2008 Borgata Poker Open



The stars of the poker world (and the PokerRoad crew) reconvened in Atlantic City this September for the 2008 Borgata Poker Open, a staple on the World Poker Tour since Season Two.

The $9,600 + $400 buy-in main event attracted 516 players and had a guaranteed prize pool of $5,000,000.

The typically pro-heavy Borgata Poker Open did not disappoint, with many big name players making it deep in the event including, Ted Forrest, Steve Dannenmann, Thayer "Thay3r" Rasmussen, Nam Le and Chris Bell, all of whom made it into at least the final twenty-five.

Given all the pros in attendance, the final table of the Borgata Poker Open did not have quite as much star power as expected, but there were still a few well known players in the hunt including Mark Seif, Dan Heimiller, and Vivek “Psyduck” Rajkumer.

Rajkumer, a highly successful online poker player, appeared on PokerRoad Radio during the week and CEO Joe Sebok was so taken by him that he dubbed Rajkumer his “favorite little online guy” (FLOG) and demanded that “FLOG” be his new nickname. It was unclear whether Rajkumer wanted to be known as “FLOG” but he wasn’t complaining about it, especially since he had just been handed a fortune cookie from the guys that said, “You may lose the small ones, but win the big ones.” Vivek took this to be a good omen, and kept the fortune with him throughout the final table, until winning the event by defeating Sang Kim heads-up for a first place prize worth $1,424,500.

The final table of the Borgata Poker Open made history that night, not by paying the most or by lasting the longest, but by finishing the fastest. Vivek entered the final table first in chips with 6,480,000 and, despite old school pro Mark Seif nipping at his heels in second place with 4,665,00, he wasted little time in dispatching all of his opponents. It only took “FLOG” forty-eight hands to emerge victorious, which was probably a welcome relief to the WPT camera crews, who have gotten use to long nights ever since the WPT changed their tournament structures to allow for more skill.

The final results for the World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open were as follows:

1st. Vivek (a.k.a “Psyduck”, "FLOG") Rajkumar - $1,424,500
2nd. Sang Kim - $750,000
3rd. Dan Heimiller - $387,500
4th. Jason Strochak - $337,500
5th. Mark Seif - $287,500
6th. Andrew Knee - $237,500

You may notice none of the PokerRoad crew on that list. Worry not, they’re not discouraged and redemption as always may be right around the corner at their next stop, the North American Poker Championship.