Two trophies in the same week, in the most expensive event on the schedule, with the table's most aggressive player seated on his right. Argentina's Juan Barattini won the BSOP Floripa 2026 Grand High Roller, the R$15,000 buy-in event that drew 123 entries, and took home R$385,000. It is his second title of the stop: days earlier he had won the R$10,000 1-Day High Roller PKO (48 entries, R$114,000 including bounties). "Winning a tournament in this format is an incredible feeling," he said, dedicating the title to his daughter.
The facts: a deep final table, one key flip and trips on the flop
Colombia's Carlos Serrano led Day 1 (1,305,000 chips) and the final day began on Tuesday with blinds at 10,000/15,000 and a big blind ante. It was the kind of final table that lets you play: the leader came in with about 40 big blinds and the finale ran past five hours. Out in order went Marin Gechev (9th, R$41,000), Dodô Oliveira (8th), Caue Casagrande (7th), Alcidalio Modesto Junior (6th), Luiz Hota Neto (5th, R$101,500) and Argentina's Jorge Alvarado Uriburu (4th, R$131,500).
The turning point came three-handed against Serrano: Barattini won a decisive flip with A-Q against K-J and soon after eliminated the Colombian in third place (R$172,000). Uruguay's Horacio Courdin was waiting heads-up, and the last hand was quick: Barattini held K-6, the flop came A-6-6, and trips ended the tournament. Courdin collected R$255,000.
The champion was direct about the table: Serrano, "a very aggressive player who is always trying to put you in tough spots," landed on his right in the seat draw. "Having him on my right let me play comfortably and stay in control."
Why it matters: your seat decides how much you suffer against the aggressor
Barattini did not talk about cards; he talked about position. In poker, acting after an opponent means seeing their decision before making yours, and against a player who opens and applies pressure in almost every hand, that information is worth more than any starting hand. With the aggressor on your right, you decide after him on every street: you call with medium hands and let him keep betting, or raise when you connect. With him on your left, every open you make gets raised and you play the whole tournament out of position. Our guide on why position matters explains the mechanism, and the one on how to play against a maniac covers this exact case: let the aggressor bluff for you and get paid with value.
Second lesson, the flip. A-Q against K-J is close to 60% for A-Q: a turning point can be a hand won as the favorite, not a brilliant play. The real decision was arriving at that hand with a healthy stack after five hours at a deep table: 40 big blinds give you room to avoid forced all-ins and wait for the right spot.
Third, the format. A R$15,000 High Roller is not a tournament to play with money you need: the champion himself min-cashed the Main Event in 99th and won a 48-player event in the same week. Two titles and a small cash are volume and bankroll management, not a heater. His schedule confirms it: an online grind through the end of the month, a family vacation, and then the BSOP Millions in November. Work, rest, target.
The stop's Main Event went to Kaio Camargo, and Floripa had players from all over Latin America at almost every final table. If you want to train position and play against aggressive opponents alongside players from across the region, we break down spots like this every week in the community. Who would you rather have on your right: the aggressor or the passive player? Tell us.