In a small dot of the universe, Bill Perkins sifts through pages and pages of digital paper learning about hovercraft engines, how to grow the perfect tangerine, and the death of a 28-year-old father of three in Dallas, Texas.
It’s sad to report that there’s nothing unusual about a 28-year-old man shot to death in the U.S. Only this one was different. Ten days earlier, the deceased, Joshua Brown, was a crucial witness in the Amber Guyger case.
If like me, you don’t read the news, unless a high stakes poker player posts about it on his Twitter feed, then let me fill you in.
A jury found Amber Guyger, guilty of murdering Botham Jean, a 26-year-old, accountant from St Lucia. The former Dallas police officer walked into his apartment and put two bullets into him. Guyger claimed she had entered Jean’s apartment by mistake. The blame went to tiredness after a long shift. Thinking the apartment was hers, and seeing a man in there spooked her.
She received a ten-year jail sentence.
She killed someone and received a ten-year jail sentence.
Let me say that again.
She killed someone and received a ten-year jail sentence!
Joshua Brown shared the apartment block with both Guyger and Jean. He became implicated in the case after returning home from football and hearing the shooting. The jury heard from Brown that he did not hear Guyger say “Put Your Hands Up” before shooting Jean. Guyger claimed that she did.
After Brown was found dead in a car park, Perkins offered a $100,000 reward for any information that would lead to a conviction. Well, the police got more than a tip, although I’m not sure the money will end up in the pocket of the deliverer.
Someone somewhere has information that can help solve this crime. Why not pick up 100k as well. This may be the largest crime stopper award in Texas history. #Justice@shaunkingpic.twitter.com/JeA8styJ54
Police want to interview Thaddeus Charles Green (22) and Michael Diaz Mitchell (32), after testimony from Jacqerious Mitchell implicated the pair in Brown’s death.
Mitchell told police that the three of them had driven to Dallas to buy drugs from Brown when a physical altercation between Brown and Green resulted in Brown shooting Green, and then Green returning the favour.
The police claimed a search of Brown’s home unearthed 12 lbs of marijuana, 149 grams of THC cartridges and $4,157 in cash.
Was it a drug deal gone wrong, or a ‘Making a Murderer’ police conspiracy?
S. Lee. Merritt is the lawyer representing Brown’s family. He told a reporter from the Black American Web that Brown believed he was Guyger’s target, not Jean, and had concerns someone would come and finish the job. It’s for this reason that Merritt wants an outside party to investigate the case.
“Whether they like it or not, the Dallas Police Department is implicated in this.”
It’s not the first time that Brown had been involved in a shooting. Last year, he received a gunshot wound to the foot, after a birthday party went wrong.
It begins with a man called Elwin Ransom, smuggled, drugged onto a spaceship heading for a planet called Malacandra. I don’t know how it ends because I haven’t finished the book.
‘Out of the Silent Planet’ is the first in a trilogy created by C.S. Lewis a decade before thoughts of a slain Aslan ended up in print. When Ransom figures out that he’s on a spaceship heading for another planet, you can imagine that he feels slightly pissed.
Not everyone would feel that way.
On Tuesday, lawyer Mac VerStanding submitted a $30m lawsuit to the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of California. Poker’s legal eagle is representing 25-poker players who want damages after alleging that Postle stole from them, sending the man heading for the nearest spaceport.
Chief amongst them is Veronica Brill, the player and oft-time Stones livestream commentator, who was the first to bring allegations raining down on Postle like a billion razor cuts in September. Stones’ Tournament Director, Justin Kuraitis also faces the beak, as does Stones Gambling Hall and its parent company King’s Casino LLC. A bunch of John and Jane Does are also in the mix.
Postle is in for $10m on allegations of fraud. The lawsuit referenced that Postle had a win-rate of 60 big blinds per hour, stating:-
“5 bb per hour is a goal one should aspire to attain, ten bb per hour is exceptional, and 20 bb per hour is stratospherically phenomenal.”
Stones Gambling Hall is also in for $10m on charges of negligence for not providing spick-and-span security. As is Kuraitis – charged with fraud and negligence – for repeatedly backing Postle, and telling all and sundry that the game was as safe as houses.
Aside from the $30m headline, the other interesting point of note is the inclusion of a ‘John Doe 1’, whom the lawsuit says they can’t name for legal reasons. ‘John Doe 1’ is the hidden identity of Postle’s alleged aide, who somehow managed to pass hole card information to him during gameplay. PokerNews pointed out that the name ‘Taylor Smith’ had emerged on 2+2 as a possible fit. Postle’s champagne supernova seemed to fizzle out when Smith failed to turn up for work.
