$5,300 Championship Event Day 1 | 2019 Wynn Winter Classic

12-19-2019 01:29 UTC-7

Marko Pantelic Bags Big After Day 1 of 2019 Wynn Winter Classic

Chad Holloway

Level 10 : 1,000/1,500, 1,500 ante

The inaugural Wynn Winter Classic $5,300 buy-in Championship Event – the biggest buy-in tournament the venue has held in over five years – had no problem passing its $1.5 million guarantee as 435 entrants competed on Day 1 of the tournament. With late registration and re-entries open until the stat of Level 13 on Day 2 (approx. 2:10 p.m. on Thursday), that number is sure to go up even more.

After 10 levels of play, approximately 195 players survived. Among the big stacks were Marko Pantelic (357,000), Alex Rocha (330,000), Patrick Serda (279,000), Michael Dyer (254,000), and David “The Dragon” Pham (233,000).

Others to make it through were HPT Season XV POY Nick Pupillo (206,500), bracelet winner Ryan Laplante (192,500), Matt Glantz (168,000), WPT Venetian champ Ben Palmer (149,000), 888poker Ambassador Daria Feshchenko (101,000), and Maria Ho (112,000).

Of course, not everyone was fortunate enough to bag. Among those to fire and fall on Day 1 were Will “The Thrill” Failla, Eric Baldwin Dutch Boyd, 2019 WSOP Main Event fourth-place finisher Garry Gates, and MSPT Season 10 Player of the Year Mike Shin.

Day 2 of the tournament will kick off at noon local time on Thursday. The PokerNews live reporting team will be on hand to capture all the action, so be sure to join us then.

Tags: Marko Pantelic

12-19-2019 00:57 UTC-7

HPT POY Pupillo Doubles Through Jaka

Chad Holloway

Level 10 : 1,000/1,500, 1,500 ante

There was already 100K in the pot and a board reading when we arrived at the table.

Heartland Poker Tour (HPT) Season XV Player of the Year Nick Pupillo had checked from the lojack and Faraz Jaka moved all in for around 70,000 from the button. Pupillo, who had 58,000 back, hit the tank before eventually calling off.

Nick Pupillo:
Faraz Jaka:

Jaka had bluffed his missed flush draw and Pupillo was rewarded with a big double here in the last level of the night.

Player	Chips	Progress
Nick Pupillo	225,000	130,000
Faraz Jaka	10,000	-85,000

Tags: Nick Pupillo Faraz Jaka

12-18-2019 22:22 UTC-7

Off to the Races: Levin vs. Magnus

Chad Holloway

Level 8 : 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

Garry Gates opened for 2,500 from early position and Jeremy Levin called from middle position. Nadya Magnus then three-bet all in for 22,900 from the big blind and Gates quickly folded. Levin thought for a bit and opted to call.

Nadya Magnus:
Jeremy Levin:

It was a race and Magnus was looking to hold to stay alive. Unfortunately for her, that proved easier said than done as the flop hit Levin. Neither the turn nor river helped Magnus and she took her leave, though it appeared as if she was headed to the registration desk to jump back into action.

Player	Chips	Progress
Jeremy Levin	120,000	30,000
Nadya Magnus	Busted

Tags: Jeremy Levin Nadya Magnus

12-18-2019 22:17 UTC-7

Big Slick Does the Trick for LuckyChewy

Chad Holloway

Level 8 : 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

The preflop action escaped us but we do know a raising war resulted in a player getting his stack of roughly 60,000 all in preflop against Andrew "LuckyChewy" Lichtenberger.

Andrew Lichtenberger:
Opponent:

Lichtenberger had the superior ace and scored the knockout after the board ran out a clean .

Player	Chips	Progress
Andrew Lichtenberger	150,000	65,000

Tags: Andrew Lichtenberger

12-18-2019 19:19 UTC-7

Rocha Takes Big Chunk of Farrell's Stack

Chad Holloway

Level 6 : 300/600, 600 ante

With 15,000 in the pot and a flop of , Alex Rocha was in the cutoff debating what to do as his opponent, Ben Farrell, had bet 3,500 from the button.

Eventually, Rocha called and then checked the turn. Farrell upped his bet to 14,000 and Rocha took his time before calling to see the , which put four hearts on the board.

Rocha waited a bit before checking it over to Farrell, who bet 30,000. Rocha paused for a few beats before check-raising all in and Farrell snap-folded to conserve the 16,000 he had back.

Player	Chips	Progress
Alex rocha	145,000
Ben Farrell	16,000	-29,000

Tags: Alex Rocha Ben Farrell

12-18-2019 17:42 UTC-7

Don't Miss the Upcoming Wynn Signature Series in January

Chad Holloway

Level 5 : 300/500, 500 ante

Players looking for some major live poker tournament action in January need to look no further than here at the Wynn with its Wynn Signature Series.

Taking place between January 15 and February 2, 2020 at the luxurious Wynn, Las Vegas, the festival guarantees more than $1.3 million will be won.

Massive $400,000 Guaranteed Event

The crown jewel of the Wynn Signature Series sees $400,000 guaranteed for a $1,100 buy-in.

This massive event features three starting flights, the first of which shuffling up and dealing at 12:00 p.m. on January 23.

Day 1B and Day 1C commence at the same time on January 24 and January 25 with the final day starting at 12:00 p.m. on January 26.

