Is this the Luckiest, Unlucky Poker Player of 2018?

Within the space of six weeks, a player at BetOnline Poker twice saw his Quads crushed at showdown, and twice won the Bad Beat Jackpot – collecting $340,040.

There have often been times when we´ve got all our chips in the middle with the best post-flop hand, only to see some lucky SOB hit his one-outer on the Turn or River. That´s part of the game, and can it happen several times a session – sometimes more if you are really unlucky.

Losing a hand like that can send you on tilt; but, for one player at BetOnline Poker, it was the stuff dreams are made of, due to his bad beat qualifying for the site´s Bad Beat Jackpot – not once, but twice within the space of six weeks. His two jackpot wins added a total of $340,040 to his bankroll.

The player – “santinhoz” – was not the only player to be made up with his jackpot win. Due to the way in which the jackpot prize pool is distributed, every other player who is active at a Jackpot table when the Bad Beat Jackpot is won, also shares in the prize pool. Some players will have picked up more than $1,000 for being in the right place at the right time.

Jackpot Win 1: Sunday 11th November

Santinhoz´s first win came eight months after the last time there had been a qualifying bad beat at BetOnline Poker – during which time the prize pool had grown to in excess of $1.2 million. Sitting on a $1/$2 full ring table, Santinhoz opened the betting from early position with pocket Tens (10♥ 10♠), and was raised the player in the Big Blind (“JC84”) who had woken up to pocket Aces (A♥ A♣).

The flop (A♠ 10♦ 10♣) was a monster – giving Santinhoz Quad Tens, and his opponent a Full House of Aces over Tens. Both players got all their chips in the middle during the post-flop action, watched the 2♦ on the Turn change nothing, and then saw the A♦ on the River give JC84 Quad Aces. Santinhoz may have lost more than $110 to his opponent for his Quads over Quads crushing, but he picked up $218,157 for winning the Bad Beat Jackpot.

Jackpot Win 2: Monday 24th December

Christmas came early for players at BetOnline Poker during the early hours of Christmas Eve, when Santinhoz was once again involved in a jackpot winning hand. This time – not surprisingly considering he was $200,000 richer than before – Santinhoz was seated at a $10/$20 6-Max table when his pocket Jacks (J♥ J♦) made a set on the flop of J♠ Q♣ 3♦. This time his opponent (“Orianne17”) was the aggressor, chasing an open-ended straight draw with 9♣ 10♣.

Orianne17 made his straight draw when the K♣ was dealt on the Turn, but it was not until the J♠ was dealt on the River that the chips really started to fly – Santinhoz (Quad Jacks) moving all in for $5,549, and Orianne17 (Straight Flush) matching $2,633 of the bet. The cards were revealed, and yet again Santinhoz had got all his chips in at the wrong time, but at the right time as well – this time scooping $121,883 for his bad beat.

How (Nearly) Every Player Wins when the Jackpot is Won

When the Bad Beat Jackpot is won, the player who suffers the bad beat collects 17.5% of the prize pool. The player who wins the hand gets 12.5% of the prize pool, while the other players dealt into the jackpot hand share 10% of the pool, with another 10% being distributed to every other active player at a Jackpot table. The remaining half of the jackpot prize pool goes towards seeding the next jackpot and administration costs. That´s why the current jackpot prize pool is already over $290,000.

If a player is sitting out when the jackpot is won, they don´t receive anything and their share is distributed between every other eligible player. We published a story earlier this year about how bad timing cost a player almost $20,000, and the same thing happened again in both of Santinhoz´s jackpot wins. The first time around, two players missed out on $17,808 each, and on the second occasion sitting out cost another player $17,421. Bet that spoiled his Christmas when he found out!

All Good Things Come in Threes. Or Do They?

Inasmuch as it would be absolutely incredible if Santinhoz was to win the Bad Beat Jackpot for a third time, it´s probably fairer if he gives somebody else a turn. On average, the Bad Beat Jackpot at BetOnline Poker is won every three months, but it could hang around for eight months (or longer) as it did before, or be won twice in five days as it was last March. There´s just no telling.

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