Vincent Fiorenza Dominates HPT at Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach, FL - Vincent Fiorenza brought a huge lead into the Heartland Poker Tour Final Table at Daytona Beach Kennel Club & Poker Room on Monday and never looked back. The Oviedo, Florida man led the way from start to finish, single-handedly eliminating five of his eight opponents to win the coveted HPT Title and the $122,353 first-place prize.
When asked his plans for his newfound riches, the new champ Fiorenza replied, "Just put it in the bank like my grandma says."
The nationally-televised event, which normally begins with the final nine participants, started with just eight players after a double elimination when play was 10-handed.
Carlos Loving was the last player in the way on a day where everything seemed to go Fiorenza's way. Loving was able to double up once when the heads-up action began, but fate was on Fiorenza's side. In the last hand, Loving put it all on the line with two pair, but was quickly called by Fiorenza's flush. "It didn't work out, but that's poker and that's how it goes," Loving said. The Sarasota, Florida native was sent to the rail with $74,225 for the runner-up finish.
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The shortest stack when the day began belonged to Tim Woodson. The Melbourne, Florida resident made the best of it, quietly climbing his way through the field until he was eliminated in third place. Woodson will take home $49,704 for his weekend's work.
Altamonte Springs, Florida native Ryan Colton was in good shape when he went all-in with two pair on the flop. Today wasn't his day though, as Fiorenza's pocket aces had him beat. Colton had no recorded tournament cashes coming into the Main Event at Daytona Beach. He can now start the list off with a $25,999 score for fifth place.
Next up on Fiorenza's list was Davie, Florida's Corey Burbick. He found his tournament life at risk with a straight draw against Fiorenza's pocket nines. The draw never came and Burbick was sent packing in fourth place. He'll earn $34,665, pushing his total career earnings over the $700k mark.
Juan Restrepo of Orlando, Florida was the last of the string of five players to fall at the hands of Fiorenza. The technical product specialist came in with one of the smaller stacks before climbing the pay ladder to a sixth-place finish, getting $20,391 for his efforts.
Corey Zarnoch was guaranteed the biggest cash of his career coming into the Final Table on Monday. The poker dealer from Jacksonville Beach, Florida lost a giant pot on Sunday evening against Fiorenza that would have given him more than 40 percent of the chips in play. Nonetheless, he managed to play his way to a seat under the lights. Zarnoch was knocked out by Colton, taking home $17,231 for seventh place.
It took 45 hands before Alan Wentz became the first casualty of the day. Wentz, of Lancaster, Ohio, was the only player at the Final Table to reside outside of The Sunshine State. The insurance salesman got his chips in the middle with ace-queen against Loving's pocket sevens. Wentz hit a queen on the flop, but Loving had quad sevens. Wentz departed in eighth place, earning $14,724.
HPT will pack up the lights and cameras and head to Vicksburg, Mississippi for a televised event this weekend. The tour will proceed to Missouri, Nevada, Michigan, Iowa and Indiana before the end of the year. Visit HPTpoker.com for a full look at the remaining events.
Results
All Paid Players Listed at HPTpoker.com
Daytona Beach Kennel Club & Poker Room
Daytona Beach, FL
October 13, 2014
Buy-in: $1650
Main Event Entrants: 343
Total Prize Pool: $512,785
1st: Vincent Fiorenza (Oviedo, FL) $122,353
2nd: Carlos Loving (Sarasota, FL) $74,225
3rd: Tim Woodson (Melbourne, FL) $49,704
4th: Corey Burbick (Davie, FL) $34,665
5th: Ryan Colton (Altamonte Springs, FL) $25,999
6th: Juan Restrepo (Orlando, FL) $20,391
7th: Corey Zarnoch (Jacksonville Beach, FL) $17,231
8th: Alan Wentz (Lancaster, FL) $14,724
9th: John Holley $12,276
