Borgata Weekend Action

Another Borgata weekend is on tap in what's been a pretty busy late winter season in the Borgata Poker Room.


So here are some tidbits of what's coming up at Borgata.

The Borgata Bad Beat Jackpot has climbed back to $190,000 after a couple of small bad beat hits in the past week. The jackpot has now hit 105 times. Seems like just last month it had its 100th hit. Wait, it was last month.

March is another Free-roll month at Borgata and even though we're half-way through, there's still time to get in the 50 hours of rated play to qualify, or to get yourself in the top 300 spots for the Borgata Tournament Leaderboard. Go here for info on the Free-roll and to keep tabs on the Borgata Bad Beat Jackpot.

Online reservations are being taken for the next upcoming Saturday Series tournament on March 24 (a week from tomorrow). The $100,000 guaranteed event is a $350 + $50 No Limit Hold'Em tournament with re-entries through level six.  Players start with 15K in chips.

Last month's Saturday Series event brought in 662 entries and a total buy-in of $231,700, so you might want to reserve you seat. On site registration begins Friday (March 23) from 6pm to midnight and then starts again 8am Saturday in the Borgata Poker Room.

You can pre-register here.

That link will also let you register for the upcoming Borgata Spring Poker Open, which runs April 4-20. The $1 Million Guaranteed Open Championship starts April 15 and 16 (It's a Deepstack, Double Play).

Also, the schedule for 24 secondary and qualifying tournaments has been released here.

There's also still time to win a seat to the championship through a special drawing. Entires are being accepted until April 12. Go here to enter.

And don't forget, tonight (March 16) at 6pm is the Borgata Green Chip Bounty tournament with a buy-in of $200 + $30 + $25. Those green chips ($25) can be yours if you send a few guys to the rail.

And Saturday at 6pm is the weekly Big Stack ($15K) $300 + $40 tournament, so it's kind of like having a Saturday Series event every weekend.

And, of course, the basketball will be on the Borgata Poker Room's 23 flat-screen TVs all weekend.

Sounds like a perfect mix.

Meet Jared Kogler February's Borgata Tournament Leaderboard Winner

Cards run hot and cold, all players have to live with that. But when they’re running hot, the trick is to ride it all the way to the bank.

In Jarad Kogler, 30, of Medford NY, February saw the cards run hot. Well, hot enough, as he picked up two tournament wins and a third cash in about 16 tournaments played at Borgata. And that run was good enough to place him in first place on the Borgata Tournament leaderboard for the month and land him a spot in the Borgata $20,000 Free-roll that gets underway tomorrow, March 13.

“I guess it was just a good month for me,” says Kogler. “I feel pretty good about it. I really wasn't watching the leaderboard that closely. Work has been a little slow lately and I just had more free time to come down in February. I mean I knew I was having a pretty good month. Still when I got the call that I had won the leaderboard I was a little surprised. But it was a good feeling. I feel like I'm being rewarded for playing the Borgata.”

Kogler has been playing since his college days at Maryland and had built up a pretty good career as an online player.

Well, a casual career.

“I don’t think of myself as a pro,” he says. “I work in construction and some Real Estate, I did pretty well online and I had some good months. I won more than I lost, I'll say. My best month was probably about $80,000. Still, I think to call yourself a pro you have to be able to sustain that and play at a high level for a while. I don't really think of myself as being there.”

Still, he was enough of an online presence to miss the game when online gaming was shut down in the U.S on Black Friday.

“It was tough to lose that access,” he says. “You could play anytime you wanted as opposed to now when I have to drive a few hours to play. So I was disappointed.

But the saving grace was the Borgata, where Kogler has always preferred to play live tournaments

"I've always gone to the Borgata. When it opened was just about the same time I really started playing and going to Atlantic City,” says Kogler. “I've always liked the room and the casino. For me it's about a three hour drive to wherever I could play and I usually stay over. I've just always been impressed with the professionalism of the Borgata and how they do things.

Among Kogler’s live cashes are a couple of Borgata Open events including cashes at the recent Borgata Winter Poker Open and a cash at the 2011 Borgata open.

Tuesday he’ll be facing off against a slew of Borgata regulars as part of Borgata’s Free-roll program, which coincidentally, is also in play in March. The $20,000 March 13 Free-roll, top prize $5,000 covers February, but another $20,000 Free-roll for this month’s play is scheduled for April 3.

Play a minimum of 50 hours live action (rated play) to qualify between March 1-31. Also, the top 300 finishers on the Tournament Leaderboard for March will be invited to the Free-roll.

