BorgataPoker.com
The 2016 Borgata Poker Open is a wrap and after 18 days of play, 19 trophies were awarded and more than $8 million in prize money paid to the participants, not including the secondary events and satellites!
![Jesse Sylvia - WPT Borgata Poker Open Main Event Champion [Photo courtesy of Joe Giron and the WPT]](https://borgatapokeropen.blogtheborgata.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/09/29886815375_4414efe8cd_z.jpg)
Jesse Sylvia – WPT Borgata Poker Open Main Event Champion
Photo courtesy of Joe Giron and the WPT
This year’s Open series also saw some other firsts. The Inaugural BPO PokerNews Cup $2,000 NLH event was the first post-championship event and Ryan van Sanford claimed the first PokerNews Cup title awarded on American soil. The first-ever hybrid Live/Online Heads Up tournament was held in the Event Center and online at BorgataPoker.com, “Battleship-style”. Matt Emmel came up just short of repeating at Heads Up Champion, finishing second to New Jersey online player Eric Schwartz.
Another first was the live-streaming of the $1,000 Six Max NLH final table, which ended in a heads-up battle between well-known pro and BorgataPoker.com Ambassador Vinny Pahuja and relatively unknown amateur player George Alberto. Alberto prevailed, claiming his first BPO title and $53,366.
A complete list of Main Events and trophy winners is below. On behalf of Borgata, we would like to thank all the participants for making the 2016 Borgata Poker Open a great success and congratulate all the winners. From the BPO bloggers, @mattclark345, @TKbluffs, @Kaelaine, and @WOCPoker and players, thanks to Borgata tournament staff and the World Poker Tour for another excellent tournament series!
Eric Schwartz – Heads Up Champion
Eric Schwartz, known on BorgataPoker.com as ‘Tiberius’, won today’s first-ever Event Center Online Heads-Up “Battleship-Style” Tournament! The win earned him $3,600 and is his first reported win in a Live event. He lives in Sewell, NJ, and is mostly an online player, but said he wanted to come out and put some faces to the names he sees online all the time.
On his way to the win, he had to defeat Matt Emmel, aka MATTRAQ1, who won the last Heads Up tournament held here during the 2016 Winter Poker Open. For his runner-up finish, Matt will collect $1,800. In the semi-finals, Eric defeated Sergio ‘Vigano’ ($900) and his quarter-final match was against BorgataPoker.com Ambassador Mike ‘Gags30’ Gagliano ($450).
Eric is a triathlete, which requires a lot more physical fitness than most poker players are used to. Luckily for them, today’s online tournament was more like a sprint than a marathon.
Final Results
1st – Tiberius (Eric Schwartz) $3,600
2nd – MATTRAQ1 (Matt Emmel) $1,800
3rd & 4th, Earning $900:
GM-Mitchmurphy
Vigano
5th-8th, Earning $450:
Poker Dorms
BagelBud
Gags30
TK1000
MATTRAQ1 and Tiberius have each won a game in the final match, so they’ve just started the deciding game of this Championship!
Matt Emmel aka MATTRAQ1
Eric Schwartz aka Tiberius
The finale of the Event Center Online Heads Up Tournament is set! (Winners bolded.)
GM-Mitchmurphy v. MATTRAQ1
Tiberius v. Vigano
MATTRAQ1 V Tiberius
MATTRAQ1 defeated TM-Mitchmurphy and Tiberius defeated Vigano in the semis, so the final heads up match will take place between MATTRAQ1 and Tiberius. TM-Mitchmurphy and Vigano with each earn $900 for their semi-final finishes.
That match will get underway after players take a break.
Matt Emmel a.k.a. MATTRAQ1 is still in the hunt for a repeat Heads Up Championship!
One major advantage to holding the Heads Up tournament online is that the rounds are much faster. The round of eight is already done and the final four is in progress.
Round of 8 (Winners bolded)
GM-Mitchmurphy v. PokerDorms
BagelBud v. MATTRAQ1
Tiberius v. Gags30
TK1000 v. Vigano
PokerDorms, BagelBud, Gags30, and TK1000 will all collect $450 for their quarter-final finishes.
