2017 Western New York Poker Challenge

$300 No Limit Hold’em
Day: 1b
Event Info

2017 Western New York Poker Challenge

Final Results
Winner
Prize
$17,404
Event Info
Buy-in
$300
Prize Pool
$160,617
Entries
638
Level Info
Level
31
Blinds
60,000 / 120,000
Ante
20,000

It's Budwey or the Highway

Level 8 : 300/600, 75 ante
Budwey Salhab
Budwey Salhab

Apparently there's a first time for everything.

Budwey Salhab is normally clamoring for attention, pleading with reporters to get his name in the blog here on PokerNews. But mired in a big hand moments ago, he suddenly didn't seem to want it.

It was a {j-Hearts}{a-Spades}{9-Spades}{6-Clubs} board and Salhab's heads-up opponent had pushed enough chips across the line to cover his meager stack. When Salhab notice this reporter watching the action, he seemed distracted and asked if many others find this kind of coverage annoying.

After gathering his thoughts and moving his attention back to the task at hand, Salhab made the call with the {a-Clubs}{4-Clubs}.

His opponent had the {k-Spades}{k-Hearts}, and although this story would be much more karmically satisfying had a king come on the river, it didn't. The river bricked, Salhab doubled up, and his demeanor improved immensely, as evidenced by the attached photo.

In the meantime, Veerab Zakarian filled the seat next to Salhab with a fresh starting stack. Zakarian's enduring success in local card rooms has not extended to the festivities here so far. We can't say how many bullets he's fired into this thing, but he's the confirmed league leader by a lot.

Player Chips Progress
Budwey Salhab us
Budwey Salhab
28,500
Veerab Zakarian ca
Veerab Zakarian
WPT 1X Winner
15,000 15,000

Tags: Veerab ZakarianBudwey Salhab

Level: 8

Blinds: 300/600

Ante: 75

An Accident Waiting To Happen

Level 7 : 250/500, 50 ante
Rick Block
Rick Block

Rick Block continues to play fast and loose with other people's money as he works on yet another bullet in this $300 event - One of too many to count.

A former champion here at Seneca Niagara who has recently fallen on tough times - including the roof caving it at his beloved Alden Lanes bowling alley in Alden, NY - Block had been bleeding chips for most of the past couple of levels before finally making a stand moments ago.

This amounted to shoving for well under starting over a small open. {k-Hearts}{q-Clubs} looked him up, and somehow Block managed to avoid another disaster with his {q-Spades}{q-Hearts} holding on a {3-Clubs}{2-Diamonds}{7-Spades}{5-Diamonds}{2-Spades} board.

Player Chips Progress
Rick Block
Rick Block
18,000 18,000

Tags: Rick Block

Level: 7

Blinds: 250/500

Ante: 50

Rule of Thumb

Level 6 : 200/400, 50 ante
Blake Napierala
Blake Napierala

In general, if you're going to win a tournament at the Niagara Falls Poker Room, you're going to have to go through Blake Napierala to get there.

Now, after Napierala made fours full versus trip nines moments ago, it appears this event will be no different. Napierala is contending again and will be looking to have a big say in how this whole thing goes down.

Player Chips Progress
Blake Napierala us
Blake Napierala
37,000

Tags: Blake Napierala

A Sanney Sandwich

Level 6 : 200/400, 50 ante
Todd Sanney
Todd Sanney

Todd Sanney is on the top of the counts now after busting not one, but two opponents in the same hand.

To hear him tell it, Sanney made some kind of mind-blowing, insanity-inducing overbet that forced these two opponents to give away their stacks without them even knowing it. The reality was a kings over queens cooler with a short stack holding {a-}{j-} in there as well.

Either way, Kings held, Sanney's got the lead, and he's all smiles right now.

Player Chips Progress
Todd Sanney us
Todd Sanney
77,000

Tags: Todd Sanney

Level: 6

Blinds: 200/400

Ante: 50

Tighe Time

Level 5 : 150/300, 25 ante
Pat Tighe
Pat Tighe

Perennial contender Pat Tighe finds himself in a familiar position right now: The chip lead.

Tighe made two straights early and a flush moments ago to push over the 60,000-chip mark and into the top spot on the leader board into Level 5.

In the meantime, David Olshan has chipped up to within10,000 of Tighe.

Player Chips Progress
Pat Tighe us
Pat Tighe
63,000 48,000
David Olshan us
David Olshan
53,000 23,000

Tags: David OlshanPat Tighe

Level: 5

Blinds: 150/300

Ante: 25

What's In a Name?

Level 4 : 100/200, 25 ante
Ryan Martin
Ryan Martin

A Canadian man with two first names in lieu of the traditional first name-last name combination that is so common in North America, now has three starting stacks and the chip lead.

It was actually two big hands that vaulted Torontonian Ryan Martin into a spot at the top of the counts, including one where he stacked a player getting it in with kings versus tens.

Martin couldn't recall details of the other hand, but does remember it involved taking all of another player's chips as well.

Player Chips Progress
Ryan Martin us
Ryan Martin
45,000 45,000

Tags: Ryan Martin