While walking thru the Bellagio a few years ago to check out the fabled poker room and the back room where the big game is played with chips denominations that equal my yearly income, there was a need to at least watch a live mixed game played. Fleeting thoughts of mortgaging the house to afford the big blind or maybe fourth street in Stud would have ended with my wife taking my laptop, golf clubs, and half my 401K. But, halfway to Bobby’s Room was a gold plate with the word “Badugi 20/40” on it. The dealer would deal the players four-cards each but with no understanding other than the massive betting going on and the knowledge that this was a game to learn due to its potential profit.

Fast forward to today as Badugi has firmly entrenched itself into the list of mixed games being offered here at PokerStars, more and more players have started to play this draw variant. Take for instance the size of the field in tonight’s Event #4 $16.50 buy-in, $25,000 guaranteed SCOOP tourney. 2,408 players with at least the basic knowledge of the game ponied up the cash, breaking the guarantee and creating a $36,120 prize pool.

Two Team PokerStars pros managed a very deep run against this massive field. Anders “Donald” Berg who I’m sure is more at home at the O8 table took 59th place ($72.24) while The Flying Dutchman, Marcel Luske hung on until 41st place ($90.30).

Down to two tables which took over 11 hours to reach, we had a micro-stacked MrP0P all-in after paying the blind due to a missed draw on the previous hand which forced him to fold. With just 9,672 chips and blinds at 60K/120K MrP0P was all-in and drawing one card thru all three draws as the big blind held by pothog took three cards twice, two on the final draw and managed to hit a ten-high badugi 10♠ 2♦ A♥ 4♣ while MrP0P failed to improve Q♦ 10♦ 7♣ A♠ and MrP0P fizzed out in ninth place ($243.81), setting up the final table below:

Seat 1: pothog (1012502 in chips)
Seat 2: Nick123 (375982 in chips)
Seat 3: Fyodor (2988129 in chips)
Seat 4: Kinderboy (953423 in chips)
Seat 5: Don denito (568208 in chips)
Seat 6: molotov (2566758 in chips)
Seat 7: hellhound (2330188 in chips)
Seat 8: plutoman20 (1244810 in chips)

Since this is a limit tourney there would be no splashing the pot and sudden eliminations, rather subtle displays of aggression by representing a hand. During the 80K/160K blind level we would have our first departure from the final table. Don denito came into the final table on the short side of chips and would start the hand with just 1.5 big blinds. Open raising from middle position, Don denito was hoping to pick up some sorely needed chips, instead Nick123 woke up with a hand and three-bet while Don denito put the rest of the stack in the middle before the first draw. Both would take one card a piece on each draw but it would be Nick123 turning over a seven-high badugi 3♥ 6♦ 7♣ 2♠ while Don denito couldn’t fill in a five high draw and was left with a three-card five Q♦ 2♥ 4♦ 5♠ . 576,416 chips were slid over to Nick123 as Don denito swam with the poker fishes in eighth place ($334.11).

Nick123 wasn’t done there as seven hands later with the blinds still at 80K/160K he would notch another big pot and send someone packing. Nick123 three-bet a raising pothog as the in initial aggressor backed off and just called. Both would take one card as pothog would check-call Nick123’s bet. Second draw, both again took one card as pothog checked with Nick123 continuing to bet but this time with just a little more than a big bet left pothog would check-raise as Nick123 called the extra 29,079. Both would take another card on the third draw as pothog exposed a three-card ten A♦ K♦ 2♠ 10♣ but Nick managed to keep a three-card six 4♣ 6♦ 2♥ 7♥ for the win and the 1,018,158 chip pot. pothog however with zero chips was sent back to the pen with $685.91 earned in seventh place.

Missed draw but still wins.

Usually if you miss you draw in any poker variant, rapping the table and either rebuying or saying good night comes immediately afterwards. Nick123 was knocked down a few notches after missing a draw against Kinderboy who took a 1.3 million chip pot of him. Then five hands later Nick123 capped pre-draw against plutoman as both would draw one. Only 2,405 chips remained with Nick123’s name on them and they were tossed in on the second draw as both players again drew one. Neither hit and drew again while both turning over strong three-card hands, Nick123 held 2♠ A♥ 6♣ 5♠ for a three-card six as plutoman20 had a wheel draw A♦ 8♠ 2♣ 3♠ but the perfect three card hand was good enough for the 954,810 chip pot, taking out Nick123 in sixth place ($1,083.60).

Kinderboy finds several kind draws.