The legal team representing the 25-strong possee allege that Postle cheated using of his mobile phone, or a device obscured by his baseball cap.
The suit also states that Postle won $250,000 playing on the Stones Live Stream in a single year. During a recent interview with Mike Matusow, Postle said these claims were well wide of the mark, suggesting it was closer to $125,000. Postle also said that anyone who knows him will attest that he’s always on his mobile phone. He also said he keeps his hand under his upper leg out of habit.
An interesting rebuttal from Postle concerned Joe Ingram, Doug Polk and the rest of the Sherlock Holmes crew. Postle said there were stories behind all of the unusual hands, that only a few people would understand (players in the game, and backroom staff). I can’t remember specifics, but it goes along the lines of Postle telling someone connected with the stream, that if he gets 54o, he will go with it regardless.
If like me, you’re wondering how on earth the tribe is going to win $30m in damages without a shred of physical evidence, a civil suit only requires “preponderance of evidence.” Meaning the plaintiffs only need to show there is a 50% chance that the charges are true.
10.
9.
8.
7.
6.
5.
4.
3.
2.
1.
We have blast-off!
Mike Postle fled the gunfire, finding refuge on Mike Matusow’s ‘The Mouthpiece’ podcast. The man, many accuse of malevolence, remained in Matusow’s hideaway for three hours. When he emerged, the same arid wasteland of a reputation remained, bleached by Bergerac blasts of blasphemy.
“You do not cheat at poker!”
That is a rule.
Postle went onto ‘The Mouthpiece’ to prove his innocence. It doesn’t appear that he’s done that.
Matusow released the podcast in two episodes.
Here is Part I.
And Part II.
Postle claims that the assertion he won $250,000 in a year is false and that he is 10,000% innocent of all accusations, calling the poker community’s investigation ‘lazy.’
On the flip side of that coin, Postle told Matusow that he was the winningest player on Ultimate Bet (UB) before U.S officials shuttered the online poker room forever. He also claimed that even in today’s climate, he is “One of the best players in the world.”
To back up his claim, Postle offered a heads-up challenge to anyone, including Doug Polk.
Joe Ingram alerted Polk of the news, and Polk reminded Ingram that he doesn’t play poker anymore.
Polk’s tribe begged him to come out of retirement and face Postle, but realising there is nothing but bad news that could come from such a match, Polk declined.
Sorry guys, not happening.
Happy to keep covering the story and doing my thing over on YT though
But he did invite Postle onto his YouTube channel, and you would think if he was 10,000% sure of his innocence that he would appear.
I think you’ve more chance of an Eskimo dying of heatstroke.
Matusow admitted that he wasn’t prepared for the interview, but had watched three hours of footage from Stones Live. The four-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner, repeatedly told his viewers that poker news is fake news, and that he had little love for either Ingram or Polk. He was also stoned and suggested to Postle that he could sue his detractors for millions of dollars.
Postle told the listeners that he’s working on his own video to prove that he’s not a God.
Merely human.
Then he emerged, and the gunfire began.
The room is about to fill with unemployed Germans. Deutsche Bank AG is preparing to take the mop out of the hands of close to 10,000 people as the lender rains the pox down on their heads.
So what next?
Why not give poker a shot?
Nature manufactured Manig Loeser in the cellular workshop of this mighty nation, and he seems to be doing alright.
The former Triton Champion made the final table of the $3,300 WPT UK Main Event at Dusk Till Dawn (DTD) in Nottingham, UK, finishing in seventh place for a $58,500 score.
Loeser, who used to live in the UK, has now earned $2.1m in 2019, and currently ranks #7 in the Global Poker Index (GPI) and #8 in the GPI Player of the Year stakes.
Two of Loeser’s most potent missiles landed in the following chronological order:
In January, the German star finished runner-up to Toby Lewis in the AUD 50,000 Aussie Millions Challenge for $555,014. Then in April, Loeser won the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo for $678,393.
Loeser wasn’t the only high roller running deeper than a moon crater in this one. Paul Newey won his first live title in September taking down a £10,500 No-Limit Hold’em event at the British Poker Open (BPO) for £156,400. The high stakes slot machine guru finished tenth. The former GPI World #1 Adrian Mateos finished 18th for his second-best performance of the year outside of finishing fifth in the $50,000 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller at the WSOP. Sam Trickett finished 28th on home turf, and Kahle Burns put in another solid performance finishing 43rd. The Australian has made eight major final tables this calendar year.
Wading his way through the frenzy of the 690-entrant field all hellbent on taking the most significant portion of the $2m prize pool, was Simon Brändström. In a week that has seen their King strip five of his kin of royal titles, politicians table a bill to give ‘nature’ legal rights and ban on non-medical circumcision – Sweden has a WPT Champion.
