Niveau: 8
Blinds: 400/800
Ante: 800
Niveau: 8
Blinds: 400/800
Ante: 800
The cutoff raised to 2,000, and Ben Guerena three-bet to 6,000 from the small blind. The cutoff thought briefly before tossing in a call.
After the flop fell, Guerena pointed to the flop and looked at his opponent, grinning. He then bet 9,000, and snapped off his last 23,300 after his opponent placed a stack of 5k chips in the pot to put him at risk.
Ben Guerena:
Opponent:
The table let out a gasp upon seeing the draws that Guerena had to fade in order to stave off elimination. He succeeded on the turn and river, and his aces-up netted him a double.
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Ben Guerena
|
60,200 |
The 50th Annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) kicks off today with $500 buy-in Event #1: Casino Employees Event. The tournament is open to those who either work in casinos or in the gaming industry, and thanks to their sportsbook in New Jersey, DraftKings personnel are permitted to play.
They’ll be well represented in their first year of eligibility as a team of six players traveled from the East Coast to compete for the summer’s first bracelet. PokerNews caught up with each DraftKings employee – one of which is already a WSOP bracelet winner – talk about the opening event of the 2019 WSOP.
Stephen Rose
Age: 30
DraftKings Position: Senior Product Analyst
One year ago, Stephen Rose joined DraftKings as a senior product analyst who focuses on their casino product inside their sportsbook app.
“I mostly spend my time analyzing the effects that product changes have on our casinoperformance, and making predictions about the impacts that future product changes will have,” he explained.
Rose grew up and went to high school in Worcester, Massachusetts and attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) where he completed a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, as well as an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering.
A competitive swimmer for 14 years, Rose is an avid water skier and enjoys wakeboarding.
“My main hobby right now is Underwater Hockey, which I play twice a week and will be attending the National Championships in Orlando in June,” he said. “I’m also a scuba PADI Divemaster which is a professional rating, but sadly I haven’t been diving in over a year.”
So, where does poker fit in? It all started with his card-loving family and then during his college years from 2006-10 he played low stakes online as well as some cheap dealer’s choice games with college friends. He’d soon find himself playing in the Eastern Poker Tour league, at Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods in Connecticut, and now will be competing in his first-ever WSOP event.
“I have never really been a tournament player,” he admitted. “I have been out for the WSOP before, but I mainly spent my time at the cash games with a few small side tournaments sprinkled in.”
While he once played poker for a living, he now finds working for DraftKings has actually had a positive impact on his game.
“Honestly my game has probably gotten a little better since I left it as a pro, now that the emotional weight of needing to win to make a living has been lifted,” he said. “I will probably play a lot more once the Encore Boston Harbor opens up in June.”
While he hopes he’ll be the last player standing among the DraftKings team, he’s not underestimating his coworkers.
“Of the six of us playing, I’d have to put my money on Asad. He probably has the least lifetime poker experience out of all of us but at this point he is by far the most passionate about learning the game. He is plowing through all of the learning material he can get his hands on and is very responsible with his bankroll. I don’t see him blowing his stack early and think he has the best
shot at winning a last-longer bet.”
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Stephen Rose |
27,000
-1,200
|
-1,200 |
Jeremy Daum limped in from early position, and the cutoff raised to 3,600. The small blind called, and Daum limp-shoved for 22,300. The cutoff called, and the small blind folded.
Jeremy Daum:
Opponent:
After the flop fell, Daum stood up and said, "No ace, no queen," three times, hoping that his tens would hold against the two overcards of his opponent.
The turn and river gave Daum a flush, and he scored the double.
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Jeremy Daum |
49,800
49,800
|
49,800 |
After a raise from a player under-the-gun, Andrew Barnett, a first-year WSOP Dealer here at the Rio, three-bet to 6,000 in middle position. His opponent four-bet to 18,000, then called the five-bet shove for 38,400 from Barnett.
Andrew Barnett:
Opponent:
Barnett survived the flop, but the turn gave his opponent a flush draw. The river was safe for Barnett, and he shipped the double.
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Andrew Barnett
|
78,800
78,800
|
78,800 |
Niveau: 9
Blinds: 500/1,000
Ante: 1,000
A player opened in early position to 2,300, and Chad Holloway, who took down this event in 2013 for $84,915, three-bet shoved for 16,500. Action folded to his opponent, who tabled his hand without saying anything while reaching for chips.
"You folding?" Holloway said with a grin.
Chad Holloway:
Opponent:
Holloway had run into kings, but he found life on the flop, giving him a flush draw. The turn added a few more outs for Holloway, and he made a flush on the river to double.
"Jack and coke magic! How lucky do I get?" Holloway said, beaming after his double.
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Chad Holloway |
35,500
17,000
|
17,000 |
|
The under-the-gun player checked an board over to Phill Duggan, who fired a nearly pot-sized bet of 17,000 into the 20,000 pot. Duggan's opponent tanked for around a minute, then made a reluctant call.
Duggan rolled over for a flopped set, and his opponent flashed his , saying, "Nice hand...didn't see that one coming."
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Phill Duggan
|
120,000
35,000
|
35,000 |
A player called us over to tell us about a big hand that had happened a short time ago, and one of the players involved, Jose "Chapz" Zaragoza, a poker dealer at Players Casino in Ventura, California, was kind enough to fill us in on what had transpired.
A player raised to 2,200 from early position, and a middle position player called. Ben Guerena, a poker dealer at Pechanga Casino in California, three-bet to 7,000, and Zaragoza four-bet jammed for 42,200. Action folded back to Guerena, who called.
Ben Guerena:
Jose "Chapz" Zaragoza:
Guerena's aces were cracked on a queen-high flop, and to add insult to injury, another queen fell on the turn, securing the double for Zaragoza with quad queens.
Joueur | Jetons | Progression |
---|---|---|
Jose Zaragoza |
91,700
91,700
|
91,700 |
Ben Guerena
|
10,000
-50,200
|
-50,200 |