Simon Deadman Wins 2014 Hollywood Poker Open

Wednesday July 2,2014 : BRIT POKER PRO WINS THE HOLLYWOOD POKER OPEN
 
$351,097 prize for Simon Deadman.
 
The World Series of Poker spectacular was not the only game in town this week; the Hollywood Poker Open at the M Resort Spa and Casino in Las Vegas proved it was also capable of pulling in players with an entry field of 692 for the $2,500 buy-in event, creating a tempting prize pool of $1,560,460.
 
The entry field was well up on last year's event, when 631 players registered, and included a long list of top players like Brian Hastings, Chris DeMaci, Mike Sowers, Michael Katz, Andrew Lichtenberger, Chris Moneymaker, Lauren Kling, Jacob Bazeley and Amit Makhija.
 
Three days in, the field was down to 23 players, which was quickly reduced to a final table comprising Deadman and Michael Wang, Kitty Kuo, Martin Godsk, Elliott Zaydman, Robbie Bakker, Bradley Yazici, Damian Salas and Mike Sowers.
 
Deadman played a careful game but when the action reached the four handed stage, he used his growing chip stack effectively to advance through the survivors. In this he was aided by a massive double up at the expense of then chip leader Kitty Kuo, eliminating her and positioning himself strongly to take on Michael Wang in the heads up, a brief affair which the Brit player dominated to claim the first prize of $351,097 leaving Wang with a runner up reward of $216,904.
 
It was Deadman's biggest career win yet and, he revealed, a welcome change from a run that has seen him finish as runner up in major tournaments this year at least six times.
 
Now flush with cash, Las Vegas – and the World Series of Poker events still to come, including the Main Event – is Deadman's oyster.