Dan Smith, Phil Galfond, Fedor Holtz, Doug Polk and others share the biggest hands of their lives.
Landon Tice recalled the most memorable pot of his career and invited readers to share theirs:
What’s the most memorable pot you’ve ever played?
I think mine has to be deep in Venetian $1100 blasting it off with on and getting a snap fold on the river in a spot where I’m crippled if I got called.
This one is also in contention with the LJ open, we 3-bet, BTN jams, BB calls, we rejam and hold for a 44k pot before heading back to Florida.
Dan Smith
Bubble of 2014 Main Event. 30k starting stack, 1m effective (he covers) at 2.5k/5k.
SB opens to 17.5, I call suited
Flop , bet 25k, I call.
Turn , bet 55k, I raise to 155k, he makes it 420k I call.
River , check, I jam for 500k, he folds what he claims is 444.
Melissa Burr
One day we were playing 100/200 mix and the games were all really new to borgata. The players were all yelling at the dealer and I'm trying to help.
Finally in a huge 4-way pot in 2-7triple draw... the dealer drops the deck and says "fuck this" and walked out.
It was amazing.
In another:
400/800 Stud8
I once got called on 7th street by a Russian maniac who had a straight flush and didn't know it.
Only reason I lost was because he was throwing a funeral for what he thought was an J-high flush and my buddy pointed it out to him.
PAIN
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Brandon Shaq-Harris:
*Flips through Rolodex of Russian maniacs*
Melissa Burr:
This Russian dude wore the same clothes for over a week. East coast players will remember this dude.
Fedor Holtz
I had TT, he flashed an Ace, I call, I hit river. That was great.
This hand was played in the top 5 of the tournament for $1 million.
Patrick Leonard
2014, my first big final table was the Warm Up for $215, and it was $120k to win at the time.
Blinds 80,000 / 160,000, MP opens 320k, I'm on the button with , I raise 750,000 – call.
Flop , he check-called 1 million.
Turn , I shoved 2.3 million, my opponent had 2.8 million left, and he folded.
After folding, I tore off my shirt and shouted: "I am the strongest tournament player in the world, no one can compare with me." I was terrible 😂
Cris Belkewitch
Mix 3/6 [apparently $300/$600] in Borgata, a pretty big game for me. We play 2-7 Triple Draw. Aaron Katz changed two on the first exchange and raised, I was sure he had nothing. On the second exchange, I drew a queen and for some reason I don’t understand myself. I raised, he put in a 3-bet. On the last draw, we both drew none, I called his bet in the position and won. He accused me of spying on his cards (I didn't).
In 2004, I went through a satellite to a weekly tournament for $215 on UB (at that time I was a clueless noob with a couple hundred bucks in my pocket). During the second level, I get aces against some good reg and get a tonne of chips in on a rainbow flop against a set of fives. River ace. I took 4th place and got $4,400, which was 20 times the most amount I had ever seen before.
David Peat
During WSOP I decided to take a shot at a big 200-400 PLO game in Bobby's room. I was sitting 500k deep, @TomDwan is the straddle to 1600 I think. A few limpers, Sammy Farah pots it on button, I'm in small blind call. Durr re-pots it from the straddle, call, Sammy calls on the button. I re-pot it from the small blind. Call call call. Flop rainbow. I pot ( close to or all in ) Durr shoves. Sammy thinks a bit and folds face up. I lose 4/5 with . Tom had .
Phil Galfond
I’m a 21 year old 5/10 nl player taking my shot at 50/100 heads-up NL. I’m down $25k.
I 3-bet to $1111, he calls.
Rainbow, $1111, he calls.
Turn – . I check, he pots $4444. Don’t believe him, I jam for $9k.
He tanks 😊, tanks, tanks to 1s & calls 🤗
Turns over 😳
River 🧐
gg. back to 5/10.
Sam Panzika
First EPT 10k I open UTG young Swedish kid UTG+1 moves cards forward like he’s going to fold and pulls them back and 3-bets I 4-bet he 5-bets and I 6-bet shove A7s and show the 7 #thegoodolddays
I was like “if this 20 year old Swedish kid is fake live tell crushing me I’d tip my cap”.
