Winner to be Crowned Today in Event 9 of Lodge Championship Series
The Lodge Championship Series is now just one week away from a conclusion here in Round Rock, Texas. At the venue today is another final day, meaning another lucky hopeful will be taking home a trophy. Event 9: $800 NLH $750,000 Guaranteed was looking like an overlay until the last two flights blew up the field, having 1,116 entry slips sold to surpass the guarantee and now just 135 will battle it out on Day 2 for a chance to take home the $128,636 first-place prize.
Raul Garza advanced through the last and biggest flight. He won a flip late in the day and used his newly acquired stack to bully the rest of the table, bagging 806,000 (101 bb) for the final day. Next on the totem pole to begin the day is Aden Salazar who popped the Day 1a bubble and never looked book, finishing atop the small field of 112 with an impressive 722,000 (90 bb).
Rounding out the top five are Michael Rossitto (662,000), Jodan Mandel (660,000), and Christopher Nabors (618,000). Rossitto is one of the highlight players of the field and is known to execute as well as any when the money is on the line. Some other familiar faces include Blake Whittington (529,000), Kristen Foxen (499,000), James Calderaro (429,000), and Mohammed Bagheri (317,000).
Top 10 Stacks on Day 2
| Rank | Player | Hometown | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raul Garza | Alton, TX | 806,000 | 101 |
| 2 | Aden Salazar | Cleveland, TX | 722,000 | 90 |
| 3 | Michael Rossitto | Brooklyn, NY | 662,000 | 83 |
| 4 | Jordan Mande | Smithville, Texas | 660,000 | 83 |
| 5 | Christopher Nabors | San Antonio, Texas | 618,000 | 77 |
| 6 | Benjamin Anderson | Killeen, TX | 592,000 | 74 |
| 7 | Payam Saleh | Leander, TX | 581,000 | 73 |
| 8 | Vy Nguyen | San Pablo, CA | 535,000 | 69 |
| 9 | Blake Whittington | Cleveland, TN | 529,000 | 66 |
| 10 | Nathan Hays | Kearney, NE | 523,000 | 65 |
The returning players will be starting at 4,000/8,000 blinds with an 8,000 ante and the duration will increase to 40-minutes in length. There will be a 15-minute break after every three levels of play and the second break will be a 60-minute dinner break.
All remaining players will now be taking home at least a min-cash of $1,326 with the top nine pulling in $12,860 for that feat.
The PokerNews live reporting team will be here with all of the updates, so stay tuned as the action unfolds.