Heads-up on a flop of 7♥8♣7♦, Wouter Beltz bet 50,000 from the button and Ryuta Nagata called in middle position.
The turn was the 3♦ and Beltz moved all in for 164,000. Nagata called with A♦J♦ for a flush draw, while Beltz had K♦K♠. The river Q♥ was safe for Beltz and he doubled up.
Brock Wilson moved all in for his last 100,000 from early position as Antonio Asaro put him at risk on the button.
Brock Wilson: A♥K♥
Antonio Asaro: Q♣Q♠
It was a classic flip, and Wilson couldn't catch up to Asaro's queens on the 7♦3♥6♠7♠J♣ board as he was sent to the rail.
At a nearby table, Dave Stann finds himself in an unfortunate position of having Stephen Song and Benny Glaser on his direct left. In his most recent hand, Stann and Glaser checked the turn on a board of 8♦3♦5♣6♠7♥ as they headed to the river with around 90,000 in the pot. Glaser then bet 115,000 from early position, and Stann called in the big blind.
Glaser turned over A♠9♥ for a rivered straight, and Stann mucked.
The PokerStars Open Barcelona Main Event is underway as part of PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona at Casino Barcelona. It has become the biggest EPT in history by prize pool after bringing in €7,251,840, thanks in part to a buy-in increase from €1,100 to €1,650.
This year's event drew 5,036 total entries — a decrease from the 7,138 players in 2024 — and 2,286 unique players representing 85 countries. The most represented countries are France and Spain, which respectively brought in 352 and 336 players, just under a third of the field.
The next most represented country is Italy with 274 players (11.99%), Germany and the United Kingdom with 94 players each (4.11%), and the Netherlands with 84 players (3.67%).
Ben Spragg
One of the biggest poker markets, the United States, is next on the list with 69 players (3.02%), followed by Sweden with 64 players (2.8%) and Brazil with 57 players (2.49%).
Other countries represented here in Barcelona include New Zealand, Kuwait, Cuba, Egypt, Slovakia, Finland, Poland, Saudi Arabia, and Taiwan.
Take a look at the nationalities represented at PokerStars Open Barcelona Main Event in the table below.
"Everyone hates jacks. Nobody can win," Martin Zamani said as he and Victor Rodriguez went heads-up to a flop of Q♠9♣10♦. Zamani bet 15,000 from early position and Rodriguez called in middle position.
Zamani bet another 30,000 on the 6♣ turn and Rodriguez again called. The river was the A♦ and Zamani moved all in. Rodriguez called for his last 110,000 and Zamani turned over 9♠8♠ for a pair of nines, but Rodriguez had A♣J♦ for rivered pair of aces to win the pot and double up.
"You slammed it down. I had to look at the board again," a tablemate told Zamani, who burst into laughter as he handed over the chips.
At another table, Andre Fjulsrud in the cutoff and Kenny Hallaert in the big blind had all their chips in the middle before the flop.
Andre Fjulsrud: 5♦5♥
Kenny Hallaert: 9♥9♣
Hallaert was ahead with his nines, and the board ran out 6♠6♦2♦2♠Q♠ to secure him the pot. The stacks were counted down and Hallaert had Fjulsrud's remaining 310,000 barely covered as the Team PokerStars pro earned the knockout.
Carlos Garcia was already all in with a short stack from the button as Jinlong Hu and Encheng Zhang built a side pot on a flop of K♦10♥4♦.
Hu then bet 30,000 from under the gun, and Zhang raised to 75,000 in the hijack; Hu called. Zhang bet another 80,000 on the Q♥ turn, and Hu again called.
Both players checked down the 4♣ river, and Zhang showed K♥Q♦ for two pair, but Hu had A♠A♥ for a rivered two pair. Garcia tossed 8♣8♠ into the muck as he made his exit, while Hu scooped the entire pot to hit the 1,000,000-chip milestone.
At a star-studded table that includes Kenny Hallaert, Benjamin Spragg, and Daniel Neilson, Jakub Sterba and Yohan Rascar had built up a pot of more than 200,000 as they went to the turn on a board of K♣J♥A♦Q♥.
Sterba then bet 115,000 from the cutoff and Rascar moved all in from the button. Sterba snap-called for 300,000 and turned over K♦K♠ for a set. "Ten," Rascar pleaded as he showed A♣3♣, but the A♠ river only improved him to a no-good trips as Sterba finished with a full house to earn the massive double up.
Tournament officials announced the prize pool for this event shortly after play began.
The 5,036 total entries generated a prize pool of €7,251,840, the largest in the history of this event. Everyone who began the day was guaranteed a min-cash of €2,550, while the champion earns €772,000.
Alejandro Castillo opened in middle position, and Alejandro Lococo moved all in for just 11,000 from the small blind to be at risk.
Alejandro Lococo: 7♠3♠
Alejandro Castillo: A♣Q♣
The flop landed 10♦9♦8♠ to give Lococo some help with a low-end straight draw, but the board finished out K♣4♦ to mark the PokerStars Team Pro's elimination.
