Friday, 29th March 2024 00:09
Home / Uncategorized / 2010 PCA: Main Event final table profiles
PCA-2010-thumbnail.jpg

The final table of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure is a collection of some of the best talent in poker. Among the finalists is a two-time WCOOP winner and WSOP-E champion.

The final table will begin at the 40,000/80,000/10,000 level and playing for the following prizes.

1. $2,200,000
2. $1,750,000
3. $1,350,000
4. $1,000,000
5. $700,000
6. $450,000
7. $300,000
8. $201,300

Here are your final eight players.

Seat 1: Zac Goldberg, 21, New York, USA – PokerStars player – 2,340,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73138.jpg

Like nearly everyone at this year’s PCA final table, Goldberg plays a lot of online poker although not full time as he’s currently studying finance at the University of Arizona. He started playing poker at 16 in home games with friends. He says he loves playing live tournaments although he prefers playing cash games when he’s online. He bought in to the PCA through PokerStars and said it’s the first time he has ever bought in directly into a major live event. He hasn’t had any big live results but came second in a $160 online tournament with a $15,000 guarantee.

Seat 2: Ryan “G0lfa” D’Angelo, 24, Binghamton, New York – PokerStars qualifier – 10,090,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73095.jpg

D’Angelo has been a professional poker player for three years and has already had some remarkable results. He is one of only three players to win two WCOOP events in one series, picking up bracelets in the 8-game and the mixed pot limit hold’em/pot limit Omaha events last year. D’Angelo has played on the European Poker Tour but the PCA marks his first cash in a $10,000 buy in tournament. His best live result came at the World Series in 2008, where he came third in the $2,000 no limit hold ’em tournament, the bracelet eventually won by Alex Gomes. D’Angelo was down to 5,000 early on in the tournament, and was all-in at one point. But he rallied and bagged up 90,000 that night. Then came a roller coaster day two before things began to get better and better. “I’ve been running ridiculous,” said D’Angelo. “Coin flips, hitting flops, everything. It’s been up, up, up from day two.”

Seat 3: Aage Ravn, 24, from Narvik, Norway – PokerStars qualifier – 1,690,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73098.jpg

It might not be that warm in the Bahamas right now but in Norway, it’s -20°C – another good reason for Ravn to be here at the PCA and not back home in Narvik. The 24-year-old IT consultant won his trip to the Bahamas in a $100 re-buy satellite on PokerStars and immediately set about selling a percentage of any winnings by posting up appeals on a Norwegian poker forum. He managed to sell 20% of himself over the Christmas holidays including two percent to Johnny Lodden who told him: “You had better make it count!” Now guaranteed to win at least $201,300, Ravn has certainly done that. This is only his second major tournament. The first he played was a side event on the European Tour in Copenhagen during season four. He won it, earning $40,000.

Seat 4: Tom Koral, 26 from Chicago, Illinois – PokerStars player – 5,370,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73100.jpg

Koral has been playing poker for more than six years. He initially deposited $75 online and managed to turn that into six figures within a year. He has not recorded a losing year since. He now has more thatn $600,000 in live tournament winnings but the $201,300 he’s guaranteed at the PCA marks his best individual performance, surpassing the $126,120 he picked up for a second place finish at a WSOP circuit event. Koral plays tournaments just for fun and can normally be found sitting at the Omaha hi/lo or mixed games tables online. Away from the table Tom likes to travel and play golf. His family were here with him but have already flown home, replaced in the stands by his girlfriend who flew in to support him at the final table.

Seat 5: Harrison Gimbel, 19, from Jupiter, Florida – 6,000,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73143.jpg

Gimbel won his seat into the PCA main event in a $1,000 live satellite the day before the tournament began. This is already his best live result to date but he has won several online tournaments and in June he took down the 2009 Florida State Poker Championships at Isle Casino in Pompano Beach for $67,860. He recently won $40,000 for a sixth place finish in the PokerStars Sunday Million. If he manages to win the PCA, he will be the youngest ever champion in the tournament’s seven year history. He started playing poker when he was 13, tagging along to home games with his older brother.

Seat 6: Barry Shulman, 63, Las Vegas, USA – 6,805,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73109.jpg

Before October this year, the former real estate developer was probably best known as the owner of CardPlayer magazine and being the father of Jeff Shulman who – at the time – was a member of the November Nine. Then came the World Series of Poker Europe event in London which Shulman won, beating Daniel Negreanu heads-up. That gave Shulman a £801,603 payday with son Jeff adding to the family coffers in November by coming fifth in the WSOP for $1,953,452. Before London, Shulman’s best result had been the Bellagio Five Diamond Classic in 2003 for $234,798. Since buying CardPlayer 11 years ago, the Shulmans have managed to up circulation to 60,000 and website visits from 800 a day to 16,000.

Seat 7: Benjamin “xthesteinx” Zamani, 23, Boca Raton, Florida – PokerStars qualifier – 3,700,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73129.jpg

Zamani is a 23 year-old, full-time poker pro who started playing poker in high school with his friends. He only plays only no limit hold ’em tournaments but when he plays cash he likes to play pot limit Omaha. Zamani has had numerous wins online and has played around 50 live poker tournaments. His best result to date was coming tenth in a $5,000 WSOP tournament last year.

Seat 8: Tyler “puffinmypurp” Reiman, 21, Morton, Illinois – PokerStars qualifier – 9,350,000 chips

2010PCA_10KMainEvent_Day5_JoeGiron_IJ73124.jpg

Tyler Reiman won the first 10 million pot at this year’s PCA, flopping a queen with pocket queens to beat John Duthie’s aces. Reiman never relinquished the advantage and he heads into the final in second place. Reiman also cashed at last year’s PCA – 132nd place for $12,500 as well as on the European Poker Tour in London, where he came 29th for £13,052. He’s well known online and has a string of good tournament results including $104,000 for winning a $1,000 event with more than 400 runners.

Study Poker with Pokerstars Learn, practice with the PokerStars app