2008 PokerStars.com EPT Barcelona Open

EPT Barcelona Open Main Event
Day: 1a
1a1b234
Event Info

2008 PokerStars.com EPT Barcelona Open

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
k♣9♣
Prize
€1,361,000
Event Info
Buy-in
€8,000
Prize Pool
€4,952,000
Entries
619
Level Info
Level
29
Blinds
50,000 / 100,000
Ante
10,000
Sort

Hola

[user4144]
[user4144]
Hola... aaaaaand that's where my Spanish ends. As someone who can barely speak my own lingo, it's a relief to find that English is almost as common here as the native language. Still, that didn't stop me from getting lost this morning, but after stumbling my way through the roads of Barcelona, I finally located the coastline, and eventually my destination, the Gran Casino de Barcelona.

With our base secured here in the press room, I can't help but feel as though I'm trapped in an elevator as an array of tedious, repetitive tunes (known as Muzak - in England, at least) trickle out of the loud-speaker and pollute my ears. But that's not the worst of it as there's a grand piano lurking on the stage and I deeply fear that the Devilfish is going to tickle the ivories and belt out a few numbers. That surely would be the first bad beat of the day.

Braced and Ready for Action

[user4144]
[user4144]
It may not be the manic bedlam of season one, but it's still pretty hectic out there as three more tables have emerged to cater for the huge demand. Swedish hotshot Ramzi Jelassi revealed that he was number 31, but may be missing out by a gnat's breath unless those before him fail to turn up.

Meanwhile, a number of familiar faces are waiting patiently at their respective tables, braced and ready for action. Of those, Robert Mizrachi, Glen Chorny, David Rheem, Chad Brown, Alex Kravchenko and Rolf Slotboom are notable in their presence, as is former Eastender Michael Greco who is eagerly hoping to echo the recent success of fellow 'poker celebrity' Tony Cascarino.

Level: 1

Blinds: 25/50

Ante: 0

Who's Here?

[user25067]
[user25067]
Vanessa Rousso and Noah Boeken's seating draw created our first "Table of Death"-- the two are sporting their PokerStars swag over on Table 25. We've also spotted one of the "November Nine"-- David "Chino" Rheem as well as Greg Raymer, Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, George Danzer, Danny "THE__D__RY" Ryan, Vicky Coren, David "Devilfish' Ulliott, and Annette "Annette_15" Obrestad.

Fossilman Off to a Good Start

[user40108]
[user40108]
Greg Raymer
Greg Raymer
A middle position raiser made it 150 to play and Greg Raymer called from the cutoff seat. The button also came along and three players saw the {10-Spades} {10-Hearts} {9-Diamonds} flop. The initial raiser led out for 300 and Raymer announced "raise" as he tossed a red (T1000) chip into the center. The button folded and the middle position player wasted little time calling.

The {7-Spades} on the turn had both players quickly checking. When the {7-Clubs} hit the river, the middle position player confidently bet 1,700 only to have Raymer announce "all in" and eagerly push his remaining stack towards the middle. Fossilman's opponent quickly let it go and the 2004 world champ picked up a nice pot to start the day. He is now working with about 13,000 chips.

Tags: Greg Raymer

Multiple All-In

[user4144]
[user4144]
There are more stars than the night sky out there with Martin Wendt, Christian Grundtvig, Mark Teltscher, Christian Harder, Pascal Perrault, Jesper Hougaard and former EPT winner Reuben Peters all spotted taking their seats.

As I made my way through the tables, I thought I'd stumbled across a multiple all-in, but alas it was just a table that was catering to the latecomers/reserves. "There was a game on TV once when they gave aces to all the players," I informed Norway's Sverre Sundbo, who was waiting patiently for the action to commence. "Hey, I was in that hand," claimed Barny Boatman two seats along. "I folded on the big blind."

Two Pair Good for Annette_15

[user40108]
[user40108]
Annette Obrestad
Annette Obrestad
The under-the-gun player limped in and Annette Obrestad raised to 225 from early position. Action folded back around to the limper who called the raise and the action was heads up.

The flop came {A-Spades} {K-Diamonds} {Q-Clubs} and it was checked to Obrestad. She bet 350 and was quickly called. The turn fell the {4-Clubs} and again Obrestad's opponent let her do the betting. She tossed out 575 only to have her opponent casually slide out a raise of 1,025. Annette was still for a few moments before finally calling.

The {2-Diamonds} hit the river and it was checked to Obrestad yet again. She confidently fired a bet of 2,500 and got a relatively prompt call from her under-the-gun adversary. Annette showed {A-Hearts} {Q-Spades} for a strong two pair and her opponent mucked. She climbed to just over 14,000 on the hand.

Tags: Annette Obrestad

More Familiar Faces

[user25067]
[user25067]
The empty seats at the tournament tables are now nearly filled in as we approach the end of the first level of play. Rafe Furst and Mark Teltscher just took seats at the table housing David "Devilfish" Ulliott. Also arriving a bit tardy were Barny Boatman and the tallest man you'll ever find at a poker table, the statuesque Ed de Haas.
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