Borgata Tournament Shut Down, MPC20 and WSOPC Move On

Borgata WPO Event 1 Cancelled

When the Borgata started its famous Borgata Winter Poker Open series last week in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Event 1 was a major draw for players. The $560 Big Stack NLHE Reentry tournament offered a $2 million guarantee, and the field was set after three starting flights with 4,814 entries and a $2,325,835 prize pool.

Day 2 started with 867 players and reduced that number to 27, with payouts starting for the top 450 players. Of the final three tables, Allard Broedelet was the player with the most chips, sitting on a stack of 10,315,000.

Players returned to the Borgata to play on for Day 3, but they were immediately met with an obstacle in the form of Borgata staff and the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement. Play was suspended indefinitely due to the introduction of counterfeit chips into the tournament. By Saturday, the tournament had been officially cancelled.

Borgata President and Chief Operating Officer Tom Ballance told the Associated Press, “Thus far, investigators have found that one or more tournament entrants improperly introduced a significant number of counterfeit chips into the tournament, gaining an unfair advantage and compromising the integrity of play for the event.” He also said, “We fully understand and regret the disappointment this cancellation causes our valued customers, and we will work diligently with DGE investigators to resolve the situation as quickly as possible. The integrity of our games and the confidence of our players is (sic) of the utmost importance to us.”

There is no word regarding suspects at this time, nor how the remaining 27 players will be paid from the remaining prize pool. Some have suggested the chip-chop method, and others contend that paying the prize money for the positions each player finished on Day 2 would be proper. The DGE and the Borgata have yet to render a decision.

MPC20 Red Dragon Thins Field

The Macau Poker Cup offered the 20^th installment of its famous series at the PokerStars LIVE Macau poker room, and the HK $11,000 buy-in NLHE Red Dragon Main Event began late last week.

Three starting flights brought in a total of 995 players, which pushed the prize pool to $9,651,500 to pay out the top 117 of them and reserve more than HK $2 million for the winner. These figures broke records for the tournament and proved consistent growth for MPC.

Only 223 players returned for Day 2 of the action, and that number was quickly reduced to burst through the money bubble and guarantee everyone at least HK $19,100 for their play. Some who cashed that evening included Aaron Lim and Michael Mariakis, and play ended with only 77 players still in the tournament. Leo Gao was the chip leader with 919K chips, and Zhaujun Ruan was in second place on the leaderboard with 767K.

WSOPC Choctaw Nears Final Table

The World Series of Poker Circuit showed up at the Choctaw Casino Resort in Durant, Oklahoma, on January 9 for the multi-tournament festival and the first stop of the tour in 2014. The $1,675 NLHE Main Event began on January 17 with a $1 million guarantee.

Numbers were impressive for the tournament, as the reentry option brought more money into the fold. When registration closed, it showed 1,428 entries and a $2,142,000 prize pool.

Day 2 returned 294 players to the action but thinned that number toward the money. Daniel Blakeman and Michael Eakin were both eliminated on the money bubble, which meant they shared the 153^rd place prize money and each cashed for $1,435.

Some who cashed throughout the evening included Grant Hinkle, Paul Phillips, Ting Ho, Daniel Lowery, Ray Henson, T.J. Cloutier, and Aaron Massey. At the end of Level 24, there were still 40 players remaining.