Friday, May 2, 2014

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): In Contention

Going into the final level of the night, here are the players who are in contention for the bonus:

Igor Rabinovich - 330,000
Joel Frank - 310,000
Satish Surapaneni - 305,000
Eric Rivkin - 280,000

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Final Break Of The Night

Level 14 (Blinds 1,500/3,000/400)
Total Entries: 722

There are currently nine active tables in the room, which means there are about 80 people remaining in the field.  At the end of this level the players will take a (15) minute break, as the tournament floor colors off the brown (100 denomination) chips.  Level 15 will then start with blinds 2,000/4,000/500, and will be the last of the night.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Manh Wins A Big One

Level 14 (Blinds 1,500/3,000/400)
Total Entries: 721

After Manh Nguyen opened, Alan Kraut three-bet behind to 20,000 and watched as a player shoved behind for less.  Nguyen then announced himself all-in (for 38,000 total), and the three players would table their hands.  Manh's AA > QQ (Kraut) > 10 10 (Player Y), and he would chip up to over 130,000.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Level 14 Begins

Level 14 is about to begin, with blinds going up to 1,500/3,000/400.  The total number of entries is 721, and those remaining in the room at the end of this level will take one final (15) minute break.  Level 15 will commence, and will be the last level of the night.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Still Alive

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 721

Here is a long list of notable players still alive:

Larry Wolf
Joe Cappuccio
Mike Sandler
Joe McKeehen
Frank Dire
Stephanie Hubbard
Mohammed Farah
Alan Kraut
Manh Nguyen
Nicholas Partenope
Cullen Hoffman
Leonardo Palermo
Igor Rabinovich
Justin Friedman
Eric Rivkin
Matt Glantz
Harry Bressler
Chris Csik
James Governa
Joe Black
Chris Capone
Ron Vittello
Adam Levitan
Valerie Novak
Robert Boyko
Kevin Grabel
Michael Marder

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Eriquezzo Busts

Level 13 (Blinds 1,200/2,400/300)
Total Entries: 720

Ryan Eriquezzo was just seen leaving the tournament area, the first of the notables to leave Table 66 from earlier.  It has not been confirmed whether he will be firing another bullet tonight, or waiting until Day 1C tomorrow.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): On Break

Players are on their break, and will return to play Level 13/14, before going on another (final) break, and finishing the night with Level 15.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Capone Putting Name In

Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Entries: 718

Chris Capone (Barnesville, PA) is putting himself in contention for the end of night chip lead bonus ($1,000), as he sits with over 265,000.  Capone's tournament record is fairly light, with only $9,000 in total earnings, but we've seen players make their first breakout scores in these events.

Players will be on break at the end of this level (12 minutes), and when they return to Level 13, the blinds will be going up to 1,200/2,400/300.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Making It Tough

Level 12 (Blinds 1,000/2,000/300)
Total Entries: 718

With tables breaking around the room, Table 66 ended up with a pretty difficult lineup at the moment:

Ryan Eriquezzo - 70,000
Eric Rivkin - 220,000
Matt Glantz - 60,000
David Inselberg - 65,000

Moments ago the field lost Peter Ipollito, as his second bullet after dinner didn't quite work as planned.  Pete will for sure be back for Day 1C tomorrow afternoon.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Levelin' Up

Level 12 begins, and players are now posting blinds of 1,000/2,000/300 (717 total entries).  The 15 active tables and 135 or so players at the moment, will be 5-6 tables and 45-55 players at the end of the night.  The next few levels are a moving period for the players, and a list of notables still alive will be posted shortly.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Middle Of The Road

Level 11 (Blinds 800/1,600/200)
Total Entries: 712

In not uncommon to see the big stacks in this stage of the tournament bagging average stacks, while players hovering around 50-60 bigs end up bagging heaps.  Here are some players currently in the middle of the pack, but definitely in the hunt:

Kevin Grabel - 175,0000
Justin Friedman - 160,000
Anthony Shurilla - 150,000
Antonio Walker - 145,000
Eric Rivkin - 145,000
Harry Bressler - 145,000
Ron Vittello - 142,000
Daniel Chan - 140,000
Kfir Levy - 140,000

