Event #13 of the Winter Festival was a $300+$30 Re-Entry NL Hold’em tournament that attracted 79 entries and 4 re-entries. The number of participants fell short of the guarantee but provided great value for the players who entered.
The evening was characterized by relatively tight play throughout most of the early going, as few players seemed inclined to re-enter and most treated this tournament as a freezeout. The field shrank slowly and steadily until they were down to three tables, when the action heated. There were a flurry of bustouts in quick succession that brought about the final table more quickly than any of the players anticipated.
Once play began at the final table one player, Daniel Pepin, had a massive chip lead on the field and all the other players had roughly equal stacks. Play carried on somewhat predictably, with the short stacks succumbing to the pressure of the blinds. When the final table was down to five players, they agreed to a deal that would see the chip leader, Daniel Pepin, take home $6,100.00 with everyone else to receive $3,950.00. There remained $600.00 and the champion’s trophy for the eventual winner.
After the deal was concluded, nearly every hand was all in before the flop; the players were happy to take their chances after guaranteeing their payout. The result was three quick eliminations, including the chip leader at the time of the deal. After a few hands of heads-up play, John Yang Huynh got the best of Debra Ann Holman and was crowned champion.
Event #13 Champion: John Yang Huynh – $4,550.00 and the champion’s trophy
Runner-up: Debra Ann Holman – $3,950.00
Last hand of play:
on the button, and he called off his stack after the chip leader, Daniel Pepin, had made an opening bet. Pepin tabled 
; it was a race. Pepin took the lead on the flop of 
, and Lee could not catch up with the 
river. The eighth place finished earned him $1,270.00
. After John Yang Huynh re-raised all in, she knew she was in trouble. Yang Huynh tabled 
, did not affect either hand and the queen kicker was enough. Vera G took home $1,610.00 for her seventh place finish.
