The fourth and final starting flight for the 2015 Seneca Niagara Falls Summer Slam Event #1: $200 No-Limit Hold'em went off in Niagara Falls tonight, drawing 166 entries.
It was a star-studded affair with some of the area's best grinders firing away, including Andy Spears, Randy Pfeifer, and Travell Thomas. Hollywood actor and accomplished poker hobbyist Kirk Acevedo even added a little glitz to the event, building a big stack early, only to run bad late and eventually bust.
Thomas and Pfeifer also joined him on the rail, but Spears flirted with the chip lead all night long, eventually bagging a contending stack heading into Sunday's Day 2.
It was Vince Palma who busted Pfeifer, on what appeared to be his sixth bullet fired, and Palma rode that wave into a stack over 200,000, However, Charles Johnson won two races in the final level of the night to bag the Day 1d and overall chip lead on 244,200.
Through the four starting flights, a total of 569 entries created a whopping $91,893 prizepool, almost doubling the event's $50,000 guarantee. The top 54 spots will get paid a min-cash of $395, and first-place will earn a healthy $21,137.
Twenty-six survived this Day 1d and they will join the survivors from the first three starting flights for a total of 93 runners returning to play down to a champion beginning at 11 a.m. local time Sunday.
Vince Palma limped from under the gun plus one before Sal Incartona made a button raise to 5,000. The big blind called before Palma made it 22,000 total.
It came back to Incartona, who decided to bump it to 50,000 total and only Palma called. The flop came down and they quickly got the rest of the chips in. Palma was in great shape with versus Incartona's and managed to hold following the turn and river.
As a result, Plama moved into the chip lead and Incartona moved out of the poker room.
Facing a 6,000 chip bet with about 12,000 in the middle on a flop, Randy Pfeifer shipped it in. Vincent Palma did the same behind, having him covered and the raiser folded.
Pfeifer needed help with the nut-flush draw against Palma's two pair, but got none on the turn and river.
With Pfeifer gone, Palma has moved to the top of the counts.
Andy Spears has moved into familiar position at the top of the chip counts as the first player up and over 150,000 in chips.
Spears told PokerNews he's played the calling station to perfection, collecting pot after pot with little more than top pair and a magnetic ability to attract ill-timed bluffs.
Conversations about the best tournament players based in Western New York always include Andy Spears.
Spears had a great 2015 WSOP cashing in six events for some $55,000 and his $617,654 in career tournament earnings that include a win here at Seneca Niagara in the 2013 Fall Poker Classic ensures that.
As this flight's seventh level comes to a close, Spears has jumped into a spot among the top contenders, telling PokerNews he's put together a stack winning three flips in a row holding pairs against overcards.
Local rounder Randy Pfeifer is coming off one heck of a 2015 World Series of Poker.
He spent the summer in Las Vegas making two major final tables and cashing in six events, including a 4th-place finish in the $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Millionaire Maker for $441,465 and tenth in the $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Shootout for $16,740. He even made the final table of one of the Rio Daily Deepstacks.
To be honest, it comes to no one's surprise out here, as Pfeifer has built a reputation as Western New York's best tournament player with $1,429,575 in career tournament earnings and a bevvy of big-time final table appearances.
Although he skipped the first three flights, Pfeifer has jumped in the fourth this evening, firing multiple bullets already and getting close to needing another moments ago.
He raised 700 from middle position in a recent hand, getting one caller on the button. Pfeifer fired again at the {KdQc7c] flop, making it 1,050, but the button would not release. The turn brought another barrel from Pfeifer, who made it 1,825.
This time the button fired back, bumping it to 4,500 and forcing Pfeifer to fold what appeared to be a queen with less than four thousand behind.
The 2015 edition of Seneca Niagara Falls Summer Slam continues this evening with the the fourth and final starting flight for Event #1, a $200 buy-in No Limit Hold'em event with a $50,000 guarantee.
The annual multi-event series will run through August 2 with three major events culminating in the $600 NLHE Main Event with a $150,000 guarantee and the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be on the floor providing coverage of it all.
A total of 67 players are already through to Sunday's Day 2 from three Event #1 flights Friday and this morning. So far the event has drawn 403 players, already laying to waste the guarantee.
The structure includes 30-minute levels and 15,000-chip starting stacks in the battle to join that group. Registration will remain open until the start of Level 9 and there is unlimited re-entries until then, plus a fourth and final flight set for 6 p.m. tonight.
PokerNews Live Updates are beginning at the end of Level 4.
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and they quickly got the rest of the chips in. Palma was in great shape with 
versus Incartona's 
and managed to hold following the 
turn and 
river.
against William Ho's 
flop, Randy Pfeifer shipped it in. Vincent Palma did the same behind, having him covered and the raiser folded.
two pair, but got none on the 
turn and river.
beat 
and two pair beat two pair to crest the 100,000-chip mark.
turn brought another barrel from Pfeifer, who made it 1,825.