2017 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open Awards Five Massive Titles In One Day

The 2017 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open culminated in a dramatic climax on Tuesday, August 15 in Hollywood, Florida. On that day five separate tournaments, which together combined for $7 million in guaranteed prize money, all reached their conclusion and five champions were decided.

The $3 million guaranteed $5,250 buy-in no-limit hold’em championship event was won by Martin Koslov. The Australian World Series of Poker bracelet winner outlasted a field of 887 total entries to capture the title and the first-place prize of $754,083.

In addition to the glory and the money, Koslov also earned 1,824 Card Player Player of the Year points. This was his second final table finish of the year, and as a result, he has climbed into 61st place in the overall Player of the Year standings, which are presented in 2017 by the Commerce Hotel and Casino.

Koslov overcame a stacked final table that including the likes of Matt Berkey (3rd – $341,618), Aaron Mermelstein (6th – $152,547), Adam Levy (7th – $126,305) and Joe Kuether (9th – $75,413). This was Berkey’s fourth final table finish of the year, and the 1,216 POY points he earned for his deep run here were enough to catapult him into 12th place on the leaderboard with 3,071 total points and $830,667 in year-to-date earnings.

The $2 million guaranteed $25,500 no-limit hold’em high roller event attracted a field of 117 entries to build a prize pool worth just shy of $3 million.

As you would expect from an event with this hefty of a buy-in, the final table was full of top tournament talent. In the end John Andress was the last player standing, earning $801,450 and 840 POY points for the win.

Joining Andress at the final table were Matt Glantz (9th – $76,050), Sam Panzica (8th – $78,975), Chance Kornuth (7th – $93,600), 2010 Card Player Player of the Year winner Tom Marchese (5th – $155,025), Chris Hunichen (4th – $242,775), Brandon Adams (3rd – $351,000) and WSOP bracelet winner Mike Leah (2nd – $561,600).

This was Hunichen’s seventh final table showing of the year. With 2,916 points and $866,788 in earnings so far in 2017 he has moved into 17th place in the overall POY rankings.

The third major event on the menu for the day was the $1 million guaranteed $2,650 buy-in no-limit hold’em freezeout. The event drew a field of 395 players, with Alex Foxen emerging victorious in the end with the top prize of $204,600 and 900 POY points. This was his third final-table finish of the year and it saw him move into 77th place in the POY standings as a result.

Third-place finisher Jason Koon also climbed the POY leaderboard as a result of a deep run in this event. He earned $91,250 and 600 points for his 10th final table finish of 2017. Koon now sits in fifth place in the POY race, with two-titles, 3,620 points and $2,980,301 in year-to-date earnings.

Other notable players who made the final table of this event included Jack Duong (5th – $47,350) and Faraz Jaka (6th – $39,250).

The $500,000 guaranteed $1,100 no-limit hold’em event drew 633 entries to easily surpass it’s promised prize pool by over $130,000. The last player standing in that event was none other than 2015 World Poker Tour Lucky Hearts Poker Open main event winner Brian Altman. That win also came at the Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood, so he likely felt right at home contending for a title again in South Florida. Altman earned $118,157 and 840 POY points for this latest title run. He now occupies the 74th-palce spot on the POY leaderboard.

Other big names at the final table of this event include Phung Nguyen (2nd – $82,834)
and Joe Kuether (8th – $15,749). Kuether had to live multi-table, as he also made the final table of the championship event, ultimately finishing in ninth place.

These first four tournaments were all part of the ‘Big 4’, four tournaments with hefty guarantees that were all scheduled to play down to a winner simultaneously while being livestreamed. Alhtough the fifth event I’m about to mention was not officially part of that group, it was still a sizable tournament that saw several big names make big scores. The $500,000 guaranteed $10,000 no-limit hold’em event drew a field of 118 player, more than doubling the guarantee to create a $1,132,800 prize pool.

Alexander Turyansky came out on top in the end, defeating Bryn Kenney heads-up to secure the title, the first-place prize of $334,176 and 600 POY points. Kenney earned $206,736 and 500 points as the runner-up. This was his 14th final table finish of the year, and he fell just short of capturing his fifth title. With 4,662 points and $5,398,959 in year-to-date earnings Kenney remains in the top spot on the Player of the Year leaderboard, opening the gap between him and current second-place occupant Joseph McKeehen.

Other notables at the final table of this tournament included Valentin Vornicu (4th – $79,296), Noah Schwartz (7th – $43,046), Darren Elias (8th – $37,949) and Sam Soverel (9th – $33,418).

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