2016 Coco Poker Showdown
Seminole Casino Coconut Creek
Coconut Creek, Fla.
Event #8
$1,100 Championship
Entries: 161
Prize Pool: $161,000
January 30-31, 2016

Coconut Creek, Fla. (January 31, 2016) — The 2016 Coco Poker Showdown wrapped Sunday night at Seminole Casino Coconut Creek. The series finale, a $1,100 Championship with a $100,000 guarantee, saw a field of 161 entries amass a prize pool of $161,000. The tournament played out over the course of two days before Stu Paterson emerged victorious to score a $32,785 first prize. Paterson was part of a four-way chop that saw his chip lead earn the lion’s share of the prize pool while Andrew Badecker went home with $32,276, Frederico Dabus with $25,000 and Herbert Woodbery with $20,380.

“It’s nice to get up there and do well,” Paterson said of going deep in the Championship. “I liked the structure — it was fast, but not too fast.”

The $1,100 price point, $100,000 guarantee and the fact the event was Seminole Hard Rock Poker Player of the Year points eligible helped the Coco Poker Showdown Championship draw a decorated field. SHRP team member Mike Laake, SHRP POY points leader Timothy Miles and WSOP gold bracelet winner Phil Hui were among those to make a special trip to the property. While Laake and Hui weren’t able to get anything going, Miles graced the final three tables before bowing out late on Day 1.

Action restarted on the second and final day of play Sunday at 1 p.m. with 20 players remaining. Marc Medrano lead the way while Paterson began second. The bubble burst roughly an hour into play when John DePersio was eliminated 19th sending the remaining 18 into the money. From there, it was about two hours until Santan Noronha exited 11th and play consolidated to the final table. Badecker held the chip lead but as play stretched deeper the stacks got thinner. In all, it took about four hours for play to narrow from 10-handed to the final four. The final tablists who finished outside the top four were James Newcomb (5th), Dave Whalen (6th), Israel de la Cerda (7th), Peter Vitantonio (8th), Adam Levy (9th) and Ido Ashkenzai (10th).

No sooner did Newcomb hit the rail did the remaining four pause the clock to maneuver a deal. After a breakdown of the ICM values, Badecker got a little kick back from Dabus and Woodbery and the deal was given the go-ahead.

The Coco Poker Showdown began Thursday, January 21 with a $130 buy-in $100,000 guarnateed event. The tournament drew 1,156 entries and saw local David Albertson earn its $25,225 top prize. From there, the next headliner was Event 6, a $350 buy-in $250,000 guaranteed tournament. The field totaled 721 and saw Edward Novak emerge victorious to the tune of a $63,323 first prize.

Paterson rounded out the trio of headliners Sunday night with his victory in the Championship. Paterson is a 37-year-old professional poker player from nearby Boca Raton. The 1st-place finish marked his first major tournament win and moved him over $700,000 in career tournament earnings.

Championship final results:

1st: Stu Paterson – $32,785
2nd: Andrew Badecker – $32,276
3rd: Frederico Dabus – $25,000
4th: Herbert Woodbery – $20,380
5th: James Newcomb – $10,063
6th: Dave Whalen – $7,648
7th: Israel de la Cerda – $5,957
8th: Peter Vitantonio – $4,428
9th: Adam Levy – $3,140
10th: Ido Ashkenazi – $2,496
11th: Santana Noronha – $2,496
12th: Robert Midgette – $2,496
13th: Ronald Sullivan – $2,093
14th: Marc Medrano – $2,093
15th: Robert Miller – $2,093
16th: Bruce Snell – $1,852
17th: Stephen Diamantas – $1,852
18th: Dolphus Powers – $1,852