The 2025 Borgata Fall Poker Open is well underway with the popular multi-flight, $600,000 guaranteed Almighty Kick Off event. Six Day 1 flights built a field of 1,829 entrants – easily smashing the guarantee.
Eleven hours of play trimmed the field from 231 to a final table. BetMGM Poker qualifier and Borgata regular Vinny Pahuja finished way out in front of the field with 53 million.
Just Another Day at the Office
“I ran really good today; I had a spot where I had two outs with one card to come and hit it,” said Pahuja. “A couple of times I got in bad and got there, which is what you need to do in tournaments.”
“I’ve been playing here for over a decade and a half now,” he added. “I know everyone here and that’s such a huge comfort level for me. I have so much experience with people who don’t take poker seriously, and that gives me a big advantage.”
Another six figures? “There’s still a long way to go and things can change quickly,” he said. “I’ll think about another six-figure score if I get short-handed.”
Daniel Kusnerak leads the chase pack with 24 million and Eric Siegel might rival Pahuja in hours played at Borgata.
Saturday saw 231 players return in the money to Day 2. The enormous field generated a $951,000 prizepool, each finalist locks up $11,760, and the winner earns $150,570 on only a $600 buy-in.
Final Table Chip Counts
- Vinny Pahuja – 53,200,000
- Daniel Kusnerak – 24,000,000
- Muarem Kica – 20,600,000
- DeeAngelo Seng – 19,800,000
- Chris Basile – 15,300,000
- Coleem Chestnut – 14,800,000
- Jhordy Sanchez – 14,400,000
- Eric Seigel – 13,100,000
- Anthony Chin – 7,900
Pot Limit Omaha Championship
Event 4: $1,100 Pot Limit Omaha Championship was the first two-day, bigger buy-in event on the schedule. The $50,000 guarantee was easily doubled with 116 entrants,15 levels of play trimmed the field to 14 players, and Dongwuk Moon leads the field.
Moon has been a fixture in Borgata’s Mixed Game tournaments for the past few Opens, but also plays in the large field, no-limit hold ’em events.
Sanjit Bhatia is close behind with 707,000 and East Coast legend Will Failla sits middle of the field. Failla won the 2015 Borgata Summer Poker Open for $283,301 and cashed for another $500,000 in the building.
They’ll resume to play down to a winner on Sunday and award the title.
Day 2 Payouts
- 1st – $30,440
- 2nd – $19,630
- 3rd – $13,505
- 4th – $9,585
- 5th – $7,140
- 6th – $5,740
- 7th – $4,870
- 8th – $4,170
- 9th – $3,570
- 10-11 – $3,085
- 12-15 – $2,795
BetMGM Online Hybrid Championship
Sunday sees the start of the $1,000 BetMGM Online Hybrid Championship featuring a $300,000 guarantee. Players from Pennsylvania, Michigan, or New Jersey are eligible, and the final six players travel to Borgata for a live-streamed final table on Saturday, Nov. 15.
Each finalist receives a two-night hotel stay on property from Nov. 14-16. Players also receive a $500 travel stipend deposited directly into their online account. When the live final table kicks off, blinds will be adjusted to 40 minutes.
A look at the BetMGM Poker lobby 24 hours before the start of play showed 20 players already registered for the event.
Borgata Fall Poker Open Champions
The first no-limit hold ’em mini-Borgata trophy came down to a six-way chop with Alexander Grossi taking home new mantle hardware in Event 2: $250 Deep, Deeper, Deepest Series.
Grossi, Hang Nguyen, Kevin Stachelrodt, Amir Zaken, Robert Brower, and Justin Munoz defied all odds and agreed to an even chop. They opted to end the tournament before midnight as each player planned to play Friday’s flights of the Almighty Kick Off.
Two more Mixed Game Series trophies were awarded in Event 3: $500 HORSE and Event 4: $500 TORSE. They pulled from the same field of players with 57 entrants in HORSE and 44 in the TORSE.
Frank Leeser won the HORSE title for $8,510, defeating Borgata Mixed Game regular Filippos Stavrakis. Arash Asadabadi raised the TORSE trophy as dawn threatened the Jersey shore with a heads-up chop with Leonard Kriss. The champion won $5,855 and Kriss took a single bill less with $5,850 going his way.
Find More Borgata Fall Poker Open Coverage Here:
- Mike Dentale Leads Main Event Warmup, Filippos Stavrakis Owned Mixed Game Series
- Darren Elias Wins Borgata Fall Poker Open’s Deuce To Seven Championship
- Borgata Poker’s Century Club – The Ballad of Eric Siegel
- DeeAngelo Seng Wins Almighty Kick Off, Final Table Set for Hybrid Championship
- The 2025 Borgata Fall Poker Open Welcomes Players with a Refreshed Experience
- BetMGM Poker Begins Online Qualifiers For Borgata Fall Poker Open Tournament
Play Now
Join the action of the Borgata Fall Poker Open online at BetMGM Poker. There is even a poker welcome bonus, just for new players.
Photo credit: Poker.Org
