$$ Cash 4 Seat $$

Catalonia may not have started the sixth season of the EPT, but it remains one of its most cherished stops. Hundreds of players take part in poker’s Battle of Barcelona, injecting the tour with stocks of sunshine and energy to last through the winter and to the Grand Final next year.

As always, that shot of adrenaline came courtesy of the cast of today’s final table. Talented players, a great setting and something about a home town hero reaching a final that can bring a day to life. Home field advantage is worth at least an ace for any other player.

But the heads-up contest was the duel of choice, between a 20-year-old PokerStars qualifier breaking into the live game, and an English pro who won his first poker tournament ten years before his opponent was born. Each had their own bank of raucous supporters on the rail; the resulting atmosphere was more football than poker, there to witness the name Carter Phillips being added to the list of internet whizz-kids changing the shape of the game.

EPT Barcelona winner Carter Phillips

Phillips’ victory against Marc Goodwin was hard fought, coming after three hours of heads-up play. Phillips led eight million to six at the start, a balance that would lurch both ways. But while Goodwin was able to peg things back once or twice, he was never able to take the advantage, and the only thing missing was the final blow.

That last hand duly arrived and it dragged out the drama to its limit. Bets and flops took it to a board of [kd][5c][4h][qs]. It was here Goodwin shoved all-in.

“How much?” asked Phillips, agonised, his hands trying to bury his head. “Why do you flop good whenever I flop good?” he said without reply. But Phillips did call, and it was a great call, [kc][js] to Goodwin’s [Ac][Ts]. The five on the river was a blank. It was all over.

Carter Phillips

As ever, our intrepid video blog team was on hand to capture the final moments. Here’s how they recorded the well-deserved victory for our PokerStars qualifier. And he speaks about what this means to him…

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: New Champion on PokerStars.tv

The final had been something of a thriller from the off, one that poker archivists will talk fondly of in years to come, blowing dust from the “Epics,” crate and talking of action from the start, a hail of all-ins and an hour passing before Georgios Kapalas was busted by Goodwin.

At the same time the Miracle of Santiago was born: the home favourite Santiago Terrazas was up to his neck in the mire on more than one occasion, but found good cards and terrific support from the Barcelona crowds; all in twice, his home field advantage was as good as a re-buy as he skipped past any threat.

Santiago Terrazas

But while his fortunes flourished those of Matt Lapossie’s were quickly tattered. Starting with nearly three million Lapossie would end the day dazed, confused and out; victim to an uncontrollable descent into seventh place. A second shock elimination followed; Phillips taking care of Toni Ojala’s immediate future, busting the Finn, then third in chips, with aces over queens.

Matt Lapossie busts out

Although Phillips’s route to heads-up seemed planned well in advance, thanks to a stack of six million, Goodwin had to work on his. Busting Mihai Manole in fourth with a fist-pumping runner-runner flush helped, moments after his dogged countryman Asa Smith, who had played with style and skill all week, was dispatched to the rail in fifth.

Marc Goodwin

Given the chip stacks at the start it left an unlikely last three, unless of course you were Spanish. But by now that show had run its course and was put to bed by Goodwin, calling the Spaniard’s all in, his top pair beating the flush draw. The two men embraced, cancelling any previous animosity, the local hero collecting €300,000.

Flash forward three hours and Goodwin and Phillips were shaking hands at the end of a great day. The new winner looked bewildered; Goodwin bit his lip and looked back at the hands still laid out on the table, a last glimpse at what might have been.

“Unreal,” said Phillips. “It’s a dream come true. Amazing feeling. Speechless. I’ve wanted this for so long.”

He was gracious in victory: “Marc Goodwin is a great player and I felt he was my only threat after Matt busted out. I thought it would get down to the two of us and it was a tough heads-up battle.”

Phillips credited his win to a pivotal moment from day one, a great call that preceded his last one to win €850,000.

“The king high call on the first day set up my whole tourney,” he said. “I had lost a bunch of chips and that pot gave me a real confidence boost and I felt I was in the zone from thereon in.”

He was, and it’s a story you can read in full by working through the links below:

The final eight
Level 25/26 updates
Level 27 updates
Level 28 updates
Level 29 updates
Level 30 updates

Congratulations to Phillips, the new EPT Barcelona champion, commiserations to Marc Goodwin, a worthy opponent, both of whom we expect to see at a bar later tonight.

All this is available in various other languages. Just one click and you and your town could stand out on the maps of German, Swedish, Italian or Spanish blog analytics. As ever our stills are provided by the best in the business Neil Stoddart, with moving versions all available on Pokerstars.tv.

Next up for the EPT bandwagon is London, home to great players, red buses, Palace Guards, irony and some PokerStars bloggers. It’s a 16 event festival, the biggest London has ever seen. Join us there either in person or on the blog. It sounds like something you won’t want to miss.

Until then, good night from Barcelona.

Catalonia may not have started the sixth season of the EPT, but it remains one of its most cherished stops. Hundreds of players take part in poker’s Battle of Barcelona, injecting the tour with stocks of sunshine and energy to last through the winter and to the Grand Final next year.

As always, that shot of adrenaline came courtesy of the cast of today’s final table. Talented players, a great setting and something about a home town hero reaching a final that can bring a day to life. Home field advantage is worth at least an ace for any other player.

But the heads-up contest was the duel of choice, between a 20-year-old PokerStars qualifier breaking into the live game, and an English pro who won his first poker tournament ten years before his opponent was born. Each had their own bank of raucous supporters on the rail; the resulting atmosphere was more football than poker, there to witness the name Carter Phillips being added to the list of internet whizz-kids changing the shape of the game.

EPT Barcelona winner Carter Phillips

Phillips’ victory against Marc Goodwin was hard fought, coming after three hours of heads-up play. Phillips led eight million to six at the start, a balance that would lurch both ways. But while Goodwin was able to peg things back once or twice, he was never able to take the advantage, and the only thing missing was the final blow.

