Daniel Wu Takes Advantage of Big Mistake to Take the Chip Lead at the Final Table of the 888poker Live Madrid Main Event
A misclick helped settle the overwhelming chip leader going into the final table of the €888 888poker Live Madrid Main Event.
Sergio Garcia had built his stack up close to 3,000,000 with 12 players left and seemingly had a spot at the final table locked up when he was in the small blind and saw Mario Ramirez put in 125,000 in the cutoff. Garcia shoved to put Ramirez to a decision for his last few chips.
What Garcia didn’t notice, however, was that fellow big stack Daniel Wu had been the one to raise first from under the gun. Wu snap-called for 2,300,000, and Garcia immediately knew the calamity that had befallen him. Wu turned over two aces and beat Garcia’s fives to earn the massive double up that put him atop the leaderboard with 4,445,000.
Final Table chip counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Wu | China | 4,445,000 | 74 |
| 2 | Gorka Akerreta | Spain | 3,660,000 | 61 |
| 3 | Martin Pardo | Argentina | 2,550,000 | 43 |
| 4 | Julien Loire | France | 2,505,000 | 42 |
| 5 | Raul Gordo | Spain | 1,460,000 | 24 |
| 6 | Turlough McHugh | Ireland | 1,000,000 | 17 |
| 7 | Jorge Diego | Spain | 790,000 | 13 |
| 8 | Jake Collins | United Kingdom | 750,000 | 13 |
| 9 | Nima Jenabi | Spain | 485,000 | 8 |
Wu is followed on the final table lineup by Gorka Akerreta (3,660,000), Martin Pardo (2,550,000), and Julien Loire, who scored a double knockout of both Ramirez and Garcia to end the night with 2,505,000. Raul Gordo (1,460,000), Turlough McHugh (1,000,000), Jorge Diego (790,000), Jake Collins (750,000), and Nima Jenabi (485,000) round out the final nine who will return to battle for the trophy tomorrow at 3 p.m. local time.
Day 2 began with 111 players remaining from the first three starting flights, but the turbo Day 1d flight earlier in the afternoon and late arrivals for the first level brought the total field up to 360 by the time late registration closed. Ian Simpson’s title defense ended early, while Aaron Barone soon followed to join fellow team member Nick Eastwood in the commentary booth.
Rafi Elharar, Khossein Kokhestani, Claudio Di Giacomo, Javier Zarco, and last year’s 888poker Live Barcelona champion Pau Veciana were also among those to miss the money. Only the top 47 players would secure a payday, and Santi Crous was eliminated on the bubble when Akerreta spiked a set of eights on the turn to beat his flopped two pair.
Popular YouTuber Inaki Angulo (45th), Vivian Saliba (42nd), start-of-day chip leader Fernando Santa Maria (37th), and David Algarra (35th) were then sent to the payout desk. Lucia Navarro lost two pots with jacks when her opponents found an ace, the last to Jorge Diego to leave her with one big blind. She fell in 23rd place on the next hand.
Adrian Garcia, the 2023 champion, was eliminated in 19th place, while 2022 champion Abel Aspas got in his last 500,000 with ace-jack but ran into Akerreta’s flopped Broadway straight to bust in 16th.
Wu shoved the turn in a pot against Mario Diaz, who called for his last 700,000 with top pair. Wu had a straight draw, and completed his draw on the river to win the pot and bust Diaz in 14th place. He then took full advantage of Garcia’s mistake to rocket into the chip lead.
Borja Diaz finished fourth in this event in 2024 but had to settle for 12th this time when his sixes lost a race to Pardo. Loire then had both Ramirez and Garcia all in and spiked a pair of nines on the river to score the double knockout and set the final table lineup.
Final Table payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | €50,000 |
| 2 | €36,000 |
| 3 | €25,000 |
| 4 | €19,300 |
| 5 | €15,800 |
| 6 | €13,000 |
| 7 | €10,300 |
| 8 | €7,900 |
| 9 | €5,900 |
The action at the final table picks up with 13 minutes remaining in Level 24 with blinds of 30,000/60,000 and a 60,000 big blind ante. Levels will be extended to 60 minutes on the event’s final day. Each finalist has already locked up €5,900 for making it this far, but they’ll all be battling for the €50,000 top prize and prestigious 888poker Live trophy tomorrow.
All the action will be streamed on 888poker’s official YouTube and Twitch channels. PokerNews will also be following the action and providing updates, so come back tomorrow for the conclusion of another thrilling festival here at the Casino Gran Via.