EPT Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain)
Daniel Negreanu’s wild ride did not result in a cheesy story book ending-type win in Barcelona. In fact, none of the PokerStars sponsored players made much noise in this EPT stop. The most recognizable name amongst the group was Konstantin Puchkov, who won a bracelet in a HORSE event at this year’s World Series of Poker.
Eight different European countries were represented at the final table of eight, with Jesus Cortes Lizano trying to capture the hometown title. He fell just short, taking home €525,000 for a runner-up finish. Kent Lundmark became the sixth Swede to capture a title on the EPT, besting a field of 758 players to win €825,000, the biggest prize in Spanish poker history. [CardPlayer]
United States Poker Championship (Atlantic City, NJ)
The USPC has lost some of the luster it had during the early days of the poker boom, but this year’s event continues a fairly strong run it has had as a $5,000 event. The main event drew 96 players, including quite a few local grinders. The infamous Mike Sica made the final table, finishing fourth for $40,000. In his first live event, Edward Gamaitoni came out victorious, pocketing $167,616 for his efforts.
Other highlights of this series included two wins on the same night for “Miami” John Cernuto, five final tables and a win for Chris Reslock, and a record three USPC titles in one series for New Jersey local Gordon Eng. [Atlantic City Weekly]
WPT Regional Series: Seminole Hard Rock Fall Open Poker Tournament (Hollywood, Florida)
Some players wait their entire lives to get their monster score. Harrison Gimbel has now struck big twice before his 21st birthday. After taking down the PCA in January at the tender age of 19, Gimbel book-ended his year with another big score with a win at the WPT’s regional stop in Hollywood, Florida. One of the few places in the United States where hel could legally play, Gimbel took full advantage of the opportunity to the tune of $330,000 following a deal made heads-up. Those who are worryed about Gimbel entering the general tournament scene can hold off on their worries in the states until next October. [PokerListings]
LA Poker Open (Los Angeles, CA)
The LA Poker Open took advantage of the insatieable local players as well as a number of well-known pros who were in town for the NAPT to award over 1.3 million over the entire series. Local player Kwinsee Khoa Tran banked almost $180,000 for the win, taking advantage of his chip lead entering the final six. [PokerListings]
WSOP-Circuit Lake Tahoe (Lake Tahoe, NV)
Despite a four-day snow storm leading up to the main event that had event organizers nervous about the turn out, 246 players showed up for the $1,600 tournament. With a spot in the WSOP Circuit National Championship on the line, Stan Quinn came out on top for $86,789. He earned one of the 100 coveted spots in the $1 million freeroll, which will be nationally televised and will award a WSOP bracelet to the winner. Also earning a seat from his results in Lake Tahoe was Andrew Barber, who won the overall points race throughout the series. [WSOP]
GUKPT Grand Final (London, England)
After finishing third in a preliminary GUKPT London stop, Leon Bui sealed the deal when it really counted. Bui won the Grand Final of this year’s tour, winning £144,905 in the process. David Johnson won GUKPT POY hono(u)rs after bubbling this final table. [BLUFF Europe]
Minnesota State Poker Tour Hinckley (Hinckley, MN)
Matt Hyland added a title at the MSPT Hinckley to his 2009 Heartland Poker Tour victory this week, taking home almost $40,000 for his win. [MN Poker Mag]
Online
The biggest news in the Online Poker world this week were the unexpectedly large overlays in PokerStars’ USACOOP. One of several regional COOP series that PokerStars is running in between its two major series, the guarantees were apparently set too high, which was most obvious during a $322 event with a $750,000 guarantee. With 1,326 players, the overlay was an astounding $325,000, with Christina “lindeyloo” Lindley taking advantage and winning the top prize of $127,500.
The main event of this series is paused with day two action scheduled for today. Among the 94 still in contention are David “Whooookidd” Baker, Garret “gbecks” Beckman, Jason “strassa2” Strasser, Stuart “thedonator” Patterson, Steve “gboro780” Gross, and Matt “mlagoo” Legard. Top prize is $164,050.
A calendar shift that moved the lucrative Chinese New Year holiday into February sent Nevada gaming revenues soaring, contributing to the largest single-month total ever for the Strip.