As the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris come to a close, leaving a lasting impact on the world of sports, one might draw a parallel in the world of online poker with the WCOOP series from PokerStars. Since its inception in 2002, WCOOP has been one of the most prestigious series in the online poker world. However, with the rise of WSOP Online, which has been rapidly developing since 2020, this series could also become the main event for online poker enthusiasts.
The recent acquisition of the WSOP brand by NSUS, the company that owns GGPoker, could lead to significant changes in the online poker landscape. It’s important to note that despite the different histories and characteristics of these series, both are vying for the title of the premier online poker tournament, which has prompted us to compare them.
Slowly but surely, JackPoker has been making a name for itself within the online poker world. The operators been consistent with delivering fresh promotions every month and this August is no exception. Just days ago, August 12th to be exact, JackPoker launched its biggest PKO series to date, aptly titled Jack in the Box.
However, this isn’t the only thing the poker operator has been up to. You see, JackPoker has also dipped its toes into live poker with its JackPass, online satellites with exclusive packages to the ultimate live poker events.
In this article, we’re going to break both of these down for you, going into some much needed detail!
The previous week has been one of the biggest weeks in poker in terms of revealing news. GGPoker announces the dates of the WSOP Online, CoinPoker revealed why and how they can assure players a safe environment to play poker, and Pete Chen is the next addition to the WPT Global crew.
Have you missed out on any of the action? We got you covered with PokerListings! Every week, we are releasing an article where you can find a full overview of everything what happened in the previous week. Besides all impressive news in the world, we also take you on a journey through the online circuits of poker, where online poker streamers are leading the dance.
Saturday, August 10, 2024 – CoinPoker, a top blockchain-powered poker platform, is taking major steps to build trust with its customers by fully revealing its asset reserves. This bold move shows CoinPoker’s commitment to transparency, making it a pioneer in the online gaming world.
If CoinPoker doesn’t ring a bell, perhaps Antanas ‘Tony G’ Gouga does. He is one of the ambassadors of CoinPoker, and often sends people ‘on their bikes’ by showing off his talents at the highest stakes cash games, being streamed live through his own platforms. Without a doubt, CoinPoker has been raising up the stakes ever since it started its existence in 2017.
As the cherry on the cake, CoinPoker recently partnered up with one of the most talented high stakes player in the world, going by the name Patrick ‘padspoker’ Leonard.
From August 17th to August 25th, 2024 Merit Royal Diamond in Cyprus will hold one of the more expensive live poker series in the industry — Super High Roller Bowl Series. What’s waiting for players and which poker stars have already confirmed their participation — find out in our article.
On July 29th, 2024 WPT Global announced the expansion of its team of ambassadors introducing NLH MTT crusher from Taiwan — Pete Yen Han Chen.
In this article PokerListings combined a few interesting facts about Pete Chen and other WPT Global Team members.
Series, missions, leaderboards, bonuses — we collected information about all the August promotions available in different online poker rooms in one article. So, regardless of whether you favor GGPoker or WPT Global, there is something for everyone!
GGPoker has been on a role the past few weeks and from the looks of it, their not slowing down any time soon.
Just yesterday, the biggest online poker room came out with the news we’ve all not-so-secretly been waiting for – announcing the 2024 WSOP Online. The long awaited online poker tournament will be running at GGPoker from August 18th to September 30th, 2024.
So, what are we looking at with this edition of WSOP Online?
It has been a week jampacked with poker news. The WSOP brand was sold to the NSUS Group, the engine of the GGPoker Network. The Festival Online 2024 kicked off during the weekend, and the Summer Festival on WPT Global is offering a whopping $8,000,000 in guaranteed prize pools!
For all the poker news that didn’t make the cut, be sure to check out socials!
PokerStars is kicking off the 2024 World Championship Of Online Poker (WCOOP) with an exciting new initiative: the WCOOP Boot Camp. This mini-series, running from August 4 to August 19, is designed to help any kind of player to practise well before it all really kicks in with the legendary WCOOP series itself from September 8 to October 2.
The Boot Camp will feature a whopping 80 numbered events across 160 tournaments, with buy-ins ranging from $2.20 to $1,050. One of the highlights is the $109 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Main Event on August 18, which boasts a $1,000,000 guarantee. All the events will be available in different buy-in levels and as you are used to with the WCOOP; With different formats of poker.
