$10,300 PCA Main Event
Day 5 Started
2019 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure
$10,300 PCA Main Event
Day: 5
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2019 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure
Buy-in
$10,300
Prize Pool
$8,390,500
Entries
865
Level
31
Blinds
80,000 / 160,000
Ante
160,000
Seat 6: Vicent Bosca, 29, Xatia/Spain - 2,875,000
Spanish player Vicent Bosca may not be a household name in the live tournament arenas, but he's an accomplished professional poker player with a solid online background. Bosca has been active in both tournaments and cash games at PokerStars.
The 29-year-old started travelling around the world last year, shifting his focus to live events. He ran deep in the 2018 WSOP Main Event, finishing in 80th place for $91,610, his then-largest live tournament payday. Now he's guaranteed to boost his Hendon Mob résumé with his first six-figure result, a feat he's already accomplished online.
Bosca is guaranteed to sky-rocket on the Spanish all-time money list where he currently occupies the 111th place with $190,000 and change.
Vicent Bosca's 2019 PCA Main Event
| Day | Chips | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 108,700 | 75 / 349 |
| 3 | 1,138,000 | 2 / 79 |
| 4 | 965,000 | 13 / 20 |
| 5 | 2,875,000 | 4 / 6 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,875,000 |
Seat 5: Pavel Veksler, 31, Kiev/Ukraine - 2,035,000
31-year-old Pavel Veksler had been flying under the radar, but he took off at the PCA 2019. Veksler first had a decent run in the 1,039-strong PSPC, finishing 68th for $56,800, his biggest live cash at the time. It took Veksler only a few days to push the bar even higher. He's locked up his first six-figure score. He's been relatively new to the live felt with his earliest reported cashes only dating back to 2017. Veksler was busy grinding live tournaments in Las Vegas last summer, cashing in nine of them including the WSOP Main Event.
While the new year is only a couple of weeks old, it already seems evident that 2019 is going to be Veksler's breakout year on the top level poker scene.
Pavel Veksler's 2019 PCA Main Event
| Day | Position | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 148,300 | 25 / 349 |
| 3 | 808,000 | 5 / 79 |
| 4 | 1,320,000 | 9 / 20 |
| 5 | 2,035,000 | 6 / 6 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,035,000 |
Seat 4: Brian Altman, 30, Boston, MA/USA - 4,995,000
Brian Altman has over $2.8 million in live tournament earnings including seven cashes at different incarnations of the PCA dating back to 2014. He racked up two of them this week as he warmed up for the Main Event. The American player’s biggest previous win came at the WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open which he won for over $720,000 in 2015.
Now based in Canada, the poker pro is just as comfortable at the virtual felt, with over $1.3 million in online winnings, too. He has previously taken down the Sunday 500 for $90,000 and a WCOOP Second Chance on PokerStars as part of his online grinder career, but is looking at his biggest result to date in either poker format should he finish in first or second place in the PCA Main Event.
Brian Altman's 2019 PCA Main Event
| Day | Position | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 236,100 | 4 / 349 |
| 3 | 746,000 | 6 / 79 |
| 4 | 1,785,000 | 5 / 20 |
| 5 | 4,995,000 | 4 / 6 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
4,995,000 |
Seat 3: David "Chino" Rheem, 38, Los Angeles, CA/USA - 7,550,000
Los Angeles' David "Chino" Rheem is a professional poker player who's been grinding live tournaments for well over a decade. The 38-year-old boasts nearly $9 million in live cashes. His most remarkable moments at the felt came in 2008 when he first made the WSOP Main Event final table (banking $1,772,650 for 7th place) and then added a victory in the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic only a month later, taking home a handsome $1,538,730. Rheem's pedigree features further two seven-figure paydays.
While Rheem has made for his name on the World Poker Tour circuit, where he's won three WPT titles, he'd previously cashed only once in a PCA Main Event (141st in 2011).
David "Chino" Rheem's 2019 PCA Main Event
| Day | Position | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 197,900 | 8 / 349 |
| 3 | 437,000 | 19 / 79 |
| 4 | 1,425,000 | 7 / 20 |
| 5 | 7,550,000 | 1 / 6 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
7,550,000 |
Seat 2: Daniel "deoxyribo" Strelitz, 29, Torrance, CA/USA - 2,355,000
Californian grinder Daniel Strelitz has been amassing live cashes since 2011. His earnings totalled over $3 million before he entered the PCA Main Event where he's guaranteed to notch a six-figure prize. Sterlitz has already closed out a high-profile final table, topping the 2017 WPT L.A. Poker Classic for just over $1 million.
