888poker LIVE Barcelona Is a Massive Success!

888poker LIVE Barcelona kicked off on 22^nd of May 2019 with the crowning tournament of the series being the €550,000 guaranteed Main Event.

With €1,000,000 in overall guarantees on the table, players had access to some of the most prestigious poker facilities in Spain – courtesy of Casino Barcelona!

The casino has the glorious Mediterranean on its front doorstep, but that’s not all there is to see in this city of culture. Just wander around the streets and down the famous La Rambla to soak in some of Europe’s most appreciated works of arts.

It was against this beautiful backdrop that 888poker held its third festival of the year – in the vibrant city of Barcelona!

Day 1A Brings Out the Team888 Pros

The first of three starting days of the 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 buy-in Main Event kicked off on 30^th May and saw four Team888 ambassadors throw their hats into the ring.

Although Day 1A usually attracts the least number of players, 109 entries made their way into the prize pool, of which 31 bagged and tagged for Day 2.

Even though the Spaniards and Italians dominated the field, our team held their own making it to Day 2. Unfortunately, Ana Marquez and Martin Jacobson weren’t so lucky on Day 1A but promised to take another shot on one of the other Day 1s.

Day 1B Results from 888poker LIVE Barcelona

Day 1 B saw another 163 entries try their hand in the second of three starting flights in the 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 buy-in Main Event. However, only 45 survived to make it to Day 2.

Estonia's Siiri Saar won the Ladies Event at the last live festival in Bucharest and bagged herself a Main Event package for Barcelona. She also advanced to Day 2.

For Team888 action, players had to wait for Day 1C where Martin Jacobson and Kara Scott took their shot at a piece of the €550,000 GTD.

Day 1C Results from 888poker LIVE Barcelona

As expected, Day 1C of the 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 Main Event was the largest – attracting a massive 270 entries!

After a succession of re-entries as players tried to seal a seat on Day 2, 81 survived to bag and tag chips with an eye on the top prize. Now, not only were players guaranteed a possible big payday, but also the winner would walk away with a WSOP Vegas package worth $12,600!

Defending champion Adrian Costin Constantin took three attempts to make Day 2 and was successful on the third bullet – making it through with 173,000 in chips.

888poker ambassador Martin Jacobson also made it to Day 2. However, the cards weren’t so fortunate to his teammates, Kara Scott and Vivian Saliba who both busted short of the money.

2019 888poker LIVE €1,100 Main Event at a glance

Day                 Date                           Time              Entries         Survivors                     

Day 1A           30^th May 2019        18:00              109                 31      

Day 1B            31^st May 2019        18:00              163                 45     

Day 1C            1^st June 2019          15:00              270                 81     

Day 2              2^nd June 2019         15:00              9                      157    

Day 3              3^rd June 2019          15:00              -                        -

With all registration days completed, a field of 551 was whittled down to 314 survivors vying for a piece of that €550,000 guarantee and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) package.

Day 2 Results from 888poker LIVE Barcelona

The penultimate day of the 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 buy-in Main Event was a long and arduous one. But, at the end of the day, 17 players were left standing out of a field of 551 entries and a prize pool that just topped the guarantee of €551,000.

888poker ambassador, Martin Jacobson, finished the day on 1,285,000 in chips. His teammate wasn’t as fortunate.

She went out in 18^th place – one off the Day 2 Bag and Tag for Day 3.

Fernando Pons raised up to 40,000 in the cut-off and Sofia moved all-in for her last 263,000 on the button. Teammate Martin Jacobson then re-raised all-in to isolate, and Pons’ card went into the muck.

Sofia’s A♦5♦ was no match for Martin’s A♣K♣ - even though Sofia dd flop a flush draw. However, it was not to be, and the river blank sent her to the rail.

Late registration remained open on Day 2, and 888poker ambassadors Ana Marquez and Vivian Saliba both took advantage of this, but both fell short and went out quickly.

Team888 ambassador also failed to make it to the dinner break and the field was soon cut in half.

In no time at all, we were down to 17 players:

Final 17 Payouts

Place  Prize              Prize                          Place               Prize               Prize

            (in EUR)        (in USD)                                              (in EUR)        (in USD)                                   

1          €110,000       $123,121                    7                      €14,000         $15,670

2          €80,000          $89,542                      8                      €11,000         $12,312

3          €55,000          $61,560                      9                      €8,500            $9,514

4          €35,000          $39,175                      10-12             €6,500            $7,275

5          €26,000          $29,101                      13-16             €5,500            $6,156

6          €19,000          $21,266                      17                    €4,700           $5,261

Day 3 Results from 888poker LIVE Barcelona

Only 17 players out of a field of 551 entries made it to the final day of reckoning at 888poker LIVE Barcelona. The ultimate winner would bag a top payout of €110,000 and a $12,600 package to the 2019 World Series of Poker Main Event courtesy of 888poker.

With a payday of €4,700 already locked up for all 17 players remaining, all eyes were on 888poker ambassador and 2014 WSOP Main Event champion Martin Jacobson who was sitting pretty in fifth place at the start of play.

Although Martin crushed pocket Aces with his pocket Queens by rivering a set, it was not to be, and he was in 12th Place for €6,500.

Results 17^th through 10^th 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 Main Event

Final Table Results from 888poker LIVE Barcelona

Final Table Results 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 Main Event

Heads-Up Results from 888poker LIVE Barcelona

When heads-up play commented between Cornelis de Jong ad Gabriele Rossi, Rossi had a dominant 7:1 chip leads.

It would remain that way for another 2 hours where very few chips were shuffled back and forth between the chipstacks.

That is until the hand that would be the end of Cornelis. Before we hammer that nail into his coffin, we should add that de Jong had won his ticket to an 888poker LIVE event online. Unfortunately for him, it was to the WPT Malta event. Due to an urgent change in circumstances, he was able to switch to the ticket to the Barcelona event.

What a stroke of luck! He was now heads-up in the Main Event with at least €80,000 in his back pocket.

Cornelis raised to 425,000 with A♦J♣, and Gabriele Rossi called with 5♣3♣. The flop was a (un)lucky one – 4♠3♠3♥. Rossi checked his monster trips, and de Jong shoved for his remaining stack.

Rossi checked his cards before making the inevitable call. The turn and river brought no relief, and we crowned another 888poker LIVE Champion – Gabriele Rossi.

Final Result 2019 888poker LIVE Barcelona €1,100 Main Event

In addition to the money, the trophy and the WSOP package, Gabriele Rossi also locks up a spot on the 888poker SQUAD at the 2019 50^th Annual World Series Main Event!

Well played, lads!

Kara Scott Wins Ladies Event

888poker Ambassador, Kara Scott, had been on a poker hiatus – if you hadn’t noticed. Well, she sure made her return known when she took down the Ladies Event at 888poker LIVE Barcelona. 

Congratulations and well played!