Numbers guys like myself are not supposed to believe in voodoo or superstitions, but I have many dumb theories about luck and randomness that (hopefully) don’t affect my play, but live in my head. One of the many dumb theories that I have is what I call the “Hand of the Tournament Theory.” Basically, sometimes in a tournament there is a hand that is so narratively significant— sometimes it is for a lot of chips, sometimes not— that the poker gods have determined the winner of that pot will win the tournament. A recent example is in Triton Jeju, when Joao Vieira shoved the turn in a three-bet pot on J87x with (allegedly) QQ and got Chris Brewer to fold (allegedly) the other QQ. This was in the early levels, and the overall pot size ended up being less than two starting stacks, but it was the most notable hand of the tournament, and the man who won it ended up winning the whole thing.
While people who went deep in the tournament will inevitably remember other hands from Triton Jeju 2024, Event #8: $50k NLHE 7-Handed, there is a clear Hand of the Tournament™, the hand that burst the bubble. Henrick Hecklen and Punnat Punsri were 1-2 in chips. Punnat had 3M in chips and Hecklen had 2.995M in chips, and with 32 left, they got in a 150bb pot for almost 1/6th of the chips in play. Punnat’s AK flopped Hecklen’s KK dead to a running chop on AAT, and Punnat would end up winning the tournament. Getting to 30 starting stacks in a tournament with 191 people is very nice, but it does not guarantee anything. Having half the chips at a final table hardly guarantees victory, but as soon as that board ran out, I had a feeling this was Punnat’s tournament to win. Why did I try to override that feeling by trying to bluff him? Who knows? But it’s just one of many reasons why I selected today’s hand for Punt of the Day.
Triton Jeju 2024 - Event #8 50K NLH 7-Handed
(25k/50k/50k) (SB/BB/BBA) 200k Starting Stack. 28/190 Remain. We are ITM
It folds to me (1.745M) in the SB with Q♥️2♥️, I limp, Punnat (5.97M) make it 175k, I call
Flop (400k) 7♥️5♣️4♦️: I bet 240k, Punnat calls
Turn (880k) K♣️: I check, he checks
River (880k) A♣️: I check he bets 425k, I fold.
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