Saechao, Holtz & Romero Among 2023 Venetian DeepStack Showdown Winners
Table Of Contents
From January 9 through February 12, Venetian Las Vegas played host to the 2023 DeepStack Showdown, which was a 57-event series that offered millions in guarantees
All told, the series catered to 7,274 entrants (not including satellite entries) and awarded $3,544,569 in prize money. The series, which also hosted a pair of Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) events, crowed winners such as Robin Visser, who first won Event #11: $500 NLH Epic Stack for $10,939 and then three days later won Event #18: $300 NLH Bounty for $2,868. Likewise, George Heim of Anchorage, Alaska won two titles in Event #17: $400 NLH Epic Stack for $9,058 and Event #21: $500 NLH Epic Stack for $9,761.
Others to claim titles were Steve Federspiel (Event #12: $400 Big O for $3,746), Peter Hengsakul (Event #27: $400 NLH Epic Stack for $7,068), and Spencer Champlin (Event #49: $600 NLH Monster Stack for $21,075.
Here are some other notable winners from the series.
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Kao Saechao Wins Three Titles!
Back on January 4 in the DeepStack Poker NYE Series, Washington��s Kao Saechao won Event #47: $400 NLH Monster Stack for $9,546. By the end of the month, he was capturing an incredible three more titles during the DeepStack Showdown.
Less than a week after his first win of the month, Saechao topped an 87-entry field to win Event #3: $400 NLH Epic Stack for $9,271. Five days later, he was back at it navigating his way through a 39-entry field to win Event #14: $400 PLO for $5,143.
Finally, Saechao topped a 35-entry field on January 30 to win Event #40: $300 NLH Bounty for $2,900.
Event #3 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kao Saechao | Seattle, WA | $9,271 |
| 2 | Andrew Rodgers | Henderson, NV | $5,736 |
| 3 | Jacob Perry | Branchville, NJ | $3,998 |
| 4 | William Chan | New York, NY | $2,926 |
| 5 | James Clancy | Canada | $2,144 |
| 6 | Paul Aichele | Walnut Creek, CA | $2,144 |
| 7 | Paul Dahl | Vancouver, WA | $1,275 |
| 8 | Dominick French | Canada | $1,072 |
| 9 | Calem McNeil | Canada | $927 |
Fuentes & Romero Win MSPT Venetian Titles
The firstMSPT Venetian tournament of the series was at the $1,100 buy-in price point and it was Zack Fuentes topping a 665-entry field to win the tournament for $117,060.
Straight after, a $1,600 MSPT Venetian took place and that tournament attracted 721 runners. After three long days of play, PokerCoaching.com coach James Romero came out on top to win $171,167 after a heads-up deal with Zach Donovan, who took home $150,000 for finishing in second place.
��It feels great man, I finally have a lion trophy,�� Romero told MSPT officials after the win. ��I��ve been a poker pro for 15 years, a live pro for about 5 of those years,�� when talking about his background in high-stakes poker tournaments. ��I now have a trophy from every hotel and it feels good man.��
$1,600 MSPT Venetian Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Romero | Portland, OR | $171,167* |
| 2 | Zach Donovan | Franklin, MA | $150,000* |
| 3 | Mark Fink | Sioux Falls, SD | $95,537 |
| 4 | Ha Duong | Vietnam | $68,110 |
| 5 | Rob Wazwaz | Minneapolis, MN | $51,777 |
| 6 | Matt McEwan | Newport Beach, CA | $38,347 |
| 7 | Reg Powell | Elk River, MN | $27,946 |
| 8 | Spiro Lempesis | Elgin, IL | $21,781 |
| 9 | Matt Stone | West Windsor, NJ | $17,261 |
*Denotes heads-up deal.
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Mike ��BrockLesnar�� Holtz Victorious in Epic Stack
On January 25, Event #32: $500 NLH Epic Stack attracted 138 runners and offered up a $58,236 prize pool that was paid out to the top 15 finishers. Among those to cash but fall short of the final table were Jaime Sanchez (11th - $1,083), Peter Hengsakul (13th - $996), and Kimberly Olenak (14th - $996).
At the final table, it was Mike Holtz defeating Rob Goldstein in heads-up play to win the title and $16,597 prize. If that name sounds familiar it��s probably because you recognize him from his online prowess, specifically on WSOP.com where he plays under the name ��BrockLesnar.��
He was the 2021 WSOP.com Player of the Year �C he spoke to PokerNews about that accomplishment here �C and then in October of last year, he won the WSOP Online Event #17: $777 NLH Lucky 7s by defeating Jordyn "ThLstCrdBndr" Miller during a short heads-up battle. That gave him his first bracelet and $76,157. Now, Holtz has a live title on his poker r��sum��.
