LIVE EVENTS

Event #3 of the November Power Weekend, the $100 + $10 Playground 100, was a tremendous success. This multi-day event gathered 905 entries from its various starting flights to nearly double the prize pool guarantee, which was set at $50,000. In the end, this event awarded $87,785 in prizes. Day 2 play began this afternoon with the top 93 players already in the money. The action started out at a fast pace, as the qualifying players were looking to make a deep run rather than settle for a small cash so they took risks early and often. The early levels of play quickly reduced the field to less than 30 players after roughly four hours of play. There was a short lull in the action before things picked up again, bringing about the final table in level 28. When play began at the final table …

Only three remain! Both Rong Xu and Constantinos Psallidas were eliminated after exciting runs. Xu went up against Sergei Gurin with a while Gurin was dealt a Board Xu’s cards were no match for Gurin’s full house and he was eliminated. Xu walked away with a total of $4060. Psallidas went all in against Dominic Arsenault as both players were dealt pocket pairs. Arsenault Psallidas Board Psallidas hit his eight on the flop to make a set but Arsenault made a running flush to knock out Psallidas.    

Marcel Basset ends his run in sixth place after losing his hand to Rong Xu. Basset entered level 32 in sixth position knowing he had to put it all on the line. Basset was dealt a while Xu had a and both players decided to go all in pre-flop. Board Basset’s pocket four’s were counterfeited when the board made two pairs and Xu’s ace propelled him to victory. Basset ends his run with a $3210 prize.

Play has just resumed as the players begin level 32 following the latest break in the action. Richard Drolet has maintained his huge lead by once again doubling the chip average. Sergei Gurin comes in at a close second with a stack of 75 blinds. Drolet and Sergei have pulled far ahead of the other four competitors but anything can happen at the final table. 

The final table is down to six players after Victor Rusu busted out against Dominic Arsenault. Arsenault’s bet was met with a check-raise all in from Rusu and Arsenault made the call. Hands were tabled to show that Arsenault was in the lead but needed to avoid a club. Rusu Arsenault Board Rusu had a great run and collected $2120 for his eighth place finish. Stephane Boisvert is the latest player eliminated to finish in seventh place. He walked away with a prize of $2660.  

Event #5 of the November Power weekend was the $100 + $10 Single Rebuy featuring a $8,000 guaranteed prize pool. When late registration and the rebuy period came to a close, there were a total of 85 entries and 26 rebuys, allowing the prize pool to swell to $10,767, with the top 11 finishers being in the money. There was action galore all night long as the stacks were being built while the eliminations were happening. When play was on the bubble, the players agreed to doing a bubble deal so that the 12th position would be paid. Once the deal was made, it didn’t take all that long to form the final table. On the final table Playground regular Danielle Schwartz went on a heater and had the lead early on, but that eventually changed and she ended up busting in third place with …

Danielle Schwartz played a great game and when the final table was first formed, she went on a heater, knocking out player after player. She ended up heads-up against Dominic St-Pierre in a blind vs blind hand and had an amazing flop when she hit her flush with her on a flop. The money went in on the turn when Dominic St-Pierre, playing , turned trip 6’s. The river however changed everything when the board paired with the making a full house for St-Pierre.   3rd place: Danielle Schwartz, $1,490 4th place: Maurice Tarabay Play is now heads-up between Dominic St-Pierre and Yasser Zaatar.

The players just went on their last break of the evening and Dominic St-Pierre now has a massive lead. Here are the chip counts:  

The money went in pre-flop and Yasser Zaatar had a double up. Zaatar: Belanger: It was a miracle flop for Zaatar when the dealer fanned out . Belanger still had outs but missed on the turn and river. A few hands later there were two more bustouts: 6th place: Jean-Francois Belanger, $690 5th place: Haralambos Margaritis, $910  

Since the final table has been formed, Danielle Schwartz has gone on a heater and has now knocked out three players. James Belanger open-shoved with pocket queens, and was met by a re-shove by Stephane Matte with pocket aces. Danielle Schwartz had both players covered and made the call with pocket tens. The board ran out with four spades making a flush for Schwartz who knocked out both players. Goran  Brestovac was next to go. Eddie Daldalian, who had lost a lot of chips over the course of three hands was also knocked out by Schwartz when she called his shove holding an ace and hit an ace on the board. 10th place: James Belanger, $240 9th place: Stephane Matte, $310 8th place: Goran Brestovac, $410 7th place: Eddie Daldalian, $530

