FTOPS XI Event #9, $500+35 NL Hold'em Heads-Up: 'Luie Sojo' Victorious

Mickey Doft Live Reporter

Feb 09, 2009 3 min read

FTOPS XI Event #9, $500+35 NL Hold'em Heads-Up: 'Luie Sojo' Victorious 0001

Event #9 of the eleventh Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS XI) was a $500+35 no-limit hold'em heads-up special. 1,332 participants entered to create a total prize pool of $666,000, with the winner taking home $115,884. Notable showings included those of Christian "charder30" Harder in 14th spot ($9,990), Dan "Wretchy" Martin in 15th ($9,990), Johan "busto_soon" Van Til in 16th ($9,990), Ryan Daut in 18th ($5,328), Carter "ckingusc" King in 23rd ($5,328), Mike "SowersUNCC" Sowers in 26th ($5,328) and Chad "jse81" Batista in 31st ($5,328).

The remaining players started their matches with 3,000 in chips, with these the Elite Eight matchups:

Cappruccio816 vs. Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson

Mario "Pokerccini" Puccini vs. Luie Sojo

yahueyu vs. Casey "bigdogpckt5s" Jarzabek

William "hickey987" Hickey vs. rivercrime

Elite Eight

Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson defeats Cappruccio816

Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson took it down at the 20/40 level. Cappruccio816 opened to 120 and Nelson called, bringing a 6?4?10? flop. Cappruccio816 200, Nelson check-raised to 600, and Cappruccio816 shoved for 2,245. Nelson called with K?10? and led Cappruccio816's 9?9?. The turn and river came J?2? as Cappruccio816 collected $18,648 for finishing in eighth place.

Luie Sojo defeats Mario "Pokerccini" Puccini

Luie Sojo got the best of Mario Puccini at 30/60. Holding a 3:1 chip lead, Luie Sojo min-raised to 120 and Mario Puccini shoved for 1,205. Luie Sojo called with A?J?, to lead Puccini's A?9?. The board ran out 7?10?J?10?9? and Mario "Pokerccini" Puccini was out in seventh place for $18,648.

Casey "bigdogpckt5s" Jarzabek defeats yahueyu

In a back-and-forth match, Jarzabek emerged victorious at 40/80. Jarzabek took a 5:1 chip lead at one point, but yahueyu clawed back to nearly square the match. On the final hand, Jarzabek raised to 190 and yahueyu called. The flop came 4?6?2? and yahueyu check-called Jarzabek's 200 bet. The K? landed on the turn, and this time yahueyu check-raised all in for 2,555 after Jarzabek bet 455. Casey quickly called with K?6?, which led yahueyu's 8?7?. The river was the 10? and yahueyu finished in sixth place for $18,648.

rivercrime defeats William "hickey987" Hickey

The match went to rivercrime when, on the final hand, William Hickey's 8?7? came up short against rivercrime's Q?9?. The board came K?6?J?4?6? and William "hickey987" Hickey finished fifth for $18,648.

Final Four

Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson defeats Casey "bigdogpckt5s" Jarzabek

Jake Nelson notched the victory at 15/30. Casey Jarzabek opened to 70 and Nelson popped it to 210. Jarzabek called and the flop came 5?2?10?. Nelson led out 270 and Jarzabek raised to 740. Nelson wasted little time before going all in and was called by Jarzabek, who held top two pair with 10?5?. However, Nelson tabled TcTd for top set. The turn and river came 9?Q? as Casey "bigdogpckt5s" Jarzabek took fourth place for $35,298.

Luie Sojo defeats rivercrime

Luie Sojo had built a 3:1 lead by the 15/30 level. In the final hand, he opened to 90. Rivercrime re-raised to 270 and was called. The flop came J?A?K? and rivercrime checked to Luie Sojo, who bet 300, only to see rivercrime go all in. After a few seconds Luie Sojo called with A?10?, but it trailed rivercrime's A?Q?. Everything changed when the Q? landed on the turn to give Luie Sojo a straight. Rivercrime's redraw ace or queen failed to appear, but the J? hit the river instead. The third-place finish earned rivercrime $35,298.

Championship Match:

Luie Sojo defeats Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson

Luie Sojo built up an early 2:1 chip lead at the 25/50 level before finishing off the win. First to act, Luie Sojo raised to 150 and Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson went all in for 1,815 holding 8?8?. Luie Sojo called instantly with K?K? and won the tournament when the board ran out 4?10?10?6?7?. Jake "Plz_Stop_Lookin" Nelson finished as runner-up and took home $69,264, with Luie Sojo claiming $115,884 for winning FTOPS Event #9.