That last hand duly arrived and it dragged out the drama to its limit. Bets and flops took it to a board of [kd][5c][4h][qs]. It was here Goodwin shoved all-in.

“How much?” asked Phillips, agonised, his hands trying to bury his head. “Why do you flop good whenever I flop good?” he said without reply. But Phillips did call, and it was a great call, [kc][js] to Goodwin’s [Ac][Ts]. The five on the river was a blank. It was all over.

Carter Phillips

As ever, our intrepid video blog team was on hand to capture the final moments. Here’s how they recorded the well-deserved victory for our PokerStars qualifier. And he speaks about what this means to him…

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: New Champion on PokerStars.tv

The final had been something of a thriller from the off, one that poker archivists will talk fondly of in years to come, blowing dust from the “Epics,” crate and talking of action from the start, a hail of all-ins and an hour passing before Georgios Kapalas was busted by Goodwin.

At the same time the Miracle of Santiago was born: the home favourite Santiago Terrazas was up to his neck in the mire on more than one occasion, but found good cards and terrific support from the Barcelona crowds; all in twice, his home field advantage was as good as a re-buy as he skipped past any threat.

Santiago Terrazas

But while his fortunes flourished those of Matt Lapossie’s were quickly tattered. Starting with nearly three million Lapossie would end the day dazed, confused and out; victim to an uncontrollable descent into seventh place. A second shock elimination followed; Phillips taking care of Toni Ojala’s immediate future, busting the Finn, then third in chips, with aces over queens.

Matt Lapossie busts out

Although Phillips’s route to heads-up seemed planned well in advance, thanks to a stack of six million, Goodwin had to work on his. Busting Mihai Manole in fourth with a fist-pumping runner-runner flush helped, moments after his dogged countryman Asa Smith, who had played with style and skill all week, was dispatched to the rail in fifth.

Marc Goodwin

Given the chip stacks at the start it left an unlikely last three, unless of course you were Spanish. But by now that show had run its course and was put to bed by Goodwin, calling the Spaniard’s all in, his top pair beating the flush draw. The two men embraced, cancelling any previous animosity, the local hero collecting €300,000.

Flash forward three hours and Goodwin and Phillips were shaking hands at the end of a great day. The new winner looked bewildered; Goodwin bit his lip and looked back at the hands still laid out on the table, a last glimpse at what might have been.

“Unreal,” said Phillips. “It’s a dream come true. Amazing feeling. Speechless. I’ve wanted this for so long.”

He was gracious in victory: “Marc Goodwin is a great player and I felt he was my only threat after Matt busted out. I thought it would get down to the two of us and it was a tough heads-up battle.”

Phillips credited his win to a pivotal moment from day one, a great call that preceded his last one to win €850,000.

“The king high call on the first day set up my whole tourney,” he said. “I had lost a bunch of chips and that pot gave me a real confidence boost and I felt I was in the zone from thereon in.”

He was, and it’s a story you can read in full by working through the links below:

The final eight
Level 25/26 updates
Level 27 updates
Level 28 updates
Level 29 updates
Level 30 updates

Congratulations to Phillips, the new EPT Barcelona champion, commiserations to Marc Goodwin, a worthy opponent, both of whom we expect to see at a bar later tonight.

All this is available in various other languages. Just one click and you and your town could stand out on the maps of German, Swedish, Italian or Spanish blog analytics. As ever our stills are provided by the best in the business Neil Stoddart, with moving versions all available on Pokerstars.tv.

Next up for the EPT bandwagon is London, home to great players, red buses, Palace Guards, irony and some PokerStars bloggers. It’s a 16 event festival, the biggest London has ever seen. Join us there either in person or on the blog. It sounds like something you won’t want to miss.

Until then, good night from Barcelona.

Live updates from day five, level 30 of EPT Barcelona brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Rick Dacey, Marc Convey and Howard Swains.

Blinds: 60,000-120,000 (no ante)

This is the man you’ll be seeing in a hastily posed winner’s photo any minute now:

Carter Phillips

That’s that. A full wrap is on the way. But here are the full prizewinners in the meantime.

There are tears from Phillips after a titanic struggle.

10.30pm: Winner!
Carter Phillips wins EPT Barcelona for €850,000
Marc Goodwin eliminated in second place earning €530,000
Wow, that was probably the longest pot of the tournament so far — and it ended up deciding it in favour of Carter Phillips After regular pre-flop action — 265,000 from the button from Carter Phillips, Goodwin called. The flop came [kd][5c][4h] and after Goodwin checked, Phillips bet 310,000. Goodwin called. Then the [qs] came on the turn and Goodwin moved all in. Phillips agonised and agonised, saying: “Why do you flop good whenever I flop good?” Eventually, and this took about ten minutes, he called and it turned out to be correct. Phillips showed [kc][js] and Goodwin’s A-10 was in trouble. One Time Chips were flying around the press room. And the five on the river was a blank. Carter Phillips takes this one down.

10.20pm: Press room hilarity
“I’ve just emailed you the details of that hand,” says my esteemed colleague Marc Convey. “It doesn’t make sense though,” he adds.

This is the content of that email: “Carter Phillips raised from the button and to 275,000 and Goodwin three-bet to 925,000. Phillips dwelled and then passed.” We know what he means. He’s had a beer.

10.12pm: Phillips edging clear again
This is typical heads up play with most pre-flop raises getting it and very few cards being exposed. But Phillips is having just the better of it and now leads by 74 big blinds to 46.

10.10pm: Classic heads up
Marc Goodwin raises to 310,000 pre-flop and Carter Phillips phlexes those ph-ree bets muscles again, bumping it up to 850,000. That’s good.

10pm: The raw copy
Goodwin raises to 310k
Phillips calls
[as] [2s] [4d]
Goodwin bets 550k
Phillips folds
You add your own pointless framing devices.

9.52pm: Chips
The two of them are waiting in the wings to continue the action. They will come back to find these stacks:

Carter Phillips: 9,040,000
Marc Goodwin: 9,335,000

Heads up

9.40pm: Level 30. Thirty. Three-zero. Goodness me
This is a long one.

