My biggest poker prize – $800 in 2021
Good morning everyone.
In 2021, I played a $50 tournament on 888 Poker and won $800, finishing in 96th place in a tournament with more than 10,000 players.
I won the $50 ticket in a giveaway held by professional player and 888 Poker ambassador in Brazil, Vivi Saliba, during a live stream. Normally, I only played freerolls or $1 to $2 tournaments at most. So when I won the ticket, I thought: “If I play a $50 tournament, I won’t last long. The level must be very high.”
My expectation was simply to reach Day 2, even if it was with very few chips — maybe one blind or less — just to advance. I truly had no expectation of making the money.
On Day 1, in the very first hand, I was dealt 10-9 suited. I opened with a raise and the flop came 8-7-6. I hit the high straight. I bet, the villain check-raised and went all-in. He had the lower straight. Result: I doubled up in the first hand.
After that, the game flowed very well. I hit sets, strong hands like AA and KK, and kept building my stack. At the end of Day 1, I finished second overall among all the players registered in that flight. Something I totally did not expect.
On Day 2, when I looked at the payout structure, I saw that the minimum prize was $100. I started playing more cautiously to at least secure a cash. I avoided unnecessary big confrontations.
In one hand, for example, I had KK. A player opened with 99 and I just called in position instead of three-betting. The flop came with a 9 and two low cards. He checked, I checked back. On the turn, check-check again. On the river, he bet and I called — he had a set. If I had played more aggressively preflop, I could have lost many more chips or even been eliminated earlier. This more cautious approach helped me last longer in the tournament.
In the end, I finished in 96th place and won $800. For someone used to playing $1 tournaments, winning $800 in a single event was, by far, the biggest prize of my life.
If I had finished in first place, the prize would have been $60,000.
My 100x Spin & Go
Another remarkable experience was in a Spin & Go on 888 Poker. Only once did I hit a 100x multiplier in a $1 buy-in tournament.
The prize distribution was:
1st place: $70 2nd place: $20 3rd place: $10
And I finished in first place, winning $70.
The most interesting part is that, that day, I only wanted to win $5 to add to the $5 I already had in my bankroll so I could make a withdrawal. I wasn’t thinking about anything big — I just wanted to reach $10 to cash out.
In the end, I won the $70 from the Spin & Go and, adding the $5 I already had, I ended up with $75.
I have always noticed something in poker: when my expectation is just to win a little, I end up making money. When I play without pressure and without thinking too big, things flow better.
