Event 1 Recap

$350 + $50 DS NL (2 re-entry)                  

The premiere event of the 2011 Borgata Spring Poker Open was the $350 No Limit DeepStack event.   Players who busted out during the first six levels had the opportunity to re-enter twice.  The total number of entries and re-entries came to 727, which generated total buy-ins of $254,450, far surpassing the $100,000 guarantee.

The final 72 players would eventually claim a piece of the prize pool, but it was Borgata regular and tournament professional Mike Dentale who claimed the top prize of of $57,267 and the beautiful trophy.

Mikey 'Unbelievable' Dentale's victory in this event is his first reported WIN in a poker tournament.  He's come close a couple of times and has many final tables, but this is his first-ever first-place finish and his third-largest career cash.

Mike took a month off from poker before this event, foregoing events at Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods.  "I wanted to come in fresh" he said.  Apparently his strategy worked like a charm.

Second-place finisher David Heck had a roughly 2.5 to 1 chip lead at the start of heads-up play, but had to settle for runner-up and $33,320.  Not bad for a purely recreational player.

Third place and $20,362 went to Mario Perez, who started day two 30th in chips of the 43 returning players.

Notable among the large field was Mike 'Little Man' Sica, who won a WSOP bracelet in 2004 (and half a million dollars).  Of the 43 players that made it to day two, Little Man was deep in the pack, 28th in chips and below average.  He managed to hang on and finish in 21st place, claiming $1,308 for his hard work.