The holiday season just got better for Pennsylvania and New Jersey poker players. Along with gifts and good tidings, PokerStars players can welcome in some big events in December.
In Pennsylvania, that includes a third installment of the popular Pennsyl-MANIA tournament. The site is also launching a Turbo Week series on Dec. 13 guaranteeing $500,000 across 56 events.
New Jersey players will also enjoy a similar one-off tournament to heat up the holidays.
Following two record-setting events earlier this year, Pennsyl-MANIA is back for its third edition. PA-MANIA III promises the biggest online poker prize pool for a single event the state has ever seen.
The $200 buy-in online poker extravaganza is set for Dec. 27 with a $500,000 guarantee. Players can get in the two-day event for even less however.
Satellites are running for as little as $5. Special depositor freerolls will also award $10,000 in tournament tickets.
PokerStars held the first PA-MANIA in May with “D-Low1527” topping a 2,026-entry field for $69,670. The tournament produced a $515,964 prize pool, an online record in Pennsylvania.
In the second edition in August, “SlotWinna777” topped a field of 2,025 entries for a prize of $44,642.
PokerStars Turbo Week offers fast-paced fun
OnThursday, Gov. Tom Wolf (D) announced tighter COVID-19 restrictions in Pennsylvania. That includes the closing of casinos though Jan. 4.
Players looking for some poker action will now have to head to PokerStars in December. Considering that, the site’s new Turbo Week series offers players a chance at some action from home.
Ahead of PA-MANIA, players who love turbo and hyper turbo tournaments are in for a treat. PA Turbo Week runs Dec. 13-20 with an overall guarantee of $500,000 and buy-ins ranging from $5 to $1,000.
Players will find a wide variety of events including: Pot Limit Omaha, Badugi, Five Card Draw, Five-Card PLO, PLO Hi/Lo, progressive knockouts, high rollers, win the button, and more.
Players missing the money in any Turbo Week tournament don’t walk away completely empty handed. Those receive a ticket to a Second Chance Freeroll, where $1,500 in tournament tickets will be awarded.
The $200 Main Event highlights the series on Dec. 20 with a $60,000 guarantee. A few other highlights include:
$100 TurboSunday Special Second Chance (Event 5, Dec. 13) – $30,000 guaranteed
Garden State gets in the action too with PokerStars
PokerStars players in New Jersey aren’t left out of the holiday card-playing fun. The site is launching a new poker event on Dec. 27.
The $200 New Jersey Classic features a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool. Players can qualify for as little as $5 with satellites running throughout the month.
Additionally, simply depositing $30 or more can also earn entry into a depositor freeroll with $10,000 in given away.
December promises to be a nice action-filled month for PokerStars players in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
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Online poker players in Michigan received some good news on Thursday. The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) approved provisional licenses for 15 platform providers.
For poker fans, two companies stand out on that list: Roar Digital and TSG Interactive (The Stars Group). Roar is the gaming partnership between MGM and GV Holdings (owner of partypoker US Network).
TSG is a division of Flutter Entertainment, which owns PokerStars and the Fox Bet sports wagering platform.
The MGCB told USPoker on Thursday that online gaming may be launching in the coming weeks. It’s unknown if that could include poker.
“Based on what we know at this point, we expect to authorize launch by mid-January,” MGCB spokeswoman Mary Kay Bean told USPoker in an email.
“We don’t know whether poker will be among the games included at initial launch. It will depend on an operator’s readiness to offer poker (their games have been evaluated by independent testing labs and our own gaming lab) and their desire to do so.”
What the operator approvals mean
Those timelines can change but a launch a couple weeks after New Year’s would be welcomed by players. The approvals grant each company a provisional license to operate in the state.
This comes after the filing of the administrative rules for online gaming and sports betting on Dec. 2. Operators still aren’t quite at the launch stage yet however.
“The platform providers still must meet other regulatory requirements before online gaming and sports betting can launch in Michigan,” MGCB executive director Richard S. Kalm said in a news release. “The launch date will depend on how quickly they can fulfill the requirements.”
Those requirements include independent testing of platforms and games. To ensure gaming integrity, MGCB must also approve each company’s internal controls. The firms also must secure occupational licenses for certain employees.
The companies approved for provisional licenses with their better-known brands include:
TSG Interactive US Services Limited (Fox Bet, PokerStars)
BetMGM (Roar Digital and partypoker US Network)
American Wagering, Inc. (William Hill Sports Book)
Betfair Interactive US (FanDuel Sportsbook)
Churchill Downs Interactive Gaming (TwinSpires)
Crown MI Gaming (DraftKings)
GAN Nevada Inc. (online gaming technology provider)
Sports Information Services Limited (Kambi sports betting service)
WSI US, LLC (Wynn Sports)
A look ahead at Michigan online poker
Poker players will probably be most interested in those first two operators. PokerStars operates “ringed-in” platforms in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The company remains the only operator in the latter.
Partypoker US Network operates in New Jersey and also includes the BetMGM and BorgataPoker.com skins.
World Series of Poker (WSOP.com) and its software partner 888poker are absent from the list so far. Pennsylvania has also approved WSOP/888 and partypoker US, but they have yet to go live.
Major launches by these in Michigan and Pennsylvania could add to the growing momentum the US market experienced in 2020.
A couple other companies on the list of license approvals also stand out. Parx has a major live poker scene in Pennsylvania.
Rush Street Interactive is also a major leader in online gaming. Phil Hellmuth is linked to the company and told USPoker that Rush Street has plans to eventually launch online poker.
The MGCB has accepted applications from companies since mid-May. The board has also worked toward:
communicating licensing requirements
reviewing internal controls
reviewing branding submissions
The agency has already allowed operators to unveil apps prior to full-scale launch, which has hastened the process. Michigan residents can download and create accounts. No bets can go forward until final approval to launch.
“The platform providers’ ability to meet the requirements of the laws and rules will determine which entities can be licensed for launch first,” Kalm said.
A Michigan player’s perspective
No doubt many Michigan players will be pleased with the news that legal, real money online poker is getting closer. The state legalized online gaming, sports betting, and poker in 2019.
Until the legal battle over the Wire Act is final, however, Michigan will be a ringed-in market. That means players only battle other players within the state.
Mike Lehnner is a 51-year-old retired corrections officer and runs the Team Michigan Poker Facebook group. He divides time between Ithaca and Las Vegas and pleased his home state is getting closer to legal online poker.
“I think it is long overdue as it never should have been shut down,” he says, referring to Black Friday. “Michigan has some of the best poker players in the world and I just wish the player pool was expanded.”
Lehnner believes the Wolverine State can be a leader in the industry and model for other states.
“Long term, I hope we get back to nationwide and worldwide player pools,” he says. “I think we are on the verge of another poker boom. Expanding player pools will be critical to allowing a boom to happen.”
A big Sunday is ahead for American online poker players looking to get in the World Series of Poker$10,000 Main Event. The series announced in early November that the tournament would take place mostly on WSOP.com and GGPoker.
The final table is now set in the international half of the Main Event. Players in New Jersey and Nevada now have their shot at WSOP.com.
What to expect from the WSOP.com half of the Main Event
Players jumping in the action on Sunday will find some of what they might expect from the live Main Event. The buy-in is indeed $10,000, although satellites have also been underway.
The tournament will also remain in a freezeout format with some of the longest levels in (online) tournament poker. Of course, the game is also No Limit Texas Hold’em.
The ultimate winner also takes home a nice payout and the coveted championship gold bracelet.
Much of the similarity stops there. This year will see the great majority of the tournament played out online. Sunday brings Day 1 with the second day of action on Monday.
Day 2 will play down to the final nine players. Those will then play at a live final table on Dec. 28 at the Rio in Las Vegas. The international final table will be played on Dec. 15 at King’s Casino in the Czech Republic.
Both the international and US final tables will be filmed for broadcast by ESPN. The two properties will pay out winners in each tournament separately.
The winners of each half will then meet up at the Rio on Dec. 30. Caesars and GGPoker are putting up $1 million for a heads-up, winner-take-all battle, also filmed by ESPN.
Final table set in the GGPoker international half of Main Event
Much of the play in the international half of the event has already wrapped up at GGPoker. The final nine players are set with Brazil’s Brunno Botteon returning as chip leader.
Botteon is no stranger to GGPoker World Series success. In this summer WSOP Online, he notched several big scores including:
Runner-up – $500 Limit Hold’em for $41,855
Sixth place – $25,000 Poker Players Championship for $388,837
Runner-up – $25,000 NLHE Heads-Up for $622,300
Following him in second and third are Portugal’s Manuel Ruivo and Argentina’s Damian Salas. Ruivo has $745,000 in live tournament winnings.
He’s also found nice success online, winning the $5,300 partypoker MILLIONS Online in 2018 for $2.3 million.
Salas has $2.7 million in live tournament winnings and is no stranger to WSOP fans. He’s already had one ESPN appearance, taking seventh in the Main Event in 2017 for $1.4 million. Here’s a look at the complete international final table:
The announcement that much of the Main Event would be moved online has drawn some criticism. Some think it’s a radical departure from the traditional event and should just be played in 2021 if possible.
Others argue that the winner of the $5,000 Main Event in the GGPoker WSOP Online this summer should be this year’s champion.
Bulgaria’s Stoyan Madanzhievwon that tournament, which attracted 5,802 players, for his first bracelet and $3.9 million.
I think Stoyan should get to play a 3 handed match with the winners from the US and GG events if they plan to continue with another WSOP “Main Event” @WSOPhttps://t.co/1R7JyWLI4Q
In the WSOP.com half of that series, Nahrain Tamero won the $1,000 NLHE Championship for $310,832. The Californian could claim his own US half of the title.
Whatever the case, a new Main Event champion will be crowned in some form. Whether that’s this month remains to be seen. The current pandemic situation could always throw a curveball.
Travel restrictions and Coronavirus concerns could alter the heads-up plans. A unique year has certainly made for a unique Main Event.
Those craving live poker may at least enjoy a look back to a different time. The 2019 Main Event final table was a time when live poker was the norm. It’s a time many hope returns soon.
The 2019 @WSOP Main Event had some wild hands, including this one between eventual Champ Hossein Ensan & 8th place finisher Timothy Su.
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The new Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia continues to move toward an opening in early 2021. When that happens, there will be live poker.
According to a casino representative, the new property will feature a new 29-table poker room. No official opening date has been announced as yet.
