PokerStars' The Big Game On Tour Season 2 came to a close on Sunday as the final episode saw Lex Veldhuis, Alan Keating, Chance Kornuth, Jason Koon, Morgan Jay, and Loose Cannon Luke Moy play out the last of their allotted 150 hands. With the game's end in sight, a few players – Moy and Veldhuis most notably – had profits to protect while others were chasing losses.
For Veldhuis, booking a win in a televised cash game format has historically been somewhat of a challenge. Whether it was his appearances on High Stakes Poker or the earlier seasons of The Big Game, Veldhuis' prior experiences under the bright lights haven't exactly gone to plan. While he headed into the final few hands with $114,000 in profit, Veldhuis wasn't ready to lock up his winnings just yet – and a key pot against Keating and Koon kept him well in the black.
"I can't try to squeak out a win and I'm just not going to back down from any action to book a winning session," Veldhuis told the cameras in a cutaway interview. "But I do hope that I can keep it at this point."
'I wanted to fold'
With the $800 straddle in play thanks to Kornuth, the hand started with a raise to $2,000 from Koon and his 
. Veldhuis called from the small blind with 
, as did Keating from the big blind with 
. Kornuth looked down at 
in the straddle and, despite the discount to see three, he declined to match the raise and returned his cards to the dealer.
With $7,200 in the pot, Kornuth may have been kicking himself for not throwing in the extra $1,200 as the board came down 
– little did he know he would have lost a whole lot more as Veldhuis smashed the flop and improved to a full house. The action checked through on the flop to bring in the 
on the turn, providing both Koon and Keating with no-good draws to work with. Veldhuis seized the betting lead, tossing a chunky $6,500 bet across the line.
Keating quickly called, leaving Koon to weigh his options before landing on the same action. The 
river completed the board – the perfect card for Veldhuis as both of his opponents' draws came home. With $26,700 in the pot, Veldhuis went for heavy value with a bet of $23,000. Keating took a few moments to think, but impressively came to the right conclusion in short order and returned his cards to the dealer. Koon, on the other hand, took his time with the decision.
"F**k. I'm about to make the craziest fold I've ever made in my life. I'm even thinking about it, that's crazy," Koon monologued. "The problem is I might just beat a value bet."
"I'm sorry if I nit-rolled you here, man, don't take it personal. I'm a little tired," Koon continued. "I wanted to fold, but I'm just..."
Koon slid a single chip forward for a call.
"I have a boat," Veldhuis told him.
As Veldhuis stacked up the $72,700 pot, Kornuth celebrated his decision to fold. With the payoff from Koon, the Dutchman ended the back half of The Big Game On Tour Season 2 as the game's big winner – profiting $149,900 in the 150 hands played.
