Event 16
There were a few tournaments that awarded WPO trophies yesterday that we’re going to recap before we start to bring you updates from the early arriving WPT WPO Championship Day 1A flight, including the “live streamed” $1,000,000 GTD Event 15 Final Table, which saw a Borgata “regular” claim his first major live tournament title.
Daniel Buzgon (Marlton, NJ) entered the Event 15 Final Table with a slightly below average stack and managed to keep himself afloat throughout the early levels of play, then battled three handed for close to two hours before finally gaining complete control heads up against Ben Beahm, claiming the title a few hands later, his first Borgata title.
Buzgon had come close before, Final Tabling a WPT event at the Borgata a few years ago and notching back-to-back runner up finishes during last month’s WSOP Circuit stop at Harrah’s AC, but wouldn’t let this opportunity slip away, claiming the WPO trophy and the $195,000 for first.
The next trophy awarded would be the $150,000 GTD $1,000 Event 16 Six Max title, which would be claimed by Brandon Setzer (Concord, NC) who would outlast an extremely stacked Final Table to claim his first outright poker title since 2011 and make one of the biggest scores of his tournament career, making just over $60,000 for the victory.
The last trophy won yesterday was actually awarded early this morning as Tim Rausenberger (Haskell, NJ) took down his first title and outdid his career earnings in the process, winning the $100,000 GTD Event 17 ‘Saturday Series’ for just under $50,000.
One more trophy will be awarded today, with the Final Table of the $1,500 + $500 Purple Chip Bounty coming back to crown a champion at 1 PM.
Live updates of that event will start when the Final Table begins and we will be posting the chip counts and remaining payouts for that event shortly.
For a complete list of results from the respective events, click the links above and for a complete recap of the action from each event, click the categorical tabs under the title.
Level 25 (Blinds 15,000/30,000/4,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 1
Chip Average: 4,960,000
Brandon Setzer (Concord, NC) Event 16 Winner
It had been almost five years since Brandon Setzer’s last outright tournament win (2011 – Binion’s Las Vegas), and with four top five finishes last year, Brandon wanting nothing more than to finish this out. This would be his second ever Borgata Poker Open final table, finishing third during a $500 No Limit Hold’em Deep Stack during last year’s Summer Poker Open. Setzer was in control for much of the final table, with his key hand coming against Sam Taylor when play was three-handed. Just moments after the elimination of John Holley, Setzer would get it in pre-flop with Taylor (the short stack), with his {ad} {ac} holding up against Sam’s {as} {kh}. That hand would give him the chip lead heading into heads up play, and it would take less than ten minutes before the tournament was over.
Setzer falls just a few thousand dollars short of his largest cash ever, but was more than happy to start of the year with a score of $63,747. Brandon plans on playing the Borgata Winter Poker Open Championship over the next few days, and will be someone we will keep an eye on as he tries to get his hands a second trophy of the series…the WPT Championship Cup.
Level 25 (Blinds 15,000/30,000/4,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 1
Chip Average: 4,960,000
Jared Jaffee (Brooklyn, NY)
With both players starting heads up play with over (30) big blinds, this heads-up match had potential to take a very long time…one would guess. Within ten minutes of sitting with two players at the table, we had an event winner, as Brandon Setzer (Concord, NC) take home the Event 16 title. On the final hand, Jared Jaffee would open to 65,000, with Setzer calling and the two seeing a flop of {3c} {8s} {qc}. Jared continued with a 65,000 bet on the flop, with Setzer once again making the call. The line would continue for Jaffee after the {7s} on the turn, firing out 135,000 into the pot.
This time Setzer would raise to 435,000, with Jaffee thinking for a few moments before announcing he was all-in. Brandon quickly made the call, and he’d be ahead with one card to come:
Board: {3c} {8c} {qs} {7s}
Jaffee: {ac} {qs}
Setzer: {8s} {7c}
River: {8d}
Jaffee needed to hit one of his eight outs heading to the river to prolong the heads-up battle, but the board would pair to give Brandon a full house. Jared is coming off a year that saw him crack the top 100 in money earned (93rd), and now gets his second score of 2015, taking home $37,888. Jaffee’s first cash of 2015 was also in a six-max event, finishing fourth less than two weeks ago during the PCA ($2,000 NLH Six-Max).