Live! Philly eyeing mid-January for poker room launch
Earlier today, poker reporter Anthony Cicali additionally tweeted confirmation that Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia will have a poker room. Cicali shared a short video showing movers bringing a poker table into the casino and unwrapping it.
According to Cicali’s sources, “They are looking to launch mid-January.”
Confirmed!!! Philly Live will have a poker room .. here’s first look and inside sources tell me they are looking to launch mid January @LiveCasinoPHLpic.twitter.com/KOQk3itSUt
When asked, “Will you guys have poker and if so will it be immediately?” via Instagram, a Live! rep responded:
“We will have a poker room, however with covid restrictions, we won’t know until we open.”
The casino was developed and is owned by The Cordish Companies who also operate Xfinity Live! Philadelphia. Like other Philadelphia casinos, Xfinity Live! has temporarily closed due to citywide restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
All Philadelphia casinos must remain closed until Jan. 1, 2021 at the earliest, meaning the opening of Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia will not happen until the new year.
Located in the South Philadelphia Stadium Entertainment District, Live! Philly will feature 2,200 slot machines and over 125 table games.
While plans move ahead toward the casino’s grand opening, the PlayLive! Online Casino and FanDuel-powered online sportsbook are already up and running.
PA poker rooms return slowly, continue to face challenges
It has been a challenging year for Pennsylvania poker rooms, all of which were forced to close in mid-March due to the pandemic. Casinos began to reopen over the summer, but the poker rooms remained shut down as dictated by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board‘s COVID-19 Casino Reopening Protocols.
It wasn’t until early October that some of the poker rooms began submitting reopening plans to the PGCB.
Five rooms reopened in late October and early November. They included the rooms at Mohegan Sun Pocono, Mount Airy Casino, The Meadows Racetrack & Casino, Rivers Casino Pittsburgh, and Rivers Casino Philadelphia.
Rivers Casino Philadelphia opened its poker room as well, although the citywide restrictions forced the casino to close once again on Nov. 20.
Parx Casino in Bensalem plans to reopen the state’s largest poker room on Dec. 15.
The poker rooms at Hollywood Casino, Presque Isle Downs, and Wind Creek Casino have all remain shuttered. A representative from Wind Creek informed PlayPennsylvania in late November the casino had no update to provide regarding when the poker room might reopen.
Meanwhile one of the closed poker rooms, the WSOP-branded one at Harrah’s Philadelphia, will not be reopening. In August it became known that Harrah’s intended to close its poker room permanently.
For the latest on PA poker room reopenings and plans, visit our live updates page.
Doug Polk got back on track in a big way on Monday, posting a win of more than $160,000. Daniel Negreanu was left on the short end of several big pots.
For more of the Day 16 action, check out the updates just below the links. This page follows the action of the Daniel Negreanu-Doug Polk matchup as it plays out over the next few weeks.
The High Stakes Feud kicked off on Nov. 4 with live play on PokerGo and then shifted online. Here are all the match details and updates.
It was another long session for Polk and Negreanu on Monday – spanning four hours. Polk scored an impressive win after three straight losing, albeit small, losing sessions.
After 824 hands, Polk finished up $160,349 – about four buy-ins. He’s now closing in on a positive $700,000 in the series. Things didn’t start out poorly for Negreanu. He scooped a few nice pots early and utilized some aggression.
Deeper into the first hour of play, however, Polk took command. One hand at about the 50-minute mark exemplified Polk’s river-raising forte. Negreanu started the action with a raise to $1,000 and Polk called.
The flop brought 58K. Polk checked and Negreanu bet $800. Polk called and the turn was the 3. Negreanu bet $1,600 and thought a bit before raising to almost $9,900.
Negreanu called to make it more than $23,000 in the pot. The river produced the Q and Polk moved all in for his $102,000. Negreanu tanked before eventually folding. The big pots continued for Polk throughout the day.
The Polk truck rolls on
About an hour and half into the match, three-bet pots developed on both tables. The first saw Polk make a pot-sized bet of $8,200 into a board of KQ108. Negreanu called and the river brought the 2.
Polk moved all in for $79,000 and Negreanu called the last of his $33,000. Negreanu showed K7 for top pair, but Polk tabled Q10 for two pairs. He raked about $90,000 in that one.
On the second table, Negreanu took a smaller pot of about $14,000. However, it was a large net win for Polk and typical of how things went. Polk had a lead of $170,000 about 90 minutes into the match.
Just short of the two-hour mark, Polk raised to $900 and Negreanu three-bet to $4,200. Polk then four-bet to $12,500 and Negreanu made the call with 2Q5 hitting the board.
Both players checked and the 3 landed on the turn. Negreanu bet $10,500 and Polk called, making it $46,000 in the post so far.
The river brought the K and Negreanu moved the last of his $36,000 into the pot and was called. Negreanu showed top pair with Q10, but Polk tabled AA for a $120,000 pot.
Inside the 16th day of action
Despite a nice win and a healthy lead, Polk is still only up just about 17 buy-ins. A couple big days from Kid Poker could swing this back to a closer matchup.
Polk has run well and even caught four of a kind on Monday for a $25,000 pot. If the cards turn, Negreanu may be able to turn the tables if Polk is snookered here and there.
But Polk is a tough customer and Negreanu admitted he was an underdog going into the series.
“There were some interesting big pots,” Polk noted on the Upswing Poker stream afterward. “I think Negreanu might have overplayed his hands a little on some of those.”
Polk questioned his opponent’s play on the pocketAces versus Q10 hand. He was unsure why Negreanu moved all in on the river.
“It’s just not good,” Polk said. “It’s just very bad. I don’t know what that was.”
Polk remains in control as of now. He seems to take the big wins of late with his opponent taking the small ones. Polk picked off a few bluffs on Monday and looked to have made some timely folds.
Negreanu had been down more in the session, but was able to cut some of his losses late. It was a frustrating day for the Poker Hall of Famer.
“I just missed a lot of draws,” he said on the GGPoker stream. “If you hit those hands you can win big. But if you keep putting in a lot of money and then miss them, you feel silly sometimes. I ran a couple bluffs that didn’t work and he had a hand he had to call with.”
Overall Negreanu believed it was a good battle and still feels comfortable with his heads-up game.
Could live play be returning to the series?
Those watching the GGPoker stream of the series on Monday received some interesting news. Host Jeff Platt noted there’s a possibility the two players may return live on PokerGO at some point.
No firm details are available yet and the possibility may depend on the status of the match. A big loss by one player (Negreanu as of now) may put a damper on those plans however.
In other news, the two players announced that they’ll be playing four days this week. They’re planning on throwing in a Thursday session and then taking some time off next week for the holidays.
Day 15: Dec. 4 – Negreanu chalks up third-straight win
Polk started the week noting it would be an important three matches for the series. Negreanu could add to his deficit and be in rougher shape or battle back to stay in the match.
After Friday’s action, Negreanu had notched three small wins in a row. While Polk’s lead remains large, his opponent has chipped away. A larger Negreanu win this week could change the series even more.
Friday’s action included an interesting development, with Polk streaming his session. While not all his cards were visible, many of his hands were shown for viewers. He offered his reasoning for not showing everything.
“The reality is that when you play at high stakes, people are trying to look at what you do and trying to figure you out,” he said to begin the stream.
Negreanu stacked early in session
Shortly after taking an early $14,000 pot, Negreanu raised another hand to $1,000 and Polk three-bet to $4,100. Negreanu called and the flop brought 106Q. Polk informed viewers he’d be betting the size of the pot
“This could be getting spicy right out of the gate,” he said.
After a Polk bet of $8,200, Negreanu shoved all in for $44,000 and received a quick call. Negreanu held JQ for top pair, but Polk’s KQ had him out-kicked. The turn brought the 10 and the 8 fell on the river. Polk raked an $80,000 pot.
“We stacked him right out of the gate – boom, boom, boom, boom, boom,” Polk yelled on his stream. “That’s what’s up. You love to see it.”
Kid Poker catches up
While Polk found some early success, Negreanu would find some of his own pots. A short time after the big Polk win, four hearts showed up on the board. Negreanu snagged $17,000 with his A for the nut flush.
On the second table with a flop of 10J2, Negreanu check-raised to $11,000 when the 10 landed on the turn. Polk called and the river produced the 4.
Negreanu moved all in for almost $28,000 and Polk went in the tank before eventually folding. Negreanu secured a $34,000 pot in that one.
A short time later he raked a $21,000 pot with pocket Queens. Those wins moved him closer to even for the session.
About halfway through the day, Polk raised to $900 and Negreanu made it $4,200. Polk four-bet to $11,300 and Negreanu called.
The flop brought J22 and Negreanu checked. Polk bet $4,500 and Negreanu called. The turn brought the 3 with both players checking and the Q coming on the river.
Negreanu checked again and Polk moved all in. Hs opponent insta-called with AA for his last $40,000. The trap had been set and he picked off a Polk bluff with K4. The move was good for a $114,000 pot.
After about an hour, Negreanu was up $40,000, but Polk would close that to a few thousand. He’d later move ahead himself to about $40,000 at the two-hour mark.
Inside the 15th day of action
In the end, Negreanu finished up winning $46,582 over 452 hands. It was a bit of a swingy day again with things going Negreanu’s way.
The session lasted just under three hours and Polk lost just a bit over one buy-in.
“Sometimes you’re going to have good sessions and sometimes you’re going to lose a buy-in,” Polk said. “Considering all the swings that we had and the stacks were flying, I thought this was a good session.”
After some thought, Polk seemed to be a bit less positive and will be looking to correct some mistakes.
yikes, we had some mistakes today. Back in the lab we go.
Throughout the series, Negreanu has noted that he’s had Aces numerous times. That continued on Friday and he was happy to finally get paid off with them.
“I think I had Aces six times in this session,” he said in an interview on the GGPoker stream. “It was nice to finally get action.”
Day 14: Dec. 2 – Negreanu scores small victory in massively swingy day
Team Negreanu has some reason for optimism. While they haven’t been huge wins, Wednesday brought the second-straight positive day for Negreanu.
There’s still a mountain to climb, but any momentum is good for Negreanu backers. The day started with Negreanu grabbing a few pots including a three-bet pot eventually won with Queen-high.
A few nice more would follow and then 10 minutes in, Polk utilized an all-in shove on the river. With a board of 10475Q Negreanu bet $9,000 and Polk moved all in for $35,000. That was enough to win about $30,000.
