For the second day running here at the start of the 71-event European Poker Tour Barcelona festival, the day’s highest buy-in event is of the non-hold’em variety. These events doubly appeal to a certain, significant category of poker players, namely those who prefer less trafficked variants and also putting a little more on the line.
Yesterday the €5K razz event — the third largest buy-in live razz tourney ever — was the attraction for these players, with 14 of them taking part and Russia’s Andrey Zhigalov proving victorious.
Today comes the €5K 8-game (Event #13), and to it has come a considerably bigger group of mixed-game aficionados. A total of 29 players are taking part, creating a €140,650 prize pool to be divided among the top five finishers, with a €52,040 prize awaiting the winner.
Adam Owen, who finished second in yesterday’s razz event to Zhigalov, is playing, as is third-place finisher Matt Grapenthien. Meanwhile Sebastien Sabic, the high-stakes online player (who goes by “Seb86” on PokerStars), is also part of the field.
The star of the Nosebleed documentary picks his spots when it comes to live events — in fact, this is only Sabic’s second EPT — although he’s done well in mixed events at the WSOP, picking up numerous cashes in H.O.E., H.O.R.S.E., 2-7 triple draw, and other non-HE games.
Also in action are representatives of the red spade, including Naoya Kihara of Team PokerStars Pro Online who owns a WSOP bracelet in short-handed pot-limit Omaha.
The room is located just a short walk away from the main poker room that is currently filled with Estrellas Main Event Day 1B players. We’ll be checking in down there to see who emerges from this small, strong field in to collect the 8-game trophy.
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Martin Harris is Freelance Contributor to the PokerStars Blog.
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