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Level Up

Level 11 will now have players posting blinds of 800/1,600/200 (706 total entries).  The outer tables are beginning to break as players are busting at a steady pace.  Matt Glantz tweeted earlier in regards to what tomorrow is going to be like:

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Post Dinner Departures

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 705

Since returning from dinner there have been a handful of bustouts, including some notables:

Marguerite Spagnuolo
Jeff Shurilla
Ben Coren

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Larry The Legend

Level 10 (Blinds 600/1,200/200)
Total Entries: 701

Larry Wolf (Annapolis, MD) always seemed to go deep in events, cashing consistently in the Big Stax since the series started.  Wolf had a $60,000 score in 2007 and a $35,000 in 2011 (both coming at Borgata), and then went a few years with numerous cashes in the $3,000-$5,000 range.  Larry finally got his breakout score only weeks ago, when he ended runner-up to Abe Koratki in the $2,500 Borgata Spring Poker Open (co-main event).  Larry would take home over $148,000, falling just short of his first major title ever.

Wolf arrived moments before players were going to dinner, and he still sits around the starting stack.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Back From Dinner

Level 10 is about to begin as players file back into the clubhouse room from dinner.  The blinds will be going up to 600/1,200/200, and there will be a flurry of action coming back, as the trend shows.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Dinner Break Tweets

Here are some Tweets from players going on dinner:


Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Dinner Break

Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Entries: 683

Players will be going on a (75) minute dinner break at the end of this level (which is in about 15 minutes).  The live coverage of the event will resume when the players return, at approximately 7:35pm.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Spagnuolo Ponders, Coldstone Builds

Level 9 (Blinds 500/1,000/100)
Total Entries: 683

Marguerite Spagnuolo busts on her second bullet of the day, and is taking to Twitter to help decide the next course of action:


Dave "Coldstone" Inselberg was sitting quietly at one of the outer tables in the room, but his table broke and he now sits at Table 76.  Inselberg sat down at the table with about 115,000, and is pushing for another deep run in the Big Stax series.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): One Level, Then Dinner

Level 9 is about to begin with blinds going up to 500/1,000/100.  There are now 676 total entries as noted on the board, which means the field will surely surpass 700 by the end of tonight.  Reaching the record number of 1,850 is possible for tomorrow, especially with many recreational players finding their way to the track for the Kentucky Derby.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Glantz Back Home

Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Entries: 668

Parx Poker Room ambassador Matt Glantz (Lafayette Hill, PA) has taken his seat at Table 66.  The last time Matt was in a Big Stax event, he was walking away in 6th place of the Big Stax 1,500 in February.  Since then Matt also final tabled the $3,500 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Championship, finishing in 9th for just over $100,000.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Updated Chip Counts

Level 8 (Blinds 400/800/100)
Total Entries: 666

Here are some updated counts from the field, as we have a new leader up top:

Phillip Yan - 230,000
Satish Surapaneni - 205,000
Stephanie Hubbard - 160,000
Kfir Levy - 140,000
Cullen Hoffman - 135,000
Mohammed Farah - 115,000
Valerie Novak - 90,000
Justin Friedman - 85,000
Joe McKeehen - 75,000

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Half Way Through The Day

As Level 8 begins and blinds go up to 400/800/100, players have passed the half-way point of the day.  After crunching some of the numbers, this Big Stax 300 field is at the moment 82% of what the record breaking field was in February.  If calculations hold true, it would project a field for this event to have 1,450 total entries, which would once again bring a top prize over $100,000.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Hubbard Climbing

Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/100)
Total Entries: 654

Stephanie Hubbard (Hazlet, NJ) continues to scoop pots since busting Eriquezzo, and now sits with close to 150,000 in front of her.  There has to be a small feeling of home court advantage here at Parx for Hubbard, as she has consistently made deep runs in these events over the past year.