Things continued to swing back and forth for much of the day, which went for four hours.
Polk finds a flush and more
In the first hour of play, one interesting hand saw Polk raise to $900 from the button. Negreanu called and the flop came Q64.
Negreanu checked and Polk bet $600 and received a call. On the turn, the 3 hit the board and Negreanu checked again. Polk bet $2,000 and Negreanu check-raised to $7,500.
Polk called and the river brought the 2. Negreanu bet $13,500, about two-thirds of the pot, and Polk made the call. Showing A5, Negreanu made a straight.
However, Polk showed J2 for a flush and raked a $45,000 pot. The Polk train continued to roll when he took down another $45,000 with two pairs shortly afterward.
As part of this big run, Polk also picked off a Negreanu bluff for $36,000. He built about a $60,000 lead at the half-hour mark.
Negreanu battles back
Despite some huge Polk runs, Negreanu would find his share of big pots as well. Just short of an hour in, Polk raised to $910 and Negreanu reraised to $4,100. Polk four-bet to $11,100 and Negreanu called.
The flop brought 48Q and Negreanu checked. Polk bet about $4,500 and Negreanu called, building the pot to $31,000.
The turn brought the 4 and Negreanu again checked with Polk betting $6,800. That brought an all-in shove from Negreanu for his last $31,000.
Polk called and tabled 1010 to his opponent’s AQ. Negreanu added to his hand with a K on the fiver and the nut flush. He took $94,000 on that one.
This win came right after Negreanu took a $63,000 pot with a King-high straight. He’d moved up over $30,000 by about midway through the action.
That lead wouldn’t stand, however, and he was down later as much as $70,000. There were plenty of big pots and by the end, it was Negreanu who rallied and edged out ahead.
Inside the 14th day of action
When it all wrapped up, Negreanu booked another small win of about $13,000 after 788 hands. This came after a win of almost $18,000 on Monday.
These aren’t massive days and Negreanu will need much bigger scores to get back in the series. However, Polk said this week would be crucial for Negreanu and the match overall.
The two are closing in on the 12,000-hand mark where either player can decide to quit. Negreanu has answered the bell so far this week.
But if he remains down more than a half-million bucks, tapping out might be a possibility. Adding a couple six-figure wins in the coming days would certainly help his cause. Accomplishing that is easier said than done.
Not only is Polk a heads-up shark, he’s also running well in big spots. He noted this on Twitter after the match about another huge hand from session 14.
On the GGPoker stream afterward, Negreanu described Wednesday’s session as emotional with “crazy back and forth.”
Some added streaming coverage coming from Polk
Players checking out Friday’s action will find an added bonus from Polk. He’s decided to stream his play so viewers can see his hands throughout the session.
Ok you guys got close enough. Let’s roll. Planning on most likely this Friday session streaming it. https://t.co/islRe5pGtj
In a matchup that is attracting plenty of interest, this should bring some extra excitement. Less experienced players may be amazed at the hands each play for so much money.
The Polk stream should offer some insight into the thinking of players at this level.
Day 13: Nov. 30 – Negreanu books small win to break Polk streak
After 12 days of play, Polk noted the importance of this week in the High Stakes Feud. He sees it as a big week in the challenge with Negreanu now down more than a half-million dollars.
“A swing towards Dnegs and it will be back in any man’s game territory,” he noted on Twitter. “A swing towards me and it will start to get out of hand. Could be a make or break week for the challenge.”
From Polk’s perspective, Negreanu would need to cut into that lead this week to have a chance to stay close. After four straight days on the losing end, Negreanu was at least able to stop the bleeding on Monday.
Negreanu looks at some of the showdown hands
While the Negreanu-Polk matchup has been making news, viewers haven’t been able to see hole cards. Negreanu offered some insight on Tuesday with a look at some of the bigger hands of the day. All the hands made it to a showdown.
Viewers will get some insight on how Negreanu plays some of his hands. An early hand saw him flop top pair with his 10J on a board of 106439. Negreanu bet the hand through only to see Polk rake a $23,000 pot with 46.
A similar hand saw his K5 hit top pair. However, Polk’s A9 drew four spades for a flush and a $28,000 pot.
Negreanu would find some of his own pots however. Negreanu raised to $4,100 with AK and Polk called. The flop brought A3Q and Negreanu checked, as did Polk.
The 10 came on the river and both players checked again with the 9 falling on the river. Negreanu checked again and received no action with Polk checking again. He may have raked a small pot, but was unhappy with his passive play and not betting the hand.
“Bet your own hand you dumb idiot,” he says about his play in that spot.
Adding some nice wins
Later he would bet a big hand, with his pocket 10s taking a $32,000 pot. That win came despite a Jack and Queen hitting the board.
Another big hand saw him dealt AK again and three-bet before the flop to $4,100. A flop of Q2K had him in even better shape and he bet $2,400.
Polk called and the turn produced the 7 giving him a nut-flush draw. He bet $9,800 this time and the two players saw the 5 on the river. Negreanu moved all in and Polk called with QJ.
Negreanu raked a pot of just under $100,000. Here’s a look at Negreanu reviewing all the hands.
Inside the 13th day of action
After 476 hands, Negreanu came out on the plus side with a $17,780 win. Some of the draws Negreanu missed in earlier matches seemed to be hitting Monday.
A few straights and flushes produced some nice results. Negreanu felt like he could have possibly won some big hands in other spots as well. However, timely Polk folds kept that from happening.
A win is a win but this freaking guy is WORLD CLASS at folding preflop when I have Aces! I have video evidence we are now at exactly 10 straight times where he has either open folded, folded bb, or folded t a 3 bet.
Putting the day in perspective, it was still a tiny win in the big scheme of things. Polk believes he made some errors and that Negreanu keeps improving.
“Poker is so humbling,” he noted on Twitter. “You can play great several sessions in a row then get a couple tough spots and be super inaccurate. Just gotta keep doing your best to improve.”
Polk has also put together his own analysis of some of the bigger hands in the matchup so far. He’ll be looking to make it a tough week for Negreanu and make his prediction a reality.
Day 12: Nov. 28 – Polk scores huge post-holiday win
After some Thanksgiving festivities, Polk did a bit more celebrating on Saturday. His sharp play and some nice cards ushered in a fourth-straight win.
After some early Negreanu pots, Polk grabbed a nice one after making a pot-sized $13,500 river bet. With a board of 545KK, Negreanu folded and his opponent raked a nice pot.
More pots would continue to go his way. Later, Negreanu three-bet a small Polk raise to $4,100. Polk called and the flop brought 4910.
Negreanu bet $3,200, Polk made the call, and the turn brought the A. This time, Negreanu checked and his opponent did the same.
The 2 fell on the river and Negreanu ripped in almost $11,000. Polk has traditionally played fast throughout the series, but gave it some deep thought here.
Eventually, Polk clicked call and showed 88 while Negreanu held 76. Polk took down a pot of $36,500 after sniffing out the bluff.
Polk rolls on, bags a six-figure pot
About a half hour into the action, Polk took down another nice one. Negreanu raised to $1,000 on the button and Polk three-bet to $4,100.
Negreanu called and the flop brought 47A. Polk bet $1,800 and received a call, with the K coming on the turn. This time Polk bet $9,500.
Doug Polk
After a bit of thought, Negreanu called and saw the 6 on the river. Polk then moved all in for $24,600 and his opponent folded. Polk took about $31,000 on that one.
A short time later, the two saw a board of 78AJ6 with $19,500 already in the pot. It went check-check on the river and Negreanu grabbed that one with a pair of Jacks.
Close to the hour and a half mark, Polk three-bet to $4,100 followed by a four-bet from Negreanu to $10,400.
Polk called and Negreanu’s pocket Kings would eventually be good for a $30,000 pot. But the Polk pots continued throughout the day.
One massive pot stood out later in the day. After raking a $13,000 pot Polk raised to $928 from the button. Negreanu three-bet to about $4,200 and Polk called.
The flop brought 106J and Negreanu checked. Polk bet $2,300 and received a call. The turn was the Q and Negreanu checked again.
Polk bet $12,300 and Negreanu called. With the 7 falling on the river, Negreanu checked and Polk moved all in for his last $35,000.
After a snap call, Negreanu showed AK for a Broadway straight. However, Polk hit runner-runner flush with his 46 and won $108,000 in a huge cooler.
Inside the 12th day of action
After 684 hands, Polk had notched a win of $332,178 – the biggest session score by either player. As the match has gone deeper, Polk seems to have gotten comfortable and been in a groove.
“It’s honestly just too unfair I think, when I’m playing good and getting good spots and then the deck [ hits me],” Polk said on the Upswing Poker stream. “Obviously this was the session that I was hoping for for a while. You don’t want to get too excited because it can easily just flip back the other way.”
Despite a rough day, Negreanu felt good about the day.
“He ran hotter than the sun, and if didn’t admit that he’d be lying,” Negreanu said on the GGPoker stream. “That was absolutely insane.”
The action lasted a bit over three hours and Polk now has a solid lead of about 15 buy-ins. He spoke at length about how certain spots are becoming understandable and recognizable.
However, Polk also realizes things can change quickly in heads-up play.
Also he did make some improvements in the last session. Don’t completely write him off cause he went on a big downswing.
Also next time I lose 250k lets not overreact the other way lol.
Polk once again took command the day before the Thanksgiving holiday. This win made it three in a row for the heads-up specialist.
One hand on the day stood out and came early in the match. With Negreanu raising to $1,000 on the button, Polk made the call and saw a flop of 873.
Polk checked and Negreanu bet $1,500. After another call, the turn brought the J. After a Polk check, Negreanu bet $3,750 with another call behind.
The river brought the 3 and Negreanu bet $3,200 after another check. Negreanu tabled J9 for a flush, but Polk showed 107 for a bigger flush. That sent almost $19,000 Polk’s way.
The Polk river over-betting continued on Wednesday as well. One big pot near the end of the session saw Polk raise to $928 from the button and Negreanu call.
The flop brought 78J and Polk bet $400. After a call, the two players saw the J on the river. Negreanu checked and Polk bet about $1,800 with Negreanu calling.
The river brought the A and Negreanu checked. In a $6,200 pot, Polk then bet $9,300. Negreanu eventually called and Polk flipped 88 for a full house and a $25,000 pot.
