The World Poker Tour (WPT) recently stopped at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Poker Open on the road to the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas later this month.
The tournament drew 1,447 entries who fought for the lion’s share of the $4,630,400 prize pool, and Istvan Briski took the top prize of $647,300 and added his name to the Mike Sexton Cup.
For this edition of Hands of the Week, we look back at some of the top clashes from the $3,500 Main Event at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood.
Armand’s Cooler Slows Altman
Three-time WPT Champion Brian Altman was building a chip stack on Day 2 when Matti Armand got it all in for 355,000 in Level 19 with blinds at 10K/15K. Altman was the one to put him at risk and the cards were turned up.
Matti Armand: A♦A♠
Brian Altman: K♣K♠
The board ran out A♥3♠4♥J♠9♣ and Armand flopped a set to double through Altman. Altman ended up finishing in 72nd place for $10,600, while Armand made a run to 82nd place for $8,600.
Simultaneous Bustouts to End Day 3
Day 3 was slated to end with 16 players moving on to Day 4, but a double bust out at the end of the night would make that number 15.
On one table, Alessio Isaia raised from the small blind and Alejandro Gonzalez-Olaechea tossed in a three-bet before Isaia moved all in for around 3,200,000. Olaechea called and the cards were turned up.
Alessio Isaia: A♥K♥
Alejandro Gonzalez-Olaechea: A♦Q♦
The board ran out 4♦6♦9♦7♣4♠ and Gonzalez-Olaechea flopped a flush to end Isaia’s tournament.
On the other table, Briski raised to 175,000 from the button before Robert Kennedy moved in for 1,100,000. Briski called and the cards were turned up.
Robert Kennedy: K♣Q♣
Istvan Briski: K♦Q♦
“This boring. That one’s a lot more interesting,” a player at the table said about Isaia’s hand on the other table.
That proved incorrect as the board ran out 10♥8♦4♦A♦5♣ to give Briski the flush to knock Kennedy out of the tournament.
Both hands brought an end to Day 3, and Briski once again led the counts, while Isaia and Kennedy shared 16th place.
Briski Crosses 20 Million on Day 4
Briski led the tournament after Day 3 and Day 4, thanks in part to a pure run of cards throughout the later days of the tournament. One such hand came in Level 29 on Day 4, with blinds at 75K/150K. Luke Graham raised to 300,000 from under the gun before Briski three-bet to 475,000. Graham called and the flop was 5♠5♥4♥.
Graham check-called a bet of 150,000 from Briski and the turn was 7♣. Graham checked again and called when Briski bet 1,250,000.
The river was J♣ and Graham checked for a third time. Briski fired 2,700,000 and Graham went into the tank before he tossed in the chips to call. Briski turned over 4♠4♦ for a flopped full house and Graham mucked the losing hand.
The pot sent Briski above 20 million chips, good enough to secure the chip lead on Day 4. Graham later bowed out in seventh place on the final table bubble to end the day.
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Fred Goldberg Jumps to the Top of the Leaderboard
Just after Matt Bond’s fifth-place elimination on Day 5, Goldberg raised from the cutoff to 700,000 with blinds at 150K/300K and Briski came along from the big blind.
Both players checked the flop of A♥7♦6♥ and the turn was Q♦. Briski fired 2,750,000 and Goldberg called to see the 3♣ on the river.
Briski fired 1,425,000 and turned over 8♠5♥ for the busted straight draw when Goldberg called. Goldberg showed A♠9♠ to win the big pot with a pair of aces. The hand moved Goldberg into a temporary tie with Rayan Chamas, but he would eventually fall in fourth place.
Sandy Sanchez Fills Up Against Briski
The final four players were battling it out on Day 5 in Level 33 with blinds at 200K/400K when Briski limped in from the button. Fred Goldberg called from the small blind and Sandy Sanchez checked his option in the big blind.
The flop was A♠8♦7♣ and all three players checked to see 3♦ on the turn. Goldberg bet 800,000 and Sanchez called before Briski made it 2,600,000. Goldberg got out of the way and Sanchez tank-called to see 7♥ on the river.
Sanchez checked the river and turned over 7♦3♣ for sevens full of threes when Briski checked back. Briski tossed the losing hand in the muck and Sanchez took a pot that helped him pick up a third-place finish.
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*Images courtesy of SHRP/Joe Giron.
Live Reporting Executive
Las Vegas-based PokerNews Live Reporting Executive, originally from Chicago, IL