Joe McKeehen is also chipping up since sitting down at Table 73 on his second bullet.  McKeehen has built his starting stack to over 80,000 over the past two levels.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Caught On Film

Level 7 (Blinds 300/600/100)
Total Entries: 649

Since returning from break there has been a steady flow of players into the room, and one recently on his way out.  Stephanie Hubbard busted Ryan Eriquezzo moments ago, and it's yet to be seen if he will be firing another bullet today.  The camera has been snapping throughout the day, catching players in action:

Jeffery Kim's Fashion Statement

Nancy Martin Mid-Pot

Antonio Walker Under The Hood

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Break Time

Players are going on their second (15) minute break of the day, and when they take their seats again the blinds will have gone up to 300/600/100.  The tournament floor will be coloring off the green (25) denomination chips during the break, and also verifying the larger chips for security measures.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): "I'm Running Good"

Level 6 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Entries: 633

Satish Surapaneni

It wasn't hard to miss the biggest stack in the room, as Satish Surapaneni was on his iPad about to send out a Tweet.  Satish has over 170,000, and although the information wasn't provided in regards to how he got those chips, Satish did happen to smile and say, "I'm running good."



Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Counts From The Field

Level 6 (Blinds 250/500/50)
Total Entries: 622

The clubhouse room is now full, as there are 23 active tables at the moment.  Nobody has separated themselves from the rest just yet, but around dinner there tends to be a handful of players who do.  Here are some updated counts from the room:

Kfir Levy - 100,000
Joe Black - 95,000
Mike Sandler - 80,000
Alan Kraut - 73,000
Michael Marder - 60,000
Stephanie Hubbard - 50,000
Ryan Eriquezzo - 43,000

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Reaching The Numbers

Level 6 now has players posting blinds of 250/500/50, and with 613 total entries at the moment, today's pace looks like it will surpass the number from Day 1A (358).  At the end of this level, players will go on a (15) minute break and play three more levels before dinner.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Off To An Early Lead

Level 5 (Blinds 200/400/50)
Total Entries: 605

Joe Black (New York, NY)

The early leader in the room is tournament pro Joe Black (New York, NY), who is sitting just under 130,000.  Joe is a regular during the Big Stax series, but has yet to make a deep run that found him at a final table.  Joe's largest live cash came in July of 2013, when finished 3rd in a Borgata Saturday Series ($350 NL) event for just over $20,000.

On the other end of the spectrum we have Marguerite Spagnuolo, who has just taken her seat at a new table:


Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Level Going Up

Level 5 is about to begin, and blinds will be going up to 200/400/50.  The action in the early stages has been fairly subdued today, with only a few notables busting early and firing a second bullet:


Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): They Keep Coming In

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Entries: 590

The players continue to file into the room, with the following arriving fashionably late:

Daniel Chan
Joe McKeehen
Joe Black
Valerie Novak
Bo Toft
Lou Santora
Leonardo Palermo

Palermo is coming off a deep run in the $15,000 WPT Championship, finishing in 20th for $34,000.  This was all after being left with one blind in the early stages of the tournament.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Stacking Before Break

Level 4 (Blinds 150/300/50)
Total Entries: 582

On the final hand before break at Table 77, the player UTG would go all-in dark for 10,000.  When the action folded to Kfir Levy, he would make the call.  Action would then fold around behind Levy to Chris Csik in the big blind, who would then shove all-in (having Levy covered).  Levy would make the call, and his A 10 > KK (Csik) > 33 (blind shove).  Levy would be stacking a pile of 85,000 going into break, as Csik was left to go to break shaking his head.

Kfir Levy - 85,000

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): First Break Of Day

Players are going on their first break of the day, and will return to Level 4 and blinds of 150/300/50.  The total number of entries continues to grow, as the number now sits at 554.

Stephanie Hubbard (Hazlet, NJ) has taken her seat at Table 79, playing her first bullet in both the Big Stax 500 and this event for $120.  Hubbard won a seat-package in one of the satellites that ran the month leading up to the tournament.  Stephanie's biggest live score came last year in the Big Stax IV Main Trophy Event ($1,080), taking home over $15,000 for her seventh place finish.  Hubbard has had six recorded cashes since, including another over $10,000 in the opening event of the Borgata Spring Poker Open.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Twitter Arrivals

Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 550


Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Final Table-Mates Reunited

Level 3 (Blinds 100/200/25)
Total Entries: 534

Izzet Temel (Arlington, VA) just took his seat at Table 77, two seats away from Chris Csik, who he chopped the Big Stax 500 with during Big Stax V.  The tournament would end in a three-way chip between Izzet Temel ($69,943), James Anderson ($63,240), and Chris Csik ($50,554).

