From the very first episode of the PokerStars Big Game on Tour, it was clear that Alan Keating would be the main catalyst for action, and the mysterious millionaire did not disappoint. He started on the wrong foot but did some catching up, finally turning the tables in the latest episode.
It was fun watching Keating do his thing and actually picking up some cards. However, one person in particular didn’t get as much enjoyment out of it, finding himself on the wrong end of several big pots. The person in question was the PokerStars Team Pro Lex Veldhuis.
Lex came into the latest session with a healthy profit and in great spirits. So far, things were going his way, and there is nothing that can perk up a poker player like a good run at the table. However, Mr. Keating was about to put a stop to it.
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Loose Image Pays Off
The first hand where Keating and Lex tangoed saw Alan opening from the cutoff with pocket sevens and picking up two callers in Veldhuis and Hellmuth. The flop came 7-3-2 with one diamond, giving Veldhuis (who held Kd4d) some backdoor draws, while Phil whiffed completely with his AK.
Alan, of course, flopped top set, and when his opponents checked, he fired a continuation bet of $2,000. Veldhuis could have simply folded here and that would be the end of it, but he got a wind of poker inspiration at the worst possible moment and raised to $9,000.
Mr. Keating was all smiles inside, sitting with the nuts, but he kept his cool and just called in position. The turn came a Kh, giving Lex top pair and officially ensuring that he could not win this hand at a showdown.
Of course, not knowing what Alan had and picking up a fair bit of equity, Veldhuis checked the turn to control the pot and maybe catch some bluffs. Keating was in no checking mood with his set, though, and he fired out for $19,000. With a top pair and against such an aggressive player, Lex called.
The river pretty much bricked out as it came Js, and once again, Lex checked. Keating decided to cash in on his loose image and made a huge overbet, moving all-in for over $103,000 effective into the pot of $59,000.
Veldhuis took a few moments, but as he later explained, he always knew he was calling. Alan’s image is so wild that it’s hard to lay down a top pair against him, and when he has it, you just have to pay him off.
Lex called, Mr. Keating tabled his set, and just like that, a quarter million pot went his way, while Veldhuis went from being up over $83,000 to start the day to stuck $50,000.
From Bad to Worse
Lex Veldhuis is a professional of the highest caliber, so he’s used to poker swings. After losing a huge hand to Keating, he bought back in for $80,000, determined to turn things around. However, the poker gods had different plans for him.
First, he managed to get all the chips in the middle with pocket kings against Keating’s AQ in a $122,000+ pot. They decided to run it twice though, and Lex lost the second run on the very last card, chopping that pot for a tiny profit.
Then, towards the end of the session, he picked up pocket kings once again, and ended up getting his entire stack in the middle against Jen Tilly on a queen-high board. Unfortunately, Tilly flopped a set of sixes, and with the last of money going in on the turn, Lex only had one card to get lucky.
The river wasn’t one of the two remaining kings though, so the PokerStars pro was felted once again for a swing of almost $240,000 on the session. He’ll be coming into the next episode with a deficit of $130,000.
As for other players, after 88 hands played, Nikki Limo, the loose cannon, is pretty much breaking even, while Jen Tilly is now the big winner with over $145,000 to the good. The slow and steady Phil Hellmuth is the only other player in the black, with $62,800 in profits.
Arden Cho and Alan Keating are on the comeback trail. Arden is now only down $7,400, while Keating still has some work to do to make up for the deficit of over $65,000, but things seem to be going in the right direction.
The next episode of The Big Game from PokerStars will air on June 1, and we expect the loose cannon will get more in the mix as her time is starting to run out. We are now over the halfway mark, and it’s time to put those chips to good use!
PokerStars The Big Game on Tour Episode #3
You can watch episode 3 below, or catch up on all the new episodes on our ultimate guide to PokerStars The Big Game on Tour, or of course by visiting the PokerStars YouTube channel.