Date
Event
Buy-In
Guarantee
Aug 4
Boot Camp 1-L: $11 NLHE [Boot Camp Opener]
$11
$40K
Aug 4
Boot Camp 1-H: $109 NLHE [Boot Camp Opener]
$109
$75K
Aug 18
Boot Camp Main Event
$109
$1M
To support players in their preparation, PokerStars is offering free training sessions hosted by the experts from BBZ Poker, including founder Jordan “bigbluffzinc” Drummond, a well-respected online regular who has left its marks in the history of high stakes online poker. These sessions will be available from August 3 to August 9 via Zoom recordings, accessible through the BBZ Discord Channel. It’s a rare situation getting these kind of opportunities for free, so the value is superb!
In addition to the training, PokerStars has set up a WCOOP Boot Camp Leaderboard where the top 100 players can earn many added prizes. The top six finishers will each receive a WCOOP Power Path Gold Pass bundle worth $10,000. Other prizes include Power Path Silver Passes and $109 Sunday Million tickets. Even in the lower buy-in events, there is a leaderboard. PokerStars always has been a poker site for all budgets, and continues the trend right here. Would you like to re-live the moment and see how WCOOP came to a close? Then check out the following recap right here.
Rank
Prize
1-6
WCOOP Power Path Gold Pass (Valued at $10,000)
7-20
Power Path Silver Pass
21-100
$109 Sunday Million ticket
With the Boot Camp introduction, there is more news from PokerStars side. As with the previous SCOOP edition and the SCOOP league, there will be now a WCOOP league. Meaning that ambassadors Lex Veldhuis, Fintan Hand, Benjamin Spragg, and Parket Talbot, will choose their preferred teams and give the WCOOP another dimension with some healthy competition on the side. There will be a special draft during the next European Poker Tour in Barcelona, including a Boot Camp participant as well!
Moreover, PokerStars is offering $50,000 worth of tournament tickets as part of the Boot Camp festivities. Players who opt-in and compete in at least ten Boot Camp events or cash in at least two will have a shot at winning these tickets, adding even more value to the series. For those looking to get the most out of the WCOOP Boot Camp, PokerStars has introduced a special ticket bundle in the Power Path section of their client.
By redeeming a Silver Pass, players can receive a bundle that includes a $530 ticket, three $215 tickets, six $109 tickets, eight $55 tickets, ten $22 tickets, ten $11 tickets, and $11 worth of tournament dollars. This bundle provides a comprehensive range of entry options for various Boot Camp events, making it easier to participate in multiple tournaments.
The Festival Online 2024 is set to be an great event on the iPoker Network, marking the fourth edition of this online version of The Festival Series live event. From August 3rd to August 19th, poker enthusiasts from around the globe can participate in 70 unique tournaments with guaranteed prize pools exceeding €1,500,000.
Where Can You Play ‘The Festival Online’?
The Festival Online 2024 will be hosted on the iPoker Network, one of the top five online poker platforms globally. This network comprises 26 operators, making the festival accessible to players worldwide. It caters primarily to low- and mid-stakes players, aligning perfectly with the inclusive nature of The Festival Series. Among the participating operators are well-known names like Paf, Redstar, Novibet, Netbet, Betsson, Bet365, William Hill, and many more. This festival promises an epic poker experience with various missions, leaderboards, and unique features designed to engage players of all levels.
The Festival Online 2024 Schedule
Going from August 3rd to August 19th, The Festival Online 2024 features 70 diverse tournaments, including Hold’em, Omaha, Progressive Knockout, and Mystery Bounty events. The tournament buy-ins range from €7.50 to €250, ensuring that there are events for players of all bankrolls. If that’s stull above your budget, there will be plenty of value satellites available on any moment of the day.
The flagship tournament is the €55 Main Event, which offers daily opening flights from August 3rd to August 19th, boasting a guaranteed prize pool of €100,000. Other notable events include the €100 Opening Event on August 4th and the €250 Closer Event on August 18th, which also host a guaranteed prize pool of €100,000 each!
The Festival Online 2024 highlights several key multi-day ‘Stack-Builder’ tournaments, each designed to offer significant value and a great online poker experience: Among then you have the Main Event, a Mini– and Micro Tournament, and for the mixed games players: an Omaha Tournament!