Also new to the field:

Pete Ippolito
Joe Cappuccio
Joe Grodowski
Kevin Grabel
Marguerite Spagnuolo

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Level 3 Begins

Level 3 started just moments ago, with antes introduced and blinds going up to 100/200/25.  Although behind record pace from February, tomorrow expects to be a madhouse for Day 1C.  The final starting day will always attract the most entries, but don't forget tomorrow is the Kentucky Derby as well.

Those with plans to play tomorrow should definitely think about arriving on time (or even early for that matter).  The parking lot is going to be crowded, and so is the poker room.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Still Walking In

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 517

Players continue to walk in and take their seats:

Ryan Eriquezzo
Anthony Shurilla
Andrew Zhu
James Governa

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): Looking To Go Ape

Level 2 (Blinds 75/150)
Total Entries: 504

Jeff Shurilla

Jeff "Gorilla" Shurilla (Bridgeport, PA) would probably be the most well known person in the room at the moment.  Anyone who has played a tournament at the Borgata over the past 5-6 years, or recently in Florida knows likely knows Jeff.  The name "Gorilla" comes from the handle Jeff uses while covering poker tournaments.  There aren't many that do it better than Jeff, but he's taken his talents to the table today.  Not a bad idea, considering that earlier in the year he final tabled a $400 NL event during the Borgata Winter Poker Open (taking home over $15,000).

The outer tables in the clubhouse room are beginning to see action, as more names take their seats:

Dave Inselberg
Cullen Hoffman
Chris Csik

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): First Level Down

Players have survived the first level of the day, and blinds in Level 2 are going up to 75/150.  Still a long ways away from thinking about that $1,000 chip lead bonus (for end of Day 1B), but the number from last night was 547,000 (Val Zekser).

Yesterdays field saw a total of 358 entries, many of which were notables and regulars to the room.  Parx regulars Ray Ross (321,500), Justin Liberto (378,500), and Greg Fishberg (291,500) all bagged top ten chip stacks.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): The Field Make Up

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 466

Twitter roll call is on:




Those without Twitter in the field:

Eileen Kustafik
Harry Bressler
Nicholas Partenope
Mike Sandler

Big Stax 300 (Day 1B): The Derby Prep

Level 1 (Blinds 50/100)
Total Entries: 450

The crowd is strong for 11:20am, as early birds are already in action, making sure not to miss one hand dealt out today.  A mixture of players who couldn't bag Day 1B and first timers make up the room at the moment:

Alyson Parker
Robert Boyko
Michael Borovetz
Alan Kraut (Played Day 1A)
Nancy Martin (Played Day 1A)