Heads Up Final Four
Background Match: Tiberius v. Vigano
Foreground Match: MATTRAQ1 v. GM-Mitchmurphy
The final four players are in the money and these matches are in progress:
GM-Mitchmurphy v. MATTRAQ1
Tiberius v. Vigano
Matt ‘MATTRAQ1’ Emmel has decided he wants another trophy to go with the one he took home back in January:
Final 4. In the money. Kinda want to win now lol. My mini borg needs a companion. Think it’s 3.5k up top at least. #BPO2016 #BorgHU
— Matthew Emmel (@Mattraq1) September 17, 2016
The Online Heads Up event is down to the Elite Eight, as the first and second round matches have quickly dropped this field to the quarterfinals. Some of the bigger name players in today’s event have advanced and are still alive, while perhaps the biggest bowed out in the opening frame.
The Online Heads Up event is down to it’s ‘Elite Eight’, including Sergio Vigano, screen pictured, who already has one BPO title on his poker resume.
Asher ‘missclick’ Conniff lasted all of 15 minutes but after his mom made the trek to Atlantic City to watch her son play, they’ll have some more time to hang out and catch-up before the Brooklynite attempts to make another deep WPT run next week.
James ‘BagelBud’ Lillis has two BPO titles to his credit but he’s locked in a tough quarterfinal match with Matthew ‘MATTRAQ1’ Emmel, who won the Heads Up event at Borgata in January.
James ‘BagleBud’ Lillis defeated Jamie ‘Girlequity’ Kerstetter and Matthew ‘MATTRAQ1’ Emmel, who won the Heads Up event in January, won his first and second round match to face off with Lillis in the quarters.
Michael ‘Gags30’ Gagliano defeated Kevin ‘sofcksick’ Campbell, meaning he’ll advance to play ‘Tiberius’ in the Elite Eight. Sergio Vigano is also in the quarters, thanks to a win over ‘cimara’, who defeated ‘Jsteins’ in the play-in round.
Round of 16 (Winners bolded)
GM-Mitchmurphy v. Dontoverlook92
JoeBonamassa v. PokerDorms
MartyCohen v. MATTRAQ1
BagelBud v. Girlequity
sofcksick v. Gags30
Tiberius v. Youpayformypennies
TK1000 v. missclick
Vigano v. cimara
Updates from this Online Heads Up event will be posted throughout the day and a BPO title will be awarded to the eventual champion.
With the 2016 Borgata Poker Open Championship beginning Sunday, it’s time for Satellite weekend! Over the next two days, players have numerous ways to earn their way in to the $3,300+$200 buy-in event for a lot less money.
Live satellites will be running here in the Event Center with the first starting in just a few minutes at 4pm Saturday. Event 31 is a $700+$50 Qualifier where ~1 in every 5 players will earn their seat in the BPO Championship.
At 7pm today, Event 32 runs and it is a $350+$50 Qualifier where ~1 in every 10 players will earn a seat.
On Sunday there will be three Live Satellites running at three different price points:
Event 33, 12pm, $350+50 (~1 in 10)
Event 34, 4pm, $700+$50 (~1 in 5)
Event 35, 7pm, $500+$50 (~1 in 7)
Since the Championship has two starting days, Sunday and Monday, and late registration is available through the first two levels on Day 2 (Tuesday) there are also two more ways to get in on Monday
At 10am, there is a $350+$50 Turbo Survivor where ~1 in 10 players earns $3,500 — exactly what they need to buy-in to the BPO Championship.
At 6pm, the $350+$50 Last Chance Qualifier will award seats to ~1 in 10 players for entry on Day 2 of the Championship.
Satellites are also running daily on BorgataPoker.com. Click here for details.
While the main focus of the BPO blog will be on the Day 2 restarts of both Event 12 and Event 13, the first ever Online Heads Up tournament is about to begin in the front area of the Event Center. When late registration closed, 18 players had joined the action, meaning a $9,000 prize pool is going to be up for grabs.