Live updates from day five, level 29 of EPT Barcelona brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Rick Dacey, Marc Convey and Howard Swains.

Blinds: 50,000-100,000 (no ante)

9.45pm: Details. Give me details.
The details of that big hand at the end of the level: Marc Goodwin raised to 250,000 pre-flop and Carter Phillips three-bet to 700,000. Goodwin called and things were eerily familiar. The board came [9d][8h][kc] and Phillips bet 800,000, which Goodwin called. The turn was [9c] and this time they checked. And when Phillips bet 1,400,000 on the [6c] river, Goodwin got out of the way.

That is the end of that and we go into level 30 after 10 minutes elsewhere.

9.40pm: Big hand to end the level
Carter Phillips ended the level winning a pot worth about two million. Full details of that are coming, as are chip counts, etc., in what is becoming an epic heads up duel.

CLICK HERE FOR CHIP COUNTS
CLICK HERE FOR PRIZEWINNERS

9.25pm: Back to level
Marc Goodwin has doubled up and we are dead even. As per usual, Carter Phillips raised his button, making it 250,000 and again as per usual Marc Goodwin called. The flop came [6c][10c][4d] and Goodwin checked, which prompted a 275,000 bet from Phillips. Goodwin now discovered a check-raise, though, and made it 975,000. Phillips called. The turn was [as] and Goodwin moved all in. Call. The hand surprised a few: Goodwin had [4h][10h] for two pair and Phillips was drawing to only two outs with his [6h][2h]. The [8c] on the river was not one of those and each player now has 7.2m.

9.20pm: Another big one
Goodwin raises to 250k and Phillips three-bets to 700k. Goodwin calls for a [js] [kh] [5h] flop. Phillips bets 875k which Goodwin calls for a [3c]. Both check for a [kd] river card. Both tentatively check. Phillips shows pocket eights. Goodwin’s head drops.

9.16pm: Same old
Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls. Sound familiar? [as] [2d] [5c] on the flop and Goodwin check then calls the 275k from Phillips. [10c] on the turn as both check for a [3s] river. Goodwin makes it 250k. Phillips folds. — RD

9.15pm: Latest chip counts
Carter Phillips — 9,695,000
Marc Goodwin — 4,680,000

9.12pm: Runner-runner
Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls for a [qs] [4c] [ad] flop. Goodwin checks before calling when Phillips bets 275k. The turn now, a [7s]. Both check for a [7d] river card. Goodwin checks and Phillips bets 500k. Goodwin calls but Phillips shows jack-seven. A painful hand for Goodwin. — RD

9.08pm: No messing about
Goodwin raises to 250k which Phillips three-bets to 700k. Goodwin folds. — SB

9.05pm: And another
Goodwin raises to 250k and Phillips calls. [as] [js] [3s] on the flop which Goodwin checks, as does Phillips. A [5s] on the turn. Phillips checks and a 250k bet from Goodwin takes the pot. — b>SB

9pm: A familiar story
Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls. [ad] [6c] [2s] on the flop which Goodwin checks. Phillips bets and takes the pot.

8.58pm: Good calls
Phillips raises to 250k pre-flop and gets the call from Goodwin. The flop comes [10h] [js] [9d] which is checked by both. [10c] on the turn and Goodwin bets 250k. Phillips calls for an [ah] on the river. Goodwin bets 500k which Phillips eventually calls. [5c][2c] for Goodwin but a great king high call from Phillips showing [kh][2s]. The chip lead is back with Phillips.

8.52pm: Chip counts
Marc Goodwin — 7,255,000
Carter Phillips — 7,120,000

8.50pm: Change of momentum
Phillips raises to 250k pre-flop which Goodwin calls. On the [jh] [qs] [ks] flop Goodwin checks, as does Phillips for a [2h] turn. Now Goodwin checks. Phillips makes it 275,000 and Goodwin raises to 725,000. Not stopping there Phillips raises 1,775,000, making this a massive pot. “You want a call?” asks Goodwin, getting nothing but stone cold silence from Phillips in response. He calls anyway. A [jc] on the river now. Both checked but it was Goodwin taking the pot, and the chip lead, when he showed king-nine. Phillips mucked his hand. — RD

8.45pm: One each
Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls. The flop comes [7d] [qs] [5s] which Goodwin checks before Phillips bets 275,000. Goodwin folds. On the next hand he raises with pocket kings from the button and Phillips folds 9-2 off suit. — RD

8.40pm: Official chip counts
Carter Phillips — 8,995,000
Marc Goodwin — 5,380,000

8.35pm: Good point
Marc Goodwin just made a polite request to tournament director Thomas Kremser to put the England International match on the monitors. (kick off 9pm local time). It’s declined. — SB

8.32pm: Long slow pot
Goodwin raises on the button and is called for a flop of [8c] [6h] [kc]. Phillips bets 400k which Goodwin calls for a [3d] on the turn. Both players check before the [3c] on the river. Phillips checks and Goodwin bets 700,000. It’s a 2,250,000 pot and Phillips takes his time with his decision. He eventually passes. — RD

8.25pm: Cagey pots
Carter Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls. Both players check a [10s] [9d] 8h] flop and the [5s] turn. Goodwin bets 200,000 on the [2c] river and Phillips passes.–RD

8.20pm: Back to battle
The heads up players have returned. They are:

Marc Goodwin, UK, 4,665,000
and
Carter Phillips, USA, 9,720,000

Live updates from day five, level 29 of EPT Barcelona brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Rick Dacey, Marc Convey and Howard Swains.