Value with Satellites, Missions, and a Leaderboard!
Players can qualify for The Festival Series Malta 2024, taking place from September 8th to 15th, through online satellites on the iPoker Network. Running from July 15th to August 19th, these satellites offer buy-ins starting at just €0.25 and provide packages worth €1,850, including the Main Event buy-in and accommodation.
Besides the satellites, it’s all about The Festival Online of course! To add an extra layer of excitement, The Festival Online 2024 includes various missions and leaderboards:
Missions
Players can complete specific missions to earn rewards such as live packages and satellite tickets. From earning points in cash games to knocking out players in PKO events, playing the infamous Franke’s Flips, there are multiple ways to get a shot on boosting your bankroll.
Leaderboard
Running throughout the festival, the leaderboard allows players to earn points by participating in events and completing tasks. Top performers can win cash prizes and packages for The Festival in Malta. Below you can find all the prizes what can be won by topping the leaderboard:
Position
Cash Prize
The Festival in Malta Package
1
€500
€1,850 The Festival in Malta Package
2
€300
€1,850 The Festival in Malta Package
3
€250
€1,850 The Festival in Malta Package
4
€200
€100 The Festival [PACKAGE] Ticket
5
€150
€100 The Festival [PACKAGE] Ticket
6-10
€100
€100 The Festival [PACKAGE] Ticket
11-15
€50
€100 The Festival [PACKAGE] Ticket
16-25
€25
€100 The Festival [PACKAGE] Ticket
26-50
€10
–
The Festival Online Streamer Challenge
Streamers can join The Festival Online Streamer Challenge, competing in key tournaments to accumulate points. Participation alone earns points, with additional points for ITM finishes and final table appearances. The top streamer wins a €1,600 package for The Festival Series Bratislava, with additional bonus challenges available for extra points. If you are an online poker streamer and able to play on the iPoker Network, then it’s a no-brainer to sign up through one of the Social Media channels of The Festival.
Key Tournaments
Several key tournaments highlight the schedule, each offering significant prize pools and a chance to showcase your poker skills:
On August 1st, 2024 Caesars Entertainment revealed the details of a jaw-dropping deal: the company signed an agreement to sell its intellectual property rights for the World Series of Poker ® (“WSOP”) brand to NSUS Group Inc., investment group and owner of GGPoker.
PokerListings urges you to remember the most illustrious moments of the latest non-GGPoker WSOP and think about what this deal could mean for the future of the brand.
There are tons of promotions running for players on WPT Global right now. We’ve collected information about each of these into one article – enjoy!
PokerListings concludes to share the results of WSOP 2024 with you. In this article you’ll find information about the last 18 winners of WSOP events, who were crowned from July 4th to July 24th.
Since this is goin to be a very long list of people, we deviate from the previous article structure a bit, telling you about just a few of the winners in detail and placing the remaining ones in a table at the end of the article. We’ve also excluded the Main Event champion since you can read about him in the article Jonathan Tamayo Wins Main Event WSOP 2024 ($10M).
All previous winners you can find in eight PokerListings articles:
From August 1st, 2024 WPT Global will stop paying revenue to affiliates for players, who were marked by the room’s system as highly-skilled at NLHE and Short Deck cash tables.
In this article you find answers to the most crucial questions about this and related changes, including what this means for different kinds of players, what system WPT Global uses and how it affects the amount of rakeback for poker pros.
Have you been too busy in the previous week?
Don’t you worry! We’ll go through it once again with our new PokerListings Pulse #30! It has been quite a week, with ‘LaptopGate’ was topping all the poker headlines. WPT Global is hosting the Summer Showdown Series with over $8M GTD, a great way to start your poker career in the online poker world!
Online poker can often seem swamped with one-and-the-same operators and their re-worked promotions. Then again, if you look a bit closer, you might just see an online poker room you haven’t heard as much about but that has some stellar promotions. If you’d ask us, a prime example of this would be RedStar Poker.
So, in this article, we’re going to tell you a bit more about this online poker operator, with a keen focus on its ongoing summer promotions and qualifiers.
A Bit About RedStar Poker
RedStar is no poker rookie. The online operator has been in the game since 2005 and holds the reputable Curaçao gaming license to match its years.
