Alan Keating Makes Epic Hero Call Vs. Doug Polk for $657k Pot on High Stakes Poker
Alan Keating doesn't like to fold, a lesson Doug Polk paid the price to learn in a viral hand during Saturday's High Stakes Poker livestream on PokerGO.
The game, an intro to the upcoming Season 15, featured some of the most entertaining high rollers in the game, including Jennifer Tilly, Andrew Robl, Santhosh Suvarna, Cary Katz, Sam Kiki, and Justin Gavri. Hundreds of thousands of dollars traded hands throughout nearly six hours of $200/$400 no-limit hold'em with straddles in play. Numerous monster pots transpired, but the one that is receiving most of the attention involved Keating and Polk, and for good reason.
Keating is a Sticky Poker Player
The hand started with Polk, co-owner of The Lodge Card Club in Texas, raising to $4,000 from the button with K♠7♠. Gavri, holding A♥J♥ in the small blind, went for a three-bet to $20,000.
Keating, as already mentioned, isn't a fan of folding, so he came along for the ride with 4♠2♠ in the small blind. Polk came back over the top with a re-raise to $75,000. That forced Gavri to fold the best hand. But, again, Keating had two cards in his hand, so he made the call to see a flop of Q♦5♥4♣.
Action checked to the button who fired out a contiuation bet of $35,000, to which his opponent called with bottom pair. The turn was the J♣, which didn't help either player. Keating checked a second time, and again refused to fold his tiny pair after facing a $70,000 wager. Neither player would improve on the 3♥ river.
Keating checked one last time, and Polk, who had $137,000 behind, knew he couldn't win the hand at showdown. The three-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner who made one of the best folds in High Stakes Poker history against Phil Hellmuth in Season 8, wasn't about to surrender the massive pot, not even against the sticky Keating. He moved all in, putting his opponent in a tough spot. But Keating, the Hustler Casino Live fan favorite, made the brilliant hero call and took down a pot worth $657,200.
The play wasn't even Keating's best hero call on High Stakes Poker. He took down a $911,000 pot during Episode 6 of Season 14 with 9♦7♦ on a board of A♣7♠K♠6♥4♥ when he called a $235,000 river bet from his nemesis, Peter Wang, who had 8♠6♣.
Keating is also the recipient of the largest pot in High Stakes Poker history — $1.4 million — which he won during Season 14. PokerGO will host a second and final High Stakes Poker livestream starting at 4 p.m. PT on Sunday.
*Feature image courtesy of PokerGO.
