It’s hard not to look ahead to the next few weeks for the excitement coming across the upcoming tournaments here at PokerStars. You got the 6th anniversary of the original Sunday Major, the Sunday Million bigger and badder with a $6,000,000 guarantee and someone walking away with seven figures. Then, those of us small-stakes players will get to shine like those in tonight’s $500,000 guarantee Sunday Warm-up while playing in the MicroMillions. In ten days just eleven cents is enough to potentially get you a seat at a final table that could be worth thousands. Not bad for pocket change found a coffeehouse floor. Tonight’s Sunday Warm-up carried a little higher price tag at $215 which 3,770 players probably did not find on the floor of a Starbucks but they all got an equal chance of finishing the top 540 places for a slice of the $754,000.00 prize pool.

Down to just over 30K in tournament chips, the last Red Spade standing Team Online’s Javier “El_Cañonero” Dominguez would enjoy a slight double up with just four-nine offsuit, then a triple up to nearly 200K after winning a three-way all-in holding pocket kings against linnna’s suited Ace-eight and super_proper’s big slick to get back into tournament contention with 145 players left and 6K/12K ante 1,200. A race against Polizischt’s big slick while still in the 6K/12K ante 1.2K level would push the Spanish online pro over 400K as the number of players left tumbled to two digits. Just before the blinds moved up to 10K/20K ante 10K Dominguez would try to throw around the weight of his newly found stack but it would find some resistance in the form of tamikaspace. Starting out with a min-raise to 30,000 from the small blind, tamikaspace would three-bet to 73,280 from the big blind. Javier sensing a little weakness would shove for 376,158 total as tamikaspace covered and made the call holding Q♣ A♣ . Javier was also suited but trailing with the J♠ 6♠ . No spades on the 9♥ 3♣ 5♦ 10♦ A♦ board and the Team Online member was pushed to the rail in 83rd place ($1,131.00) cashing in the Sunday Warm-up for the second consecutive week.

tamikaspace would run away with the chip lead for almost two hours after eliminating Dominguez but handed that lead off to auercan of Turkey after finishing in 22nd place ($1,922.00). auercan would take the lead going into the final two tables as the only player over four million chips holding 6,041,518 as the players took a five minute rest before coming back to the 40K/80K ante 8K level.

2NDclass: “id b surprised if your computer is still in one piece” after watching Lenya Summer take a second bad beat. The first one was doled out by 2NDclass himself spiking a six with pocket sixes all-in preflop against Lenya’s pocket kings for a two million chip pot. Then, ok72 with ace-six would shove a short stack from middle position only to get called by Lenya’s ace-jack. Sixes? Not Lenya Summer’s favorite number after two of them appeared on the flop to knock the German down to under a 100,000 chips and blinds at 50K/100K ante 10K. Never fear, Lenya would double up three times to rally to almost 800K in chips as Charibert on the other table fell in 18th place ($2,262.00).

kurt23x’s trip nines would send short stacked maaarcel out in 17th place ($2,262.00) and the bad beats kept coming on Table 74 as TESIK and ok72 pitched in their short stacks for a 1.7 million chip pot and TESIK’s Q♠ A♦ would find a queen on the flop and another on the river 8♥ J♦ Q♥ 7♠ Q♦ to beat out ok72’s big slick K♠ A♠ who finished in 16th place ($2,262.00) narrowly missing out another big final table as ok72 took sixth place during Event #30 at this year’s inaugural Turbo Championship of Online Poker (TCOOP). Tryboom would finish in 15th place shortly before Lenya Summer’s run would finally end in 14th place ($3,393.00).

CesarSPA has several Major final tables here at PokerStars including the Sunday Million in November which he took home sixth place for $44K tonight’s run would end short of a final table however trying to squeeze queen-jack offsuit past the pocket kings of A-laursen and finishing in 13th place ($3,393.00). After hansapils82 and torkolort1 finished in 11th and 12nd place respectively (both earning $4,524.00) the hand-for-hand notices popped up on both tables as the blinds held at 80K/160K ante 16K.

A tough final table bubble to burst as 15 minutes of hand-for-hand play would float by as well as blinds moving up to 100K/200K ante 20K as none of the final ten were willing to give up their shot at the $118,378.00 first place prize. Two hands into the new blinds and TESIK was backed into a corner holding just 627,248 chips and in the small blind. danita332789 was happy to apply more pressure min-raising from the cutoff as TESIK would shove holding 10♠ A♣ . Back to danita332789 looking down at K♥ 8♥ making the math call and was rewarded with a king on the flop 2♦ 5♦ K♣ 9♦ 3♦ to take down the 1.5 million chip pot sending TESIK off on the final table bubble in tenth place ($4,524.00) and starting up the final table below:

Seat 1: A-laursen (6582251 in chips)
Seat 2: danita332789 (5539151 in chips)
Seat 3: matilla87 (1776076 in chips)
Seat 4: hmd78 (2412920 in chips)
Seat 5: auercan (6076494 in chips)
Seat 6: kurt23x (3682592 in chips)
Seat 7: LaurisL91 (4635188 in chips)
Seat 8: Pokerfan89Gr (4252546 in chips)
Seat 9: 2NDclass (2742782 in chips)

Worth the wait

In what might be a first for this tournament, we would not lose our first player at the final table until the 150K/300K ante 30K level. danita332789 would start the betting with a min-raise from UTG+1 as Pokerfan89Gr would shove from the small blind for 1.54 million. Holding a small suited ace 2♥ A♥ and not much more to call, danita332789 would do just that up against the pocket queens Q♥ Q♦ of Pokerfan89Gr. No rivered ace excellent or disappointment depending on the side you are rooting for as the ace hit the flop along with a two 3♠ A♦ 2♣ 8♠ K♣ to end Pokerfan89Gr’s night in ninth place ($6,032.00).