It was a matter of survival but Kinderboy would be all-in several times after Nick123 took leave and managed to survive each time and even become one of the chip leaders. As the blind moved up to 120K/240K it would be molotov sitting in with just 266,784 chips after two straight hands of missing draws against Fyodor and hellhound. With just over a big blind left, molotov would open raise and get three-bet by hellhound who wanted to finish the deal. molotov would make the call as both players took one card for each of their three draws. molotov’s 3♠ K♣ A♣ 4♥ three-card 4,3,A would have been good for the 713,568 chip pot but hellhound found the fourth suit on the third draw completing a ten-high badugi 10♦ 4♣ 2♠ 3♥ for the winning hand. The molotov cocktail finally exploded but thanks to some patience and good poker play, took home $1,806.00 in fifth place.

hellhound wants your chips and your soul.

Fyodor quietly hung around the tournament but as the missed draws piled on, the chip stack was shrinking rapidly. Down to under four big blinds, Fyodor decided to go with a decent three card hand. In three-way action, hellhound raised with blinds at 140K/280K, followed by plutoman20 making the call, Fyodor three-bet and both hellhound and plutoman20 would call. On the first draw, plutoman20 and Fyodor took one card as hellhound acquired two new cards. plutoman20 would check as Fyodor bet and was raised by hellhound. That got plutoman20 to abandon his draw as Fyodor three-bet all-in for 116,722 more and hellhound again made the call. Both would take a card on the second draw, but hellhound found a badugi and stood pat on the third draw. Fyodor however tried drawing again but couldn’t improve the three-card five 8♣ 2♣ 4♠ 5♥ as hellhound exposed a ten-high badugi 2♦ 10♠ 3♥ A♣ good for the 2,053,444 chip pot. Fyodor was out of draws and out of luck finishing in fourth place ($2,528.40).

Down to three handed play, the remaining players would congratulate each other on their big hands but nary a whisper about a potential deal. At the 13 hour mark here’s how they stacked up with blinds at 160K/320K:

hellhound: 5,450,002 (17.03 big blinds)
plutoman20: 3,620,926 (11.31 big blinds)
Kinderboy: 2,969,072 (9.28 big blinds)

Immediately after the break Kinderboy would take a big hit from hitting a six-high badugi and capping after the third draw against plutoman20 who stood pat on the third draw holding a five-high badugi which was good for the huge 4.8 million chip pot. Six hands later with the blinds still at 160K/320K Kinderboy would three-bet plutoman20 and get called. Both would draw one as plutoman20 would check-call Kinderboy’s bet. On the second draw plutoman20 would check-call Kinderboy’s all-in for 258,144 as both again took one card. No betting on the third draw as both missed again. Kinderboy exposed a three-card nine 8♦ 9♠ 4♦ A♣ while plutoman20 sat on the winning three-card six 2♥ 6♣ 5♦ K♣ for the 1,796,288 chip pot. Kinderboy’s nine lives finally succumbed after not being able to find a heart, but takes home $3,250.80 in third place for just $16.50 invested.

Start up the chat box and heads-up play.

As soon as Kinderboy took leave the final two got Team PokerStars pro Chad Brown to summon the all-powerful Host to notch a deal and with little effort it went thru to the listed amounts below:

plutoman20 $4,758.86
hellhound $5,217.68

The deal left $500.00 set aside for the winner as the poker machine was turned back on with blinds at 200K/400K and the two would play, and play, and play. Nearly reaching an hour of heads-up play, both would trade the lead as we headed into the 14th hour of play and blinds ratchet up to 400K/800K. plutoman20 and hellhound did not want to let go of that extra $500.00 nor the SCOOP champion title as both were all-in multiple times. In the end hellhound would win four pots in a row, finishing with plutoman20 all-in and both drawing one during the second and third draws. plutoman showed a 6♦ 9♠ 3♦ 6♣ for a three card nine as hellhound turned up the $500.00 hand 3♣ 7♦ 8♣ A♥ a three-card seven crowning hellhound the SCOOP Event #4 low buy in champion.

Be sure to drop by the PokerStarsBlog homepage and SCOOP homepage for all the latest tournament updates.

SCOOP Event #4-L Limit Badugi $16.50 buy-in Results:
*denotes part of two-way deal
1. hellhound (Las Vegas) *$5,717,68
2. plutoman20 (Auckland) *$4,758.86
3. Kinderboy (Øystese) $3,250.80
4. Fyodor (Hodgenville) $2,580.40
5. molotov (Hemel Hempstead) $1,806.00
6. Nick123 (Branford) $1,083.60
7. pothog (El Sobrante) $685.91
8. Don denito (Berlin) $334.11

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