Level 25 (Blinds 15,000/30,000/4,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 2
Chip Average: 2,480,000
Sam Taylor (New York, NY)
At one point when we reached the final table, it took close to two hours to lose just one player. We just lost two in the past five minutes, as Sam Taylor (New York, NY) exits in third place, leaving Jared Jaffee and Brandon Setzer heads-up for the Event 16 trophy. Before John Holley could even leave the table, Jared Jaffee opened for a raise on the button. Setzer three-bet out of the small blind, and Sam Taylor four-bet shipped for just over 700,000. Jaffee released his hand and Setzer immediately made the call:
Taylor: {as} {kh}
Setzer: {ad} {ac}
Flop: {10d} {2d} {js}
Turn: {4d}
River: {7s}
Taylor would end up flopping a broadway draw, giving him four more outs to possibly crack Brandon’s aces. The turn and river wouldn’t complete the comeback for Taylor, and the Borgata Trophy winner from the Fall Poker Open falls just short of earning his second trophy in two series. Both Jaffee and Setzer are taking a quick break before heads-up play, and will return to the following counts:
Jared Jaffee – 1,700,000
Brandon Setzer – 3,300,000
Level 25 (Blinds 15,000/30,000/4,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 3
Chip Average: 1,460,000
John Holley (Destin, FL)
John Holley was back in his “comfort zone” for this tournament, grinding a short stack that was just over ten big blinds. After Jared Jaffee opened from the button, Holley shoved for 340,000, with Brandon Setzer folding behind. Jared would immediately make the call, and the cards would be tabled:
Holley: {ah} {jh}
Jaffee: {as} {ks}
Flop: {qc} {8h} {9s}
Turn: {jd}
River: {10h}
In just a cruel runout, John Holley would be eliminated in fourth place, collecting $22,853 for his efforts. The traveling tournament professional with over $1,000,000 in earnings walks away with his first Borgata cash since September’s Borgata Poker Open, and will definitely be seen during the WPT Championship Event over the next few days. Here are the three handed chip counts:
- Sam Taylor – 700,000
- Jared Jaffee – 1,900,000
- Brandon Setzer – 2,500,000
Level 25 (Blinds 15,000/30,000/4,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 4
Chip Average: 1,240,000
After doubling up John Holley towards the end of Level 24, Jared Jaffee was left with just over (10) big blinds, and was in shove mode. He was able to get three all-ins through, building up a little more each time he collected the blinds and antes. After Holley opened, action folded to Jaffee in the big blind, who would announce that he was all-in. Holley quickly threw some chips across the line, and Jaffe would be at risk:
Jaffee: {3h} {3d}
Holley: {ac} {4c}
Flop: {jh} {5c} {3s}
Turn: {9d}
River: {9s}
Jaffee flopped bottom set, but Holley still had outs to make the wheel on the turn or river. When the board ran out running nines, Jaffe would double up to 1,300,000, while Holley dropped to below ten bigs (355,000).
Level 24 (Blinds 12,000/24,000/3,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 4
Chip Average: 1,240,000
John Holley (Destin, FL)
Since last nights bubble, John Holley’s Twitter feed has been trending with the same update, sitting with less than 15-20 bigs (as little as four big blinds). Moments ago at the final table, Holley would shove for 391,000 over an open from Jared Jaffe. After some deliberation, Jaffee would make the call, putting Holley at risk:
Holley: {8s} {8d}
Jaffee: {6c} {6s}
Flop: {5s} {3d} {5d}
Turn: {10d}
River: {10s}
Holley would never relinquish the lead he had when the cards were tabled, and that double gives us the following chip counts:
Sam Taylor – 940,000
Jared Jaffe – 980,000
John Holley – 820,000
Brandon Setzer – 2,150,000
Level 24 (Blinds 12,000/24,000/3,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 4
5th Place – Nate Bjerno
We are down to 4 here in Event 16 as we say goodbye to Nate Bjerno in 5th place. Bjerno came into the table as a short stack and managed to double up and make a pay jump, as he takes home $18,042. In the final hand John Holley opened from under the gun with a raise to 55,000 and was immediately three-bet by Brandon Setzer. Nate Bjerno announced all in on the button for his last 600,000 and change and it would fold back to Setzer who would make the call.
Setzer: {Qh}{Qs}
Bjerno: {Ad}{Ks}
The board would run out {8h}{3s}{3h}{6s}{9h} and Bjerno would hit the rail in 5th as Setzer regains the chip lead.
Level 24 (Blinds 12,000/24,000/3,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 5
Jaffee gaining support from BCP.
Brandon Setzer opened from under the gun with a raise to 55,000 and action would fold through to Jared Jaffee in the small blind. Jaffee elected to three-bet to 120,000 and John Holley would quickly fold out of the big blind.
Setzer asked Jaffee how much he started the hand with before going into the tank, eventually announcing all in. Jaffee almost beat him into the middle with his chips and tabled {Ah}{Ac}.
Setzer just shrugged and flipped over {3c}{3s}.
The board would run out {4s}{7h}{9c}{8h}{9h} and Jaffee would double to 1,400,000 while Setzer falls back to 1,300,000.
Level 23 (Blinds 10,000/20,000/3,000)
Total Entries: 248
Players Remaining: 5
Players are now on their 15 minute break. In the last level we saw a lot of the chips moving around the table, most of them leaving Jared Jaffee’s stack and ending up in the hands of Sam Taylor and Brandon Setzer. Here is a look at the players chip counts on break.
Nate Bjerno – 655,000
Sam Taylor – 1,180,000
Jared Jaffee – 700,000
John Holley – 530,000
Brandon Setzer – 1,760,000