Similar to other online operators, RedStar is not just about poker. It has designated sections for both an online casino and sports betting. Along side this, the site also comes with its unique set of bonuses and leaderboards, with their welcome bonus currently standing at 200% up to 2000 USD.
Still, since this article isn’t intended to be a detailed poker room review, we suggest checking out our RedStar Poker Review, while we continue on to their current summer promotions!
Episode 10 – €2,500,000 GTD Summer Festival
RedStar Poker began its summer with a bang, offering a massive €2,500,000 guaranteed prize pool in its Episode 10 – €2,500,000 GTD Summer Festival. Already under way, the promotion will be active from July 19th to August 6th, 2024.
The Summer Festival is designed as a mixture of daily tournaments with buy-ins ranging from €5 to €500. This means players can look forward to No-Limit Hold’em (NLHE) and Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) tournaments, as well as PKOs and Flighted tournaments. So, how do you get to the action?
For starters, players need to opt in once for the duration of the mission qualification periods. There are several missions to complete, each with an entry tickets to the €5,000 Summer Fest Freeroll and the “E10 €50 BIG STAGE Tickets“.
While some of the missions are running only until tomorrow, there are many more you can still take part in. The full list, as well a few more details, can be found below!
Mission Types
Mission Type
Mission Description
Time
Revenue Mission
Earn 7500 points to get a “E10 €50 BIG STAGE Ticket”
19/07/2024 – 29/07/2024
“One Time” Mission
Win a prize from the “E10” satellite to the E10
19/07/2024 – 29/07/2024
Satellite Mission
Play 5 “E10” satellites (min. €0.20 buy-in) to get an entry ticket to the €5,000 Summer Fest Freeroll
19/07/2024 – 07/08/2024
KO Mission
Knock out 10 players in “E10” PKO tournaments to get an entry ticket to the €5,000 Summer Fest Freeroll
19/07/2024 – 07/08/2024
“Triple Take” Mission
Play any 3 “E10” Day 1 Flights to get an entry ticket to the €5,000 Summer Fest Freeroll
19/07/2024 – 07/08/2024
“Summer Session” Mission
Play any 7 “E10” Daily Tiered tournaments to get an entry ticket to the €5,000 Summer Fest Freeroll
19/07/2024 – 07/08/2024
Episode 10: Summer Festival Leaderboards
While on the topic of their Summer Festival, it would be unfair to leave out the Summer Festival Leaderboards, also running from July 19thto August 7th, 2024,
While every poker operator has their own take on these leaderboards, RedStar comes out with a relatively straightforward approach. The leaderboards are divided into three categories based on stakes: Low, Medium, and High. Each category comes with its own buy-in range, as you’ll see below.
Leaderboard Categories
Leaderboard Name
Buy-in Range
E10 Summer Festival – Low
€1 – €15
E10 Summer Festival – Medium
€20 – €88
E10 Summer Festival – High
€100 – €500
Points on all three leaderboards can be acquired in an abundance of ways, from simply playing “E10” PKO tournament (1 point) to winning the said tournament (30 points).
Since we won’t list the entire point chart here, we encourage you to go to RedStar poker for a complete leaderboard breakdown.
Avatar Hunt Dragon
As of today, RedStar Poker has introduced yet another promotion, the Avatar Hunt Dragon, running from July 28th to August 25th, 2024, eerily coinciding with the release of “House of The Dragon: Season 2”.
The idea is fairly simple – the promotion lets players unlock a new Dragon Avatar and Emoticons package by completing various missions.
Players need to opt-in from the login message or missions page. Once opted in, the new avatars, table animations, and emoticons are unlocked as follows:
Mission Type
Task Description
2D Avatar Mission
Play 5 hands in any game
3D Avatar Mission
Play 25 hands in any game
Table Animations
Generate €1 in rake and fees
Emoticons Mission
Win a hand with pocket TT or better in any Hold’em game
The Festival in Malta Qualifiers
You may remember us mentioning that RedStar is part of the iPoker network. Well, as it turns out, that comes with certain perks, one of them being a new-found partnership with The Festival Series.
As part of the iPoker network, RedStar poker will have The Festival in Malta Qualifiers running from July 15th to August 19th, 2024 and giving players a chance to win packages to the live event in Portomaso Casino, Malta, from September 9th to September 15th, 2024.