Event #6 of the November Power Weekend, the $100 + $10 6-Max Re-entry was a great success. This one day tournament garnered a total of 85 entries. The day was action-packed quickly reducing the field to the final table. Once there the pace of play slowed dramatically as the pay jumps got bigger and the players set their sights on the championship. After Francois Semaan was eliminated in fourth, it was a three-way battle between Rong Xu, M. Marzan, and Cole Skye. Skye got his chips in good but his kings went down thanks to an ace-high flop. Despite the unfortunate end to his run, Skye can take solace in his $1,190 in winnings. Once heads-up Rong Xu and M. Marzan played and a few hands before deciding to make an ICM deal. The two were close in chips at the time of the deal but …

It’s down to the final three as the fourth break of the day begins. Francois Semaan was knocked out by Mayazul Islam Marzan after he went all in and his hand was counterfeited.  Semaan Marzan Board Marzan came out on top with the stronger pairs and Semaan went home with $910.  

The final table is now 4-handed after Joshua Brueckner was eliminated in sixth position and Robert Black in fifth. Black went all in after being dealt pocket sevens against Francois Semaan who had   Board Semaan’s queens proved to be too strong for Black’s hand and he was eliminated in fifth position, walking away with $700.

The first elimination of the final table saw both Philippe Belley and Mayazul Islam Marzan go all in pre-flop with pocket pairs. Belley Marzan Board The flop was unable to help Belley and Marzan took the pot with his pocket tens, Belley walked away with $410.

And just like that it’s down to seven after three quick eliminations. A seating redraw has taken place to fit all players at the final table which will be played 7-handed.

Event #7: $150 + $20 + $50 6-Max Bounty was the final tournament of the November Power Weekend. The tournament featured a $15,000 guaranteed prize pool but once the late registration period came to a close, with the 135 entries, the prize pool swelled to $26,190!  The pace was fast and furious as players were battling it out with each other trying to pick up a $50 bounty chip for knocking out their adversary. Langis de Grand Pre took the early lead but in the end he busted as the bubble boy, however he collected $200 for his efforts as the players had agreed to a bubble deal. Frederic Robert was also one of the leaders, crushing as the night moved along, but in the end, he fell in 12th spot for $320. When the final table was formed, at first it appeared as if Karim …

Kayden Stacey has gone on the best kind of heater: a final table heater! He keeps picking up hands when others are shoving and either his hands have been holding or he has hit his ace to be ahead. First he was able to knock out Karim Abdelhamid who collected $1,090 for his sixth place finish. Then Jean-Luc Desormeaux shoved and he was snap-called by Stacey holding . The board came and Desormeaux picked up $1,450 for finishing in fifth place. Next it was Etienne Favre who fell victim to Stacey. Favre woke up with and put his chips in only to be called by Stacey holding . One more time, Stacey hits his ace on a board, sending Favre to the cashier to collect $1,940 for finishing in fourth place.

James Bridgeman had moved all in and when Kayden Stacey who was seated on his immediate left looked at his hand he re-shoved over top. James: Kayden: The board ran out and unfortunately for Bridgeman, he was beat by Stacey’s pocket kings. 7th place: James Bridgeman, $820  

Karim Abdelhamid had just lost an all in with pocket kings against the ace-jack of Alexandre Paquette-Leduc when there was an ace on the flop. A few hands later, Bryan Robataille Fequet got his chips into the middle from early position. It then folded around to Jean-Luc Desormeaux who also put his chips in, and it was Abdelhamid next to act, and, he made it a three-way all-in when he also moved his stack forward. Bryan: Jean-Luc: Karim: Karim was luckier this time around as the flop came , making him a set of sixes. The turn brought the , and the river was the . Abdelhamid won the main pot and more than tripled his stack of 219,000 chips, bringing him to just under 700,000 chips. Desormeaux survived and picked up a side pot from Robataille Fequet for 77,000. Definitely an action hand.  

After the elimination of Norman Gauthier in eighth place ($610), the final table was formed. From left to right are: James Bridgeman Alexandre Paquette-Leduc Kayden Stacey Karim Abdelhamid Jean-Luc Desormeaux (hiding in back) Etienne Favre Bryan Robataille Fequet