Hollywood Poker Open Charles $1,115 Regional Main Event Kicks Off on Saturday
Since the end of April, the Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races in Charles Town, West Virginia has been playing host to the penultimate stop of the Hollywood Poker Open (HPO) Season 3. This weekend, the stop will culminate in the keystone $1,115 buy-in Regional Main Event, a tournament the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will cover in our dedicated live blog.
"Charles Town will be the second-to-last HPO Regional Event on the Season 3 schedule, and the events continue to leave great lasting impressions on players at each stop," said PokerNews Editor-in-Chief Donnie Peters. "Plus, competitors have the chance play against tour ambassador and 2003 WSOP Main Event champion Chris Moneymaker. That alone is worth the price of admission."
The property, which features 50 tables of live poker action in a newly renovated room, has been hosting a festival that all told includes 31 events, 11 of which were identified as HPO-sanctioned "featured" events.
Last year, Brian Cavaliere, who hails from Hazlet, New Jersey, topped a field of 72 entrants to win $39,756. Not too shabby considering he won his way into the tournament via a $235 HPO mega satellite. Of course the buy-in back then was $1,800, so the more affordable $1,115 buy-in in Season 3 is sure to attract event more runners.
"These HPO tournament fields are such a great mix of traveling poker professionals and local promotion winners which makes the tournaments really attractive to all levels of poker players," said Bill Bruce, who has served as the HPO tournament director since the tour's inception.
The Main Event provides one of the last chances for players to accumulate coveted HPO Player of the Year points. Right now, Jerry Zehr of Carmel, Indiana sits atop the leaderboard with 34 points, though he is trailed closely by Kenneth Ervin (Paragould, AR), Doug Holland (Lawrenceburg, IN), Vadim Kleydman (St. Louis, MO), and Jerry Wagner (Beavertown, PA), each of whom have 30 points.
Here's a look at the remaining HPO Charles Town schedule (HPO Featured Events denoted w/ *):
| Day | Date/Time | Event | Buy-In |
|---|---|---|---|
| *Thu | 5/7 - 12:15pm | 19a - NL Hold'em Deepstack Flight A | $300 |
| *Thu | 5/7 - 5:15pm | 19b - NL Hold'em Deepstack Flight B | $300 |
| Thu | 5/7 - 7:15pm | 20 - No Limit ($3,000 Guarantee) | $125 |
| Fri | 5/8 - 12pm | Merge/Restart Flights | - |
| *Fri | 5/8 - 1:15pm | 21 - NL Hold'em Deepstack | $300 |
| Fri | 5/8 - 4:15pm | 22 - Mega Satellite (Main Event Seat GTD) | $235 |
| Fri | 5/8 - 7:15pm | 23 - Mega Satellite (Main Event Seat GTD) | $235 |
| Fri | 5/8 - 10:15pm | 24 - Turbo Satellite (Main Event Seat GTD) | $125 |
| Sat | 5/9 - 10:15am | 25 - Turbo Satellite (Main Event Seat GTD) | $125 |
| *Sat | 5/9 - 12pm | 26 - HPO REGIONAL MAIN EVENT | $1,115 |
| Sat | 5/9 - 2:15pm | 27 - Last Chance Turbo Satellite (Main Event Seat GTD) | $235 |
| Sat | 5/9 - 5:15pm | 28 - Ladies No Limit Hold'em | $235 |
| Sat | 5/9 - 7:15pm | 29 - No Limit ($3,000 Guarantee) | $125 |
| Sun | 5/10 - 12pm | Main Event Restart | - |
| Sun | 5/10 - 11:15am | 30 - Seniors No Limit 2 (age 50 & older) | $235 |
| *Sun | 5/10 - 3:15pm | 31 - NL Hold'em Deepstack | $235 |
Season 3 of the HPO will continue from May 14-25 with the HPO Columbus in Ohio. For more information on that event, click here. Then, from June 25-28 the HPO Season 3 will conclude at the M Casino in Las Vegas, which will play host to the prestigious $2,500 buy-in HPO Championship Event.
For more on Season 3 of the Hollywood Poker Open, visit HollywoodPokerOpen.com. Also, check out this HPO video featuring Moneymaker:
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