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In a
tense final table at the fourth NJ Free Poker Bar
Tab Satellite Tournament, Jim “The Quiz Master”
Roche overcame the odds to capture the elusive
victory.
On Sunday, September 20th, at Blvd Bar and Grill,
the final table had very few surprises, and plenty
of NJFP veterans battling it out. Such mainstays, as
Grif “Mortgage Director” Auld, Chris “Black Eyed
Peas” Van Cleve, and John “Music Man” Hanti, were
just some of the names that populated this Final 10.
There were also some newcomers, who survived
Saturday’s elimination to play another day,
including, John “Hatboy” Phillips and Jack “The
Ripper” Yu.
But the real story of this tournament was the rise
and fall of “Slinging” Sammy Paulino. In the
Saturday semis, there wasn’t a card that he needed,
that he didn’t pick up; there wasn’t a read that he
made, that wasn’t right on point; and there wasn’t a
chip on the table, that he didn’t make a play for.
This all led to Sammy ending his first day session,
with over $18,000 in chips; almost $8,000 more than
any other opponent.
However, Slinging Sammy, shunned advice from other
players, who recommended that he lay low on Sunday,
and let the lower stacks, eliminate themselves.
Instead, he continued his aggressive play that won
him so many accolades, on Saturday. Unfortunately,
this time, the cards just would not cooperate.
About 45 minutes into it, a tense one-on-one battle,
between Paulino and Van Cleve ensued. With Rob “Lord
of the River” Grosch at the helm, he “rivered” Van
Cleve a straight, to overtake Paulino’s top pair/top
kicker, thereby crippling Sammy’s stack. Sammy was
never the same after that, and eventually finished
in sixth place.
Another chronicle worth mentioning was the play of
John Hanti, who was on the opposite end of the
spectrum, as Mr. Paulino, The Music Man, barely
survived his Saturday stay, and started the Sunday
tournament with only $2,000, in chips. Despite his
rather sparse chip stack, at the Sunday final table,
Hanti was able to hang on for more than an hour and
eventually fell, in a very respectable, fifth place,
and a $25.00 Gift Certificate to the host location,
Blvd. Bar and Grill.
Mr. Auld was the veritable “button boy” soon after,
and he finished just out of the money, in fourth
place, and also took home a $25.00 Gift Certificate.
Van Cleve was unable to pick up much momentum, after
his big win against Slinging Sammy, and saw his chip
stack dwindle, to the point where he eventually got
knocked out in third place, with a $50.00 sponsored
satellite seat, in hand.
Then it was on to heads up play: Jim “The Quiz
Master” Roche versus David “Ponyboy” Carper. At this
point, Mr. Roche had a fairly, decent lead in
overall chips, and later confessed to Grosch, that
his strategy was simple … “Do not give the chip
advantage away, by playing cards that don’t warrant
a high risk play”. Sounds like good advice, but
after Ponyboy made an all-in move, with his smaller
stack, pre-flop, Jim decided to make the call
anyway, with 5-6 connecters.
It paid off; the turn netted him two pair, and
all-important bragging rights that come with the
victory. Carper finished in second place and
received a $100.00 sponsored satellite seat.
But, the big “Hooray” goes out to Jim Roche for his
efforts and for capturing the 4th Bar-Tab Satellite
Tournament win. Jim received a $150.00 satellite
seat, sponsored by NJ Free Poker. We will keep you
informed, as to how the winners fair, in their
respective sponsorships.
Congratulations to all who played, with special
thanks, to the (self-proclaimed) Lord of the River,
Rob Grosch (payback is a…).
Thank you to every NJFP player, for your support and
we will see you all back in the saddle, for the
November Bar-Tab Satellite Tournament.
Here is how the Top 10 finished:
1. Jim Roche
2. David Carper
3. Chris Van Cleve
4. Grif Auld
5. John Hanti
6. Sammy Paulino
7. John Phillips
8. Joe Sullivan
9. Mark Kline
10. Jack Yu
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