And he’s in the best form of his life.
It’s Brändström’s second major win of the year and third significant score.
In March he finished runner-up to Juan Esmoris after wading through a 1,232-entrant field in the €1,500, €1m GTD WPTDeepStacks Main Event in Barcelona for $212,536. In August, he returned to the same venue to take down the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona Main Event for $1,434,793.
Previous six-figure scores include a runner-up finish in the 2013 Master Classics of Poker (MCOP) in Amsterdam for $245,027, and a third the 2015 EUREKA Prague Main Event for $130,610.
The 37-year-old from Gothenburg, Sweden, is now a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet away from a Triple Crown.
Final Table Results
Simon Brändström – $330,000
Ryan Mandara – $221,650
James Rann – $168,500
Matthew Eardley – $128,500
Maria Lampropoulos – $98,500
Paul Siddle – $76,000
Manig Loser – $58,500
Leo Worthington-Leese – $46,000
Paul Jackson – $36,000
Given Randall Emmett’s online feud with the bad boy rapper 50-Cent, the poker table must be a landscape the TV and film producer welcomes. He’s undoubtedly spending more time there.
The stardust of the 2019 Poker Masters is not due to sparkle until 4 November. The PokerGO production team have kept the rust from their equipment by hosting three consecutive $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em events at the esteemed venue. Emmett won the first two.
The first event attracted a field of 20-entrants, and Emmett took the $108,000 first prize after beating Sean Winter, heads-up, for the title. The only other player to make a profit was Dylan Linde, who finished third. The win was Emmett’s best since racking up his first-ever live tournament score in 2012, finishing third for $196,000 in an invitational event at the Wynn.
It was Winter’s first in the money (ITM) finish since winning a $5,250 No-Limit Hold’em event at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open (SHRPO) in August. It’s a rare foray to a poker table for Winter, who is dedicating more time at home with his expectant wife. Winter currently leads the Global Poker Index (GPI) Player of the Year rankings but didn’t pick up any extra points due to the minuscule size of the field.
ITM Finishes
Randall Emmett – $108,000
Sean Winter – $60,000
Dylan Linde – $32,000
The next day, Emmett returned to the PokerGO Studios and defeated 19-entrants to win his second $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em title. If Winter wasn’t a tough enough opponent for Emmett, how about Sam Soverel?
Soverel currently leads the Poker Central Player of the Year race and won the British Poker Open (BPO) a few weeks back, so he is in banging form. Emmett bested him, however, to take the $102,600 first prize. Kristina Holst finished third.
ITM Finishes
Randall Emmett – $102,600
Sam Soverel – $57,000
Kristina Holst – $30,400
Emmett has now earned a smidgen over $500,000 playing live tournament poker. He will need to up his game if he’s going to fill the $1m gap repaying a debt to 50-Cent created.
After his second win, Emmett celebrated by taking his partner, Lala Kent, on a date to the Sugar Factory. The Vanderpump Rules star recently stoked 50-Cent’s molten core after claiming on ‘What Happens Live’ that her previous social media spat with 50-Cent got under his skin.
The Grammy Award winner reacted by poking fun at Kent’s problems with addiction and also firing a few fresh shots at our back-to-back ARIA High Roller winner.
Emmett might be crushing people at the poker table, but he wants no piece of Jackson. According to press reports, Emmett responded to the attack on his lady, by posting an Instagram post begging Fofty to stop attacking his good woman.
50-Cent never responded, but has taken down some of his posts directed at Kent’s past issues with addiction.
Back to poker, and Emmett has now won four live poker tournaments. The first came in June of last year when he stomped his Nike’s on 314-entrants to win the $200 No-Limit Hold’em Daily DeepStack at the RIO during the World Series of Poker (WSOP) for $11,355.
In February, Emmett beat 31-entrants to win the first prize of $12,320 in a $1,100 No-Limit Hold’em DeepStack at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood. He also came tenth in a $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em event in this year’s WSOP.
A bloodbath.
That’s what we’ve witnessed this week, as poker’s collective force gathered its Columbo might to take down Mike Postle.
Who?
You’re right in thinking that Postle is not a name associated with high stakes poker. He gets a mention here because nobody in the high stakes locker room is talking about anything else, leaving me woefully short of content.
Here’s the walnut shell deal.
The Stones Gambling Hall in Citrus Heights, California, has been live-streaming a $1/$3 live No-Limit Hold’em (NLHE) cash game for the past four years.
Postle is the game’s biggest winner.
In September, after months of doubt, Veronica Brill, the poker player oft-time commentator raised concerns about Postle’s play.
The casino held an internal investigation and didn’t find Postle standing in the poker room, holding a bloody candlestick in his hand.
