The East Coast crushers turned out to to the $2,200 Mid-Atlantic Poker Open Main Event at Maryland Live! Casino and Hotel and after the final pot was pushed, Frankie Zeta collected the trophy, bragging rights, and a career-high score of $145,706.
Only 47 players returned to the Maryland Live! Poker room from an original field of 367 entries for Day 2 of the Main Event — all vying for their share of the massive $718,586 prize pool. The field was lined with bracelet winners, WPT champions, and crushers from up and down the East Coast.
Frankie Zeta was the Ice Man all weekend long. 'If they give me chips, they're in trouble'
"For the time that I have been playing live poker, that six-figure score has alluded me. So it's nice to break that barrier." Zeta said, "I started playing poker, and I was chasing a four-figure score. Then you play for a little longer, and now you want a five-figure score. And then, obviously, the next step is this: a six-figure score, so yeah, it's great."
"I always joke around with my girlfriend, and say 'If they give me chips, they're in trouble,' and that's kind of what happened today."
However, he also was quick to acknowledge the luck factor of a few key hands with Austin Remmel. "Those two hands specifically, obviously very unlucky for Austin. The second one, he had the nut flush, and I just happened to have one of the only boats I would have in that spot. Playing with him for the past few days, I could tell he had a really good hand and probably wouldn't fold. Luckily, I went for the jugular there on the last one and didn't have to sweat. He called, and I tabled the winning hand."
Zeta needed some luck against Austin Remmel on his way to six figures. Zeta, who is from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, made sure to mention the importance of the PA poker community and how they have helped him. "It's grown to such an amazing community. It's amazing that in a zero-sum game where there has to be a loser, it seems like everybody is always cheering someone else on." Zeta said, "Having this community has been great, and I owe them more than I can express. They are a great group of people."
Easy game
Zeta came into the day second in chips to Maclaren Chatham, who would ultimately finish in 9th place, and although it was not a wire-to-wire victory, Zeta never really fell into the danger zone when it came to his stack.
Zeta battled through a minefield on Day 2 and was able to enter the final day of play second in chips to Brandon Hall, who finished in third place. He would win two key hands, surprisingly both with ace-jack and both against Austin Remmel, to gain a significant chip lead at the final table on the third day. Remmel fell in fifth, and it was a big stack masterclass from Zeta for the remainder of the event.
Brandon Hall parlayed a Day 3 chip lead into a third place finish. His three-bets seemed to get through uncontested, he found jams on the button at the most opportune times, and Zeta never fell out of the chip lead despite losing a pot here and there. Zeta rode with the vibes of the table and mentioned that it was a good mix of local guys that he knew well.
Zeta won the final flip after around 10 hands of heads-up play with king-queen against the pocket eights of his opponent, Semsettin Ilyes. He was pushed the final pot as the MAPO Main Event Champion for a career-high score of $145,706.
Mid-Atlantic Poker Open final table results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Zeta | $145,706 |
| 2 | Semsettin Ilyas | $97,125 |
| 3 | Brandon Hall | $71,275 |
| 4 | Joseph Crowley | $53,970 |
| 5 | Austin Remmel | $39,870 |
| 6 | Aaron Pinson | $30,400 |
| 7 | Valentin Lita | $23,470 |
| 8 | Alan Gendelman | $18,370 |
| 9 | Maclaren Chatham | $14,570 |
