinals.

Player	Chips	Progress
MegaWinner	100,000 23,090	23,090
upayformypennys	Busted

12-15-2020 00:35 UTC-4

Get to Know BorgataPoker.com Sponsored Pro Michael "Gags30" Gagliano

HillKerby

BorgataPoker.com has a trio of sponsored pros — Katie Stone, Daniel Buzgon, and Michael "Gags30" Gagliano — all of whom have been active this year in the partypoker US Network Online events.

In regards to the man known as "Gags," he has been playing poker professionally for a decade and has amassed more than $2 million in live tournament cashes. That includes a career-best $448,463 for winning the 2016 World Series of Poker Event #25: $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em, good for his first bracelet. He also finished third in the 2017 WSOP Event #27: $3,000 No-Limit Hold'em - 6 Handed for $210,139.

He also has more than $4 million in online scores. Of that, $338,315 has come on BorgataPoker.com.

According to his website, "before poker he worked in an elementary school, which has given him a great background to become a premier poker instructor. Coaching for more than seven years he has helped more than 50 students from all over the world improve their game. These students have gone on to win multiple championships including the WSOP Main Event. Michael has also worked as a consultant for several major casinos and online poker sites to help them improve their product and better serve their customers."

It's been a good day for Gagliano so far, as he has already doubled his starting stack. Stay tuned to find out if he can keep this momentum going!

For more on Gagliano, be sure to follow him on Twitter at @Gags30poker.