Big Stax 300 (Day 1A): End Of Day 1A Chip Counts


Day 1A
Total Players:  358 Players left:  55
Total Chips: 10,740,000 Average Chips: 195,273
First Name Last Name Hometown  Chip Count
Val Zekser Philadelphia,PA 547,000
Michael Matrone Morganville,NJ 517,000
Jesse Letchworth Colonial Heights,VA 475,500
Ryan Dion Williamstown,PA 439,500
Justin  Liberto Baltimore,MD 378,500
Ray Ross Maple Glenn,PA 321,500
Gregory Fishberg Huntingdon Valley, PA 291,500
Elan Chabi Brooklyn,NY 283,000
Alec Lafontant Huntingdon Valley, PA 278,500
Jerry Callahan East Norwich,NY 267,000
Nancy  Birdbaum Las Vegas,NV 264,500
William Pfeffer Philadelphia,PA 264,000
Keith  Woernle Montgomery,AL 249,000
Tom Palombo Pennington,NJ 246,500
DeeAngelo Seng Sickerville,NJ 241,500
Mikhail Lebovich Feasterville,PA 235,000
Michael Goldberg Newton,PA 235,000
Aleksandr Katsman Brooklyn,NY 231,000
Brandon Buglio Newark,DE 219,500
Brian Daugherty Philadelphia,PA 216,000
Chris Larrea Philadelphia,PA 214,500
Mike  Mason Collingswood,NJ 212,000
Ilya Dyment Brooklyn,NY 197,000
Jonas  Wexler Southampton,PA 192,500
Jacob Perry Branchville,NJ 186,500
Joshua Teitelbaum Brooklyn,NY 184,500
Kim  Edmonds Toms River,NJ 181,500
Asher Conniff Brooklyn,NY 179,500
Keith  DeAngelis Conshohocken,PA 174,000
David Kim Flushing,NY 171,000
Dan Nolan Baltimore,MD 165,000
Art DiProspero Willow Grove,PA 153,500
Ilya  Ekshtut Upper Holland,PA 151,500
Tom Coan Hauppauge,NY 151,000
Moshe Dahan Brooklyn,NY 146,000
Mike Fiabane Bordentown,NJ 145,500
Robert Sichelstiel Perkasie,PA 143,500
Mike Sloven Bensalem,PA 140,000
Jeff Gross Wall.NJ 124,000
Horatio Hu Fresh Meadows,NY 120,000
Sari Ceglio Kings Park,NY 115,000
Antonio  Amato Langhorne,PA 108,000
Vincent Teutoico Staten Island,NY 100,000
Max Pinnola Cheltenham,PA 97,000
Antonio  Payne Hazlet,NJ 88,500
Tim Dalessandro West Chester PA 88,500
Jason Rivkin Bensalem,PA 79,000
Michael Dimaiuta Centereach,NY 77,000
Christine  Brewer Port Monmouth,NJ 76,500
Jose Rosario Philadelphia,PA 76,000
Baruch Krieger New York 74,000
Jeff Wicker Bristol,PA 74,000
Tam Nguyen Lancaster,PA 58,500
Alex Vulakh Philadelphia,PA 48,000
Menachem Landwirt Monsey,NY 38,500

Big Stax 300 (Day 1A): Chip Counts

The verification process is taking slightly longer, as Parx Poker puts forth maximum effort to protect the integrity of all events.  Once the counts are fully verified, the end of Day 1A counts will be posted.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1A): End Of Night $1K Bonus

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 357

Val Zekser

It looked as if Michael Matrone was a shoe in for the chiplead bonus, especially after winning a flip on his last hand of the night (55 > A10).  Once his chips were verified, the final number for Matrone would be 517,000.  The tournament director asked the remaining field if anyone had more than 517,000, and Val Zekser's hand immediately raised.  Zekser had over 530,000 and would earn himself an extra $1,000.

End of Day 1A chip counts will be posted shortly.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1A): Four More Hands

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 357

The tournament floor has announced four more hands until players begin bagging their chips for Day 2.  The chip leader at the end of today's action will be receiving a $1,000 bonus, and that player will be posted on the blog once counts are verified.

End of Day 1A chip counts will be posted on the live updates page, Twitter (via @parxpokerroom), and ParxPokerBlog.com.

Big Stax 300 (Day 1A): Fishberg With Hooks

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 357

The action was picked up at Table 64 after an all-in between Jimmy Lillis and Greg Fishberg.  There would lay a pair of jacks in front of Fishberg (on a runout that was a ten high board), as the dealer checked to see if Lillis had Fishberg covered.  The all-in amount for Greg was 123,000, and after paying that amount off, Lillis was left with just under 13,000.

Greg Fishberg - 270,000
Jimmy Lillis - Busted two hands later

Big Stax 300 (Day 1A): Liberto Laxxed

Level 15 (Blinds 2,000/4,000/500)
Total Entries: 357

Justin Liberto

In the most recent update with chip counts, Justin Liberto was just under 200,000.  In the short time between that post and the end of Level 14, Liberto picked up a sizable pot with aces, and now is pushing 350,000.

Justin is likely looking forward to the upcoming months and the WSOP.  Last year was the first time Liberto played in a WSOP event...it was the $1,500 Millionaire Maker.  He finished in 4th place for $400,000...enough said.  He's come close in other major events since, and will be spending a share of time out at the WSOP this year.