Who knows? Maybe March is your month.

Go here for the full Free-roll information.

Inside The Minds Training Sessions Return to Borgata

Jason Young and Lee Childs are two pros that attract a lot of attention when they play Borgata and Atlantic City. And more than a few players in the Borgata Poker Room would probably like to pick their brains a little when they're here for some insight on the game.

Last October, Atlantic City based players got just that chance when the two offered their instructional Inside The Minds tournament at Borgata.

The program teams Childs and Young, who collectively have more than $2 million in live tournament winnings, with other East Coast pros to bring you the strategies, techniques and secrets to help you elevate your game.

Well, Inside The Minds will return to Borgata on April 9 and 15, 2012. Special guest stars for sessions include Mike Wolf in the Tournament Training Session on April 9th, and Gavin Smith for the Advanced Hands-On Session April 15th.

As they describe it, Inside the Minds training sessions are for those of you who know you have a lot to learn, as well as those of you who think you know it all.  These guys will help you shortcut your way to success and start to see results immediately.

One-Day Tournament Training Session

The next one-day training class is at Borgata on April 9th.  
The cost of this class is $500 for a full day of hands-on training with the Pros.  You get a full day with the pros consisting of lectures, real-time live hand analysis, in-depth strategy discussions, and lots of fun throughout the day.

Key topics that will be covered in the one-day session:

· Mindset Essentials – Understanding the realities, probabilities and unavoidable situations of the game and how to keep the right perspective and maintain a positive attitude.

· Making Poker Easier – Techniques and systems to incorporate into your game to reduce difficult decisions and allow you to focus your energy and attention on variables that change more frequently.

· Situational Awareness – Focusing on all the factors needed to recognize profitable situations and help you play a less card-dependent game. Gain insight into how to never be card-dead again and to use your and your opponents’ images to create more profitable situations.

· Advanced Post-Flop Play – Win more with your winning hands and lose less with your losing ones. Key concepts for controlling the pot sizes, playing hands on your terms rather than your opponents’, and how to recognize if and when you should make tough calls and laydowns.

To Register:

1. Visit the Inside The Minds event page on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/ITM-APR2012-Session1

2. Submit your payment via PayPal: http://tinyurl.com/ITM-APR2012  

And for the April 15 session:

Advanced Hands-On Analysis Session

Those of you who have attended an Inside The Minds one-day Tournament Training Sessions really loved all of the hands-on analysis and have been begging for more.  So now the are offering a full day of hands-on analysis for previous students and players who have had several years of mid/high level cash game and tournament experience.

For $500, Inside The Minds is offering a full day of real-time live hand analysis and in-depth strategy to help you elevate your game to a higher level.

This session will be held Sunday, April 15th at the Borgata. 

A great student to teacher ratio for this session allows Inside The Minds to dig deep into many advanced concepts that will help you build stacks, take control of your tables and get your game to a new level by playing a much better game post-flop by controlling pot sizes, developing a deeper understanding of your opponents’ betting patterns.

And finally, as for weekend play, the Borgata Bad Beat Jackpot is at $217,711 heading into today's (March 9) play and remember, this is another Free-roll month at Borgata ($20,000 Free-roll April 3rd).

Go here to check out both the Borgata Bad Beat Jackpot and Free-roll qualifications.

Borgata $500K Guaranteed Deep Stack
$1500 + $150 No Limit Hold'em
March 4 - 7, 2012

Entries: 308
Prize Pool: $500,000

FINAL RESULTS:

