Nick is a cash game player, content creator and part of 888poker’s Stream Team. Each week he shares his thoughts and experiences as a player dedicated to the daily grind. This week he takes a trip to Barcelona to play the 888LIVE event…
As you’re reading this, I’ll be sitting down for the €888 Main Event at 888LIVE Barcelona, one of my most eagerly anticipated tour stops of the year.
If you’ve seen my previous article on my distinct lack of success in live events, you’ll know that I don’t hold out much hope for any personal achievements this week. But this trip is about so much more than playing a poker tournament. In the zero-sum game that is poker, I find myself in as close to a win-win situation as it’s possible to get. If all this positivity feels a little off-brand for me, let me explain.
The city
888LIVE Barcelona is held every year in May in the Casino Barcelona, located right on the beach where the weather is just beginning to turn far too warm for this unacclimatized Brit.
With this being my third time in the city for 888LIVE, it’s generally become the first point in the year that I dust the cobwebs off my shorts. Having said that, there’s rarely any time to participate in any beach activities, but the walk along the seafront is certainly a welcome start to every day before the poker action begins.
Obviously the city is well renowned for its impressive architecture, with the highlight being the astonishing Sagrada Familia (below - be sure to visit if you ever get the chance). There are also bustling markets and phenomenal restaurants throughout the area that have become the perfect antidote to my tournament failures in the last two years.
The poker
Of course, though, I’m mainly attending to create content and play some poker, and any sightseeing or enjoyable weather that I’m able to squeeze in is just a bonus.
The first thing that my poker friends ask me when I travel to these events is whether I’ll be playing the Main Event, and whether this will be the time that I finally make a meaningfully deep run. I always respond the same way, that I will be playing the Main, and obviously not troubling the payouts.
The tournament itself, though, is always incredibly well run. The room is spacious, the dealers are fantastic, and the whole experience is top class. But despite Barcelona’s plentiful offerings, both in terms of poker and landscape, it’s not either of these things that I look forward to most.
The team
The standout part of the event is getting to work more closely with the best team in poker for a week. And for 888LIVE Barcelona specifically, there are usually more members attending than at other events.
For example, this event will be the first time this year that I will be in the esteemed company of fellow 888poker Stream Team member Aaron Barone (below), who has made the long voyage from Canada.
I’m most excited about this due to Aaron’s apparent lack of care or understanding of just how much better he is at tournament poker than I am, given his foolish eagerness to swap equity with me in the Main. Whatever percentage I am able to squeeze out of Aaron will certainly be my highest hope for a big return on investment this weekend.
'Mes que un club'
Plenty of the brand ambassadors and managers are also here, which makes it extra fun for someone like me who spends so much time playing online - it really feels like I’m part of a team. And speaking of teams, the 888poker media team is also out in full force, pumping out content at every turn, with our legendary photographer Gema somehow able to find just the right angle to make me look somewhat passable.
What’s most rewarding is that everyone in this group gets along so well, and being part of a supremely talented team of great people is much more important to me than cashing any Main Event (although I wouldn’t say no to both). The famous local football team, Barcelona FC, is known for its motto ‘Mes Que Un Club’, which translates to ‘more than a club’. In this city, with these people, I get it.
Would my teammates be as glowing in their review of me? Ask me again if I manage to make Aaron some money in the Main!
But thanks to the people of 888poker, the city of Barcelona and the tournament I find myself about to play, I know that if - or when - I bust this tourney in my usual miserable fashion, the disappointment will be as short-lived as it gets.
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Images courtesy of 888LIVE/Csaba Veres/Unsplash