The main event, “The Festival Main Event – Day 1”, has a buy-in of €550. Players can choose any Day 1 flight, including Day 1A on September 10th, Day 1B on September 11th, Day 1C on September 12th, and Day 1D & 1E Turbo on September 13th, with Day 2 and 3 on September 14th and 15th, respectively.
Package Details
Component
Value
Main Event Buy-In
€550
Hotel Accommodation (6 nights)
€850
Hospitality Package
€200
Spending Money
€250
Total Value
€1,850
For a complete list of all satellites and qualifiers, please refer to RedStar Poker directly.
PokerListings continues to share results of the WSOP 2024 with you. In this article you’ll find information about the winners of the eighth ten events of WSOP, who were crowned from June 28th to July 3rd.
Note: We did not include from WSOP Online events and results of live WSOP events that were played next — you can find them in later articles on PokerListings.
Shiina Okamoto
In 2024, young Japanese poker player Shiina Okamoto returns to the WSOP for the second year in a row to finish what she started in 2023 — to win an event for women.
This goal was met when Shiina’s took down Event #71: $10,000 LADIES Championship No-Limit Hold’em, which saw 1,245 entries and came with a $1,095,600 prize pool.
Shiina Okamoto
Her prize for second place in the same event on WSOP 2023 brought Okamoto her career best cash of $118,768. However, her 2024 victory crushed this result with a $171,732 prize. At the end of WSOP 2024, Okamoto had $486,075 in total live earnings for 38 ITMs.
She met her latest victory with a big smile but was brief in commenting: “After finishing second last year and with all my supporters here, winning this year feels even more special”.
Photo Credit: Eloy Cabacas
Scott Seiver
It was inevitable for US poker beast Scott Seiver to end the WSOP 2024 as a POY. He made 17 ITMs, including three victories. His latest victory came with Event #72: $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship (7-Handed), which saw 186 registered entries and a $1,729,800 prize pool.
The victory gave Seiver a $411,041 prize.
Scott Seiver
it’s safe to say that Seiver was pleased with his performance, commenting post game:
“I feel very satisfied right now. I can’t really describe it. I’m like on Cloud Nine right now. This just means so much to me, and it also is a step in a personal journey I’ve made for myself where I’ve had a pie-in-the-sky dream where I want to win one bracelet in every single discipline there is.“
As of July 2024, Scott has seven bracelets and more than $26,8M in total live earnings. In 2025, he will be eligible to become a Poker Hall of Fame nominee. Becoming a member would let Seiver achieve his ultimate career goal.
Photo Credit: Regina Cortina
David “Diamond Dave” Eldridge
By 2024, US player David Eldridge already had four notable victories (PCA 2017, WPT 2017, partypoker MILLIONS North America 2018, and WSOP Online PA Only 2021). Still, he wasn’t lucky enough to stag that cherished live gold bracelet.
David “Diamond Dave” EldridgeDavid “Diamond Dave” Eldridge
This situation was resolved at the WSOP 2024 when David won Event #73: $25,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha. The event saw 475 registered entries and a prize pool worth $11,186,000. With this victory, Eldridge took his absolute best cash of $2,246,728.
A little tired after his victory, Eldridge simply stated: “It was a long four days, but things worked out”.
Photo Credit: Hayley Hochstetler + Danny Maxwell
Arash Ghaneian
Becoming a WSOP winner is usually a fascinating experience, but sometimes life is so tough and dramatic that being joyful after a victory feels almost illegal.
Something like that happened to the US poker player Arash Ghaneian in 2015. During his run in the $1,5K H.O.R.S.E. event, his, at he time pregnant, wife Liz Ghaneian was fighting for her life. Due to the stressed, Ghaneian’’s performance in the tournament took second place.
Fortunately, both mom and babies were fine and Ghaneian even ended up winning his first bracelet and a $239,750 prize.
Arash GhaneianArash Ghaneian
In 2024, everything looked a bit different – this time, for the better. A happy and healthy Liz was on the rail with friends, cheering her husband when he won Event #74: $10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship. This time, the event came with 167 entries and a $1,553,100 prize pool. Thanks to his latest victory, Ghaneian secured his best cash to date, $376,476.