Updates throughout this event will be posted on the BPO blog but until then, here’s a look at the Online Heads Up bracelet:
Round of 16
GM-Mitchmurphy v. Dontoverlook92
JoeBonamassa v. PokerDorms
MartyCohen v. (MATTRAQ1 v. AZULCIEL)*
BagelBud v. Girlequity
sofcksick v. Gags30
Tiberius v. Youpayformypennies
TK1000 v. missclick
Vigano v. (JSteins v. cimara)*
*It should be noted that the two noted matches are not yet in the Round of 16, as those four players will have to win their play-in match to get into the sixteen-man bracket.
This Saturday, a ground-breaking new event will take place at Borgata. Live, in the Event Center, a Heads-Up tournament will be played Online, “Battleship Style”. Players must provide their own device to play. They will be seated across from their opponents at tables here in Borgata’s Event Center. Any device can be used: Laptop, Tablet, or SmartPhone, and you don’t have to live in New Jersey to set up your BorgataPoker.com account. You just have to be here in New Jersey to register for the tournament and play. Use bonus code WELCOMEBPO when creating your account to qualify for the Championship event last-longer promotion.
To get started, just install the BorgataPoker.com app, create your account if you don’t already have one, and you’re ready to go! There is a $20 new account bonus as well — all new accounts will earn this bonus automatically!
Registration is done online, so you must have the $500+$35 buy-in available in your account. Once you have an BorgataPoker.com online account, you can easily deposit your funds in cash right here at Borgata at the Main Cage in the center of the casino floor. Of course all other online deposit options are available as well, such as bank transfers and credit cards.
When you deposit funds, any first-deposit or reload bonus promotions that are active when you make your deposit will apply. For new accounts, there is a First Deposit Bonus that will match your deposit, up to $600. Bonus code: BONUS600. For existing accounts, click here for available RELOAD bonuses.
The Event Center Online Heads Up Tournament is limited to the first 64 players who register and may sell out. Advance registration is strongly encouraged. Registration closes when 64 players have registered or at 1pm EDT on game-day, Saturday, September 17th. The bracket draw will take place Live in the Event Center with play beginning at 2pm EDT.
Please Note: Unlike other BorgataPoker.com tournaments, you cannot un-register for this event once registered, due to the unique nature of the event and extremely limited seating.
For additional tournament details, such as blind structure and rules, click here. If you want to warm-up for the tournament, BorgataPoker.com has Heads-Up Sit & Gos running at all buy-in levels, from $1 up to $500. There is also a Heads Up Leaderboard promotion underway.
To register for the Event Center Online Heads Up Tournament, log on to your account on BorgataPoker.com, find the tournament on the Tournaments tab by looking for the date (Sep-17 14:00 EDT), or using these selections:
Game Type: Regular
Game Name: No Limit Hold’em
Format: Regular
Buy-Ins: High
Once you have selected the tournament, just click the ‘Register Now’ button and you’re all set! This is a Borgata Poker Open trophy event and the winner will receive the same BPO Borgata Hotel replica trophy being awarded for the other BPO Main Events. Any winnings will be deposited in your BorgataPoker.com account, but can be easily withdrawn at the Main Cage in the casino.
Registration is now available for the Event Center Online Heads Up Tournament!. This event will be played Online on BorgataPoker.com, with the players Live in the Event Center, “Battleship-style”. This is a Borgata Poker Open Trophy Event!
The event is limited to the first 64 players who register and may sell out. Advance registration is strongly encouraged. Registration closes when 64 players have registered or at 1pm EDT on game-day, Saturday, September 17th. The bracket draw will take place live in the Event Center with play beginning at 2pm EDT.
The buy-in is $500+$35 and you must have a BorgataPoker.com online account to sign up. For additional details on the tournament, go to https://www.theborgata.com/assets/pdf/poker/poker_open/Event_Center_Online_Heads_Up.pdf.
Once you are on BorgataPoker.com, you can find the tournament on the Tournaments tab by looking for the date (Sep-17 14:00 EDT), or using these selections:
Game Type: Regular
Game Name: No Limit Hold’em
Format: Regular
Buy-Ins: High
Don’t miss out on this first-ever Online/Live Heads-up Tournament! Sign up today!