Len Ashby:
Back then 5-bet pre always meant they had nothing, easy decision.
One “tell” story I have is like 6 years ago during WSOP, playing PLO every day with one fish. Kenny Tran had a tell on him that was 100%. Kenny went all in for 3k more on the river in a 60k pot with no pair and fish folded. Kenny later “sold” the tell to someone for a reported 16k.
Ryan Laplante
Day 2 of the 10k PLO @wsop. Got Hachem to fold on vs my river X/Jam for like 30% pot effective. Knowing when I did it he'd assume I had Quads or a bluff, and it was a spot 0 people bluff.
Matt Affleck
Long time ago, 15 left in the main event. Got a lot of chips... get AA on the button. Put in a 3-bet........
Max Silver
2018 wsop main event 15 from the money.
Andrew Barber:
I think of this hand too often.
Landon Tice:
I liked your name being highlighted.
Andrew Barber:
When *he* searches for the hand, he searches my name. When *I* search for the hand, I type “K6”. It comes up *many* times.
Max Silver
WSOPE 10k main event 16 left, first hand back from break and somehow button, SB and BB all are away from table, Sammartino raises HJ and I jam 60bb effective from CO with , we have 2nd and 3rd stacks. snap calls dealer runs out a board and he stumbles away shocked.
Mustafa Kanit:
Snap put it in the Italian Vegas group because probably now Dario is relaxed and would love to remember this hand. What a friend I am.
Niall Farrell
Cold 5-bet All-in with Q9o in some Venetian 1k and got called by cold 4 bettor’s 74s. He flopped a boat. Those were the days man.
Greg Merson
2011, home game $25/$50/$100/$200/$400/$800/$1,600, I opened $8k with . Flop rainbow. Four way all-in against , and another and there’s more than $300k in the pot. We ran it once, it came out , , and I split it with Tony Gregg.
My bankroll was ~500k, and I sold less than 5% to friends, just to be sick. The best part about the hand is that the player with AJxx called ~40k after three all-ins with the words "I don't think I can throw it away here." It was fun.
Brian Hastings
$500/1k HU PLO vs Isildur, 2009. I fire 3 barrels in position in 3b pot on like board with , I bet ~$100k on the river, he snap-calls and I win.
Andrew Barber
On the third day of the 2016 WSOP Main, I flopped four jacks against Mustafa Kanit in a 3-bet pot. He opened from early position, I raised from the blinds. He had more chips, but we were super deep so I just bet, bet, bet, and he shoved the river. In at the end, the poor guy was forced to show his cards. He floated all the streets with Q-high!
Mustafa Kanit:
A classic spot where your opponent has either four of a kind or nothing. And I'm the best Q-high player in the world. Nobody plays and better than me.
Max Silver:
It's true.
Chris Brewer
Jonas Mccoff
2009, in the tournament top 3 of $1k in Venetian. The second chip leader and I have close stacks, the third has a short stack.
I put in a 3-bet with A8o, BB against the button.
Flop rainbow.
I make a 110k c/bet, he re-raised to 220k, I re-raised 350k, he makes it 600k. I have only 720k, decided that A-hi is good, and put all-in.
He says "fuck", sighs and makes a call with . I held.
2009 vibes.
– Then you didn't know anything about ICM?
– Yes, they played "play for first". Even in the first hour, when the rebuy period was going on, everyone rebought 20 times to get a big stack.
Randy Ohel
In the Stud-8 tournament for $10k, there were three of us left with George Danzig and Justin Bonomo. By fourth street I had trips and George was already all-in. Justin and I continued to bet for the side pot. On the fifth, Justin paired up, bet and called my raise. George still had nothing. On the sixth, Justin hit two pair with open kings, the action was repeated. George was given an ace, he already had one in his hand. I don't remember the action on the river, but George was dealt the third ace, and then he won the bracelet.
