Pocket Kings Crush Aces in High-Stakes PartyPoker Showdown

One player's tournament dreams ended in seconds. Another surged ahead with a monster pot—how a single hand rewrote the stakes in Seville.

, and Administrator

2026 March 29 . 5:02 PM

1 min read

The image shows a group of men sitting around a table playing poker, with coins and cards spread... — The image shows a group of men sitting around a table playing poker, with coins and cards spread out in front of them. In the background, there is a pillar and other objects, suggesting that the men are participating in a poker tournament.

Pocket Kings Crush Aces in High-Stakes PartyPoker Showdown

Day 2 of the €500 Main Event at the PartyPoker Tour in Seville is underway with 68 players still competing. A dramatic hand just unfolded before the scheduled 25-minute break, leaving one player eliminated and another significantly boosting their chip stack. The action began when Adrian Creagh opened the pot with a raise to 10,000 from the Lo-jack position. Daniel Ciancio then three-bet to 30,000 from the Cut-off, increasing the pressure. Gonzalo Rodriguez responded aggressively, four-bet shoving all-in for roughly 160,000.

Dara O'Kearney, holding **K♠ K♦**, wasn't deterred. He five-bet shoved, covering Rodriguez's stack. Both Creagh and Ciancio opted to fold, leaving the two players to showdown. Rodriguez revealed **A♦ K♣**, but his hand couldn't outmatch O'Kearney's pocket kings. The board ran out unfavourably for Rodriguez, sending him out of the tournament. O'Kearney now sits with a stack of 500,000, while Rodriguez's tournament run has ended.

The hand marks a significant shift in the tournament dynamics, with O'Kearney consolidating a strong chip lead. Play will resume after the 25-minute break, as the remaining 68 players continue battling for a spot in the money.