This time around, the couple celebrated with a full heart, after Ghaneian shared his story with journalists, adding:
“I had a really, really nice rail just rooting me on. It was wonderful. I’m grateful for all of them. This one is just amazing to not have that stress of stuff. We get to go eat with them and hang out with the kids, take them to dinner, celebrate the Fourth of July tomorrow, great to be an American. F***in’ love it. I’m grateful, man, I’m very grateful.”
Photo Credit: Spenser Sembrat
Jimmy Setna & Jason James
One of the most cheerful moments of the WSOP 2024 happened during Event #75: $1,000 TAG TEAM No-Limit Hold’em, which had 1,73 entries and a prize pool worth $1,264,560. As faith would have it, two close friends from Canada Jimmy Setna and Jason James both became winners and took $190,910.
Jimmy Setna and Jason James
Both guys have been playing poker for more than 10 years. They were heartful all the way through the Tag Team Event, sharing their mood after the victory.
Setna said that he “always had a lot of belief” in his own success but also knew that “it was gonna happen for Jimmy as well”, while James added: “I’m just very thankful; we have a ton of support around us. I have support from my fiancé as well”.
Photo Credit: Spenser Sembrat
Matthew Lambrecht
During the WSOP 2024, US player Matthew Lambrecht finally joined the gang of one-bracelet players by winning Event #76: $10,000 Mystery Bounty No-Limit Hold’em (8-Handed), which had 965 entries and a $8,974,500 prize pool.
Matthew LambrechtMatthew Lambrecht
This victory brought Lambrecht his best cash ($1,018,933) and third World Series of Poker trophy, adding to his two rings from WSOP Circuit in 2016 and 2018. After his victory lap, Lambrecht commented:
“I feel great. I recently just had my biggest score so this is another one, so it’s like, certainly. Maybe I’ll play more of the bigger stuff later this year or next year, like the $25ks or something.”
Photo Credit: Alicia Skillman
Wing Po Liu
As of 2024, there are only nine players from Hong Kong who have ever won a WSOP bracelet and only one player who has ever won two. We’re talking about Wing Po Liu, who won his second bracelet at the WSOP 2024 in Event #77: $2,500 Mixed Big Bet (6-Handed), which saw 468 entries and a prize pool of $1,041,300.
Wing Po LiuWing Po Liu
Wing Po Liu took his previous bracelet and a $209,942 prize in the €5K PLO WSOPE 2023 event. This time he renewed his best cash taking a $246,797 prize:
“While it was exciting in Europe, in Vegas it is really special. The field is bigger and this is my first mixed game final table. I am not very familiar with the other games [except NLH and PLO], but I just use my own way to think about the games. More exploitative and less theory-based strategies.”
Photo Credit: Spenser Sembrat
Georgios Skarparis
It is always good to keep a promise but when you make it with something that matters to another person, then its even more satisfying. Something like that happened to Cypriot Georgios Skarparis when he won Event #78: $1,000 MINI Main Event – a promise he made to his student Kyriakos Oxinos.
The event came with 6.076 registered entries and a $5,346,880 prize pool.
Georgios Skarparis
Oxinos tragically died in a car accident a few years back, prompting Skarparis to do everything he could to win a WSOP bracelet and honor his friend’s memory. After fulfilling his promise, Skarparis was overwhelmed, struggling to find the words to describe his feelings.
Instead, he simply celebrated with his friends from Cyprus.
Photo Credit: Hayley Hochstetler
Daniel Perkusic
What WSOP situation could get the titles of the craziest one? More than a few would argue its what happened to German Daniel Perkusic during the final table of Event #79: $50,000 HIGH ROLLER Pot-Limit Omaha, which had 187 entries and a $8,929,250 prize pool.
Daniel Perkusic
Perkusic was the only player at the final table without a bracelet. Somehow, he managed to persist against more experienced players, including Danny Tang, Jim Collopy, Ronald Keijzer, Santhosh Suvarna, Gabriel Andrade, David Benyamine, and Brian Rast.
After successfully swimming though the “alligator pond”, Perkusic finally took his first bracelet and a $2,100,325 prize. He refrained from commenting due to a deep and overwhelming emotional reaction to the victory.
Photo Credit: Omar Sader
Francis Anderson
For 16 years of his live poker career, six of which were spent in Las Vegas, US poker player Francis Anderson pursued one goal – becoming a WSOP champion. He grinded his heart out to finally and finally reached it at the WSOP 2024 after winning of Event #80: $800 Independence Day Celebration – No-Limit Hold’em, which came with 6,792 entries and a $4,781,568 prize pool.
