The PokerGO Studio tables in Las Vegas have seen a multitude of four-card hands in the last week thanks to the PokerGO Tour (PGT) Pot-Limit Omaha Series II. With twice the cards in play, equities in PLO run much closer than in NLH — and PokerOrg's pick for Hand of the Week encapsulates this dynamic perfectly.
With six players remaining at the final table of Event #9: $15,100 Pot-Limit Omaha, Bryce Yockey was in serious need of a spin-up, holding the second-smallest stack at the table – and it didn't take long for him to take a shot at it.
'This game is silly'
With roughly 15 big blinds in front of him, Yockey started the hand with an under-the-gun raise holding . When the action folded around to the small blind, Veselin Karakitukov peeled
and fired out a three-bet for nearly all of Yockey's chips. After utilizing a time extension, Yockey opted to call the raise – rather than move all-in over the top – and leave himself a little less than three big blinds behind.
"If he connects in any way, shape, or form here I would expect his remaining 140K is just going to go in," said Donnie Peters from the commentary booth.
And connect he did as the dealer spread the flop to improve Yockey to a straight. In a perfect illustration of the variance present in the four-card streets, Yockey actually found himself as an equity dog with two cards still to come. Karakitukov, while technically behind on the flop, had a boatload of outs – 17 of them, to be exact – to improve to the winner.
Remko Rinkema summarized the situation well from the commentary booth: "This game is silly."
The on the turn paired the board, providing Karakitukov with two additional outs. With only one card to come, Yockey became the statistical favorite to win the hand, but it was still essentially a flip. The river
was a complete blank, however, and Yockey scored a statistically unlikely full double. After surviving the hand with Karakitukov, the cards continued to fall favorably for Yockey and he rode the momentum all the way to a $290,000 first-place prize – his second trophy of the PGT PLO Series II.
While the hand between Yockey and Karakitukov takes the Hand of the Week superlative, an honorable mention must be made for Nick Palma's sendoff hand on Hustler Casino Live.
Additional images courtesy of Antonio Abrego/PokerGO Tour