Inside the 11th day of action
The day was fairly quiet considering some of the recent fireworks. There were no big all-in pots and lots of small and mid-range pots heading to Polk.
The two went for about two hours during this session. When the dust settled, Polk added to his total again – finishing up $120,024 over 416 hands.
Despite that, Negreanu is down only less than seven buy-ins and seems to have felt he could have lost more.
I don’t know how I only lost 3 buy ins in today’s session but I’m thankful for it!
“Of the entire match … that was easily the worst two hours I’ve run,” Negreanu said in the post-session interview with GGPoker.
Negreanu noted that he could have easily lost 35 buy-ins. Polk has said his opponent has been much tougher than he expected. But he continues to come out on top in the online sessions to build his lead.
Lotta pros in the chat telling @RealKidPoker how he needs to play. Wonder how many of them would be doing better than he has so far.
Day 10: Nov. 20 – Polk extends lead with another six-figure day
After moving back ahead last week on Day 9, Polk built on his lead Monday with an impressive day. Polk scored a win of $117,624 over 852 hands on a day when there were plenty of big pots shipped back and forth.
“This was our longest session we have played yet I think,” Polk noted on Twitter. “Lots of big pots back and forth. Some coolers, some bluffs, this one had it all.”
It was also the longest day of the series, checking in at over four hours. The action got underway with a decent-sized pot just a few minutes into the day. After Negreanu three-bet to $4,100, the players saw a flop of 829.
Kid Poker then fired $6,100 into the pot and Polk called. The turn brought the 2 and both players checked. The 6 fell on the river and Negreanu checked again. Polk bet almost $14,000 and Negreanu folded, sending his opponent about a $21,000 pot.
At the same time, another big hand developed on the second table. On a board of AJ45Q with about $5,000 in the pot, Negreanu bet $3,400.
Polk raised to almost $15,000 and Negreanu went into the tank for quite a while. He eventually called with A3 for top pair while Polk revealed KK. Negreanu raked a $34,000 pot.
This was the kind of back and forth action Polk referred to, and it continued throughout the day.
Polk throttles ahead again
About 30 minutes into the match, another interesting hand played out. On the button, Negreanu raised to $1,000 and Polk made the call. The flop brought 999 and Polk checked. Negreanu made a min-bet of $400 and Polk raised to almost $2,700.
Negreanu called and the turn brought the 2. Polk bet $2,400 and received a call. The 8 fell on the river and Polk bet $4,000.
Negreanu called and turned AA for a massive full house, while Polk tabled J2 for a smaller boat. Negreanu raked a bit over $20,000 on that one.
That may have been a rough hand for Polk, but plenty would go his way too. After an early Negreanu lead, Polk began finding his own pots.
At just over the hour mark with a pot of about $21,000 the two players saw a board of K49104. Polk then used a common weapon in his arsenal, the over-bet all-in shove. The move worked with Negreanu folding and Polk snagging the pot.
A hand just a short time later saw Polk raise from the button to $928. Negreanu then reraised to $4,100 and Polk called. The flop brought K22 and Negreanu bet $2,000.
Polk called and the turn brought the A. Negreanu bet $9,300 and Polk called to see the 4 on the river. Negreanu bet $35,000 and Polk moved all in for his last $39,000.
Negreanu called and showed J4 for two pairs, but Polk tabled Q6 for a flush. Polk raked more than $111,000.
Inside the 10th day of action
The last two sessions may have shown why many picked Polk to win the match. He booked his second straight six-figure win.
Negreanu has been game, however, and has shown he can battle. Polk’s total win still only amounts to a bit over three buy-ins.
Either player has the option to call it quits after 12,500 hands. The action is just a bit more than a third to that point. If he’s deep in the hole at that point, would Negreanu hang it up?
That doesn’t seem likely. Negreanu has noted how he’s pleased to see so many in the poker world watching the action. Bringing the series to an end, especially when he’s played well, doesn’t seem to fit that narrative.
One of the coolest things about this challenge is the buzz it’s creating in the community and seeing so many different commentary teams covering the same event.
Everyone has different taste which makes this a win for poker fans across the globe.
Day 9: Nov. 20 – Polk notches nice win to edge ahead in series
Team Polk should be happy after a big finish to the week. Polk scored a nice win on Friday after three straight losing sessions. The win moves him back into the series lead.
One of the first major hands of the day saw Polk call about a $14,000 river bet on a board of 59643. He showed A9 for top pair to Negreanu’s QJ to win about $48,000.
Polk doubled up with a $12,000 win on the second table at the same time. The heads-up specialist seemed off and running from the beginning. He led by about $33,000 about 15 minutes into the session.
One interesting Negreanu win came in the first hour. Negreanu raised to $1,000 on the button and Polk three-bet to $4,100. Negreanu called and bet $2,000 after a Polk check on a flop of 579.
Polk then raised to about $10,000 and his opponent called. The turn brought the 2 and Polk moved all in for $32,000.
Negreanu snap called, showing 77 for trips with Polk tabling KK. The J on the river changed nothing and Negreanu raked a pot of about $53,000.
Polk takes command
Negreanu may have taken that one, but much of the day went Polk’s way. A short time after that cooler, the two locked horns in another big hand.
After Negreanu raised from the small to $1,000, Polk called and the flop came 954. Negreanu then called Polk’s bet of about $5,000.
The turn brought the 2 and Polk bet $5,800. Negreanu continued with a call and the river brought the 9. Polk moved all in for $42,000 and Negreanu called with the last of his $40,000.
Negreanu showed J10 for a flush, but Polk had a bigger flush with K7. He raked a pot of almost $111,000. About an hour in, Polk raked $54,000 also after an all-in shove on the turn and a Negreanu fold.
That was a move Polk utilized throughout the day. For example, late in the day Negreanu raised the action to $1,000 with Polk three-betting to about $1,800.
Negreanu called for a 5310 flop and his opponent fired another $1,800. Negreanu again called and the 2 fell on the turn. This time Polk bet almost $14,000 and received another call.
The river brought the 9 and Polk moved all in. Negreanu eventually folded and Polk took a $43,000 pot.
A short time later, the two were involved in another three-bet preflop hand. On a board of 572102, Polk moved all in again. Negreanu folded and Polk added another $43,000.
Inside the ninth day of play
It was a big day for Polk, who dominated much of the action on Friday. He continued to take most of the big pots and his aggressiveness scored plenty of small ones also.
After 377 hands, Polk scored $205,522 in a session that lasted a bit more than two hours. A couple coolers also went his way leading to a nice win.
“It was good that I finally got a win after a little bit,” Polk said on the GGPoker stream. “It’s anyone’s game at the moment.
“Sometimes when you’re on a big upswing, it feels like you can’t lose. And sometimes when you’re getting beat every session, it feels like you forgot even what it’s like to win.”
Going into the series, Polk said he expected Negreanu to be weak and easily run over. He’s been surprised at his aggressiveness and strength. He believes Negreanu isn’t afraid to make tough calls at times, but also still has some leaks in his game.
“A lot of the situations in heads up are really difficult, very complicated and you really have to think about how often you should take some lines,” Polk said.
“I do think there are some errors that he’s making that make me feel good about my side, but he’s not going to get totally run over. I don’t think that’s going to happen in this one.”
For his part, Negreanu felt good about his play and that he took some tough situational beats. He believed he played better on Friday than he did when booking a small win on Wednesday.
“I’m glad this is a close match,” Negreanu said. “I wanted it to be competitive and it is.”
What’s up next?
With the Thanksgiving holiday this week, the upcoming schedule has been adjusted slightly. Look for action on Monday, Tuesday, and Saturday.
Day 8: Nov. 19 – Negreanu adds another session to the win column
With eight sessions into the High Stakes Feud, Negreanu continues to defy the doubters. There’s still plenty of poker to be played, but he again extended his lead with a small victory on Thursday.
One of the first major pots of the day fell Kid Poker’s way with a fortuitous river card. Polk started the action with a raise to $910 and Negreanu three-bet to $4,100.
Polk made the call and flop brought 42Q. Negreanu led out with $6,155 and Polk called. The turn brought the 4 and Negreanu checked, with his opponent doing the same.
The river card was the 2 and Polk bet almost $14,000. Negreanu made the call with J9 for a flush and Polk turned Q10 for two pairs. Negreanu raked a $48,000 pot.
Polk grabs his share of pots and then a big cooler
Thursday’s action saw a bit of a see-saw battle with Negreanu able to book a win just over a single buy-in. Polk certainly had his moments as well. Early in the day he raised from the button to $910.
Doug Polk
Negreanu called and the flop came 9J3 and Negreani checked. Polk bet a bit over $760 and received a call. The turn was the 4 with Negreanu checking again.
Polk bet $5,000 this time, Negreanu called, and the 4 fell on the river. After another Negreanu check, Polk went for his signature over-bet on the river – this time for $20,000. Negreanu thought a bit before calling and Polk showed AJ for two pairs and a $53,500 pot.
At about the 90-minute mark Polk made an all-in river bet of about $53,000 into a $42,000 pot. With the board showing 81022K. Negreanu went into the tank and eventually folded.
The crazy hand of the day came just short of two hours into the match and produced plenty of fireworks. After Polk’s raise to $910, Negreanu three-bet to $4,100.
Polk called and the flop brought 5AQ. Negreanu bet $2,000 and received a call with the turn bringing A. This time Negreanu checked and Polk did as well.
The 3 fell on the river and Negreanu bet about $9,200. Polk moved all in for his $103,000 stack and his opponent called the last of his almost $32,000 chips instantly.
Polk showed K8 for the nut straight, but Negreanu tabled AA for quads. It was a massive cooler hand for Polk and Negreanu pulled in almost $94,000.
Inside the eighth day of play
The action swung back and forth a bit Thursday. Negreanu finished up ahead again for the session, scoring $24,157 after 457 hands.
The win moves his total number of days won to five, including the live session to start the series. Here’s a review of the sessions won by each player:
Negreanu – sessions 1, 4, 5, 7, 8
Polk – sessions 2, 3, 6
Both players took to Twitter afterward to comment on a couple hands and had some back and forth. Polk noted losing with a nice pocket pair.
Day 7: Nov. 18 – Negreanu bags nice day to reclaim lead
The back and forth battle between Negreanu and Polk continued on Wednesday as these two upped their session frequency. After about three meetings a week, that moves to four this week.
