$100,000 Guaranteed Main Event
Day 2 Started
2014 Western New York Poker Challenge
$100,000 Guaranteed Main Event
Day: 2
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2014 Western New York Poker Challenge
Buy-in
$1,000
Prize Pool
$176,595
Entries
183
Level
24
Blinds
15,000 / 30,000
Ante
3,000
The Seat Draw
| Table | Seat | Player | Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | Dave Grana | 39,800 |
| 2 | 2 | Matthew Sande | 123,600 |
| 2 | 3 | Adam Foster | 69,200 |
| 2 | 4 | Michael Shavensky | 223,700 |
| 2 | 5 | Johannes Mueller | 153,800 |
| 2 | 6 | Greg Miller | 112,700 |
| 2 | 7 | Nicholas Walker | 94,600 |
| 2 | 8 | Leon Halat | 213,100 |
| 2 | 9 | empty | N/A |
| 3 | 1 | Kyle Gay | 141,700 |
| 3 | 2 | Pete Kaemmerlen | 239,100 |
| 3 | 3 | Travell Thomas | 62,500 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Mathias | 94,400 |
| 3 | 5 | Robert De Wolfe | 226,800 |
| 3 | 6 | Kyle Gauchat | 94,900 |
| 3 | 7 | Robert Bourkey | 39,700 |
| 3 | 8 | Richard Burton | 75,100 |
| 3 | 9 | Tracy Rouse | 61,700 |
| 7 | 1 | Eric Tumbioro | 191,600 |
| 7 | 2 | -empty- | N/A |
| 7 | 3 | Shawn Rodwell | 132,800 |
| 7 | 4 | Todd Saffron | 47,600 |
| 7 | 5 | Andrew Cicatello | 107,200 |
| 7 | 6 | Jerry Calvaneso | 398,800 |
| 7 | 7 | Joe Cruz | 217,400 |
| 7 | 8 | Joseph Elia | 165,900 |
| 7 | 9 | John Aga | 193,000 |
| 6 | 1 | Andre Smith | 143,900 |
| 6 | 2 | Jim Goertz | 89,900 |
| 6 | 3 | Weiyi Mo | 152,000 |
| 6 | 4 | Blake Napierala | 141,200 |
| 6 | 5 | Ray Snell | 208,200 |
| 6 | 6 | Louis Aquilina | 142,800 |
| 6 | 7 | Thomas Babiarz | 127,000 |
| 6 | 8 | Jim Piffer | 37,500 |
| 6 | 9 | Robert Notkin | 13,000 |
Who Will Capture the 2014 Western New York Poker Challenge Title?
The 2014 Western New York Poker Challenge kicked off its $1,100 Main Event yesterday at the Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel in Niagara Falls, New York. The flagship event of the series smashed the $100,000 guaranteed prize pool as the 183 entries created a prize pool of $176,595.
After 13 50-minute levels of player, just 34 players remained with Jerry Calvaneso emerging as the chip leader with 398,800, nearly double the amount of his next closest competitor. There's still a long way to go, but clearly he is the favorite to claim the $45,915 first-place prize, or at least make the top 21 and secure a minimum $2,119 payday.
Calvaneso told us that he played a satellite to the Main Event with the intention of selling it if he won. However, when he found out that he couldn't sell it, he attempted to negotiate a deal to get cash instead of the seat. He ended up winning the seat after another satellite player rejected his offer, and now he looks to parlay his satellite success into a much bigger payday.
Others who will be returning to action today include Johannes Mueller, Blake Napierala, Joseph Elia and the defending that of this event, Matthew Sande. Mueller was actually one of PokerNews' Players to Watch entering the series, so we have high expectations for him as he enters the day with a decent stack.
Action is set to kick off at Noon ET, which is a little over an hour from now. We'll be bringing you live updates every step of the way until a champion is crowned, plus addition coverage of the last tournament in the series, Event #16 $300 No Limit Hold'em, which you can follow by clicking here.
Who will be the last two winners of a great and action-packed series? Stay tuned to find out!
Level: 14
Blinds: 1,500/3,000
Ante: 400
Shuffle Up and Deal!
Level 14
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
Cards are in the air here on Day 2 of the Main Event. Action picks up in Level 14 with the blinds at 1,500/3,000 with a 400 ante. At the end of this level, the black T100 chips will be raced out of play.
Bourkey First to Go
Level 14
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
Well, it didn't take long for the first elimination of the day to occur.
It happened when Robert Bourkey got his stack all in preflop holding the 
only to run into the 
of Richard Burton. The board ran out a clean 
and that was all she wrote for Bourkey.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
105,000 | 29,900 |
|
|
Busted |
Saffron Runs Eights Into Kings
Level 14
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
A short-stacked Todd Saffron moved all in for 46,400 under the gun and Joseph Elia isolated with a big three-bet from the cutoff. The button and both blinds folded, and the cards were turned up.
Elia: 
Saffron: 
The 
flop delivered Elia a set, which meant Saffron needed to catch perfect running eights to stay alive. It was an incredibly long shot, but the 
turn made it possible. Saffron paused for a moment to watch the river, which ended up being the useless .
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
205,000 | 39,100 |
|
Busted |
Goertz Gutted
Level 14
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
"All in and a call," we hard a dealer yell. We made our way over to discover action had broke out on an 
flop that resulted in Jim Goerzt getting his last 47,900 in the pot against Thomas Babiarz.
Goertz excitedly tabled the 
for top two pair, but he was gutted to see he had been coolered as Babiarz held the 
for a set.
"Ace one time," Goertz pleaded, but it was in vain as the 
blanked on the turn followed by the on the river.
Goertz was clearly disappointed, but he compose himself enough to shake hands with Babiarz. Goertz then made his way to the rail for a consolatory hug from his wife, Stephanie.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
200,000 | 73,000 |
|
Busted |
Grana Runs Big Slick Into Pocket Rockets
Level 14
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
A short-stacked Dave Grana was no doubt excited to look down at the 
and get his chips all in preflop, but the excitement was short lived as his opponent, Nicholas Walker, had him crushed with the .
Grana was up out of his seat even before the flop fell 
, but he paused when the 
turn gave him a Broadway draw. A queen would complete it, but a lady wasn't in the cards as the 
blanked. Grana was eliminated in 30th place, which means eight more must go before we reach the money.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
170,000 | 75,400 |
|
Busted |
Update Your Own Chip Count Using the PokerNews MyStack App!
Level 14
: 1,500/3,000, 400 ante
For anyone playing Event #2 of the WNY Poker Challenge, PokerNews has activated the MyStack App for this event, allowing you to directly adjust your chip counts in our live reporting blog using your iPhone or Android phone.
You can download the app for iPhone or Android now to get started. Then, create a new PokerNews account or update your current one to start updating your status immediately. Your followers can see all the live action that you're involved in.
Click here to download the My Stack app for iPhone, or click here to download the My Stack app for Android.
Be forewarned, however, that any abuse of the app will result in account suspension or termination.
We look forward to your updates!