1. CUONG PHUNG (ATLANTIC CITY, NJ):  $131,257

2. TODD RODENBORN (MORGANVILLE, NJ):  $72,921

3. JASON PASTER (HAMILTON, NJ):  $45,211

4. HARRY KOROTKI (OWINGS MILLS, MD):  $36,461

5. SAMUEL BERNSTEIN (ENGLEWOOD, NJ):  $28,196

6. ROBERT HWANG (BARNEGAT, NJ):  $23,821

7. ALEX NEPOMNYASCHIY (STATEN ISLAND, NY):  $19,203

8. JEREMY DRUCKMAN (PHILADELPHIA, PA):  $14,341

9. CHRISTOPH LOVETT (MOORESTOWN, NJ):  $9,723

10. CHRISTOPHER KLODNICKI (PHILADELPHIA, PA):  $6,320

11. JERRY ATKINS (NEW YORK, NY):  $6,320

12. LEE FAMA (BROOKLYN, NY):  $6,320

13. HO VAN NGUYEN (PASADENA, MD):  $4,861

14. MICHAEL DENTALE (BROOKLYN, NY):  $4,861

15. DANIEL BUZGON (MARLTON, NJ):  $4,861

16. DAVID INSELBERG (LONG BEACH, NY):  $4,132

17. WADE WOELFEL (MANKATO, MN):  $4,132

18. MICHAEL HACK (LAS VEGAS, NV):  $4,132

19. JOSHUA KAY (BOCA RATONFIELD, FL):  $3,646

20. CHRISTOPHER TRYBA (LAS VEGAS, NV):  $3,646

21. JOSEPH BRAND (FAIRLAWN, NJ):  $3,646

22. JOSHUA SUPSAK (LINWOOD, NJ):  $3,646

23. JOANNE MONTEAVARO (BRONX, NY):  $3,646

24. SERGIU CECOLTAN (GLEN ROCK, NJ):  $3,646

25. OMAR SAEED (NEW YORK, NY):  $3,646

26. EDGARDO ROSARIO (NEWARK, DE):  $3,646

27. MIKE ZHOLENDZ (STATEN ISLAND, NY):  $3,646

28. TREVOR GRAFFA (LANCASTER, PA):  $2,917

29. LEE SIM (N POTOMAC M, MD):  $2,917

30. WILLIAM ONEIL (BERWYN HEIGHTS, MD):  $2,917

31. THOMAS EVERS (E NORTHPORT, NY):  $2,917

32. MATTHEW GLANTZ (LAFAYETTE HILL, PA):  $2,917

33. MANH NGUYEN (MUNHALL, PA):  $2,917

34. JOSEPH GOSSWEILER (ROSELAND, NJ):  $2,917

35. JASON DEUTSCH (STATEN ISLAND, NY):  $2,917

36. TARCISIO FERREIRA (LONG BRANCH, NJ):  $2,917

Borgata $500K Guaranteed Deep Stack (Day 3)

Borgata $500K Guaranteed Deep Stack
$1500 + $150 No Limit Hold'em
March 4 - 7, 2012

Entries: 308
Prize Pool: $500,000

Avg Chip Count:  428,000

START OF DAY 3 TABLE ASSIGNMENTS AND CHIP COUNTS (ALPHA): 

T02 | S01 - HARRY KOROTKI (OWINGS MILLS, MD):  1,280,000

T01 | S05 - ALEX NEPOMNYASCHIY (STATEN ISLAND, NY):  1,102,000

T01 | S03 - JEREMY DRUCKMAN (PHILADELPHIA, PA):  1,099,000

T02 | S07 - CHRISTOPHER KLODNICKI (PHILADELPHIA, PA):  1,078,000

T02 | S06 - CHRISTOPH LOVETT (MOORESTOWN, NJ):  762,000

T01 | S02 - JASON PASTER (HAMILTON, NJ):  603,000

T01 | S08 - TODD RODENBORN (MORGANVILLE, NJ):  599,000

T02 | S03 - ROBERT HWANG (BARNEGAT, NJ):  508,000

T02 | S02 - JERRY ATKINS (NEW YORK, NY):  504,000

T01 | S04 - CUONG PHUNG (ATLANTIC CITY, NJ):  331,000

T02 | S09 - LEE FAMA (BROOKLYN, NY):  279,000

T02 | S08 - WADE WOELFEL (MANKATO, MN):  244,000

T02 | S04 - DANIEL BUZGON (MARLTON, NJ):  176,000

T01 | S07 - DAVID INSELBERG (LONG BEACH, NY):  167,000

T01 | S09 - MICHAEL DENTALE (BROOKLYN, NY):  150,000

T01 | S06 - HO VAN NGUYEN (PASADENA, MD):  148,000

T02 | S05 - SAMUEL BERNSTEIN (ENGLEWOOD, NJ):  139,000

T01 | S01 - MICHAEL HACK (LAS VEGAS, NV):  48,000

Borgata $500K Guaranteed Deep Stack

Borgata $500K Guaranteed Deep Stack
$1500 + $150 No Limit Hold'em
March 4 - 7, 2012
Entries:  308
Prize Pool: $500,000

START OF DAY 2 TABLE ASSIGNMENTS AND CHIP COUNTS (ALPHA):

