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Local Favorite Li Liang Claims $650 Super Deep 6-Max Title for $41,150
Poker crushers from all over the East Coast made their way to the Borgata Summer Poker Open for Event #11: $650 Super Deep 6-Max. However, the one taking home the two beautiful trophies once the dust settled was local cash game and tournament regular Li Liang.
A total of 401 entries were tallied to generate a prize pool of $228,570, but all eyes were set upon the first-place prize of $41,150. Sixty-five players returned for Day 2, with the final six playing down to a winner on Friday.
It took just over two hours of play for Liang to lock up the title after defeating Giorgi Arveladze heads-up to more than double her prior live tournament earnings, according to The Hendon Mob.
Liang was full of energy from the first shuffle and had the support of the entire Borgata staff on her way to victory. On the most pivotal hand of the day, she made a gusty call on the turn with second pair for her tournament life. It propelled her to the win, and was emblematic of her play the entire tournament.
$650 Super Deep 6-Max Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Li Liang | United States | $41,150 |
| 2 | Giorgi Arveladze | Georgia | $28,575 |
| 3 | Ryan Syrko | United States | $20,000 |
| 4 | Yuriy Kudrynskyy | Ukraine | $13,710 |
| 5 | Bin Weng | United States | $9,140 |
| 6 | Frank Costigan | United States | $7,430 |
Winner's Reaction
It was clear just how much the title meant to Liang, who was overjoyed once the realization of her accomplishment fully set in.
"I played hard, and just kept going," the New Jersey native explained to PokerNews after a long three-day battle, "Not just the money [is great], but to win the title."
Liang was friendly with tournament staff and appeared to have a wave of local support behind her.
"I play at Borgata all the time," she described how the home casino advantage worked in her favor today. Liang is looking forward to playing the remainder of the series at her favorite poker room.
"[The win] gives me more confidence. I will play every day."
However, the rest of today is reserved for finding a place in her home for the two massive trophies, and celebrating with her daughter.
Day 3 Action
The final six players returned for the streamed final table today with Giorgi Arveladze holding a substantial lead, while Liang came into the day in fourth place.
On one of the first hands of the day, Frank Costigan became the first casualty. He jammed 23 big blinds over an open with pocket tens, and Arveladze called with ace-king from the big blind, while the opener Yuriy Kudrynskyy folded ace-king. Nonetheless, a king would still come on the flop, and Costigan's run was cut short.
Nearly ninety minutes would pass before the next elimination, which was Bin Weng. Shortly after doubling up an opponent on a coinflip, he moved all in for his final 19 big blinds with ace-king over an open from Arveladze, who quickly called with pocket tens. A third ten came on the flop, and Weng was drawing dead on the turn as the most accomplished opponent of the final table was dispatched.
Play became cagey as the short stacks positioned themselves to ladder, while Arveladze increased his chip lead. Eventually it was Yuriy Kudrynskyy who fell in fourth place. He got his final six big blinds into the middle with king-queen, but he was outflopped by Liang's jack-six and was unable to improve.
Just a couple hands later, Ryan Syrko's run came to an end in third. He jammed his final seven big blinds with ace-three, but he ran into the pocket sixes of Arveladze, who flopped a set to send Syrko to the rail.
Heads-up play began with Arveladze holding a two-to-one advantage over Liang, but the latter would win a few small pots early to even the score.
The far most impactful hand occurred when Arveladze led the flop in a single-raised pot with an open-ended straight draw. On the turn, he jammed for over three times the size of the pot, and Liang made the call with second pair and the nut flush draw. Liang improved to trips on the river as Arveladze bricked his draw to be left on the short stack.
The very next hand, Arveladze jammed on the button with ace-four, and Liang made the call with queen-six suited. Two queens would fall on the flop, and Arveladze was drawing dead on the turn as an elated Liang was able to celebrate her title.
This concludes PokerNews's coverage of the $650 Super Deep 6-Max. Stay tuned for updates from the entirety of the Borgata Summer Poker Open, and check out our Highlight Blog in the meantime.