Badugi is a fetish event for a subsection of unique card slingers with a particular taste for lowball. Badugi is a game so far off the beaten path (think of the outer moons of Jupiter), that it requires a rare breed of player to put forth the patience and discipline needed to master its distinct skills. Very few strategy books divulge the intricacies of Badugi, so you really have to educate yourself by grinding it out and logging thousands and thousands of hands.
OK, so Badugi isn’t exactly the type of game that Hollywood will showcase in its sequel to Rounders, but Badugi has quickly become a niche event for players looking for something completely different.
Event #4-L $27 Badugi attracted 2,303 runners. The prize pool was worth $57,575 — more than double the original guarantee of $25,000. The top 288 places got a cut of the pool with $9,889.12 set aside for first place.
Notables who cashed in Event #4-L included Team PokerStars Pro Marcin “Goral” Horecki (225th), Team PokerStars Pro Lex Veldhuis (11th), Team PokerStars Online Anders “Donald” Berg (84th), Team PokerStars Online Shane “Shaniac” Schleger (29th), and Team PokerStars Online Kristian “CharismA3” Martin (15th).
With 250 players remaining, Shaniac held the chip lead for a short stint. He maintained his position near the front of the pack for a significant portion of the tournament. With 80 remaining, Shaniac and CharismA3 were hovering in the Top 24. With 50 to go, Shaniac’s table broke and he was moved to Charisma’s table. Both were hanging tough in the Top 20 overall. With 32 players remaining, Shaniac and Martin were both alive and flourishing in the Top 10, but unfortunately, their stacks began to slide.
Shaniac eliminated in 29th place
Shaniac’s run came to an abrupt halt when he was ambushed by bart3r in a three-way pot. During showdown, gfw321 won the main pot with a 6-5-3-A Badugi and bart3r mucked. gfw321 also won the side pot when shaniac mucked. Shaniac hit the road in 29th place.
CharismA3 eliminated in 15th place
CharismA3 won the last longer among PokerStars affiliated players, but unfortunately for him, he nearly missed the honor of making a cameo at the final table. During his final hand, CharismA3 and bart3r battled. The two had both stood pat by the second draw. CharismA3 was all-in and fighting for his tournament life with 9-5-2-A, but his Badugi could not beat bart3r’s 8-7-2-A Baugi.
B-Boy Bouillabaisse
Badugi final tables are eight handed. No one likes being the proverbial Bubble Boy and the fortuitous person who bubbles off the money. The only thing worse is bubbling off the final table. The final table exudes prestige, and besides, it’s where all the money is at. During the hand in question, WATP1873 made a Badugi with 10-7-6-2 while karelli showed a 3-card 7-5-3. Unfortunately, karelli from Poland was busto in ninth place.
Event #4-L Badugi Final Table Chip Counts:
Seat 1: gfw321 (268,820)
Seat 2: bart3r (1,303,927)
Seat 3: drkamikaze1 (1,208,698)
Seat 4: FreddyErt (1,694,299)
Seat 5: HALA12 (1,432,435)
Seat 6: WATP1873 (1,169,801)
Seat 7: Chillolini (4,147,100)
Seat 8: Xanoreita (289,920)
Chillolini from Norway began the final table as the overall leader.
SHAKE YOUR RUMP: gfw321 eliminated in 8th place
Short-stacked gfw321 made a stand. WATP1873 opened to 120,000, Chillolini called, gfw321 raised to 180,000, and Chillolini and WATP1873 called. During the first draw, gfw321 stood pat. WATP1873 discarded one and Chillolini discarded one. gfw321 bet 60,000, WATP1873 raised to 120,000, Chillolini bailed, and gfw321 called all-in. On the second draw and third draw, both remaining players stayed pat. gfw321 lost the hand with a Q-J-2-A Badugi. WATP1873 won the pot with an 8-7-4-A Badugi. gfw321 won $575.75 for an 8th place finish.
JOHNNY RYALL: Xanoreita eliminated in 7th place
HALA12 opened to 80,000, short-stacked Xanoreita moved all-in for 79,920, then drkamikaze1 called. On the first draw, drkamikaze1 discarded two, HALA12 discarded one, and Xanoreita discarded one. Both drkamikaze1 and HALA12 checked. On the second draw, drkamikaze1 discarded two, HALA12 discarded one, and Xanoreita discarded one. drkamikaze1 checked, HALA12 bet 160,000, and drkamikaze1 folded. On the final draw, both HALA12 and Xanoreita stood pat. HALA12 won the pot win a 7-4-3-A Badugi and edged out Xanoreita’s 8-6-5-2 Badugi. Xanoreita finished in seventh place and collected $1,151.50.
EGGMAN: bart3r eliminated in 6th place
WATP1873 opened to 200,000, bart3r raised to 300,000, WATP1873 re-raised to 400,000 and capped the betting. bart3r called. On the first draw, WATP1873 stood pat, bart3r drew one. WATP1873 bet 100,000 and bart3r called. On the second draw, WATP1873 stood pat and bart3r discarded one. WATP1873 bet 200,000 and bart3r called all-in for 97,854. On the third draw, WATP1873 stood pat and bart3r discarded one. WATP1873 won the hand with a 9-7-5-2 Badugi. bart3r only could muster up a 3-card hand of 6-4-3 and was knocked out in sixth place. Australia’s bart3r won $1,727.25.
With five players remaining, FreddyErt held the lead with 4.2 million.
HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER: HALA12 eliminated in 5th place
Shorty HALA12 made a stand and raised all-in for 202,752. drkamikaze1 called from the big blind. On the first draw, drkamikaze1 discarded two and HALA12 discarded only one. On the second draw, drkamikaze1 discarded two again and HALA12 discarded one. On the third draw, drkamikaze1 discarded one and HALA12 also discarded one. Both players failed to make a Badugi, but drkamikaze1 had a better 3-card hand with 7-4-A against HALA12’s 8-6-2. Poland’s HALA12 was sent to the rail in fifth place, collecting $2,878.75.
5-PIECE CHICKEN DINNER: WATP1873 eliminated in 4th place
The last British player bid farewell when WATP1873 was knocked out in fourth. FreddyErt raised to 280,000, WATP1873 re-raised to 420,000, drkamikaze1 capped the betting at 560,000. Both FreddyErt and WATP1873 called. On the first draw, drkamikaze1 stood pat, FreddyErt discarded one and WATP1873 also discarded one. When it came around to betting… drkamikaze1 fired out 140,000. Both FreddyErt and WATP1873 called. On the second draw… drkamikaze1 stood pat, FreddyErt discarded one, and WATP1873 stood pat. drkamikaze1 checked, FreddyErt checked, WATP1873 bet 280,00, drkamikaze1 check-raised to 560,000, FreddyErt folded, and WATP1873 called all-in for his last 236,475. On the third and last draw, both drkamikaze1 and WATP1873 stood pat. drkamikaze1 made a badugi with 8-5-4-3, which was good enough to beat WATP1873’s J-3-2-A. The UK’s WATP1873 won $4,030.25 for a fourth-place finish.
CAR THIEF: Chillolini eliminated in 3rd place
Chillolini began the final table as the leader, but with three to go, he found himself as the hunted player with the smallest stack. A raising war broke out: drkamikaze1 raised to 280,000, Chillolini re-raised to 420,000, drkamikaze1 capped it at 560,000, and Chillolini called all-in for his last 47,100. On the first draw, Chillolini stood pat and drkamikaze1 discarded one. On the second draw, Chillolini stood pat and drkamikaze1 discarded one. On the final draw, Chillolini stood pat and drkamikaze1 discarded one. Chillolini lost with a J-9-7-6 Badugi to drkamikaze1’s T-4-3-A. Norway’s Chillolini finished in third place and won $5,469.62.
Heads-Up: FreddyErt (Denmark) vs. drkamikaze1 (Canada)
Seat 3: drkamikaze1 (7,535,869)
Seat 4: FreddyErt (3,979,131)
With two to go, drkamikaze1 held the lead 7.5M to almost 4M. Action was paused briefly to discuss a deal. They agreed on an ICM deal with drkamikaze1 locking up $8,503.72 and FreddyErt guaranteed $7,880.76, along with an additional $500 set aside for first place.
WHAT COMES AROUND: FreddyErt eliminated in 2nd place
Despite the deal, the final two players fought an arduous battle that lasted a couple of hours.
The first big hand occurred when drkamikaze1 avoided an elimination and doubled up to almost 4 million. She won a pot with a 9-5-4-A Badugi against FreddyErt’s 3-card 8-3-A. drkamikaze1 seized momentum and the lead after winning a 5.5 million pot with 5-4-2-A. FreddyErt launched a counterattack and quickly regained his lost chips.
Things settled down for a level before drkamikaze1 landed a decisive blow. Against FreddyErt’s pat hand, drkamikaze1 drew two cards and made a Badugi with 8-4-3-A. It was good enough to win. The only thing FreddyErt could say was: “Really sick.”
Two hands later, it would finally be over. On the final hand, FreddyErt opened to 50,000 and drkamikaze1 called from the big blind. On the first draw, drkamikaze1 discarded two while FreddyErt only drew one card. When it came time to bet, drkamikaze1 checked, FreddyErt fired out 250,000, drkamikaze1 check-raised to 500,000, and FreddyErt called. On the second draw, drkamikaze1 discarded one card and FreddyErt discarded one as well. When drkamikaze1 bet 500,000, FreddyErt quickly called. On the third and last draw, drkamikaze1 discarded one and FeddyErt discarded one card as well. drkamikaze1 came out blazing with 500,000. FreddyErt called all-in for 391,524. FreddyErt could not improve his 3-card hand of 9-7-4. drkamikaze1 won the pot with a better 3-card hand, holding 4-3-A.
FreddyErt was knocked out in second. He won $7,880.76 for a runner-up performance. Meanwhile, Canada’s drkamikaze1 shipped the tournament and won her first ever SCOOP title. She also added a first-place prize of $9,003.72 to his bankroll.
Check out the final hand on the snazzy replayer:
Final Table Results and Payouts:
1. drkamikaze1 (Canada) – $9,003.72 **
2. FreddyErt (Denmark) – $7,880.76 **
3. Chillolini (Norway) – $5,469.62
4. WATP1873 (United Kingdom) – $4,030.25
5. HALA (Poland) – $2,878.75
6. bart3r (Australia) – $1,727.25
7. Xanoreita (Finland) – $1,151.50
8. gfw321 (Russia) – $575.75
** denotes a deal was cut between the final two players
Visit the the SCOOP home page for a complete schedule and satellite information, not to mention up to date statistics and the Leaderboard.
Back to Top