T02 | S07:  AGAEV ADAM (BROOKLYN, NY): 31,400

T04 | S08:  ALICKA SKENDER (HUGHSVILLE, MD): 285,000

T01 | S02:  ALLEYNE ANTHONY (PHILADELPHIA, PA): 50,400

T05 | S04:  ATKINS JERRY (NEW YORK, NY): 258,200

T07 | S07:  BATTISTON RENE (CLIFTON, NJ): 34,500

T01 | S03:  BERNSTEIN SAMUEL (ENGLEWOOD, NJ): 103,500

T07 | S08:  BORGES MARK (HOBOKEN, NJ): 25,400

T05 | S01:  BRAND JOSEPH (FAIRLAWN, NJ): 131,900

T02 | S09:  BRUCALERI BRETT (ST JAMES, NY): 36,400

T01 | S06:  BUZGON DANIEL (MARLTON, NJ): 48,000

T02 | S01:  CAMMAROTA ALFONSO (FAIRFIELD, CT): 60,400

T03 | S06:  CECOLTAN SERGIU (GLEN ROCK, NJ): 63,000

T10 | S09:  CRANE RUSSELL (HOWELL, NJ): 102,300

T08 | S05:  CROKER MATTHEW (DACULA, GA): 103,500

T02 | S06:  DARRELL NEVILLE (SARASOTA, FL): 87,000

T02 | S08:  DENTALE MICHAEL (BROOKLYN, NY): 61,300

T04 | S05:  DEUTSCH JASON (STATEN ISLAND, NY): 114,200

T04 | S04:  DIBELLA JOHN (NEW ROCHELLE, NY): 23,900

T09 | S04:  DRUCKMAN JEREMY (PHILADELPHIA, PA): 145,600

T07 | S03:  EVERS THOMAS (E NORTHPORT, NY): 148,300

T07 | S02:  EYZEROVICH VYACHESLAV (STATEN ISLAND, NY): 165,600

T02 | S04:  FAMA LEE (BROOKLYN, NY): 95,600

T09 | S03:  FERREIRA TARCISIO (LONG BRANCH, NJ): 164,400

T03 | S03:  FOUKSMAN EUGENE (MANALAPAN, NJ): 59,600

T01 | S04:  GEBRAMARIAM YACOB (ALEXANDRIA, VA): 232,000

T02 | S05:  GLANTZ MATTHEW (LAFAYETTE HILL, PA): 225,700

T07 | S04:  GOSSWEILER JOSEPH (ROSELAND, NJ): 93,900

T09 | S01:  GRAFFA TREVOR (LANCASTER, PA): 118,100

T04 | S09:  GREGG ANTHONY (COLUMBIA, MD): 219,300

T10 | S02:  GREIM PAUL (HELMETTA, NJ): 28,800

T05 | S07:  HACK MICHAEL (LAS VEGAS, NV): 102,300

T09 | S05:  HEIMOWITZ LONNIE (MONTICELLO, NY): 48,800

T05 | S02:  HEREDIA VICTOR (BRONX, NY): 191,000

T06 | S07:  HIPPLER ANDREW (ANNAPOLIS, MD): 25,600

T03 | S01:  HOUCHINS PATRICK (RIVA, MD): 51,500

T06 | S05:  HUNTER RUSSELL (NEW BERN, NC): 107,000

T08 | S06:  HWANG ROBERT (BARNEGAT, NJ): 95,000

T10 | S03:  HWANG EDWARD (GLEN ALLEN, VA): 56,400

T10 | S01:  ILES MATTHEW (ATCO, NJ): 96,200

T09 | S08:  INSELBERG DAVID (LONG BEACH, NY): 56,800

T02 | S03:  JACOBS EDWARD (HAUPPAUGE, NY): 71,100

T06 | S03:  JATRAS TODD (BROOKLYN, NY): 66,400

T01 | S08:  JOHNSON AUSTEN (WOODSBORO, MD): 135,300

T03 | S07:  JOSEPH JEFFREY (BUFFALO, NY): 149,900

T09 | S07:  KAY JOSHUA (BOCA RATONFIELD, FL): 124,500

T08 | S01:  KLODNICKI CHRISTOPHER (PHILADELPHIA, PA): 121,300

T07 | S01:  KOROTKI HARRY (OWINGS MILLS, MD): 217,400

T03 | S05:  KOTLYAREVSKIY EUGENE (BROOKLYN, NY): 278,000

T10 | S06:  KOVYAZIN VITALY (BROOKLYN, NY): 43,600

T08 | S07:  LETCHUMANAN GANESH (FALLS CHURCH, VA): 48,400

T05 | S08:  LINSTER MICHAEL (ISLAND PARK, NY): 94,800

T10 | S05:  LOVETT CHRISTOPH (MOORESTOWN, NJ): 304,800

T04 | S01:  MANILOW MOE (LAKEWOOD, NJ): 183,500

T09 | S02:  MENKES RAFAEL (BETHESDA, MD): 96,300

T07 | S06:  MONTEAVARO JOANNE (BRONX, NY): 22,500

T06 | S08:  MORIELLO ALBERTINO (SPRINGFIELD, NJ): 49,400

T01 | S01:  MYUNG JOHN (VIENNA, VA): 39,600

T08 | S03:  NEIMAN JOSEPH (HACKENSACK, NJ): 73,500

