Event 34 - $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha w/Rebuys | 2008 World Series of Poker

06-20-2008 03:48 UTC-7

Day 3 Seat Assignments Announced

[user33020]

Ted Forrest arrives at the final second in chips

The seat assignments for this afternoon's finale in Event 34, $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha w/ Rebuys, have now been released. Kyle Kloeckner heads a tightly bunched table, with the seat order, hometowns and chips as follows:

Seat 1: Frank Vizza (Cold Spring Harbor, New York) -- 378,000
Seat 2: Dario Alioto (Palermo, Italy) -- 659,000
Seat 3: Tim West (Los Altos, California) -- 187,000
Seat 4: Daniel Makowsky (Zurich, Switzerland) -- 493,000
Seat 5: Kyle Kloeckner (St. Louis, Missouri) -- 845,000
Seat 6: Jacobo Fernandez (Hollywood, Florida) -- 348,000
Seat 7: Layne Flack (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 601,000
Seat 8: Michael Guzzardi (Melbourne, Australia) -- 751,000
Seat 9: Ted Forrest (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 757,000

Play is scheduled to begin at 2pm PDT on Friday. Join us here for the latest updates from the final table.

Tags: Kyle Kloeckner Ted Forrest

06-20-2008 13:58 UTC-7

A Few Minutes Away

Shamus

Players are arriving and starting to unbag their chips for today's $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha with Rebuys final table. Looks like we are few minutes from kicking off. Meanwhile, here are some player bios . . .

06-20-2008 13:59 UTC-7

Seat 1: Frank Vizza (Cold Spring Harbor, New York) -- 378,000

Shamus

It only took two huge hands on Day 1 to propel former New York commodities trader and father of five Frank Vizza to 400,000 chips and a massive lead early on. After successively eliminating David Grey and Andy Black on those hands, Vizza was able to maintain his stack throughout Day 2 and make today’s final table. Vizza has over $400,000 in career tournament winnings, including three cashes at the 2005 WSOP. He has also cashed in WPT and WSOP Circuit events, winning the $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em WSOP Circuit event in Atlantic City in late 2007. His biggest previous payday was when he took fourth at the WSOP Circuit Championship event in Atlantic City in March 2007, earning him over $100,000. All of Vizza’s previous major tourney cashes have been in hold’em events.

Tags: Frank Vizza

06-20-2008 14:01 UTC-7

Seat 2: Dario Alioto (Palermo, Italy) -- 659,000

Shamus

Full Tilt Poker-sponsored pro Dario “Ryu” Alioto first made a splash at the 2005 EPT Barcelona Main Event when he made the final table of his first ever live tourney. Since then Alioto has numerous cashes in European events, the most prestigious being his first place finish in the £5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event at last fall’s WSOP-Europe in London. Alioto has also cashed in Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 and hold’em events, and earlier this summer took ninth in the $5,000 No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball event. His total career earnings exceed $650,000.

Tags: Dario Alioto

06-20-2008 14:02 UTC-7

Seat 3: Tim West (Los Altos, California) -- 187,000

Shamus

In less than two years of live tourney play, online MTT phenom Tim “Tmay420” West has already amassed over $670,000 in career earnings, including two cashes at the 2007 WSOP and two more already at this summer’s Series. His largest cash to date was for taking second at the $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em event at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic in late 2006, earning him over $180,000. West has also made the money at WPT events and at the Aussie Millions, with all of his previous significant tourney cashes having been in hold’em events.

Tags: Tim West

06-20-2008 14:03 UTC-7

Seat 4: Daniel Makowsky (Zurich, Switzerland) -- 493,000

Shamus

Daniel Makowsky has enjoyed considerable online success and is beginning to translate that experience into the live arena. Makowsky just missed another final table at this year’s Series, finishing 10th in the $2,000 Limit Hold’em event. He finished second in a $500 No-Limit Hold’em event at last summer’s Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza, earning over $48,000. If he wins the bracelet today, Makowsky says he plans to give it to his girlfriend.

Tags: Daniel Makowsky

06-20-2008 14:04 UTC-7

Seat 5: Kyle Kloeckner (St. Louis, Missouri) -- 845,000

Shamus

Chip leader Kyle Kloeckner has already proven himself a tough player of pot-limit poker, having finished runner up to Max Pescatori in Event No. 24, the Pot-Limit Hold’em/Omaha event. That was Kloeckner’s largest tourney cash by far, netting him over $150,000. Kloeckner overtook Frank Vizza midway through Day 2 and hovered at or around the chip lead throughout the day.

Tags: Kyle Kloeckner

06-20-2008 14:05 UTC-7

Seat 6: Jacobo Fernandez (Hollywood, Florida) -- 348,000

Shamus

Floridian Jacobo Fernandez has over $1.1 million in tournament winnings to his credit, and is in the midst of a terrific World Series, having already cashed in four events. At the moment, Fernandez is seventh in the World Series of Poker Player of the Year points race, but today’s final table means that tomorrow he’ll wake up at the top of the leaderboard, no matter how he finishes. Fernandez also made the final table of Event No. 21, the $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em event, earning nearly a quarter million for his fourth place finish there. His biggest payday came in 2007 when he finished third at the WPT L.A. Poker Classic, claiming just over $600,000 for his efforts.

Tags: Jacobo Fernandez

06-20-2008 14:06 UTC-7

Seat 7: Layne Flack (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 601,000

Shamus

With five WSOP bracelets already to his credit, Layne Flack is no stranger to World Series final tables -- this marks his 13th overall. Flack’s first WSOP final table came just over a decade ago when he finished second in the $2,000 No-Limit Hold’em event in 1998. Since then, Flack has amassed well over $3 million in tourney winnings, and besides his WSOP bracelets in limit hold’em, pot-limit hold’em, no-limit hold’em, and Omaha hi-low split-8, he has a WPT title as well.

Tags: Layne Flack

06-20-2008 14:06 UTC-7

Seat 8: Michael Guzzardi (Melbourne, Australia) -- 751,000

Shamus

This marks T6 Poker-qualifier Michael “TheBigSiCkO” Guzzardi’s first deep run in a major tourney. The 24-year-old Aussie casino dealer was down to just 20,000 chips when we approached the cash bubble yesterday. However, a series of double-ups bounced him all of the way to the top of the leaderboard for much of the latter portion of the day's play.

Tags: Michael Guzzardi