Francis Anderson
Anderson met his first bracelet and best cash of $510,040 with a big smile, saying:
“Oh, it’s pretty insane… Like I’ve won a lot of money in poker, but this is by far my biggest outright victory, like not even close my last one was only like $50,000…”
Photo Credit: Regina Cortina
Jonathan Tamayo won the WSOP Main Event a week ago, but discussions around his victory are still ongoing. Users on Twitter, Reddit, YouTube are all discussing one topic: whether using a solver on the rail is considered cheating or not.
We tried to figure it out.
How Did Tamayo Use The Solver in the WSOP 2024 Heads-Up?
Dominik Nitsche and Joe McKeehen stood on the rail with a phone and laptop. During the PokerGO broadcast, it was not clear what exactly Nitsche and McKeehen were watching.
Pat Moore posted a photo from the rail on his Twitter (X): the final table broadcast was open on the phone, and the solver was open on the laptop.
This became the reason for discussions on Twitter, Reddit and YouTube. And the main question is: is it fair?
Dominik Nitsche fans the flames on Twitter:
The best part of having a piece win the main is definitely the money. But the 2nd best part is how mad the biggest dipshits on twitter get when they see someone using a laptop on the rail. pic.twitter.com/i2NQkWy9el
Users agree: it’s not a cheating, but it’s not good either. Firstly, fans used laptops on the rails at previous years’ final tables.
Secondly, communicating with fans is not prohibited. Finding out what hands your opponents had and whether the hand was played correctly is a common practice at final tables.
WSOP 2021 Main Event Final Table
Thirdly, before the start of each tournament at the WSOP 2024, the following announcement was made:
We do ask you to please do not use any type of poker solvers at any point in time at the table or in the tournament area. If you’re found using one of these poker solvers, there’s a possibility of being disqualified from this tournament.
But Tamayo did not use the solver directly during the hand. That’s why Tamayo’s behavior cannot be considered cheating.
Reaction of WSOP Main Event Runner-up Jordan Griff
Jordan Griff came to Doug Polk’s podcast. He did not blame anyone, did not insist on breaking the rules or anyone’s dishonesty, but calmly shared his thoughts on the situation.
“I thought that if they were doing anything nefarious or against the rules that it would have been called out or caught on. But when I’m at the table in that moment, I’m focused on playing. I’m not focused on, ooh does he have a solver? I’m there to play my game.“
Jordan Griff
He added:
“I think using RTA is going to give an advantage. Everyone can debate how large that is, and how much it will really help a person. I think it’s hard to quantify that.If I had 100% confirmation that they were there running sims, I may have mentioned something to the floor then.“
You’ll find their full sit down below:
Poker Pros’ Opinions on Using Solvers During the Final Table
Most players condemned the behavior of Tamayo and Nitsche. Alex Keating was one of the first to comment:
I can’t comment on whatever is on that laptop, but I will share that I was with a dozen friends last night watching the final table playing on the background and not a single one of them thought whatever is on that laptop was tasteful or within the spirit of the game.
“Theoptics are bad but with this sort of money in play people are going to push every edge they can. Dom and Joe did nothing wrong here but the rules around this should probably be changed in the future to make a better viewing experience.“
“I see people saying “well we need to ban all devices from the rail because coaches could verbally relay solver outputs to students”, but that’s not what happened here. Tamayo is looking at solver outputs, this is 10% getting coached and 90% looking at a chart. It doesn’t matter whose device he’s looking at.
All that being said, the edge gained here makes his actions closer to petty theft than grand larceny. The WSOP should have clearer rules and enforced them, a warning or a one orbit penalty would be sufficient. Anyone saying Tamayo isn’t a deserving champ is off base.“
Sam Grafron also took to X to share his thoughts on the matter:
Fedor Holz also chimed in: “Regarding the WSOP main event winner getting ‘coached’:
I think it’s not good for the game if players go to the rail and look at charts or sims or get input based on those. I believe that shouldn’t be part of the game. I hope the rules are being changed for next year.
Finally, Scotty Weinstein also gave his two cents:
Imagine being part of the biggest moment of someone else’s life, presumably a *friend*, and making it all about yourself. All while calling them “a piece”.
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