Daniel Buzgon is on an absolute tear. On March 16th, the online poker player who goes by the name leinad on BorgataPoker.com notched a $4,455 win after finishing second in the Mega Tuesday 500. That same day, he cashed in the Daily $10K for nearly $300.
The big wins come on the heels of a string of GSSS IV victories. BorgataPoker.com’s Garden State Super Series featured over $1 million in prize money and Buzgon won a nice piece of it by final tabling and cashing in a number of tournaments.
His initial first place finish came in GSSS #12, a $20,000 guaranteed NLH tournament that saw a final prize pool of $32,000. Buzgon earned $7,680. On March 4th, Buzgon topped a large field in GSSS #18 to secure the first place prize of $1,759.51. His first place wins were complemented by a number of final table appearances throughout the series. Overall, Buzgon cashed in 11 GSSS events, storming through non GSSS events throughout the series as well.
Since starting his career at BorgataPoker.com, Buzgon has racked up $162,697 at the New Jersey online poker site alone. His lifetime tournament winnings top $2.4 million at a number of international online poker sites, but today he runs his poker career from New Jersey. And for good reason.
“There is no question about it, BorgataPoker.com has the biggest tournaments and the most cash games,” notes Buzgon. “On top of that, they offer great deposit and reload bonuses and run rewarding promotions for both cash game and tournament players. I do play on the other sites but not nearly as much as I do on Borgata.”
Buzgon’s dedication to Borgata translates to the live world, too.
“The other casinos in Atlantic City just do not make poker a priority and it shows. They know they cannot compete with Borgata so they do not even try anymore.”
It turns out there’s a lot to compete with. BorgataPoker.com offers New Jersey’s biggest Sunday Major, the biggest monthly rewards program in The Grind, and the best promotions that blur the line between online play and the live world.
Chief among them are online satellites that pay out tournament seats in big land-based events, like the seasonal Borgata Poker Open events, and a weekly promotion that hands one online poker player an overnight trip to Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, just for opting in.
But despite Buzgon’s online poker tournament successes, it’s perhaps his cash game victories that are more impressive.
“For the last few years the majority of my play online is in cash games,” he notes. “The only time I usually play tournaments is on Sundays and during special series such as the Garden State Super Series. I usually play 2 to 4 hours a night, 3 to 5 times a week. I like being able to just play for an hour or two when I feel like it and not have to dedicate my whole night to play in the bigger guaranteed tournaments that run each night.”
His dedication to cash games means that Buzgon has been able to reap the rewards offered in The Grind, BorgataPoker.com’s monthly promotion that awards players with tournament tickets and cash every time they reach an iRewards Points milestone. Players can earn up to $4,500 in cash and prizes every month, just by playing poker.
“I have benefited greatly from The Grind promotion from its inception,” he says. “It gives the cash game regulars extra motivation to play as much as possible. I wish I played a little more like some of the top volume players on the site but I am still very happy with what I have earned from it.”
Buzgon got his start in the poker world just as online poker started to explode. With a major in Professional Golf Management, Buzgon spent most of his days playing golf and reserved his nights for learning how to play poker. That meant trips to Morongo Casino in California where the gambling age was 18.
After graduating, Buzgon opted to take poker more seriously. Several large online and live scores meant that Buzgon was able to stay out of the job hunt. Nine years post-graduation and he’s still playing poker for a living.
Despite his accomplishments and the success of NJ online poker players like him, there’s lots of room for more.
“It amazes me how many people still do not even know you can play online here in a regulated environment,” he notes, arguing that more players should be turning to the top online poker site in the Garden State to follow in his footsteps. “BorgataPoker.com has improved leaps and bounds since the start of regulated poker in New Jersey, while the other sites have not. Borgata has done a fantastic job in growing their satellite program to get a ton of players into their live events. The numbers continually improve each series and I predict that things will only get even bigger.”
As players across New Jersey discover just how much money can be made playing online poker in New Jersey at BorgataPoker.com, that’s a prediction that is destined to come true.