Polk jumped out to about a $65,000 lead early after raking a few decent pots. But Negreanu turned the tables at about the five-minute mark. In one big hand, Negreanu raised from the button to $1,000 and Polk three-bet to $4,100.
The flop brought K58 after a Negreanu call. Polk bet $2,300 and Negreanu called before seeing the Q on the turn. Polk now bet $9,600 and Negreanu called, swelling the pot to just over $32,000.
The river brought the 7 and Polk moved all in for $32,000. His opponent thought a bit before making the call with K10 for a pair of Kings. Polk tabled AJ for Ace-high and his opponent raked an $80,000 pot.
Shortly afterward, Negreanu raked a nice pot again after calling some hefty bets from his opponent. Negreanu hung in to secure a pot of $122,000 after Polk missed on his flush draw.
Kid Poker continues to build
The pots continued to go Negreanu’s way throughout the afternoon. After about 20 minutes, both players flopped a flush. Negreanu came out on top of that one with a Queen and won $20,000.
Later Negreanu scored a $31,000 pot when his pocket Queens hit trips on the flop. He was able to bet the hand all the way through the river.
Daniel Negreanu
By the hour mark, Negreanu had moved up to more than $160,000 for the session. Polk did find his share of pots, such as a three-bet forcing a Negreanu fold after an hour of action.
On a flop of K26, Polk bet $2,300 followed by a Negreani raise to $7,000. Polk then escalated the action to more than $14,300. Negreanu got out of the way and Polk took down about $30,000.
However, most of the really big pos went Negreanu’s way. One more example came late in the match with about $7,200 in the pot and a board of 42QQ3.
After a Nreganu check on the river, Polk made a signature over-bet of almost $11,000. Negreanu made the call with Q10 for trip Queens and a $29,000 pot while Polk showed J9.
Inside the seventh day of play
It was that kind of day for Polk. Negreanu just seemed to have the nuts in big spots and picked off his opponent at key times. He finished $222,833 to the good after 591 hands.
The Poker Hall of Famer is pleased with his play so far and feels his preparation has paid dividends.
“I’m looking at my balance now and it’s definitely bigger than when I deposited online, so I’m happy about it,” he said afterward on the GGPoker stream. “I think my play’s improving with each session and one think I’ve always prided myself in is that I work hard and learn fast.
“This isn’t my first time playing poker. I did have to re-learn a lot about how the game is structured and the best way to play it, but I’m willing to do that. It requires a good amount of humility to ask other people for help.”
It was certainly a nice day for Negreanu, but still only a small win in comparison to the buy-in. Polk remains a favorite, but so far Negreanu has shown he can play in this arena.
“Lowest point in the challenge yet,” Polk noted on Twitter. “Luckily only about four buy-ins or so. Looking forward to getting in a lot of volume tomorrow and Friday.”
The heads-up specialist Polk remains confident in his play and his chances.
Day 6: Nov. 16 – Controversy over hand histories, Polk slides back ahead
After plenty of fireworks in Day 5, there may have been more interest in a post-session controversy after Monday. Businessman and poker player Bill Perkins charged Polk with using study methods outside the rules.
Match delayed due to disagreement over rules. One party(@DougPolkVids )thinks its ok to manually enter in hand history to software and have frequency analysis done and the other does not (@RealKidPoker) Big disadvantage that Dnegs has not been doing this. @PhilGalfond time #Poker
That drew some quick responses from Polk, who said the charge was completely baseless. He noted on Twitter that both players can open the WSOP.com client and review hand histories. The “cheating on his homework” charge was out of line, he noted.
“The rules were, no hand histories and no HUDs [head-up display, an app that collects and displays statistics about opponents],” Polk said. “We both agreed and were clear on that. Neither was used.”
After a brief discussion on data mining, Negreanu agreed with Polk. The matter now seems to be in the past and players can again focus on the match.
At the tables, Negreanu found the first big pot on Monday. Early action saw him score $34,000 when his Q5 made two pairs on the flop.
After about 10 minutes, Negreanu seized a lead of about $22,000 and then snatched two more nice pots. At about the 20-minute mark, Polk scooped a small one but there were big developments on the second table.
After a pre-flop four-bet from Polk, the players saw a board of 10102. Negreanu checked and Polk bet a bit over $4,100.
Negreanu called and the 9 landed on the river. After another check, Polk checked as well and the river brought the 7.
After another check, Polk thought a bit and checked again – sniffing out a trap as Negreanu tabled 1010. Kid Poker scooped a $28,000 pot with his quad 10s but missed out on more.
Action shifts Polk’s way
After two straight losing days, Polk would find some nice pots of his own – and one would come quickly. Just a couple hands later on the same table, Polk picked up pocket Aces and three-bet.
The flop brought 5KQ and he led out with a $6,700 bet. His opponent moved all in and Polk snap-called. Negreanu turned over Q5for two pairs and looked to be in good shape to crack his foe’s Aces.
A 4 on the turn was no help for Polk, but a second King on the river gave him a bigger two pairs. That gave him the $81,000 pot.
Polk grabbed another big pot a short time later, taking $37,000 with a full house. That win moved him ahead in the session and he continued battling.
Inside the sixth day of play
For much of the day, Polk’s aggression paid some big dividends including a five-bet pre-flop shove at one point. His typical river over-bet shoves also scored some nice pots.
The chips just kept going his way much of the day. That was enough to book a win of almost $93,542 on the day, moving Polk back up for the series. However, that’s not a huge lead – just a bit more than two buy-ins for this High Stakes Feud.
The capper for Tuesday’s controversy may have been a video released by poker pro Will Jaffe calling Perkins out. He advised that this was “the ultimate stay in your lane moment.”
After Monday’s session, the heads-up challenge is now about 10% complete. The play went more than three hours and both players have promised moving past the early two-hour sessions.
There are also plans for more frequent matches, with more play set for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday this week. USPoker will update all the action as it plays out.
Hands played: 2,374
Total: Polk up $67,625.81
Next match: Wednesday, Nov. 18, 5:30 pm ET
Day 5: Nov. 13 – Negreanu makes it two in a row, climbs ahead in series
After rallying late in Wednesday’s session, Negreanu built on that momentum Friday. He notched his second straight online win, this time much bigger than his previous score and putting him ahead in the match.
There was plenty of action in session four with plenty of three- and four-bets with big pots. The three-bets came early in the fifth session and Negreanu took the first $20,000-plus pot.
A few more pots went Negreanu’s way early before Polk scored a $7,000 pot with a full house. He followed that up with a few more nice ones.
Just after raking an $11,000 pot, Negreanu raised to $1,000 from the button. Polk three-bet to $4,110 and his opponent made the call.
The flop brought Q9A and both players checked with 8 coming on the turn. Polk checked and Negreanu bet $6,165.
Polk called and the flop brought the 6. After a check from his opponent, Negreanu fired $15,413 and Polk made the call. Negreanu tables 89 for two pairs and took down a $51,373 pot.
Kid Poker finds some big pots
Things seemed to be going Negreanu’s way and he’d seized a small lead by the first half hour. A massive hand then developed after Negreanu five-bet shoved all in with AK.
Polk quickly called with 1010 for an $83,000 pot. The flop brought Polk a set with 2410 followed by a J on the turn. The 7 on the river meant a huge win for Polk.
A few hands later, Negreanu added an $11,000 pot and then found another for $20,000. A $25,000 pot then immediately went Negreanu’s way as another big hand also developed on the second table.
In that one, Polk raised to $910 from the button and was three-bet to $4,241. Polk called and the flop brought 723. Negreanu bet $1,600 and received a call.
The turn brought the 5 and Negreanu bet a hefty $8,762 before receiving another call. On the river 6, Negreanu moved all in and Polk snap-called.
Polk showed 64 for a straight while Negreanu tabled 89 for a bigger straight. Kid Poker collected a nice $80,000 score.
Truck driver rolls, Negreanu fights back
After a break in the action, the truck driver rallied back with a few nice pots at just over an hour into the session. However, Negreanu seemed more aggressive throughout the day. A big hand developed at about the 90-minute mark.
After Polk raised to $910 on the button, Negreanu three-bet to $4,241. Polk called and the two players saw a flop of 8J10. After Negreanu checked, Polk bet $2,798 and was called.
The 6 fell on the turn and Negreanu checked. With the pot at about $14,000, Polk bet $11,542. After Negreanu’s call, the K fell on the river and he checked again. Polk then jammed all in with Negreanu snap calling.
Polk held Q9 for a King-high straight, but Negreanu showed AQ for a Broadway straight. The hand shipped him more than $93,000.
Inside the fifth day of play
It was that kind of day for Negreanu and he seemed to collect plenty of nice pots with big hands. Just a short time after the big Ace-high straight, another pot fell his way.
With 45, Negreanu flopped a straight and snagged another $24,000. By the end of the two-hour session, Negreanu had erased his deficit and climbed ahead. He’s now winning almost $26,000 for the series.
That represents less than one buy-in, but so far Negreanu has been competitive in an event many felt Polk would dominate.
“A long way to go to the finish line, but very happy to be ahead obviously,” Negreanu noted on Twitter, and broke out a Rocky shirt to commemorate his success so far.
Beyond hitting big hands, many feel Negreanu heads-up skills have sharpened since earlier online sessions. Even Polk echoed those thoughts.
“The worst part of today’s session wasn’t getting stacked repeatedly for $200,000, it was also seeing Dnegs making less and less errors in other pots,” Polk noted on Twitter. “If the challenge keeps going this direction, may need to trade in the truck for a used Honda Civic.”
Polk probably won’t be heading to the Honda dealership any time soon. He remains confident and is looking forward to next week’s action.
Hands played: 1,737
Total: Negreanu up $25,916.87
Next match: Monday, Nov. 16, 5:30 pm ET
★★★ Those looking to follow the action live, should check out our complete review of the GGPoker and Upswing Poker streams. ★★★
Day 4: Nov. 11 – Daniel Negreanu rallies for first online win
Score one for Kid Poker. After two straight losing sessions, Daniel Negreanu notched a winning session online Wednesday against Doug Polk. It was a nice result for Negreanu, who is considered the online underdog.
Polk made a small aesthetic change on Wednesday, switching his avatar to the American flag. It may have been a Veterans Day gesture with or a slight needle to his foe’s Canadian flag.