All three Day 1s see you sit down with 25,000 chips and play to 40-minutes blinds. The blinds remain the same on Day 2, too.

Should the $1,100 buy-in for this event be a little steep for your bankroll, Wynn is running two Super Satellites that only cost $200 to enter.

The first of these Super Satellites runs from 7:00 p.m. on January 23 while Day 1A of the $400,000 guaranteed event is running, while the second Super Satellite starts at 7:00 p.m. on January 24 while Day 1B is in full flow.

There was a $400,000 guaranteed $1,100 buy-in tournament that was part of the Wynn Fall Classic in October.

That particular event saw 473 entries battle it out for a slice of a $463,162 prize pool.

Sanket Desai banked $70,306 as part of a four-way deal with Eric Blair, Eric Baldwin, and Tamas Lendvai.

Here's a look at the festival's entire schedule:

Date	Time	Event	Guarantee	Buy-in
Wed 15 Jan	12:00 p.m.	NLH $3K Survivor $100 Bounty	$40,000	$400
Thu 16 Jan	12:00 p.m.	Limit Omaha 8/B	$10,000
	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1		$150,000
Fri 17 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1B	$150,000	$600
	7:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Turbo	$10,000	$200
Sat 18 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 2	$150,000
	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$50,000	$550
Sun 19 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$40,000	$400
	7:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Turbo	$10,000	$200
Mon 20 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$40,000	$400
Tue 21 Jan	12:00 p.m.	Pot Limit Omaha	$20,000	$400
	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1A	$100,000	$400
Wed 22 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1B	$100,000	$400
Thu 23 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 2
	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1A	$400,000	$1,100
	7:00 p.m.	Super Satellite		$200
Fri 24 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1B	$400,000	$1,100
	7:00 p.m.	Super Satellite		$200
Sat 25 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1C	$400,000	$1,100
Sun 26 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 2
	1:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$100,000	$1,100
Mon 27 Jan	12:00p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1A	$200,000	$600
Tue 28 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1B	$200,000	$600
Wed 29 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 1C	$200,000	$600
Thu 30 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Day 2
	1:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$40,000	$400
Fri 31 Jan	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$40,000	$400
	7:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em Turbo	$10,000	$200
Sat 1 Feb	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$50,000	$550
Sun 2 Feb	12:00 p.m.	No Limit Hold’em	$20,000	$300

12-18-2019 16:43 UTC-7

Clark Gets Run Over By Calderaro's Boat

Chad Holloway

Level 4 : 200/400, 400 ante

Matt Clark put in a raise from the hijack only to have James Calderaro three-bet to 2,600 from the cutoff. Action folded back to Clark and he pushed back to the tune of 9,000, which Calderaro thought long and hard about before calling.

When the flop fell , Clark jammed his last 12,900 and Calderaro snapped him off.

Matt Clark:
James Calderaro:

Clark picked the wrong time to bluff as Calderaro had flopped tens full. The turn left Clark drawing dead and he headed for the exit after the was run out on the river.

Player	Chips	Progress
James Calderaro	62,000	62,000
Matt Clark	Busted

Tags: James Calderaro Matt Clark

12-18-2019 16:12 UTC-7

Big Pot for Laplante

Chad Holloway

Level 3 : 200/300, 300 ante

Ryan Laplante opened for 700 from early position and the player to his direct left called. Josh Ray then three-bet to 3,800 from the small blind, both Laplante and the other player called, and it was three-way action to the flop, which the trio checked.

After the dealer burned and turned the , Ray checked and Laplante bet 4,200. Both his opponents called and it was off to the river.

Ray checked, Laplante bet a pot-sized 22,800, and the player to his left folded what he later claimed was king-nine. Ray thought long and hard before making the call only to muck when Laplante rolled over the for jacks full of nines.

Player	Chips	Progress
Ryan Laplante	95,000	41,000

Tags: Ryan Laplante Josh Ray

12-18-2019 15:41 UTC-7

Ladies Lead to Lang's Demise

Chad Holloway

Level 3 : 200/300, 300 ante

Toby Lewis raised from early position and was met by a three-bet to roughly 3,500 from Mike Lang in the hijack. Action folded back to Lewis and he four-bet to 8,500, which Lang opted just to call.

When the flop came down , Lewis continued for 4,000 and Lang, who earlier in the series won the 2019 Wynn Winter Classic Seniors Event, raised all in for approximately 20,000. Lewis snap-called and Lang discovered the bad news.

Mike Lang:
Toby Lewis:

Lang's ladies were no good and he failed to get lucky as the bricked on the turn followed by the on the river.

Player	Chips	Progress
Toby Lewis	90,000	35,000
Mike Lang	Busted

Tags: Mike Lang Toby Lewis

12-18-2019 15:36 UTC-7

Gates Takes It on the Turn

Chad Holloway

Level 3 : 200/300, 300 ante

After a player raised to 600 from early position, 2019 WSOP Main Event fourth-place finisher Garry Gates three-bet to 1,800 two spots over in the hijack. Marko Pantelic came along from the small blind, the initial raiser did the same, and the trio took a flop of .

The early-position player checked, Gates continued for 2,100, and Pantelic folded. The original raiser called and then checked for the second time on the turn.

Gates, who recently won a gold ring down at the WSOP Circuit International Aruba stop, upped his bet to 4,200 and this time it did the trick as his opponent wasted little time in folding.

Player	Chips	Progress
Garry Gates	46,500	4,500

Tags: Garry Gates