Blinds: 50,000-100,000 (no ante)

8.45pm: One each
Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls. The flop comes [7d] [qs] [5s] which Goodwin checks before Phillips bets 275,000. Goodwin folds. On the next hand he raises with pocket kings from the button and Phillips folds 9-2 off suit. — RD

8.40pm: Official chip counts
Carter Phillips — 8,995,000
Marc Goodwin — 5,380,000

8.35pm: Good point
Marc Goodwin just made a polite request to tournament director Thomas Kremser to put the England International match on the monitors. (kick off 9pm local time). It’s declined. — SB

8.32pm: Long slow pot
Goodwin raises on the button and is called for a flop of [8c] [6h] [kc]. Phillips bets 400k which Goodwin calls for a [3d] on the turn. Both players check before the [3c] on the river. Phillips checks and Goodwin bets 700,000. It’s a 2,250,000 pot and Phillips takes his time with his decision. He eventually passes. — RD

8.25pm: Cagey pots
Carter Phillips raises to 250k and Goodwin calls. Both players check a [10s] [9d] 8h] flop and the [5s] turn. Goodwin bets 200,000 on the [2c] river and Phillips passes.–RD

8.20pm: Back to battle
The heads up players have returned. They are:

Marc Goodwin, UK, 4,665,000
and
Carter Phillips, USA, 9,720,000

Live updates from day five, level 28 of EPT Barcelona brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Rick Dacey, Marc Convey and Howard Swains.

Blinds: 40,000-80,000 (5,000 ante)

7.15pm: Dinner!
That was the last hand of the level and we’re now taking a dinner break. We’ll be back in an hour for the final stages.

7.10pm: Phillips takes another million
Carter Phillps raises his button, making it 200,000. Marc Goodwin calls. The flop comes [4d][10c][2c] and Phillips bets 210,000. Call. The turn is [8c] and both players check and after the river comes [6h], Goodwin check-calls Phillips’ 375,000 bet. Phillips shows K-10, which is good.

7.06pm: One more to Phillips
Marc Goodwin makes up the blind and Carter Phillips raises, making it 220,000 more. Goodwin calls, but doesn’t much like the [ad][jc][qd] flop and lets it go when Phillips slides out a continuation bet. -HS

7pm: One all
We get all the way to the river on consecutive hands and they take one each. On the first, the board is [5s][3h][6s][ks][8s] and Phillips’ [10h][3s] takes it ahead of Goodwin’s [jc][9h]. On the second hand, Goodwin’s pocket jacks stay good through a board of [5c][kh][2c][qd][10d] despite Phillips’ flop bet. They check it down after then. -HS

6.53pm: Goodwin misses his draw
Goodwin raises pre-flop with [jd] [8d] and is called by Carter Phillips. Goodwin overbets the pot to 600,000 on a very wet [kd] [10d] [qh] flop. Phillips makes the call and both players check the [7c] turn and [8s] river. Phillips shows a paired 10 and Goodwin shows [jd] [8d] for a monster flopped draw. –RD

6.50pm: Carter Phillips chat
The headline says it really.

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: Carter Phillips on PokerStars.tv

6.40pm: Delay
There’s a short break as they rearrange the final table for heads up play. The stacks going into the mano-a-mano stage are:

Carter Phillips, USA, 7,800,000
Marc Goodwin, UK, 6,500,000

Here they are with understandable smiles on their faces.

Carter Phillips

Marc Goodwin

6.30pm: Heads up as Terrazas departs
Santiago Terrazas out in third earning €300,000
Santiago Terrazas has been knocked out by Marc Goodwin in third place in a dramatic three-way pot. Carter Phillips opened the action and was called by both Goodwin and Terrazas. Phillips c-bet 375,000 on a [kh][4c][2c] flop and was flat called by Goodwin before Terrazas check-raised all-in for 1.8m. Goodwin demanded that Terrazas call the clock on him before making the call with [Ks][Jc]. The Spaniard showed [5c][8c] for the flush draw. A juicy turn gave Terrazas a pair with [5s] but the [4s] river gave Goodwin the pot and ended hope hopes. –RD

6.20pm: Down to three as Romanian dreams are rivered
Mihai Manole out in fourth earning €250,000
Mihai Monole is out in fourth after a horrible runner-runner knock out. Marc Goodwin raises to 290,000 and Manole moves all-in. Goodwin makes the call showing a dominated [Ad] [9s] to the Romanian’s [Ac] [10c]. The [kh] [5s] [2s] brought no immediate help but the [ks] on the turn gave Goodwin a huge amount of outs for the win or to chop the pot. Unfortunately for Monole it was the [4s] that dropped putting him out in fourth for €250,000. Goodwin is on 3,845,000 in second place behind Carter Phillips with 8,305,000.–RD

6.15pm: And another voice
Here’s a chat with Marc Goodwin, recorded this morning ahead of the final table. He talks about plenty of stuff, including that pot with Carter Phillps. Enjoy.

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: Marc Goodwin on PokerStars.tv

6.10pm: Another voice
Santiago Terrazas makes it 280,000 pre-flop. Not much happens until the action gets to Marc Goodwin. He looks at his cards, then his chips, then folds. — SB

6.05pm: Domination
With four times the chips of any other player, Carter Phillips is raising every hand. And why not? - HS

6.04pm: Goodwin frustrated by river
Marc Goodwin raises to 225,000 and is called by Carter Phillips. The American check-calls a 230,000 bet on the [2d] [kd] [8s] flop and another 600,000 on the [7h] turn. Phillips checks to Goodwin one last time and Goodwin checks behind on the [jh] river voicing his frustration when Phillips shows J8 for a rivered two pair. “If you’re calling 600,000 knowing that you’re behind why aren’t you betting when you hit?” Goodwin wants to know. He isn’t told. – RD

5.50pm: Manole on the offensive
After some raise and take it poker, we finally see a flop. Mihai Manole raises to 225,000 from the small blind and Santiago Terrazas calls from the big blind. The flop comes [9h][4h][2d] and after Manole checks, Terrazas bets 230,000. It’s a trap! Manole now moves all in for another 800,000 and the two players indulge in a spot of eyeballs, cheered on by the local crowd. Terrazas eventually flicks his cards to the muck. – HS

5.40pm: Lapossie chats
Matt Lapossie, our seventh-placed finisher, shared his thoughts about the final table as he entered the casino this afternoon.