Event #32 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Holtz | Las Vegas, NV | $16,597 |
| 2 | Rob Goldstein | Las Vegas, NV | $10,774 |
| 3 | Ty Kohler | Reno, NV | $7,629 |
| 4 | Michael Shan | Tigard, OR | $5,387 |
| 5 | William Shalhoob | Mandan, ND | $3,844 |
| 6 | Bobby Poe | Las Vegas, NV | $2,795 |
| 7 | Peter Dailey | Las Vegas, NV | $2,009 |
| 8 | Brandon Zuidema | Fontana, CA | $1,485 |
| 9 | Thomas Ratkovich | Kihei, HI | $1,281 |
2023 DeepStack Showdown Winners
| Date | Tournament | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/9/23 | Event #1: $400 NLH Seniors | 109 | $36,515 | Robert Goldstein | Las Vegas, NV | $9,361 |
| 1/9/23 | Event #2: $300 NLH Bounty | 63 | $15,750 | Azime Mitchell | Las Vegas, NV | $3,309 |
| 1/10/23 | Event #3: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 87 | $28,971 | Kao Saechao | Seattle, WA | $9,271 |
| 1/10/23 | Event #4: $300 NLH Bounty | 38 | $10,000 | Alexander Hoops | Lima, OH | $2,914 |
| 1/11/23 | Event #5: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 113 | $37,629 | Ryan Shiffman | Warners, NY | $7,761 |
| 1/11/23 | Event #6: $300 NLH Bounty Survivor | 74 | $18,500 | 7 winners | N/A | $2,000 |
| 1/12/23 | Event #7: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 103 | $34,299 | Robert Cournoyer | Las Vegas, NV | $6,209 |
| 1/12/23 | Event #8: $300 NLH Bounty | 66 | $16,500 | Robin Mastrangelo | Las Vegas, NV | $1,754 |
| 1/13/23 | Event #9: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 92 | $38,824 | Anatoly Zharnitsky | Tampa, FL | $11,648 |
| 1/13/23 | Event #10: $300 NLH Bounty | 45 | $11,250 | 5 winners | N/A | $1,300 |
| 1/14/23 | Event #11: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 81 | $34,182 | Robin Visser | Netherlands | $10,939 |
| 1/14/23 | Event #12: $400 Big O | 51 | $17,340 | Steve Federspiel | Riverside, IA | $3,746 |
| 1/15/23 | Event #13: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 91 | $30,303 | Jeffrey Nowling | Houston, TX | $5,850 |
| 1/15/23 | Event #14: $400 PLO | 39 | $13,260 | Kao Saechao | Seattle, WA | $5,143 |
| 1/16/23 | Event #15: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 84 | $27,972 | Luis Gamboa Quilcate | Peru | $8,952 |
| 1/16/23 | Event #16: $300 NLH Bounty | 49 | $12,250 | Josh White | Cabot, AR | $3,123 |
| 1/17/23 | Event #17: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 85 | $28,305 | George Heim | Anchorage, AK | $9,058 |
| 1/17/23 | Event #18: $300 NLH Bounty | 45 | $11,250 | Robin Visser | Netherlands | $2,868 |
| 1/18/23 | Event #19: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 64 | $21,312 | Joseph Cutler | Marlton, NJ | $6,741 |
| 1/18/23 | Event #20: $300 NLH Bounty Survivor | 41 | $10,250 | 3 winners | N/A | $2,000 |
| 1/19/23 | Event #21: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 92 | $38,824 | George Heim | Anchorage, AK | $9,761 |
| 1/19/23 | Event #22: $300 NLH Bounty | 45 | $11,250 | Christopher Bisda | Las Vegas, NV | $2,503 |
| 1/20/23 | Event #23: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 118 | $49,796 | Yossi Krispin | Cupertino, CA | $14,939 |
| 1/20/23 | Event #24: $400 PLO 8/B | 60 | $20,400 | Zachary Vigil | Cordova, NM | $7,649 |
| 1/21/23 | Event #25: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 102 | $43,044 | Brian Barros Vazquez | Stone Park, IL | $9,318 |
