Event #2 of the March Power Weekend, the Playground 500, was a tremendous success that brought out a field of 314 entries. The great turnout smashed the $100,000 guarantee to create huge prizes at the top of the money list.
Today’s Day 3 started at the final table with eight players who put on a display of hard fought, determined poker. They took a cautious approach to the first two levels but there were still moments of excitement and tension, with a number of bluffs being shown at the table. Following back-to-back eliminations that reduced the field to six players, negotiations for an ICM chop of the prize pool began. And they did not last long, as consensus was reached quickly, allowing the final six to lock up five-figures scores. In many tournaments, the conclusion of a deal leads players to essentially “flip” their way to the end and stack off fairly light. But that was not the case today. They still had $3,000 – the amount withheld from the deal for the eventual winner – to play for as well as the $1,500 + $150 MILLIONS North America STEP 3 satellite seats to be awarded to the top three finishers. So every hand still mattered.
The four-way battle between Nicholas Soller, Christian Rho, Jean Rene Plante and Kevin Javier lasted for several levels, as the chips moved around the table. Both Soller and Rho saw their stacks go through some wild swings, while Plante and Javier controlled most of the chips. Following Soller’s elimination in fourth and Plante’s elimination in third, it came down to Rho and Javier.
They fought a tough battle. In the beginning, Rho had Javier on the ropes, but a double up for Javier put them on nearly equal footing. After that, Javier found ways to take chips without showdown and make the right calls, all while avoiding Rho’s strong hands to gradually accumulate all the chips over the course of several levels of heads-up play. Congratulations!
Event #2 Champion: Kevin Javier, $16,090 + $1,650 MILLIONS North America STEP 3 satellite seat
Last Hand of Play:
Second Place: Christian Rho, $13,105 + $1,650 MILLIONS North America STEP 3 satellite seat
