2021 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Hollywood, Florida
Event 31
$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Entries:  78
Prize Pool:  $75,660
August 5-6, 2021

The two-day $1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship attracted a field of 78 players, and after a three-hour heads-up battle, it was Sam Panzica who won the title of SHRPO H.O.R.S.E. Champion.

The previous night, Panzica was all in on the Money Bubble facing elimination, but he rivered an 8-6 low in Razz to narrowly win a huge pot and triple up in chips.

Even with that Razz hand, Panzica began the final table as the short stack with less than four big bets. But as other players busted, Panzica slowly built up his stack, taking a big leap forward when he scooped a three-way pot in Stud Hi/Lo to eliminate Barak Zaken in sixth place.

Panzica eventually got heads-up with Jean “Prince” Gaspard, who began the final table as the chipleader, and they battled for about three hours, with Panzica holding a sizable lead for most of that time.

“It was a lot of back-and-forth,” said Panzica, “and then we got short, and it was whoever ran better.”

It ultimately came down to two hands of Hold’em, with Sam taking the first on the turn to knock Gaspard down to two big bets. The final hand saw Gaspard get it all in preflop with , but he was dominated by Panzica’s . Panzica flopped a jack, and Gaspard never caught up.

Even with this victory coming during a round of Hold’em, Panzica prefers other games in the H.O.R.S.E. rotation.

“I’d say Razz or Stud-8 are probably my favorites,” said Panzica. “My least favorite is limit hold’em. It’s so boring.”

After his victory, Panzica immediately entered Day 1A of the $5,250 SHRPO Championship.

“The tournaments are great here,” said Panzica. “Great dealers, and the fields are huge.”

Final Results:

1st:  Sam Panzica  –  $23,185 + SHRPO Trophy
2nd:  Jean “Prince” Gaspard  –  $15,455
3rd:  Chris Tryba  –  $10,305
4th:  Aaron Kupin  –  $7,160
5th:  Mark Gallo  –  $5,200
6th:  Barak Zaken  –  $3,945
7th:  John Fahmy  –  $3,140
8th:  Esther Taylor  –  $2,630
9th:  “Miami” John Cernuto  –  $2,320
10th:  Renato Labadan  –  $2,320

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 25:  40,000/80,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  1 of 78

Jean Gaspard kept his chip stack relatively steady during the Stud Hi/Lo round, but then Hold’em began, and it wasn’t kind to Gaspard. These were the chip counts at the start of the Hold’em round:

Sam Panzica  –  1,165,000  (15 BB)
Jean Gaspard  –  395,000  (5 BB)

In the first hand of Hold’em, Sam Panzica raised from the button to 80,000, Gaspard reraised to 120,000, and Panzica called.

The flop came , Gaspard bet 40,000, Panzica raised to 80,000, and Gaspard called.

The turn card was the , Gaspard checked, Panzica bet 80,000, and Gaspard thought for a while before he folded. Panzica showed for ace high as he took the pot.

Sam Panzica  –  1,365,000  (17 BB)
Jean Gaspard  –  195,000  (2 BB)

The next hand, Gaspard raised to 80,000, Panzica reraised to 120,000, and Gaspard said, “I’ll just get it all in.” Panzica agreed.

Gaspard was all in for 195,000 with , but he was dominated by Panzica’s .

The board came , and Panzica won the pot — and the SHRPO H.O.R.S.E. Championship — with a pair of jacks.

Congratulations to Sam Panzica!

1st:  Sam Panzica  –  $23,185 + SHRPO Trophy
2nd:  Jean “Prince” Gaspard  –  $15,455
3rd:  Chris Tryba  –  $10,305
4th:  Aaron Kupin  –  $7,160
5th:  Mark Gallo  –  $5,200
6th:  Barak Zaken  –  $3,945
7th:  John Fahmy  –  $3,140
8th:  Esther Taylor  –  $2,630
9th:  “Miami” John Cernuto  –  $2,320

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 25:  40,000/80,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  2 of 78

Sam Panzica has finally been building enough momentum to increase his lead over Jean Gaspard, picking up a nice win during Razz to knock Gaspard down to just 250,000 (4 big bets).

