By Patrick Gallagher
As a part-time recreational poker player, I’m always looking for tournaments with choice fields filled with dead money and the opportunity to play the best in the world, without having to travel to points far away. Ten years ago, there weren’t many full-scale tournament offerings as many players had to make the annual trek to the World Series in Vegas and to the Taj for the U.S. Championship.
Then the World Poker Tour came along and began its run at Foxwoods. But with only the WPT, Foxwoods Mega Stack series and the short but successful run for the North American Poker Tour at Mohegan Sun, travel still was required to find bigger buy-ins and to keep the tournament skills sharp.
Growth in quality tournament offerings has exploded across the country (make sure to find out about the Ante Up Poker Tour) and New England is no exception. In late 2012 and early 2013, these offerings have expanded with new additions at Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun and even at the charity rooms and tours found in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, giving players a range of entry fees and structures.
FOXWOODS: The World Poker Finals (results below) just concluded in early November (results on the right), delivering an increase in overall entrants and significant prize payouts. The WPF main event, with 230 paying $3,500 (including WSOP bracelet-winner Brian Hastings), concluded with short-stack Ariel Albilia of Syosset, N.Y., grinding out the win and hardware for $184K.
Other winners included Nick Petrangelo of Feeding Hills, Mass., capturing the $1,500 no-limit hold’em event for $73K; Vincent Maglio of Revere, Mass., claiming $29K in the $1K event and Daniel Chan of NYC winning the $1,100 Super Bounty for $16,790 (besting a field that included WPT champion Will Failla). Other non-NLHE events featured Rodney LaPointe from Auburn, Maine, chopping for the $400 stud/8 win and $6,570 with four players, including Allen “Chainsaw” Kessler; a final seven chop for the $400 H.O.S.E., which saw William Delsanto take first place; and a four-way chop in the $400 PLO event, with the Steve Wilson bringing $6,624 back to Waterloo, Ontario.
On the horizon is the Foxwoods Mega Stack Challenge (Dec. 8-16) with $120-$1,200 buy-ins and $10K-$200K guarantees, including deepstack and super-bounty structures. Also, the WSOPC runs March 27-April 8, including 20 events (12 ring events) For more information on the WSOPC at Foxwoods, visit foxwoods.com.
Mohegan Sun: The DeepStacks Poker Tour runs through Dec. 3, including the $2,500 televised national championship Dec. 1-3. For more information, visit deepstacks.com.
Charity Rooms: With varied offerings in multiple rooms in New Hampshire (seven rooms with an average of six tournaments per day and $30-$250 buy-ins) and the Eastern Poker Tour (Mass.-R.I.-N.H. pub, charity offerings, WSOP satellites and a $72K championship), the tournament player has all kinds of weekly opportunities.
New York
Seneca Salamanca is giving players a chance to win an Ante Up Poker Cruise gift certificate with travel money. This month, single-table satellites are offered for $30, with the winner of each invited to a super satellite, where the winner will earn a $1,500 certificate good for any 2013 Ante Up Poker Cruise plus $1,000 for travel. In January and February, the same promotion will be run, but for $20.
— Patrick Gallagher is Ante Up’s Northeast Ambassador. You can email him at anteupne@gmail.com.
World Poker Finals, Foxwoods Casino
Event 1 • $600 NLHE
Entries: 405 • Pool: $208,210
Bruce Southwick, $27K
Event 2 • $400 Stud
Entries: 104 • Pool: $35,308
Gordon Sprague, $8,400
Event 3 • $400 NLHE
Entries: 357 • Pool: $121,201
James Campbell, $24K
Event 4 • $300 Bounty
Entries: 313 • Pool: $47,638
Phil Mondello, $11,409
Event 5 • $400 LHE
Entries: 74 • Pool: $25,122
Jose Iniguez, $6,790
Event 6 • $400 NLHE
Entries: 276 • Pool: $93,702
Jean Joseph, $18,394
Event 7 • $500 Bounty
Entries: 227 • Pool: $74,184
John Densing, $10,347
Event 8 • $400 O/8
Entries: 151 • Pool: $51,265
Terance Pattigno, $4,475
Event 9 • $600 NLHE
Entries: 454 • Pool: $233,400
Dan Fogg, $20,832
Event 10 • $500 Seniors
Entries: 251 • Pool: $107,127
Scott Inman, $9,619
Event 11 • $300 NLHE
Entries: 383 • Pool: $96,593
Mike Fiumefreddo, $19,388
Event 12 • $400 PLO
Entries: 96 • Pool: $32,591
Steve Wilson, $6,624
Event 15 • $400 Stud/8
Entries: 80 • Pool: $27,160
Rodney Lapointe, $6,750
Event 16 • $400 NLHE
Entries: 265 • Pool: $89,967
Robert Brown, $22,042
Event 17 • $500 NLHE
Entries: 231 • Pool: $98,590
Raja Gulfraz, $24,648
Event 18 • $400 H.O.S.E.
Entries: 87 • Pool: $29,536
Michael Mann, $4,609
Event 19 • $300 Ladies
Entries: 195 • Pool: $49,178
Nicole DeFrancesco, $12,787
Event 20 • $1,500 NLHE
Entries: 219 • Pool: $292,092
Nick Petrangelo, $73,023
Event 21 • $1,100 NLHE
Entries: 125 • Pool: $59,962
Daniel Chan, $16,790
Event 22 • $230 Bounty
Entries: 134 • Pool: $12,596
Nachman Berlin, $2,251
Event 24 • $1K NLHE
Entries: 140 • Pool: $123,578
Vinny Maglio, $29,347
$3,500 Main Event
Entries: 230 • Pool: $736,230
Ariel Albilia, $184,058
Event 26 • $300 NLHE
Entries: 205 • Pool: $51,701
John Callahan, $8,964
Event 27 • $300 NLHE
Entries: 169 • Pool: $42,621
Soukha Kachittavong, $8,557