| 1/21/23 | Event #26: $400 Limit Omaha 8/B | 37 | $12,395 | Rafael Concepcion | Las Vegas, NV | $4,386 |
| 1/22/23 | Event #27: $400 NLH Epic Stack | 93 | $30,969 | Peter Hengsakul | Las Vegas, NV | $7,068 |
| 1/22/23 | Event #28: $300 NLH Bounty | 48 | $12,000 | Steven Stowe | Gilbert, AZ | $3,060 |
| 1/25/23 | Event #29: $400 NLH Ultimate Stack | 510 | $168,300 | Douglas Shamlin | Cary, NC | $32,473 |
| 1/23/23 | Event #30: $300 NLH Bounty | 58 | $14,500 | Robert Buchanana | Wilmington, DE | $3,263 |
| 1/24/23 | Event #31: $300 NLH Bounty | 38 | $10,000 | Karim Jahangard-Mahboob | Pasadena, CA | $2,402 |
| 1/25/23 | Event #32: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 138 | $58,236 | Mike Holtz | Las Vegas, NV | $16,597 |
| 1/25/23 | Event #33: $300 NLH Bounty Survivor | 40 | $10,000 | 4 winners | N/A | $2,000 |
| 1/29/23 | Event #34: $600 NLH Ultimate Stack | 576 | $290,880 | Dorian Rios Pavon | Miami, FL | $53,872 |
| 1/26/23 | Event #35: $300 NLH Bounty | 48 | $12,000 | John Caporusso | Las Vegas, NV | $3,060 |
| 1/27/23 | Event #36: $300 NLH Bounty | 64 | $16,000 | Daniel Butler | Moab, UT | $2,382 |
| 1/29/23 | Event #37: $500 NLH Epic Stack Freezeout | 94 | $39,668 | Barry Raymos | Fairfield, CA | $9,571 |
| 1/29/23 | Event #38: $300 NLH Bounty | 53 | $13,250 | Joseph Dean | Evans, CO | $2,562 |
| 2/1/23 | Event #39: $400 NLH Ultimate Stack | 352 | $116,160 | George Ignat | Glendale, AZ | $22,519 |
| 1/30/23 | Event #40: $300 NLH Bounty | 35 | $10,000 | Kao Saechao | Seattle, WA | $2,900 |
| 1/31/23 | Event #41: $300 NLH Bounty | 42 | $10,500 | Willie Benton | Bakersfield, CA | $2,677 |
| 2/1/23 | Event #42: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 78 | $32,916 | Alexander Tafesh | Las Vegas, NV | $11,192 |
| 2/1/23 | Event #43: $300 NLH Bounty Survivor | 47 | $11,750 | 4 winners | N/A | $2,000 |
| 2/5/23 | Event #44: $800 NLH Ultimate Stack | 732 | $505,080 | Jason Obinger | Las Vegas, NV | $90,893 |
| 2/2/23 | Event #45: $300 NLH Survivor | 89 | $22,250 | 8 winners | N/A | $2,500 |
| 2/3/23 | Event #46: $300 NLH Survivor | 77 | $19,250 | 10 winners | N/A | $2,000 |
| 2/5/23 | Event #47: $500 NLH Epic Stack | 157 | $66,254 | Konstantin Polin | Las Vegas, NV | $18,304 |
| 2/5/23 | Event #48: $300 NLH Bounty Survivor | 81 | $20,250 | 8 winners | N/A | $2,000 |
| 2/6/23 | Event #49: $600 NLH Monster Stack | 145 | $73,950 | Spencer Champlin | Scarborough, ME | $21,075 |
| 2/6/23 | Event #50: $300 NLH Survivor | 98 | $24,500 | 8 winners | N/A | $2,500 |
| 2/9/23 | Event #51: $1,100 MSPT Poker Bowl | 665 | $117,060 | Zack Fuentes | Austin, TX | $117,060 |
| 2/7/23 | Event #52: $300 NLH Survivor | 100 | $25,000 | 10 winners | N/A | $2,500 |
| Event #53: Mega Satellite | ||||||
| 2/11/23 | Event #54: $1,600 MSPT Poker Bowl | 721 | $1,027,425 | James Romero | Portland, OR | $170,167 |
| Event #55: Mega Satellite | ||||||
| 2/11/23 | Event #56: $1,100 NLH Monster Bounty | 140 | $135,800 | James Prosser | England | $23,597 |
| 2/12/23 | Event #57: $300 NLH Bounty | 81 | $20,250 | Jason Faircloth | Houston, TX | $3,126 |
What��s Coming Up Next?
The Venetian is already hosting their DeepStack Extravaganza I, which kicked off on February 13 and will run through March 5. That series will offer more than $1.5 million in guaranteed prize pools across 35 events.
Click here for a look at the full DeepStack Extravaganza I schedule.
*Images courtesy of Venetian.