Gaspard has bounced back a bit since then during the Stud round, and they took their break before Level 25 with one hand of Stud remaining.

Here are the official chip counts from the break, followed by the remaining payouts at stake:

Sam Panzica  –  1,185,000  (15 BB)
Jean Gaspard  –  375,000  (5 BB)

1st:  $23,185 + SHRPO Trophy
2nd:  $15,455

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 23:  25,000/50,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  2 of 78

Panzica has had a sizable lead for most of heads-up play, but neither player has been able to build up enough momentum to dramatically change things.

During a round of Stud Hi/Lo, Jean Gaspard and Sam Panzica put in bets on every street, and then Gaspard raised the river. Panzica called.

Gaspard rivered a wheel, with three of the cards hidden, to scoop the pot and narrow Panzica’s lead. (Gaspard would have been in trouble if he had lost this pot.)

Jean Gaspard  –  705,000  (24 BB)
Sam Panzica  –  855,000  (29 BB)

And here are the remaining payouts at stake:

1st:  $23,185 + SHRPO Trophy
2nd:  $15,455

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  2 of 78

During a round of Omaha Hi/Lo, with the board showing , Chris Tryba was all in from the big blind against Sam Panzica in the small blind.

Sam Panzica:    (jack-high straight, 8-7 low)
Chris Tryba:    (two pair, 8-7 low draw)

Tryba needed to improve to stay alive, but the river card was the . Panzica scooped the pot, winning the high side with his straight and the low side with an 8-5-4-3-A. Tryba was eliminated in third place.

Chris Tryba  –  Eliminated in 3rd Place  ($10,305)

These were the approximate chip counts for the start of heads-up play:

Sam Panzica  –  1,075,000  (36 BB)
Jean “Prince” Gaspard  –  500,000  (17 BB)

And here is the final table prizepool:

1st:  $23,185 + SHRPO Trophy
2nd:  $15,455

3rd:  Chris Tryba  –  $10,305
4th:  Aaron Kupin  –  $7,160
5th:  Mark Gallo  –  $5,200
6th:  Barak Zaken  –  $3,945
7th:  John Fahmy  –  $3,140
8th:  Esther Taylor  –  $2,630
9th:  “Miami” John Cernuto  –  $2,320

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 21:  15,000/30,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  3 of 78

During a round of Hold’em, Aaron Kupin was eliminated when his failed to hold against Jean Gaspard’s .

They got it all in at some point after the flop, and the final board showed — Kupin flopped a higher diamond flush draw, but Gaspard paired his ace on the turn and his seven on the river to win the pot with two pair. Kupin was eliminated in fourth place.

Jean Gaspard  –  700,000  (23 BB)
Aaron Kupin  –  Eliminated in 4th Place  ($7,160)

With three players remaining from a field of 78, the average chip stack is about 520,000 (17 big bets). The remaining players are guaranteed at least $10,305 each.

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 20:  12,000/24,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  4 of 78

During a round of Hold’em, Mark Gallo got it all in from the big blind for about 42,000, and he was up against Jean Gaspard in the small blind and Chris Tryba on the button.

The flop came , Gaspard bet 12,000, and Tryba called.

The turn card was the , Gaspard checked, Tryba bet 24,000, and Gaspard called.

The river card paired the board with the , Gaspard checked, Tryba moved all in for 23,000, and Gaspard tanked for a while before he folded. Tryba took the side pot.

For the main pot, Gallo showed for two pair, jacks and eights, but Tryba turned over for a flopped set of threes that improved to a full house on the river. Tryba won the pot to eliminate Gallo in fifth place.

Chris Tryba  –  210,000  (9 BB)
Mark Gallo  –  Eliminated in 5th Place  ($5,200)

With four players remaining from a field of 78, the average chip stack is about 390,000 (16 big bets). The remaining players are all guaranteed at least $7,160.