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: Matt Lapossie on PokerStars.tv

5.35pm: Smith eliminated
Asa Smith, UK, out in fifth earning €200,000
First hand back after the break and Asa Smith, the short-stack, moves all in. Carter Phillips, with the opposite sized stack (ie, massive) calls. It’s looking blead for Smith as his [ah][3c] is behind Phillips’ [ac][5h]. There are split pot possibilities but a five comes on the flop and Smith doesn’t make a backdoor straight. He is out. –HS

5.25pm: Break time
Five players remain in Barcelona, but they’re still all chasing Carter Phillips who has close to half the chips in play. A 10 minute break.

CLICK HERE FOR CHIP COUNTS
CLICK HERE FOR PRIZEWINNERS

We’ll be watching.

Live updates from day five, level 27 of EPT Barcelona brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Rick Dacey, Marc Convey and Howard Swains.

Blinds: 30,000-60,000 (5,000 ante)

5.20pm: Take a break
The level ends and players take a ten minute break. Click here to skip forward into level 28.

5.16pm: Manole sucks out and survives
Mihai Monole just caught a dream [7c] [3c] [as] to suck out on Marc Goodwin’s big slick with [ac] [3d]. Goodwin had raised the Romanian’s big blind to 180,000 and Monole had taken the bait shipping it all-in for 535,000. Goodwin failed to catch a King or a counterfeiting pair. Monole now up to 1.1m. –RD

5.10pm: Smith gets some back
Asa Smith got his last 320,000 in pre-flop and Carter Phillips called. Smith showed [kh][10h] and Phillips had [5s][5d]. There was something for everyone on the [ah][5h][6d] board — a flush draw for Smith, a set for Phillips — and when the [3h] turned, Smith was ahead. There were plenty of re-draw outs for Phillips, but the [qc] wasn’t one of them. Smith is back up to around 700,000 and Phillips loses a tiny nibble from his huge stack. - HS

5.05pm: Phillips phiring
Carter Phillips and Marc Goodwin tangled, the two big stacks going at it. Phillips raised to 150,000 from the cut off and Goodwin called on the button. The flop came [7c][5s][4h] and Phillips bet 170,000. Call. The turn was [qc] and Phillips bet again: 235,000. Again Goodwin called. The river was the [jh] and Phillips this time bet 450,000 into the million-plus pot. Goodwin folded. – HS

5pm: The top three at five
Carter Phillips — 6,840,000
Marc Goodwin — 4,180,000
Santiago Terrazas — 2,515,000

4.59pm: Into third place, again
Asa Smith and Santiago Terrazas have been at each other all day - and Terrazas has just landed a hammer blow. Smith three-bet pre-flop, a familiar refrain, but this time Terrazas moved all in, giving Smith little option but to call. The pot was close to 2.6m and it always favoured Terrazas. He had [8h][8c] against Smith’s [5s][5d]. An eight flopped and back-door possibilities ended on the turn. Smith is now the short stack; Terrazas is at the dizzy heights of close to three million. — HS

Santiago Terrazas, jubilant

CLICK HERE FOR CHIP COUNTS

4.52pm: Another chop
Santiago Terrazas raises to 210,000 from the small blind and Asa Smith moves all-in. Terrazas snap calls and both players table AT. Smith says “clubs one time,” for a chopped pot and no more one times. –RD

Toni Ojala before his exit

4.47pm: Shock elimination
Toni Ojala out in sixth earning €160,000
Huge, huge pot goes to Carter Phillips and sends Toni Ojala to the rail. It all started when Mihai Manole raised under the gun and Phillips called on the button. Ojala, in the small blind, thinks for a while before raising to 400,000. Manole got out the way, but Phillips was going absolutely nowhere. He raised another 580,000 and Ojala moved all in for more than a million. Phillips insta-called and tabled [as][ad] and Ojala’s head went into his hands as he showed [qh][qd]. The board was blank and the aces held up. Phillips moves up to 6,000,000-plus and Ojala is sent to the interview room. – HS

4.40pm: Courtesy of the video people
And here’s an interview with Asa Smith:

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: Asa Smith on PokerStars.tv

4.32pm: Manning up
Mihai Manole moves all-in for 650,000 into Santiago Terrazas’ big blind. He requests a chip count but eventually passes his hand. –RD

4.27pm: Back to back Spanish raises
Santiago Terrazas raises consecutive hands for the first time we can remember. The Spaniard makes it 215,000 and Asa Smith moves all-in over the top for 1.3m forcing Terrazas to muck his hand. –RD

4.20pm: All-in and a call
Asa Smith started, making it 160,000 pre-flop. Suddenly Mihai Manole moved all-in, arranging his single tower of chips into the blue, yellow, red of the Romanian flag. Smith then moved all-in for 1,190,000. For a second it seemed Marc Goodwin was calling too, but no. It was [ad][qc] for Manole, [ad][qc] for Smith with predictably anti-climactic results. [2d][6c][kd][ac][8s]. Cancel the excitement. - SB

4.18pm: Video killed the blogging stars
Here’s how the video blog team set up today. You could ignore all those thousands of words if you want.

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5 Intro: on PokerStars.tv

4.12pm: Raise, fold, raise, fold, raise, fold
Marc Goodwin makes a solid shove on Mohai Manole from the small blind. The Romanian passes. Carter Phillips raises to 150,000 and Santiago Terrazas passes in the big blind.
Toni Ojala raises to 155,000. Asa Smith passes in the big blind.–RD

4.10pm: A neat cameo
There was a terrific moment during the break when Marc Goodwin came into the press room to chat to friends and grab one of our baguettes. However, he’d come in at the precise moment that EPT Live was showing a replay of the hand yesterday when Carter Phillips made a huge bluff with eight high. “I should have called!” Goodwin announced to the press room, watching all this. It looked a bit like this:

Marc Goodwin, foreground today, watches Marc Goodwin, background yesterday

4pm: Another level
A short break before the six remaining players come back for level 27.

