Marc Goodwin finished just short
There were few surprises at the EPT Barcelona final table as chip leader going into Day 5, Carter Phillips, steamrollered his way to the €850,000 first prize.
Local Santiago Terrazas, cheered on by the partisan crowd, doubled up several times to secure an admirable 3rd place finish. British veteran Marc Goodwin finished the day as he started – taking second for €530,000.
Day 2 chip leader Matt Lapossie was one of the first players to hit the rail, as he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar when he made a 3-bet shove all in with J
4
. Toni Ojala snap called with Q Q
and a Q
6 5 5 5 board had Lapossie crushed.
Pocket queens then became the scourge of Ojala, as his Qh Qd ran into the A A of Carter Phillips. Goodwin ousted Terrazas into 3rd when the Spaniard missed his flush draw. Terrazas moved all in with 8 5 on a K 4 2 board, and received a belated call from Goodwin who tabled K J. The 5, 4 on the turn and river were no help and play advanced to heads up.
Goodwin made an uncharacteristically rash decision in heads up play that will probably haunt him for the rest of his poker career. On a K 5 4 Q board, Goodwin shoved all in for 4,295,000 with just A 10 for a gutshot straight draw. Phillips tanked before calling with K J. Needing a jack or an ace, the river bricked with the 5, gifting Phillips the title. On his victory, Phillips beamed, ‘It's a huge sum of money, but not only that; having an EPT title and being an EPT champion, that will change it just as much’.