The two traded pots early, moving just above and below each player’s $40,000 starting stack. At about the five-minute mark, Polk made the day’s first four-bet for more than $10,000.
Negreanu made the call and the two saw a Q7Q flop with almost $22,000 in the pot. After a check, Polk bet $4,318 and his opponent called. The J came on the turn and Polk bet $6,650 after a Negreanu check.
Again Negreanu called and the 10 came on the river. Polk shoved all in for $25,000 and Negreanu went in the tank. He eventually folded and Polk dragged a $43,528 pot. More fireworks would follow.
Polk dominates early play
A few hands later, another big pot developed with $34,000 in the pot on a board of 529K7. Both players checked the river and Negreanu took it down with KQ.
Despite that, Polk was up about $45,000 the first 20 minutes. A $42,000 pot after a half-hour moved that up to $65,000 and later more than $90,000.
Just short of an hour into the match, a couple interesting hands developed. Polk shoved all in on both tables, one on the turn and one on the river.
I think the average player really underestimates the amount of time and work it takes to become even somewhat decent at HUNL. With the info out there now the bar is just absurdly high and you will constantly be making mistakes.
Negreanu folded on both, and Polk took almost $14,000 on one and $29,000 on the other. A few hands later Negreanu raked a $17,000 pot, but Polk soon gobbled up one for $32,000. For the first hour, Polk seemed to take pot after pot with aggressive bets on the turn and river.
Kid Poker surges late in the session
Despite Polk’s early domination, Negreanu got back into it. A few hands later, a check-raise on the river worked out well when he caught a straight. Polk called and Negreanu won $24,000.
With about 30 minutes left, another huge hand developed. Negreanu raised to $1,000 from the button and Polk three-bet to $4,110. Negreanu then four-bet to $10,220.
Polk moved all in for another $47,495 with Negreanu making an insta-call. Polk tabled JJ to Negreanu’s KK. The flop didn’t change things and Negreanu took a $95,000 pot.
That became the largest pot so far for Negreanu during online play and cut his session deficit to about $30,000. Another $41,000 pot would ship his way a short time later.
In the last 15 minutes, Polk four-bet a pot to $12,876 and Negreanu called. The flop came A84. Negreanu checked and Polk bet $5,150 and Negreanu called before the turn brought the A.
Again Negreanu checked and Polk bet $11,896. His opponent called once again and the river produced a 4. Negreanu checked again and Polk moved all in with $126,351.
With only $34,633 in front of him, Negreanu made a snap call and revealed AQ for a full house. Polk showed JQ, handing Negreanu a pot of $129,109 after picking off his bluff.
Inside the fourth day of play
The late comeback brought Negreanu his first winning online session in the series. He finished the day winning $87,167 and the late wins helped overcome some early struggles and frustrations.
“It didn’t feel like a win did it?” he said on the GGPoker stream. “The first hour I just kept missing all these hands. I was getting annoyed.”
Nice to book a win today of about 2 buyins. Lost that pesky JJ vs TT hand on the river or it would have been 4 buy ins, but a win is a win.
1372 hands played of 25,000 and currently down about 4.5 buy ins.
While Polk was dominant for much of the day, Negreanu’s late push seemed not to bring any real concerns. Polk knows it’s a long haul.
“Obviously it was not the best of runs there at the end,” he said after the match on the Upswing Poker stream.
Polk said when Negreanu seemed to bet aggressively, he always seemed to have a strong hand. He also feels his opponent has ramped his game up a bit.
“I think he’s playing a little more aggressive online overall than when we played live,” Polk said. “It’s been interesting. It was an interesting swing today.”
Despite the big numbers, Polk notes that he’s up only two and half buy-ins. There haven’t been any massive swings so far and Negreanu also made note of that as well.
Hands played: 1,372
Total: Doug Polk up $180,865.22
Next match: Friday, Nov. 12, 5:30 pm ET
Day 3: Nov. 9 – Doug Polk extends his lead
The High Stakes Feud action resumed on Monday between Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk. After one live session won by Negreanu, Polk again won in the second online session at WSOP.com.
The pair got in another 382 hands and Polk came out on top for an additional $166,239. This moves his total up to a positive $268,032.
Monday’s action began well for Polk after his 25 hit two more fives on the flop early in the match. He got paid off on the river for almost a $27,000 pot.
However just after that, Negreanu raked his own $29,000 pot on the second table. He added another $10,000 pot a few minutes later with a flush.
There was plenty of three-bet action early. About 15 minutes into the match, Negreanu also picked up a $93,000 pot after picking off a Polk bluff. He seemed to be rolling through the second online session.
Polk turns it around and turns it on
That momentum would change however. About a half-hour in, Polk moved all in for $42,000 on a board of J734. This came after Negreanu three-bet pre-flop and then bet the flop and the turn. Polk took the $34,000 pot instead.
Several five-figure pots continued to go his way. Polk picked up a $16,000 pot when his K-J hit a King on the river. Polk’s stacks on both tables continued to grow.
He raked a $25,000 pot at about the one hour, 15-minute mark. After three-betting pre-flop, he check-raised the flop and bet big on the turn to draw a fold.
A few hands later, Polk raked a $12,000 pot after betting $17,000 on the river. More pots would go Polk’s way including two simultaneous pots for about $30,000, both of which Negreanu had three-bet.
Polk methodically took control and continued to over-bet often on river cards. Negreanu was put in numerous tough spots and a critical hand came late in the match.
With $13,000 in the pot and a board of K7385, Polk moved all in for $81,000. Negreanu tanked before eventually making the call.
Polk tabled K7 for two pairs with his opponent showing K5 for a smaller two pairs. The $96,000 pot was sent to Polk after a tough cooler for his opponent.
Inside the third day of play
After 1,006 hands played so far, Polk looks to be in control. However, there is plenty of poker left to be played. Polk’s lead looks hefty at more than a quarter of a million dollars. However, players start each session with $40,000 and Polk noted his lead isn’t large in this kind of challenge.
“I will say this though, just cause the number is big doesn’t mean Dnegs is down that much,” he noted on Twitter. “He is down a little under seven buy-ins. That is a completely normal result over 1,000 hands of heads-up no limit.”
The two foes are about 4% through the challenge and Polk looks to be in command online so far. His river aggression on Monday seemed constant and gave Negreanu some trouble. Polk did note that Negreanu faced some tough hands.
At the end of the challenge ill give my thoughts on Negreanu’s play, but until then not going to say much.
I will say he is obviously running bad in a bunch of standard cooler spots. His game does have some issues though.
Negreanu said the big two pairs versus two pairs hand was indicative of how things went. He still seems pleased with how he’s played and believes he’s on the right path overall.
“I was very happy,” Negreanu said on the GGPoker stream after the day’s action wrapped up (see complete stream replay above). “I felt like I ran kind of bad in the last session … but in this one I was quite certain I ran worse. I generally felt pretty comfortable, pretty good.”
Can Kid Poker turn it around? There are plenty more online sessions and USPoker will be tracking all the action.
Day 2: Nov. 6 – online action begins, Polk storms ahead
After battling on PokerGO live, the action shifted to WSOP.com on Friday. The heads-up game is Polk’s forté and that came through in the first session online.
When it comes to usernames, Polk brings some humor – going with “MicroStakes” as his moniker. Negreanu goes with “DNegs” at these virtual tables. Here is all the action below via the GGPoker stream.
There was plenty of action right from the beginning with Negreanu scooping a few pots early . Then almost simultaneous $20,000-plus pots developed on both tables within the first 10 minutes.
Negreanu won the first for $120,698, then action shifted to the second table. That hand produced some fireworks.
With Polk on the $200 small blind, Polk raised to $918 and his opponent three-bet to $4,140. Polk made the call and the flop brought 624. Negreanu then bet $6,210 and Polk called with the 10 landing on the turn.
Kid Poker checked and Polk bet $6,830. Negreanu, on a stack of just over $56,000, then moved all in. Polk snap-called with almost $29,000 left in front of him – producing a $92,205 pot.
With the call, Negreanu held J9 for a flush draw. Polk flashed 46 for two pairs. The river brought the A and Polk raked the massive pot.
Inside the second day of play
That’s the kind of day it would be for Polk on Day 2 online. He completely flipped the table from the first session – winning $218,292.78 after 424 hands.
I won 200k but I still feel bad because I made more misclicks in my session than a man 2 tabling in a recliner
“Felt good today,” Polk added on Twitter. “Obviously ran hot in some important spots. Much happier to be back on the online felt.”
A few coolers ran Negreanu’s way and he wasn’t disappointed with his play.
“I’m playing against a really great player,” Negreanu said after the match on the GGPoker stream. “It’s going to be tough and put you in really tough spots. Overall I think I played pretty well.”
Hands played: 624
Total: Doug Polk up $101,792.78
Next match: Monday, Nov. 9, at 5:30 ET
Day 1: Nov. 4 – kicking things off on PokerGO
The two combatants got things started at the PokerGO Studio at Aria casino in Las Vegas. The live component was a late addition but added extra excitement to the series to get fans even more interested.
Ali Nejad and Kane Kalas called the action as the series, known as High Stakes Feud, got underway. Those looking for some contentious banter wouldn’t find it on PokerGO.
While they may trade barbs on social media, Polk and Negreanu were friendly and even wished each other good luck.
I was happy that despite our history, and with all the divisiveness in the country right now, that @DougPolkVids and I could be civil and put on a show that the poker community could both be proud of and enjoy the fireworks.
The action began with Negreanu raising to $1,000 with K4 and Polk called with A4. Both players continued checking on the flop of K29 and turn of 6.
Negreanu then fired a $1,500 bet on the river with Polk raising to $8,500. After some thought, Negreanu made the call and jumped out to a lead of $9,500.
“How many hands left?” he said as he got up from his seat. The joke drew a laugh from his opponent.
That run would continue and the two continued talking poker and other topics throughout. Both players even needled Phil Hellmuth a bit.
Negreanu finds some big hands to take lead
Some poker fans may have preferred more combative conversation. However, even the friendly chit chat made for better viewing. High stakes players simply staring at cards hasn’t made for great viewing.
Negreanu even mentioned his new chair for the online portion of the match – complete with built-in massager.
By Thursday morning, High Stakes Feud had been viewed more than 260,000 times on YouTube. At the table, Negreanu seemed in control in the first match.
A look at the action from the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas.
An early win with a flush saw Polk dip below half his starting stack and add $30,000. Negreanu kept a small advantage of $10,000 to $15,000 for much of the early play.
