There can’t be many feelings worse than winning over a million dollars only to have it taken away a few weeks later, but that’s the grim reality facing GGPoker player Francesco Garofalo, playing under the online username ‘forzaitalia’.
The Italian locked up more than $1.1m after coming first in the WSOP Online $25K GGMillion$ Super High Roller Championship in late September, but things went from forza Italia to mamma mia when he was hit with a permanent ban. The entirety of his cash prize was then retracted and shared among the other ITM players – plus one lucky bubble boy.
This meant huge jumps for some of the top finishers, such as pro Patrick Leonard, who can be spotted at the best UK poker sites, who woke up to find his account over $152k better off.
What Happened?
At this time, details of the infringement are still thin. In an email to affected players, GGPoker referred to “the most severe breaches of our Security & Ecology Agreement”, which gives away little. Some are speculating it could be a multiaccount breach, but this has not been confirmed by GG.
Could he have won it himself? The Italian’s online GGPoker results are definitely decent, with $38,000 in winnings, but that was nothing compared to the seven-figure haul he received for the controversial victory. Normally, you’d expect a $25k buy-in to attract players with much higher overall earnings.
And what a battle it was to win it in the first place. Just take a look at the final table payouts and you’ll see the caliber of player he was up against heading into the final nine (along with their new totals):
| Position | Name | Original Payout | New Payout (Total) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Francesco Garofalo | $1,122,201 | $0 | -$1,122,201 |
| 2 | Chris Brewer | $865,335 | $1,122,201 | +$256,866 |
| 3 | Bryn Kenney | $667,265 | $865,335 | +$198,070 |
| 4 | Patrick Leonard | $514,531 | $667,265 | +$152,734 |
| 5 | Dimitar Danchev | $396,758 | $514,531 | +$117,773 |
| 6 | Adrian Mateos | $305,942 | $396,758 | +$90,816 |
| 7 | Roman Hrabec | $235,914 | $305,942 | +$70,028 |
| 8 | Ole Schemion | $181,914 | $235,914 | +$54,000 |
| 9 | Samuel Mullur | $140,275 | $181,914 | +$41,639 |
The Road to (Temporary) Victory
Garofalo joined the final table in third with nearly 50bbs, but was still a huge underdog given he was facing a full table of elite WSOP bracelet winners..
His first double up came with K♦K♥ against Brewer’s A♠Q♣. Then, with six left, he raised A♥10♠ on the button. Mateos three-bet jammed with K♠Q♥ and the Italian called, hitting trips on the A♠6♣A♦Q♦3♥ runout.
The next elimination was a real game-changer. Garofalo shoved Q♥6♥ into Danchev’s big blind, who called with the superior 10♠10♥. The J♣4♣3♣ flop looked pretty safe, but the 5♥ turn and 7♥ confirmed a cruel exit for the Bulgarian, who has earned almost $9m in live earnings.
Brewer, who ultimately finished second, eliminated first Leonard (A♠8♠ vs K♣8♥ on a dry runout) then Kenney, who recently made waves in his clash with Phil Hellmuth.
Despite those knockouts, Brewer was still slightly behind going into heads-up action, and never managed to take control. When both players flopped a top pair nine, it went as you might expect, and Garofalo took both the mega payday and the bracelet. For a little while, at least.
Brewer Won’t Receive Bracelet
Given the fact each player received one pay jump after Garofalo’s ban, you might assume Brewer would retroactively receive the bracelet. But that doesn’t seem to be the case, according to his own social media post.
I got the difference between 2nd to 1st. But I don’t get the bracelet, quite happy either way
— Chris Brewer (@Chris_D_Brewer) November 4, 2024
Without knowing the full reason behind the ban, it seems an odd ruling to redistribute the cash winnings but not award Brewer the bracelet. But if I woke up one day with hundreds of thousands of dollars which I was never expecting, I probably wouldn’t be too bothered either.