Remember:

CLICK HERE FOR CHIP COUNTS
CLICK HERE FOR PRIZEWINNERS

Live updates from day five, level 26 of EPT Barcelona brought to you by Stephen Bartley, Rick Dacey, Marc Convey and Howard Swains.

Blinds: 25,000-50,000 (5,000 ante)

3.53pm: Another elimination
Matt Lapossie out in seventh earning €120,000
Matt Lapossie made it 140,000 from the button. Toni Ojala re-raised to 310,000 then insta-called when Lapossie moved all-in. It might not have been what the Canadian had hoped for, his [jc][4h] a 12% second favourite against Ojala’s [qh][qs]. Lapossie was on the way out. [6s][5s][qd][5c] with a blank on the end. All over for Lapossie.  - SB

3.51pm: Lappossie is OUT!
Full details to come.

3.50pm: He’s been quiet so far…
But Carter Phillips is still our chip leader:

3.45pm: Three bet from the big blind
Asa Smith raises to 130,000 under the gun. Santiago Terrazas three-bets from the big blind to 380,000 and Smith passes. Terrazas is up to third in chips. –RD

3.43pm: On the rail
Matt Lapossie has been supported all week in Barcelona by his girlfriend Tamara. Earlier she spoke to Michelle Orpe for the EPT Live broadcast. Our snapper Neil Stoddart was also peering in their direction:

3.37pm: Goodwin swipes it on the turn
Mihai Manole opens under the gun for 125,000 and Marc Goodwin calls in the big blind. Both players check the [ks] [3s] [10s] flop and Goodwin fires at the [6d] turn card and Manole passes. –RD

3.35pm: Smith continues his comeback
Asa Smith makes it 125,000 on the button and takes another pot. Smith is climbing back from his early loss to Toni Ojala and is up to 1,580,000. ­–RD

3.28pm: Smith bullies Lapossie
Matt Lapossie hasn’t slowed down despite a slump in his chip stack. Asa Smith opened under-the-gun and Lapossie re-raised to 305,000. Smith shoved, for close to a million, and Lapossie was forced to lay it down. His slide continues. - HS

3.25pm: Terrazas and Lapossie go at it again
Santiago Terrazas raised to 250,000 under the gun, some five big blinds, and Matt Lapossie reraises to 500,000. Terrazas folds and Lapossie gets some chips back. –RD

3.20pm: Terrazas the terror
It’s that man again, Santiago Terrazas, who suddenly finds himself third in chips. He made it 300,000 pre-flop, half of his stack, and Lapossie put him all in. When Terrazas called showing [ah][kc] the crowd erupted once more, louder still when Lapossie showed [ac][9c]. He needed help but not with this kind of Spanish momentum: [3d][4d][js][jc][5d]. Terrazos up to 1,620,000. - SB

Santiago Terrazas

There have been massive changes on the chip ladder today, with Marc Goodwin taking over at the top, Matt Lapossie plummeting down and Santiago Terrazas moving ever upward. Check them out over at the chip count page.
CLICK HERE FOR CHIP COUNTS

3.16pm: Terrazas chipping up
Santiago Terrazas raises to 225,000 - a third of his stack - and takes the blinds. He’s got himself up to 760,000. –RD

3.10pm: The Terrazas terror
Crowd favourite Santiago Terrazas moved all in behind a 130,000 bet from Mihai Manole. It’s 450,000 to Manole who asks Terrazas whether or not he’s nervous. It’s not clear he understood. Either way, Manole passed. Terrazas claimed to the rail that there was no bluff, and then showed [9h][8s]. He is still the short stack though with 665,000. — SB

3.05pm: One down
Georgios Kapalas out in eighth place earning €80,000
Matt Lapossie raised to 120,000, Marc Goodwin called on the button and Georgios Kapalas moved all in for 695,000. Lapossie passed and Goodwin had a short think before making the call. Kapalas shows [Kc] [Qc] for a well-timed squeeze and Goodwin is racing for the knock out with [Ad] [10c]. The flop brings a huge draw for Kapalas with [2c] [7c] [6s] but an [Ah] on the turn reduces the Greek’s outs to eight club cards and the [8s] pushes the pot to Goodwin. Kapalas departs. -HS

Georgios Kapalas

3pm: No eliminations
We’ve been playing close to an hour and every player remains. That means there’s been a good deal of movement on the chip count page, which you can see by following the usual links:

CLICK HERE FOR CHIP COUNTS
CLICK HERE FOR PRIZEWINNERS

2.58pm: Ace-king for Asa
Asa Smith gets his chips in for the second hand in a row, 540,000 this time from the cut off. Matt Lapossie called from the small blind, wasting no time, showing [ac][7h]. Smith though showed [ad][kd], Lapossie asked for a suck out. It didn’t come: [10d][as][ah][9c][2d]. Smith up to 1,170,000. - SB

2.55pm: Manole making moves
Georgios Kapalas raises to 120,000 and is 3-bet by Mihai Manole to to 575,000. Kapalas passes and Manole is up to around 1,000,000. –RD

2.55pm: Phillips talks bluff
Yesterday we witnessed one of the most audacious bluffs we’ve seen on the EPT when Carter Phillips made a huge bet on a massively frightening board, persuading Marc Goodwin to fold A-K. (Scroll down to the post at 10.20pm here for details.) Today, our video bloggers asked for Phillips’ side of events - and what’s more, he told them:

Watch EPT 6 Barcelona Day 5: Carter Phillips’ big bluff on PokerStars.tv

2.50pm: Business as usual for Lapossie
Matt Lapossie raises to 120,000 from mid-position into Mihai Manole’s big blind. Manole calls and they go to a flop heads up. It’s [6c][kd][5d] and Manole’s check is the proverbial red rag to Lapossie, who bets 155,000 and wins. -HS

2.46pm: Ojala makes a monster lay down
Carter Phillips raises to 120,000 and Toni Ojala re-raises to 305,000. Marc Goodwin then comes in over the top for 1,230,000. It’s a huge re-raise that takes Phillips off his hand and puts Ojala to a decision for his tournament life. The Finn thinks long and hard before finally mucking queens face-up. Goodwin adds 540,000 to his stack. –RD

