2018 888poker Live Barcelona Smashes Numbers

The 2018 888pokerLive Barcelona event was a roaring success with guarantees easily exceeded in most events and players enjoying the location, the action and the add-on prizes. The two-week series boasted over €850K in guarantees with 14 tournaments on the schedule – including a €500K GTD Main Event.

It all kicked off on May 24, 107 at the Casino Barcelona in sunny Spain with the €100K GTD Opening Event. This tournament would set the standard for what was to come.

Kicking the Doors Open with the Opening Event 

The first event of the series was the Opening Event, which kicked off on 24^th of May. The affordably priced €220 buy-in, with a €100K GTD, drew a record 829 entries- smashing the €100K guarantee and surpassing the 720 runners in our 2017 event.

With €159,168 in prize money and €30K to be awarded to first place, it was a hard-fought battle. Final table action saw Luka Cencelj take on 888poker qualifier, Anton Malinovskii for the title.

After a deal was made, here are the final table payouts:

*denotes deal made

After taking down the title, Luka said: "The tournament was amazing, it's been a great experience that's all I can say." We’d have to agree!

High Roller Action Rolls In

Up next on the schedule was the High Roller Event, which also saw record-breaking numbers compared to the 2017 event. The €2,200 buy-in tournament also had a €100K GTD and attracted 113 entries – ballooning the prize pool to €217K.

2017’s Champ, Spain’s Ana Marquez was in the mix but fell short finishing in12th place. Our own Team888 ambassador, also put in a respectable showing taking down the 10^th spot.

However, it was 2018 PCA Champ, Maria Lampropulos who prevailed. She entered heads-up play as a 2:1 underdog but all she had on her mind was the win – and so it was to be.

Along with the title and €63K in cash, she bagged a WSOP Crazy Eights package, worth $2,700.

Next Up – The Main Event

The €1,100 buy-in event with €500K GTD Main Event attracted an astonishing 709 entries – easily surpassing 2017 numbers by over 100 players. The final prize poll was a whopping €709K with 72 places paid players and €140K scheduled for 1^st place.

Several 888poker ambassadors played this event, and they were joined by noted celebrities like FC Barcelona right -back Aleix Vidal! Twitch poker sensation, Courtney “CourtieBee” Gee made a deep run, finishing in 18^th place for €5,350.

It was a long and hard-fought event with 168 entries on Day 1A, 214 on Day 1B and 327 on Day 1C – all battling it out to make it to Day 2 and the final table. With 203 players making it to Day 2, it was destined to be a long night, but we managed to trim that number down to just 27 at the start of Day 3.

Spain’s, Joel Isla started Day 3 as chip leader and maintained that position for most of the day. As players were eliminated and we headed for the final table, action was slow and tight. Some notables to fall by the wayside were, 2017 888pokerLive ME Champ – Italy’s Luigi Andrea Shehadeh who finished in 7^th place for €16,350. 888poker freeroll qualifier to the event, Romania’s Sergiu Sirbu fell in 8^th place for €12,250.

When we got to heads-up play, Spain’s Joel Isla and Romania’s Adrian Costin Constantin were left standing – with the Spaniard holding a 3:1 chip advantage over the Romanian. After two hours of arduous play and the lead going back and forth, players agreed to a deal to take €114,025 apiece and play it out for the trophy.

Fifteen minutes later, Isla jammed all-in with J6 suited and didn't improve against Constantin's A9. Despite not winning the trophy, this was Isla's most significant cash to date.

Final Table Payouts – 2018 888pokerLive Barcelona Main Event

*Denotes heads-up deal (original prizes €140,550 for 1^st and €87,500 for 2^nd)

This year’s event was an absolute blast with players not only having great tournaments with player-friendly structures and massive guarantees to enjoy, but there was plenty of off-the-felt action as well.

Our Photo Booth with its eye-catching placards attracted loads of players – offering them a memory to take home from the event. This series was definitely one for the books – so, until next time, rungood all!