This week’s episode of High Stakes Poker featured a truly star-studded lineup, with some of the biggest nosebleed poker legends in the mix.
The likes of Alan Keating, Peter, Ryan Feldman, Steve, and Britney took to the table, all well-known names to the fans of the High Stakes Poker and other TV poker shows.
Quite a few of the players in the mix in Monday’s episode made their names playing regularly in the biggest games on Hustler Casino Live, including the show’s owner Ryan Feldman.
With such a lineup and the stakes set at $200/400 to start, it was expected that quite a few huge pots would be played. To the satisfaction of numerous fans, the episode included two pots that reached close to the $1,000,000 mark, including a chopped pot that broke High Stakes Poker’s record for the biggest pot in show history.
However, that pot ended without a bloodbath, while a different hand made history, with Alan Keating making one of the sickest calls of all time in a huge $900k pot.
Keating and Peter Butt Heads in a Massive Pot
Alan Keating and the mysterious Chinese businessman who goes by the name of Peter are well-known to TV poker fans, as both have appeared in some of the biggest streamed poker games in recent years.
In this week’s episode of High Stakes Poker Season 14, the two players were seated with the deepest stacks, and they tangled in quite a few big pots.
The most interesting hand of the night came when Steve opened the action to $1.4k holding 8♠6♣, Peter called with his 6♠3♠, and Keating came along from the big blind holding 9♦7♦.
The flop brought A♣K♠7♠, giving Peter a flush draw and Keating bottom pair. With just over $4k in the pot, Steve continued for $4k and Peter made the aggressive play right away, raising to $13k.
In most cases, the hand would have been done right here, as neither of Peter’s opponents had much. Yet, Alan decided to get creative, as he often does, and made it $41k to go with just bottom pair.
Peter made the quick call, and the two players went to the turn, which brought the 6♥, giving Peter a bottom pair to go with his flush draw.
Keating kept betting, this time putting out $58k in chips. Peter used his pair and flush draw to get aggressive once more, raising to $175k. Once more, it seemed like the hand was over and that Keating could not sustain the pressure his opponent was exerting.
However, mysterious Mr. Keating once again surprised everyone, including Nick Schulman in the commentary booth, when he made the call for just under $120k more.
The river card was an inconsequential 4♥ and both players were left with just one pair, with Keating’s pair of sevens standing as the best hand.
Keating checked in flow and Peter made the only play that was left, moving all in for his remaining $235k on the river.
Alan took his time to make the decision, but eventually landed on a call, trying to pick off bluffs from Peter, who has historically been one of the most aggressive players in the game.
What Was Keating Thinking?
Calling multiple six-figure bets with third pair is not something we typically see even in the biggest poker games on TV, so what exactly was it that made Alan Keating call down Peter in one of the biggest HSP pots of all time.
Keating posted on his X account following Episode 6 airing, simply saying “Hard to make a pair,” but also promised he would be disclosing his thought process very soon.
Of course, it is certain that Peter’s reputation and the hands these two played in the past had something to do with Keating choosing to take a stand here, as he is known for a player who plays a highly exploitative brand of poker.
Keating is also known for being a loose cannon himself, and is fully capable of running a multi-street bluff like this himself.
As such, Peter’s thought process was not strange to Keating, and it was only natural that his sixth sense would turn on the moment Peter started making the big bets.
By the river, Peter was only credibly representing hands like A7s, K7s, and 77, which were all possible, but also somewhat blocked by Alan’s own pair of sevens.
While most players would have folded third pair simply because they were facing such big bets, Keating was able to dissect the hand from a strategic point of view and realize that Peter is more likely to be bluffing than not.
The Jury Remains Out on Alan Keating
Over the last few years, Alan Keating has been one of the staples of live streamed and televised high-stakes poker games, consistently bringing the action and playing some of the biggest pots we have ever seen.
Alan’s unorthodox poker strategy has often seen him dig massive holes and take unnecessary gambles that most would consider as pure mistakes. Yet, Keating has managed to win in some of the biggest games and is a player few actually enjoy seeing at their table.
It is clear that Keating’s strategies are not consistent with the game theory optimal approach to poker that many pros take these days, but they seem to be working quite well on the biggest stage.
Whether his strategy is actually profitable in the long run or not remains to be seen, but the one thing we can all agree on is that he is one of the biggest entertainers in the game.
Stay tuned for more High Stakes Poker action in the coming weeks and more mind-noggling plays from one of the most fearless poker players who have ever lived.