And there’s the ace in a familiar place

Right before the blinds were scheduled to move up, Danita332789 and A-laursen got together preflop for a 5.6 million chip pot. Check out below as the ace on the board lands in a well-known place:

Ace on the river helped danita332789’s K♠ A♥ overcome A-laursen’s pocket kings K♣ K♥ to knock out A-laursen in eighth place ($9,425.00).

2NDclass earns a 1st class paycheck

Up to 200K/400K ante 40K blinds and 2NDclass clinging on to 2.01 million chips, shoved from middle position as matilla87 made sure no one else wanted in by re-raising to four million. No takers as matilla87 rolled over Q♦ A♣ which dominated the 6♦ A♥ held by 2NDclass. Two pair on the board negated the domination 5♥ 4♦ 4♠ 5♣ , but the Q♥ did not as 2NDclass will now have the funds for a upgrade finishing in seventh place ($16,965.00).

From “do you want a deal?” to the biggest pot of the tournament

Still in the 200K/400K ante 40K blind level, matilla87 tried to squeeze in a six-way deal attempt, but kurt23x and LaurisL91 were too busy shoving their chips into the middle as auercan, who made a min-raise from the button, folded to BOTH blinds shoving. Pocket fours 4♥ 4♣ for kurt23x as LaurisL91 covered and turned up tens 10♦ 10♣ . Despite picking up four more outs on the turn, kurt23x watched the harmless jack fall on the river 3♠ 5♥ Q♥ 7♣ J♥ to end the night in sixth place ($24,505.00).

After the long wait the field trimmed once again

While it took 20 minutes into the final table to get people to leave, only a few minutes would separate the eliminations in the 200K/400K ante 40K level. auercan again came in with a min-raise from the button as danita332789 with 3.72 million would shove from the small blind holding A♠ 10♣ hoping to pick up some dead chips. Instead auercan was more than happy to call with the dominating A♣ J♣ . Both players would pair their kicker 4♥ 7♠ J♥ 10♠ 3♥ but the preflop lead held as danita332789 would exit in fifth place ($32,045.00).

Back-to-back for auercan

The aggressive player from Turkey continue his tear on the final table on the very next hand making a call from the big blind as hmd78 tried open shoving from the small blind. auercan only held a small ace 2♠ A♣ but found himself in the lead over hmd78’s 9♣ K♦ . Neither player found a card connecting theirs on the 6♠ J♣ 6♥ 7♣ 4♣ board as hmd78 used his stealthy ways to earn a fourth place finish ($43,355.00).

Costly non-deal

Down to three players the threesome tried to connect with each other emotionally and financially but tonight there would be no hugs of congratulations as the players used their five minute hourly break for nothing but a busted deal attempt and play would roll on. auercan would score a major hit on the chip leading LaurisL91’s stack after raking in a 23.6 million chip pot when the two shoved preflop and LaurisL91 leading with big slick A♣ K♣ against auercan’s Q♣ J♣ . But a straight by the turn 9♣ 4♣ 10♥ 8♦ J♦ would shift all power to auercan. 12 hands later auercan would scoop up the rest of LaurisL91’s chips as Lithuanian took home third place ($62,205.00). Perhaps LaurisL91’s previous experience at a major final table had some sway into the non-deal as he was the runner-up in the Sunday Million back in November for $178K.

Now we can hug it out

With LaurisL91 gone, the remaining two would get right to sending verbal kisses across the chat box and quickly came to the deal shown below (leaving aside $10,000 for the winner):

aurecan: $102,869.69
matilla87: $93,726.31

You can’t beat luck

auercan holding a 27.9 million to matilla87’s 9.7 million would put away the tournament just seven hands after agreeing to the deal. Check out the final hand below:

Getting the money in behind again, as auercan held K♦ 9♦ to matilla87’s big slick A♦ K♠ but the board was in favor of auercan once again as a nine would hit the door and turn 9♠ 10♠ Q♥ 9♣ K♥ to hand auercan the extra $10,000.00 and claim this week’s Sunday Warm-up title!

$500,000 guarantee Sunday Warm-Up results (03-04-12):
(* denotes part of two-way deal)
1. auercan (Turkey) *$112,869.69
2. matilla87 (Spain) *$93,726.31
3. LaurisL91 (Lithuania) $62,205.00
4. hmd78 (Germany) $43,355.00
5. danita332789 (Greece) $32,045.00
6. kurt23x (Costa Rica) $24,505.00
7. 2NDclass (United Kingdom) $16,965.00
8. A-laursen (Denmark) $9,425.00
9. Pokerfan89Gr (Greece) $6,032.00

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