Polk reversed Negreanu’s lead after a break in the action. He flopped a flush while Negreanu hit the nut-flush draw. Polk ultimately raked a pot of $11,600 for his first lead in the match.
That lead disappeared soon as Negreanu took a few big pots and found a lead of about $50,000. One of the biggest hands then came right before the end of the night.
Polk raised the action to $900 with QJ and Negreanu three-bet to $4,000 with 106. Polk made the call and the flop brought 6K6.
Negreanu then bet $1,600 and Polk called. The river brought the 8 and he then checked. Polk fired $7,600 and Negreanu called.
The 2 fell on the river and Negreanu checked again. Polk continued the bluff moving all in, swelling the pot to more than $70,000.
Negreanu called and raked a massive pot with Polk adding another $50,000. The match would come to a close a few hands later with Negreanu finishing up $116,500 for the first session.
In his post-match interview, Negreanu spoke about how the live game was to his advantage.
“I’ve got 20 years of playing under the lights in this scenario, but unfortunately for me that’s just a very small portion of the match,” he said. “I know that we’ve got a long road ahead and we’re going to be walking into his arena, which is online.
“I felt like I played well and executed my strategy. It was really important to me to get off to a good start and I want to make this match competitive.”
Negreanu did just that. With action shifting online, Polk is in his element and it will be interesting to see how things play out.
“I had some spots that I thought were good to bluff – they weren’t,” Polk said about the live play element. “Just really didn’t get things going my way.”
Felt good about my play tonight despite going -$116,500. Couple hands were slightly loose (first hand of the night I misread the board to be totally honest lol)
Looking forward to not getting stacked bluffing into trips next session.
“I always feel bad [for the sites] because it’s not their fault,” Negreanu noted about regulations legal operators faced. “It’s all politicians just doing their best.”
The site, however, apparently made some moves to facilitate the large deposits. WSOP.com has also designated two cash game tables for the match.
“It was pretty cool they made it work for us,” Negreanu noted.
Kid Poker went on to detail some of the frustrations the industry initially faced in Nevada. The two continued discussing the state of online poker and now take the game to the virtual tables.
After the loss, Polk to Twitter to offer an interesting post-match note as the action heads online.
Getting ready for bed and I get a text from my dad “Doug had a rough night, lost 100k”. Then texted back, oh wrong person.
Any Sopranos and poker fan would have been envious of Robert Iler’s seat at the table. Actors and crew from the show crowded around a table in James Gandolfini’sLos Angeles hotel room. Players checked their cards and bet and bluffed tossing coins in the middle of the pot.
The small-stakes poker game had broken out the night before the Emmys and Iler was right in the middle of it. He played Tony Soprano’s son AJ on the show and had already been acting for more than a decade.
Iler had also been playing poker since he was young, which fostered a love of the game. His grandmother taught him to play and not only was that night a great experience, he walked away a winner.
“We just had a ton of change and everyone was just playing for fun,” he says. “I remember leaving the room with a hotel glass from the room filled to the top with quarters.”
The Sopranos may have ended its run in 2007, but poker would remain a big part of Iler’s life.
A gambling life and playing online poker
Many players have a fond memory of a family member breaking out a deck of cards for some penny-ante poker. For Iler, those games involved his grandmother teaching him numerous card games as a youngster.
By age 18, Iler began playing with friends even more and was soon heading to New York’s underground poker rooms. Because of those early games, Iler always felt comfortable playing and had a knack for cards.
“I just realized that I always thought poker was something that everybody knew – the rules, the structure, and how it’s done,” he says. “But I’d notice all my friends couldn’t remember what beat what or they didn’t understand.”
Robert Iler as AJ with Tony Soprano, played by James Gandolfini. (photo courtesy HBO)
Poker became a regular part of life – both live and online. On trips to the the Borgata, Iler enjoyed the side action during World Poker Tour stops. He describes the cash games as a “dream.”
On The Sopranos, gambling was a regular part of life for Tony and the gang – many times the unsavory aspects. Members of the cast were also known to bet and throw some dice on occasion. Iler remembers a few trips with cast members that involved some gambling.
“There were times where we would go to casinos to do appearances and they would give everybody a hotel room,” he says. “We were always playing Blackjack and I would go play poker. Once they went to sleep, I’d play poker for 12 hours.”
Life after the Sopranos – heading to Vegas
When The Sopranos finished its sixth and final season in 2007, Iler craved leaving the acting grind for a while. While other cast members jumped back into work, he’d been acting for years and needed a change.
“Give me six months,” he told his manager at the time. “I just want to hang with my friends and do nothing.”
That turned into a decade of basically avoiding acting and playing live and online poker. When Black Friday hit on April 15, 2011, Las Vegas seemed like a nice spot to land. He planned a two-week trip to play in the World Series of Poker Main Event.
Robert Iler on the set of The Sopranos. (photo courtesy of HBO)
The trip produced his first WSOP score, cashing in 275th for $40,654. After that, his two-week Vegas jaunt turned into two years.
“I literally took that check and said, “I’m going to put this in an account and pay my rent with it and just pretend like I never had it,’” he says. “A year and a half later I was still there and I was just heavy into drugs and partying.”
At 25, Iler’s Vegas life mostly consisted of gambling and partying. His substance issues have been well-documented and he knew some growing up was needed. That turned out to be the right decision and he’s been sober since 2013.
“I remember thinking that I had to get out of there because I started losing what reality is,” he says. “I’d be in a strip club like on Wednesday afternoon at 1 pm, just the dumbest stuff. Then my friends came to visit me and were like, ‘Yeah you need to get out of here.’”
Moving on, venturing into podcasting
Recently, Iler jumped into a new venture that involved his skills as a communicator and actor. In the process, he reconnected with an old friend from The Sopranos – Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who played his sister Meadow.
The two got reacquainted during a 20th anniversary event for the show. Afterward, the two jumped in their pajamas and spent the night reminiscing.
“I’m sick of Vegas,” he told her. “I need to get out of there. I need more stability.”
An idea for a podcast began taking shape. Iler and Sigler teamed up with YouTube comedian Kassem G. for the Pajama Pants podcast. The show launched just before the Coronavirus pandemic began after Iler moved to Los Angeles.
Robert Iler and Michael Gandolfini attend HBO’s The Sopranos 20th anniversary at the SVA Theatre on Jan. 9, 2019, in New York. (photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Plans called for living in L.A. for at least a year, podcasting and mixing in some occasional poker. The pandemic has thrown a wrench into those plans, but the podcast has been going well, he says.
Pajama Pants now has regular sponsors and has attracted a nice following. The show focuses on various topics with poker even occasionally thrown in.
Maybe surprisingly to fans, The Sopranos is rarely brought up.
“It’s fun – we’ve had some great guests, we have sponsors now, and are doing commercials every episode,” he says. “We don’t really talk about Sopranos because I never watched it and people are so hardcore about Sopranos and they know so much, why would two people who don’t know anything about it talk about it?
“Sometimes we may talk about things that happened on set or memories that we have, but 90 percent of our podcast has nothing to do with Sopranos.”
Not only does Iler enjoy some cards at the real poker table, some online poker still fits the bill on occasion. That includes the sweepstakes poker site Global Poker.
During the site’s GOAT series this summer, Iler received a Global promotional email touting the festival. He thought he might have a few bucks left online and checked his account.
With 40 Sweeps Coins left (the site’s virtual currency allowing players to exchange for real cash), he jumped in a Super Bounty with 5,000 Sweeps Coins guaranteed.
The event attracted 752 entries and before he knew it, Iler was at the final table. The thrill of winning would be nice, but a sharp-looking Global trophy also drew his interest.
“My friend had to tell me, ‘You know you get a trophy right?’” he recalls. “When the trophy came in the mail I was shocked.”
Snagging that trophy, and the 720 Sweeps Coins plus bounties that went with it, wouldn’t be easy. Despite being chip leader in the late stages, a big late hit left him with about three big blinds. He rallied, however, finishing off his opponents and earning that GOAT trophy.
Iler shows off his Global Poker GOAT trophy with his Pajama Pants cohosts. (photo courtesy Robert Iler)
The topic was even brought up on Pajama Pants and Iler showed off his shiny new trophy. The show then ran a Global freeroll for listeners, which drew more than 300 players.
When the pandemic is over, Iler definitely plans on heading back to the live poker tables. He hopes to enter some major events, perhaps the WSOP or WPT.
When it comes to poker, one thing comes to mind for Iler – freedom. There are no bosses, directors, or anyone else telling him when to be on set, what to say, and how to act. He can simply sit and battle it out on his own terms.
“You go play poker and there are no rules,” he says. “You can come whenever you want, sit wherever you want, play whatever game you want, and leave whenever you want. Since I’d been acting since I was six years old, I think that’s what was so attractive to me about poker.”
* All seasons of The Sopranos are currently available for streaming on HBO Max.
* To listen to the Pajama Pants podcast, click here. To follow the show on Instagram, click here.
★★★ To get in the action at Global Poker, click here for a complete review and exclusive USPoker bonuses. ★★★
In the early days of poker, the only place players could hear stories, news, or talk to other grinders was at the tables. With the rise of podcasts over the last several years, that has changed considerably.
Players can now enjoy poker news, interviews, and strategy discussions as they drive to work or hit the gym. Poker podcasts all have developed their own niche.
Some shows are based on strategy or news, while others are simply for entertainment. The great thing about podcasts is they are generally posted as free content. As podcasts continue to grow in popularity, here are six shows players may want to add to their commute.
This is one of the newest podcasts and it is hosted by Robbie Strazynski, founder of CardplayerLifestyle.com The podcast takes a unique approach by presenting a poker round table discussion. Previous guests include such poker elites as Phil Galfond and Daniel Negreanu.
The show debuted the official launch of Twitch’s official exclusive poker channel. Strazynski plays host to such topics as:
This podcast is hosted by mindset coach and author Elliot Roe and is distributed monthly. In each show, Roe invites talks with a poker pro about how to improve your mindset and become a better player.
The host was featured in Jonathan Little’s book Excelling at No Limit Hold’em. Roe was highlighted under the mental game section, authoring the chapter Hypnotherapy for a Successful Mindset.
New podcast episode is live!
This week, Melissa Burr @burrrrrberry opens up about the mental health struggles that many poker players face, and shares details on an upcoming documentary on the subject.