Strelitz' other highlights feature a second place in a $5k Turbo event at World Series, and a deep run in the 2012 WSOP Main Event where his cruise stopped on the last three tables, earning him $294,601 for 24th place. Strelitz has proved his qualities in online fields as well, having notched three six-figure results as "deoxyribo" at PokerStars.
Daniel Strelitz's 2019 PCA Main Event
| Day | Position | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 127,800 | 48 / 349 |
| 3 | 333,000 | 27 / 79 |
| 4 | 2,615,000 | 3 / 20 |
| 5 | 2,355,000 | 5 / 6 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,355,000 |
Seat 1: Scott Wellenbach, 67, Halifax, NS/Canada - 6,015,000
Canadian Scott Wellenbach is best known for donating his €61,400 cash after he finished 17th in the PokerStars Championship Barcelona 2017 – all of it – to charity. He intends to do exactly the same thing here regardless of how far up the payout ladder he goes, including the $1.5 million first prize.
Wellenbach has worked for more than 30 years translating Buddhist teachings and his outlook on life, money and gaming is philanthropic. He describes his road to the final table as “up and down” but admits that he’s been on the heater of his life in the Main Event. Wellenbach has what he refers to as a “knack” for online qualifiers, winning eight packages including one on PokerStars to come to the PCA.
When asked if he would be donating his PCA winnings, he replied, “Of course! Otherwise, the poker gods might cut me off – where would I be then?” and then said that he wanted to see the money go to “women’s education and feeding people who are hungry” among other causes. Wellenbach claims that he started playing poker with his family on seaside trips aged eight and his experience has served him well.
Scott Wellenbach's 2019 PCA Main Event
| Day | Position | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 155,400 | 22 / 349 |
| 3 | 334,000 | 26 / 79 |
| 4 | 1,135,000 | 11 / 20 |
| 5 | 6,015,000 | 2 / 6 |
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
6,015,000 |
Who Will be Crowned the 2019 PCA Main Event Champion?
As of 1 p.m. local time, the remaining six players out of an 865-entry strong field will return to the feature table in the Imperial Ballroom at the Atlantis Resort & Casino to play down to a champion in the 2019 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) $10,300 Main Event. A new champion will be crowned on Paradise Island and the coveted PCA Main Event trophy and $1,567,100 top prize is up for grabs.
Leading the final six is David "Chino" Rheem, who was near the top of the leaderboard throughout the entire duration of the event and enters the final day with 7,550,000. Second in chips is Canadian online qualifier Scott Wellenbach with 6,015,000, who has pledged to donate his winnings to a charitable cause no matter where he finishes.
Brian Altman will enter the final day third in chips with 4,995,000, and the other finalists include Vicent Bosca (2,875,000), Daniel Strelitz (2,355,000) and Pavel Veksler (2,035,000). With 29 and 25 big blinds respectively for the bottom two stacks, there is still plenty of space to maneuver and it won't be an easy ride to victory in the first major poker tournament of the year.
2019 PCA Main Event Final Table
| Seat | Name | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scott Wellenbach | Canada | 6,015,000 | 75 |
| 2 | Daniel Strelitz | United States | 2,355,000 | 29 |
| 3 | Chino Rheem | United States | 7,550,000 | 94 |
| 4 | Brian Altman | United States | 4,995,000 | 62 |
| 5 | Pavel Veksler | Ukraine | 2,035,000 | 25 |
| 6 | Vicent Bosca | Spain | 2,875,000 | 36 |
The action resumes at 1 p.m. local time and the live stream will run on a delay of 20 minutes with hole cards displayed. There are 74 minutes remaining at blinds of 40,000/80,000 with a big blind ante of 80,000 and PokerNews will provide hand-for-hand coverage until a champion is crowned.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize (in USD) | Place | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,567,100 | 4 | $503,440 |
| 2 | $951,480 | 5 | $396,880 |
| 3 | $671,240 | 6 | $297,020 |
PCA Main Event: Final Table Preview
[Removed:139] sets the scene for the final table of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event. An EPT title and more than $1.5 million is on the line in this prestigious event.
The Final Table is Underway
All remaining six players are back in their seats and the final table has recommenced. 74 minutes remain at blinds of 40,000/80,000 with a big blind ante and as soon as three players remain, the level duration of 90 minutes will be cut into half.