T03 | S08:  NEPOMNYASCHIY ALEX (STATEN ISLAND, NY): 146,600

T02 | S02:  NGUYEN MANH (MUNHALL, PA): 376,300

T03 | S04:  NGUYEN HO VAN (PASADENA, MD): 37,600

T04 | S07:  ONEIL WILLIAM (BERWYN HEIGHTS, MD): 142,300

T06 | S04:  OPIE JOSEPH (FAIR HAVEN, NJ): 170,100

T03 | S02:  PASTER JASON (HAMILTON, NJ): 92,700

T05 | S03:  PATEL RAJENDRA (MERIDEN, CT): 28,300

T04 | S06:  PHUNG CUONG (ATLANTIC CITY, NJ): 193,000

T08 | S02:  RATO JOSE (WARMINSTER, PA): 54,400

T06 | S02:  RODENBORN TODD (MORGANVILLE, NJ): 228,200

T07 | S05:  ROSARIO EDGARDO (NEWARK, DE): 85,800

T08 | S04:  SAEED OMAR (NEW YORK, NY): 35,700

T06 | S01:  SCHERR BENJAMIN (PIKESVILLE, MD): 83,200

T01 | S09:  SCOTECE MICHAEL (CHESAPEAKE, VA): 38,800

T06 | S06:  SHAMLOO KAVON (ASBURN, VA): 50,500

T01 | S05:  SHASHO MICHAEL (RAMSEY, NJ): 63,900

T10 | S04:  SHTEYMAN ALEXANDER (EDISON, NJ): 52,100

T06 | S09:  SIDER OMAR (ARLINGTON, VA): 60,900

T05 | S06:  SIM LEE (N POTOMAC M, MD): 157,100

T05 | S05:  SINISHTAJ TONY (FLUSHING, NY): 27,700

T08 | S09:  SPIRER DANIEL (MECHANICSVILLE, PA): 110,000

T01 | S07:  SUPSAK JOSHUA (LINWOOD, NJ): 239,600

T08 | S08:  TRYBA CHRISTOPHER (LAS VEGAS, NV): 144,600

T10 | S08:  TSINIS ARKADIY (LAS VEGAS, NV): 47,800

T05 | S09:  VALERSTEIN ROMAN (NEWTOWN, PA): 14,300

T09 | S06:  VRABEL LUKE (W HARTFORD, CT): 100,000

T04 | S02:  WHITT LEO (LOUISVILLE, KY): 57,600

T04 | S03:  WOELFEL WADE (MANKATO, MN): 70,300

T10 | S07:  ZHOLENDZ MIKE (STATEN ISLAND, NY): 80,800

Some Borgata Poker Tidbits

Here's some tidbits after another busy weekend in the Borgata Poker Room.

The $500,000 Guaranteed Deepstack Double Play Tournament that began Sunday (March 4) is still underway today with Day 1B going strong.

We'll post the chipleaders and prize pool when re-buys close and we get it all compiled.

Meanwhile, Blue Chip Bounty Tuesday is on tap for tomorrow, March 6. The special bounty tournaments at 11am and 7pm respectively carry a $40 + $10 + $10 buy-in.

The games are designed to introduce Borgata's unique Bounty System. The extra $10 chip (a blue, $10 casino chip) is the bounty. Each player places the chip in front of their tournament stack. Every time a player knocks out an opponent, he or she gets to pocket the $10.

The Tuesday games are also "semi-turbo." Players in the blue chip games start with 15,000 in chips and play 15 minute levels through the first 15 rounds. Starting at level 16, levels are 20 minutes.

It's all designed to introduce new players to tournament play and give regular grinders a faster, affordable tournament option.

Go here for details.

As for the Borgata Bad Beat Jackpot, it survived the weekend and started Monday's play at $233,000. That's a pretty fast bounce back from last Sunday, Feb. 26, when $636,000 was given out in bad beat jackpots.

And don't forget that March is another Borgata Free-roll month as both cash and tournaments players can win a slot at a $20,000 Free-roll tournament April 3.

Go here for details on the bad beat jackpot and the Free-roll.