Three hosts are featured on the DAT Poker Podcast. The show includes DanielNegreanu, Adam Schwartz, and Terrence Chan (hence the DAT
in the title). The podcast generally comes out twice monthly with the hosts debating issues about the industry, poker news, and some strategy.
A unique part of the show is when they entertain voicemail questions. Fans can call in and leave a question via voicemail, and the hosts answer the questions in the next episode.
4 – Tournament Poker Edge Podcast
This show runs weekly and poker player and comedian Clayton Fletcher mans the microphone for the hosting duties. The podcast focuses mainly on multi-table tournament strategies. Fletcher invites multiple pros on his show to talk about the ever-changing dynamic of tournament poker.
TPE also touches on general poker news from tournaments and events in the industry. The show has the distinction as one of the longest running strategy podcasts in the game, more than a decade.
It’s not easy to make a comedian laugh but @MikeSneideman always delivers.
Dr.Tricia Cardner and Gareth James host Poker on the Mind. Cardner is the author of multiple poker books including Positive Poker. The podcast dives into the mind and helps players create an edge in their mental game.
POTM has more than 80 episodes dating back to 2017. The show drops about every other week. It’s an interesting listen hearing Cardner and James highlight mental strength through their discussions.
It’s Monday, which means it’s time for a brand new episode!
Nerdthusiast may be the new kids on the block, but the hosts have been around the poker scene since the Moneymakerboom. The monthly show focuses on the recreational player by discussing:
poker room reviews
news
funny stories the hosts have experienced along their casino travels
One highlight of the show is a monthly gambling movie review. Host Brian Keane breaks down his thoughts on some rare poker films each month. Keane also has been doing monthly updates about COVID-19 protocols at various casinos.
What movie should we review next ??? Every month we are highlighting a different gambling / poker movie . This movie is currently free on Amazon Prime.. check out our review for “ The Grand “ https://t.co/mxBqBS3el9
While recent COVID-19 restrictions haven’t been good news for California cardrooms, the latest development in a tribal casino lawsuit should lift spirits.
On Thursday, two judges from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit against Gov. Gavin Newsom, which claimed gaming exclusivity for tribal casinos and challenged the authorization of cardrooms to offer player-banked games.
In player-banked games, players are not playing against the house but rather a banker who happens to be another player. The player-banker collects losses and divvies up winnings each hand before passing on the responsibility to another player. This allows cardrooms to offer games such as baccarat, much to the chagrin of tribes, who believe they have exclusive rights to such games.
Now, while cardrooms can continue offering these games, plaintiffs for tribal casinos are left with few options to keep fighting.
The latest on the tribal casino lawsuit against Newsom
Since cardrooms started operating in California, tribal casinos in the state have taken issue with their very existence. Tribes maintain that their gaming compacts with the US government and the state give them the exclusive right to offer the types of games that patrons visit cardrooms to play, such as player-banked games.
When tribes were unsuccessful in lobbying state officials to enforce the tenets of their compacts as they interpreted them, they decided to press the issue in federal court. The Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, joined by two other tribes that operate casinos in the state, acted as the plaintiffs.
The tribes asked the court to essentially compel Newsom’s administration to restrict cardrooms’ operations. In June 2019, the district court granted Newsom’s motion to dismiss the case.
In that decision, District Judge John A. Mendez ruled that the plaintiffs failed to substantiate their claim that the state violated the terms of the compact. Mendez was clear that the law did not require the state to enforce the terms of the gaming compacts against cardrooms.
“Plaintiffs’ exclusivity rights flow solely from the California constitution. This is the unavoidable barrier that prevents Plaintiffs from successfully maintaining their breach of Compact claims.”
“We need not decide today whether exclusivity is a compact term. Even assuming that it is, the remedy the Tribes seek, an injunction requiring the State to enforce its laws against non-Indian cardrooms that allegedly operate illegal banked card games, cannot be granted.”
What can California tribes do now?
The paths forward for this suit now become narrow. Tribes can ask the Supreme Court of the United States to review the Ninth Circuit’s ruling. But there’s no guarantee SCOTUS will hear the case.
Other tribal casino operators in California could file a similar suit. However, they would have to produce unique arguments, not simply rehash the issues already ruled on by the circuit and district courts.
The avenue with the greatest potential for success is through the state constitution or the legislature. As Mendez alluded to in his decision, everything hinges on that language.
Tribes could try to push for an amendment to the constitution or an addition to the state’s code. They’ve already gone that route with the potential legalization of sports betting.
Earlier this year, California tribes pushed a petition to force a referendum on sports betting legalization in 2022. They could do the same with cardrooms offering banked games. Such an amendment could make that practice explicitly illegal.
That said, they may have trouble getting enough support for a petition to that end. Tribes would face the same obstacle that the state has in settling this issue.
CA cardrooms have strong proponents in the state
The state hasn’t really taken a stance on the cardrooms vs. tribal casinos issue because of local support for cardrooms. Cities collect tax revenue from their operation.
The state did try to settle the issue this year in the midst of its push for its own sports betting legalization amendment. That would have made cardrooms’ offering banked games explicitly legal. In exchange, tribal casinos would have a heavy hand in wagering on sporting events.
The tribes, though, resisted that deal. Now that their hopes for injunctive relief from federal courts seem dashed, it may force them to be more willing to compromise.
Barring a SCOTUS review, this lawsuit is over. The question of the legality of California cardrooms, though, may still be an issue for a while.
Santa is coming early this year – Global Poker has announced a “25 Days Of Christmas” promotion with plenty of gifts. Throughout December, the site is giving away more than 100,000 in Sweeps Coins
Players will have a daily opportunity to unwrap some holiday prizes. Each day includes new challenges, from major freeroll opportunities, bonus cash, special avatars, and more. The site has gone the extra mile in offering players plenty of fun stuff for their stockings.
Global Poker is a free-to-play online social sweepstakes poker site with over a million players. The platform is currently available in the United States and Canada (except Washington and Quebec).
Players can use a virtual currency called Gold Coins (GC) to play free:
ring games
sit and go’s
tournaments
When players buy additional Gold Coins they receive bonus sweepstakes prizes called Sweeps Coins (SC). These can be redeemed for real cash prizes and gift cards. Global Poker makes easy to purchase Gold Coins and redeem Sweeps Coins.
No purchase is necessary to enjoy the diverse range of poker games. Players can also use either Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins to play in 25 Days of Christmas events.
Santa Scrimmage, holiday freeroll, and more
Global Poker is closing out the year in style with the special edition Santa Scrimmage.The SC218 event is set for Dec. 27 with SC100,000 guaranteed.
There are numerous satellite events running throughout the month. Players should also be on the lookout for special prizes to go along with the event.
Players who play 5,000 Sweeps Coin ring game hands between Dec. 1-25 also earn a nice gift. Accomplishing this feat earns players an entry into the SC20,000 freeroll set for Dec. 29.
Part of the fun at Global Poker is the unique avatar setup and players can even earn more. Throughout the 25 Days of Christmaspromotion, players entering certain tournaments can win an exclusive Santa avatar.
These winners will then be entered into an exclusive promotion event, which hasn’t been revealed yet.
Sunday is for big winners
Each Sunday, Global Poker hosts a cache of major tournaments including the SC218 Sunday Scrimmage. The event comes with a SC50,000 guarantee and Tennessee player “Squirrell22” came out on top on Nov. 29.
Squirrell scored for SC12,708 with “RunMo0seRun” (Texas) finishing second for SC9,462. The event ultimately paid out SC66,400 – a nice addition to the prize pool.
Other events like the Sunday Teaser have also been topping weekly guarantees. That event features a SC110 buy-in and SC25,000 guarantee.
“AB Aerterno” (North Carolina) took down the Nov. 29 tournament for SC5,211. Tennessee’s “Odell Bettem Jr” finished runner-up for SC3,915.
Big action starts every Sunday afternoon on Global Poker at 3 p.m. ET.
Watch the Global Poker action live
Those interested in Global Poker should check out the platform’s Twitch channel. The channel features action every night.
Players and viewers can win nightly prizes, ask questions, and learn about the site from streamers such as:
It’s been an unprecedented year in the world of poker. Even most of the $10,000 World Series of Poker Main Event has moved online to WSOP.com. The Poker Hall of Fame was already an online affair and 2020 nominations officially opened Monday.
The hall honors and recognizes some of the game’s most important players as well as notable figures in the industry. This year’s nominations will be open through Dec. 11 and anyone can be part of that process.
The Hall of Fame was established in 1979 and was acquired by Caesars Entertainment along with the WSOP in 2004. A player must meet the following criteria for Hall of Fame induction:
Played against acknowledged top competition.
Be at least 40 years old at the time of nomination.
Played for high stakes.
Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers.
Career stood the test of time.
Non-players who have contributed to the industry can also be included. They must have “contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results.”
Narrowing down the field
The 2019 finalists included Chris Bjorin, David Chiu, Eli Elezra, Antonio Esfandiari, Chris Ferguson, Ted Forrest, Mike Matusow, and Huckleberry Seed. These all remain open for nomination again this year.
The open nomination process is meant to identify other worthy nominees to fill out the finalist ballot. The list of finalists will include up to 10 and be unveiled on Dec. 16.
The 32 living Hall of Fame members will then cast their final votes. Each will have 10 total points to allocate as they see fit among the nominees.
Only one nominee planned for 2020
WSOP and Hall of Fame organizers have made a slight change to the process this year. As was the case from 1980-2004, only one honoree will be inducted.
In 2019, Chris Moneymaker and David Oppenheim become the 57th and 58th Hall of Fame members. The hall not only includes modern players like Doyle Brunson and Daniel Negreanu but also historic figures like Edmund Hoyle and Wild Bill Hickok.
The 2020 inductee will be announced on Dec. 30 just prior to the WSOP Main Event $1 million heads-up finale.
To nominate someone for the Poker Hall of Fame, click here. Here’s a look at all 58 members:
Those requirements include independent testing of platforms and games. To ensure gaming integrity, MGCB must also approve each company’s internal controls. The firms also must secure occupational licenses for certain employees.
Partypoker US Network operates in New Jersey and also includes the 
. Polk checked and Negreanu bet $800. Polk called and the turn was the 3
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Poker On The Mind 
(@PokerOnTheMind) 
event is set for Dec. 27 with SC100,000 guaranteed.