2.40pm: Terrazas doubles
The short stacked Santiago Terrazas moved all in for his last 260,000. The move was greeted with a huge cheer from the partisan crowd, but it soon turned to groans when Matt Lapossie called and tabled [kh][ks] to Terrazas’s [ad][2c]. The flop came [10s][10d][8s] and the turn [4h] left Terrazas drawing even thinner. But miracles sometimes do happen and there was a mighty roar when the [ac] rivered. We’re still eight and Terrazas is one life down. - HS

2.36pm: Terrified Terrazas
Marc Goodwin raises to 150,000 and scoops the 115,000 in the middle and then Matt Lapossie gets a walk. Mihai Manole scoops the next blinds. Santiago Terrazas is down to just 275,000. Running on fumes springs to mind. –RD

2.25pm: Into level 26
That’s the end of level 25, blinds up to 25,000-50,000 with a 5,000 ante for level 26

2.20pm: The sickness starts
Mihai Manole gets it all in for 354,000 against Carter Phillips and they look set to chop the pot with [As] [Kh] (Phillips) and [Ad] [Kd] (Manole). The flop brings an innocuous [qd] [8c] [2s] but a [jd] gives Phillips a sweat before the [2d] on the river gives Manole a huge leg up to some 800,000. –RD

2.12pm: Full speed ahead
No wasting time as play starts. Santiago Terrazas raised pre-flop to 108,000 and Asa Smith re-raised to 450,000. Then Toni Ojala moved all in for 726,000 in total, 276,000 more to Smith after Terrazas folded. He throws it in showing [ah][qh] to Ojala’s [ac][as]. The board ran out [js][4h][4s][2c][6h]. Ojala doubled up. Smith down to around 700k.

2.05pm: Now?
Cards are in the air!

1.55pm: How about now?
Then again, it might not start immediately on the strike of 2pm. The usual delays to build up tension.

1.45pm: Has it started?
All the action from the EPT Barcelona final table will appear here once the action gets under way. Players are arriving for the pre-fight checks, to be interviewed, photographed and wired into the feature table. We expect play to start at around 2pm local time.

Until then wallow among the chip counts and get your EPT Live page ready. And here’s a picture:

Our final table is set at EPT Barcelona, with eight players in sight of the €850,000 first prize. Play is scheduled to begin today at 2pm and we will play to a winner.

You can find chip counts updated throughout the day on the chip count page. And you can find a list of all the prizewinners from this event on the prizewinners page.

Without further ado, here are our final table players:

Seat 1: Georgios Kapalas, 25, Athens, Greece
Chips: 826,000

Only a few years since taking up the game, Kapalas is now considered one of the best poker players in Greece. He is also the top Greek “Magic: The Gathering” player with great success in international tournaments. He started playing poker in 2006 and qualified online for a tournament in Austria at the end of that year, providing the springboard for his career. Known as “gkap13″ online, Kapalas has earned more than $200,000 from poker, including a final table at the World Series this summer, where he won $97,000. He also recently won $35,000 online - his biggest online cash. He has made two final tables in EPT side events - the €2,000 events in Barcelona and Prague - but this is his best EPT performance to date.

Seat 2: Mihai Manole, 27, Bucharest, Romania
Chips: 410,000

Mihai is a professional poker player and has been playing for the past six years. He lives in Bucharest and graduated in computer science last year. He plays both online and live - cash and tournaments - and has had a string of good results including second place at the Caribbean Poker Classic in 2007 for $145,500. He also made the final table of the WSOP $2,000 event in 2008 for $155,000.

Seat 3: Santiago Terrazas, 40, Madrid, Spain
PokerStars sponsored player
Chips: 546,000

Terrazas runs a construction company in Madrid but has been playing poker for the past ten years. He began with the Spanish card game Mus and was a national champion before taking up Texas hold ‘em. He has had considerable successes in live events including 338th place in the World Series of Poker Main Event in 2007 for $39,000. He is a familiar figure in the Spanish poker community where he is usually known just as “Terrazas”.

Seat 4: Asa Smith, 22, Ledbury, UK
Chips: 1,380,000

Smith is one of the UK’s brightest young talents and is currently on a tournament heater having strung together four consecutive cashes on the European Poker Tour. This, however, is the deepest that he has gone. A big score will add to the $92,259 that Smith has already scooped in EPT tournaments since he cashed for $24,000 at the 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Smith usually plays mid- to high-stakes cash games online and says that he plays full time “as long as you can count playing 15-20 hours a week as a job”. His biggest EPT cash to date was €25,000 at the Grand Final in Monte Carlo last season.

Seat 5: Carter Phillips, 20, Charlotte, North Carolina
PokerStars qualifier
Chips: 4,421,000

Phillips has appeared regularly on the EPT since going deep in both San Remo and Monte Carlo last year, busting within sight of the bubble. Barcelona will be his biggest live cash, topping the €29,500 won last week when he chopped €1,000 side event here. He also narrowly missed a Latin American Poker Tour event final table, busting in tenth place in Vina Del Mar last January. Those results, and his performance this week, demonstrate a development from online player — where his username is “bdybldngpkr” — to live tournaments. In the ten months spent playing full time, Phillips has competed among the best in the game. “Online you play against the same people and get a feel for how they play,” he said. “Ninety per cent of them might play full time. In EPTs there’s a mix of pros and recreational players. But I approach it the same way.”

Seat 6: Matt “Lapozie” Lapossie, 23, London, Ontario
PokerStars qualifier
Chips: 2,938,000

A professional player from Canada, Matt Lapossie has been a dominant force throughout this tournament at Casino Barcelona. After qualifying in an $800 satellite on PokerStars he steadily built a stack through day one and exploded on day two, ending as chip leader. Supported throughout by his girlfriend Tamara, Lapossie has been a menace at the tables, impressing all with some massively accomplished and fiercely aggressive play. This is his second EPT event and he spent much of day four on the featured table, where he’ll return for the final third in chips.