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 20:  12,000/24,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  5 of 78

During a round of Stud Hi/Lo, Barak Zaken got it all in on fourth street for his last 12,000 against Jean Gaspard and Sam Panzica.

Jean Gaspard:  ()  
Sam Panzica:  ()  
Barak Zaken:  ()  

And these were their boards for betting later streets:

Jean Gaspard:  ()    ()
Sam Panzica:  ()    ()
Barak Zaken:  ()    ()

On fifth street, Gaspard and Panzica put in 24,000 each.

On sixth street, Gaspard and Panzica put in another 24,000 each.

On seventh street, Gaspard and Panzica both checked, and everyone turned over their hole cards.

Jean Gaspard:  ()    ()
Sam Panzica:  ()    ()
Barak Zaken:  ()    ()

For the side pot, Gaspard had two pair, nines and eights, with no qualifying low, while Panzica had trip threes with no qualifying low. So Panzica won the side pot.

For the main pot, Zaken had a pair of tens with no qualifying low, and he was eliminated in sixth place as Panzica scooped the entire pot.

Sam Panzica  –  545,000  (23 BB)
Jean Gaspard  –  650,000  (27 BB)
Barak Zaken  –  Eliminated in 6th Place  ($3,945)

With five players remaining from a field of 78, the average chip stack is about 312,000 (13 big bets). The remaining players are all guaranteed at least $5,200.

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 20:  12,000/24,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  6 of 78

During a round of Stud Hi/Lo, John Fahmy got it all in on third or fourth street against Aaron Kupin, and these were their final boards:

Aaron Kupin:  ()    ()
John Fahmy:  ()    ()

Fahmy picked up a pair of jacks on fifth street, and a 7-6 low draw on sixth street, but he improved no further. Kupin picked up two pair on sixth street and rivered a full house to win the pot and eliminate Fahmy in seventh place.

Aaron Kupin  –  165,000  (7 BB)
John Fahmy  –  Eliminated in 7th Place  ($3,140)

With six players remaining from a field of 78, the average chip stack is about 260,000 (11 big bets). The remaining players are all guaranteed at least $3,945.

$1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship (Freeze-Out)
Structure | Payouts
Level 19:  10,000/20,000 Limits
Players Remaining:  7 of 78

During a round of Omaha Hi/Lo, after a flop of , Mark Gallo got it all in from middle position for 34,000 against Esther Taylor, who was in the big blind with 40,000.

Esther Taylor:    (pair of deuces, heart flush draw)
Mark Gallo:    (pair of aces, gutshot straight draw)

The turn card paired the board with the , the river card was the , and there were no possible lows. Gallo won the pot with two pair, aces and fives, to double up in chips, knocking Taylor down to just 6,000.

Mark Gallo  –  75,000  (4 BB)
Esther Taylor  –  6,000  (0.3 BB)

The next hand, Taylor got it all in preflop from the small blind for 6,000 against two other players, with a side pot building between Jean Gaspard (big blind) and Aaron Kupin (hijack).

The flop came , Gaspard bet 10,000, and Kupin called. The turn card was the , Gaspard bet 20,000, and Kupin called.

The river card was the , Gaspard bet 20,000, and Kupin called.

Jean Gaspard:    (seven-high straight, 7-6 low)
Aaron Kupin:    (pair of sevens, 7-5 low)
Esther Taylor:    (pair of jacks, 8-7 low)

Gaspard won the high side with his seven-high straight, and Kupin won the low side with his 7-5. With nothing left for Taylor, she was eliminated in eighth place.

Jean Gaspard  –  795,000  (40 BB)
Aaron Kupin  –  125,000  (6 BB)
Esther Taylor  –  Eliminated in 8th Place  ($2,630)

With seven players remaining from a field of 78, the average chip stack is about 223,000 (11 big bets). The remaining players are all guaranteed at least $3,140.