Seat 7: Toni Ojala, 34, Turku, Finland
Chips: 754,000 chips

Ojala has been playing poker for four years and has already had several notable successes in live events. He won the Finnish Championship last year for €136,800 and cashed three times at this summer’s WSOP including 11th in the £1,000 event that attracted more than 6,000 runners. His tournament winnings to date total nearly $ 340,000. He has already cashed at three EPT main events but this is his first final table.

Seat 8: Marc Goodwin, 49, Birmingham, UK
Chips: 3,100,000

Goodwin is one of the best-known players in the UK with a poker career going back nearly two decades. His live tournament earnings amount to more than $1.4m. A former double glazing window salesman, Goodwin turned pro after finishing third in the Monte Carlo Millions in 2005 for $325,000. He has had numerous successes since then and in 2008 won the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour Manchester tournament for £90,420. He has played numerous EPTs and has cashed three times - in Baden, Dublin and London. However making the final table in Barcelona is his best EPT result to date. Goodwin is in the top 25 of the all-time money list for English poker players.

Our final table is set at EPT Barcelona, with eight players in sight of the €850,000 first prize. Play is scheduled to begin today at 2pm and we will play to a winner.

You can find chip counts updated throughout the day on the chip count page. And you can find a list of all the prizewinners from this event on the prizewinners page.

Without further ado, here are our final table players:

Seat 1: Georgios Kapalas, 25, Athens, Greece
Chips: 826,000

Only a few years since taking up the game, Kapalas is now considered one of the best poker players in Greece. He is also the top Greek “Magic: The Gathering” player with great success in international tournaments. He started playing poker in 2006 and qualified online for a tournament in Austria at the end of that year, providing the springboard for his career. Known as “gkap13″ online, Kapalas has earned more than $200,000 from poker, including a final table at the World Series this summer, where he won $97,000. He also recently won $35,000 online - his biggest online cash. He has made two final tables in EPT side events - the €2,000 events in Barcelona and Prague - but this is his best EPT performance to date.

Seat 2: Mihai Manole, 27, Bucharest, Romania
Chips: 410,000

Mihai is a professional poker player and has been playing for the past six years. He lives in Bucharest and graduated in computer science last year. He plays both online and live - cash and tournaments - and has had a string of good results including second place at the Caribbean Poker Classic in 2007 for $145,500. He also made the final table of the WSOP $2,000 event in 2008 for $155,000.

Seat 3: Santiago Terrazas, 40, Madrid, Spain
PokerStars sponsored player
Chips: 546,000

Terrazas runs a construction company in Madrid but has been playing poker for the past ten years. He began with the Spanish card game Mus and was a national champion before taking up Texas hold ‘em. He has had considerable successes in live events including 338th place in the World Series of Poker Main Event in 2007 for $39,000. He is a familiar figure in the Spanish poker community where he is usually known just as “Terrazas”.

Seat 4: Asa Smith, 22, Ledbury, UK
Chips: 1,380,000

Smith is one of the UK’s brightest young talents and is currently on a tournament heater having strung together four consecutive cashes on the European Poker Tour. This, however, is the deepest that he has gone. A big score will add to the $92,259 that Smith has already scooped in EPT tournaments since he cashed for $24,000 at the 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Smith usually plays mid- to high-stakes cash games online and says that he plays full time “as long as you can count playing 15-20 hours a week as a job”. His biggest EPT cash to date was €25,000 at the Grand Final in Monte Carlo last season.

Seat 5: Carter Phillips, 20, Charlotte, North Carolina
PokerStars qualifier
Chips: 4,421,000

Phillips has appeared regularly on the EPT since going deep in both San Remo and Monte Carlo last year, busting within sight of the bubble. Barcelona will be his biggest live cash, topping the €29,500 won last week when he chopped €1,000 side event here. He also narrowly missed a Latin American Poker Tour event final table, busting in tenth place in Vina Del Mar last January. Those results, and his performance this week, demonstrate a development from online player — where his username is “bdybldngpkr” — to live tournaments. In the ten months spent playing full time, Phillips has competed among the best in the game. “Online you play against the same people and get a feel for how they play,” he said. “Ninety per cent of them might play full time. In EPTs there’s a mix of pros and recreational players. But I approach it the same way.”

Seat 6: Matt “Lapozie” Lapossie, 23, London, Ontario
PokerStars qualifier
Chips: 2,938,000

A professional player from Canada, Matt Lapossie has been a dominant force throughout this tournament at Casino Barcelona. After qualifying in an $800 satellite on PokerStars he steadily built a stack through day one and exploded on day two, ending as chip leader. Supported throughout by his girlfriend Tamara, Lapossie has been a menace at the tables, impressing all with some massively accomplished and fiercely aggressive play. This is his second EPT event and he spent much of day four on the featured table, where he’ll return for the final third in chips.

Seat 7: Toni Ojala, 34, Turku, Finland
Chips: 754,000 chips

Ojala has been playing poker for four years and has already had several notable successes in live events. He won the Finnish Championship last year for €136,800 and cashed three times at this summer’s WSOP including 11th in the £1,000 event that attracted more than 6,000 runners. His tournament winnings to date total nearly $ 340,000. He has already cashed at three EPT main events but this is his first final table.

Seat 8: Marc Goodwin, 49, Birmingham, UK
Chips: 3,100,000

Goodwin is one of the best-known players in the UK with a poker career going back nearly two decades. His live tournament earnings amount to more than $1.4m. A former double glazing window salesman, Goodwin turned pro after finishing third in the Monte Carlo Millions in 2005 for $325,000. He has had numerous successes since then and in 2008 won the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour Manchester tournament for £90,420. He has played numerous EPTs and has cashed three times - in Baden, Dublin and London. However making the final table in Barcelona is his best EPT result to date. Goodwin is in the top 25 of the all-time money list for English poker players.