Then Joe Ingram got involved.
Ingram poured over hundreds of hands, putting together a five-hour livestream to talk through the footage with his crew. Doug Polk spent eight hours doing the same. 2+2 created a super-sleuth thread. Twitter blew up, including an army of thoughts, suggestions and assumptions from the High Stakes brethren.
The verdict was 99.9% confirmed by the public.
Mike Postle was a guilty man.
Throughout all of the noise, Postle denied any wrongdoing, telling all and sundry that his poker skills are as delicious as Dulce De Leche ice cream. He even went on the Mike Matusow podcast to claim his innocence.
Scott Van Pelt covered the story on ESPN’s SportsCast.
If you eat asparagus, then your pee will smell of asparagus. Postle’s hyper-variance style shows no variance winning 62 of 69 sessions, gathering more than $250,000 in profit.
Stones have since halted all action on the stream and in the poker room until they conduct a second investigation, and we wait with bated breath.
Live Poker News: Emmett Wins; Antonius Heading to Malta; Fast Starts Late Reg Debate; Legends Turn Up at DTD
In other live poker news, Randall Emmett has earned his first two high roller stripes for taking down back-to-back high roller events at the PokerGO Studios at the ARIA in Las Vegas.
3rd October, Emmett conquered a field of 20-entrants to win a $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em event. The film and television producer defeated Sean Winter, heads-up, to win the title. World Poker Tour (WPT) Champions Club member, Dylan Linde, was the only other person to make money, finishing third.
ITM Finishes
Randall Emmett – $108,000
Sean Winter – $60,000
Dylan Linde – $32,000
The following night, Emmett returned to the felt to win his second $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em event, this time beating 19-entrants to capture the $102,600 first prize. Poker Central Player of the Year leader, Sam Soverel, lengthened that lead with a second-place finish, and Kristina Holst finished third.
ITM Finishes
Randall Emmett – $102,600
Sam Soverel – $57,000
Kristina Holst – $30,400
Fans of Patrik Antonius continue to benefit from the launch of his new app First Land of Poker (FLOP). As part of his marketing strategy, the fabulous Finn will host and compete in a special event at the Battle of Malta. The €300 buy-in Patrik Antonius Poker Challenge Pop-up Cup begins October 18 at the Casino Malta.
The WPT team has been at Rob Yong’s gaff (Dusk till Dawn) for WPT UK this week. Although you won’t find this lot competing in too many high stakes events these days, there was a day when they did.
The Beef: Dietrich Fast v Live Tournament Organisers
Dietrich Fast is the focus of this week’s ‘beef’. The WPT Champions Club member, penned the following tweet, copying in Tournament Directors Paul Campbell and Matt Savage, and DTD owner, Rob Yong.
Savage and Yong responded, but they didn’t answer Fast’s question. Instead, they focused their response on late registration and multiple re-entries in general.
What’s your view?
The Business: Fedor Holz Launches The Poker Code
Fedor Holz has finally launched his new online training product. It’s called The Poker Code, and from the packaging, looks similar to the David Rogier and Aaron Rasmussen’s MasterClass.
I wish I had the @_pokercode back then 😅 but in 45 mins you can all have access to it on https://t.co/H9TY2Pytgb 🚀 Soooo hyped! I should probably go to bed, but the excitement is real. Been waiting for this day for a long long time. #pokerpic.twitter.com/9b41K37QH9
Holz has teamed up with Matthias Eibinger to create more than 60 training videos. Holz calls the Poker Code a ‘holistic’ approach to poker education, and has billed it as the ‘world’s most complete poker course.’
Life Outside of Poker: Bill Perkins on Chess; Holz on Health; Brunson on Billions.
Sticking with Holz, and outside of his aggressive marketing of the Poker Code, the German star continued uploading videos to his YouTube channel, this week. His latest offering covers how to stay healthy when operating on the live tournament circuit.
Check it out.
Bill Perkins is moving into the world of chess.
Early in 2020, Perkins will host a $300,000 Guaranteed chess tournament in Houston. 50% of the money will go towards charities chosen by each winner, and the rest is going to the people who make money in the event. Can you help him name it?
Next year, 1st quarter, I'm going to throw a 300k prize pool chess tournament in Houston. 50 percent of prize pool goes to charities from a list,chosen by each winner , rest goes in each winners pockets. It's time to up the stakes!!! What should I call this torunament? #Chess
Last week, we told you that Doyle Brunson loved Showtime’s Billions. This week, not so much. Brunson tweeted that he had binge-watched three seasons of the show created by Brian Koppelman, David Levien and Andrew Sorkin. He’s not a fan of the continual dropping of f-bombs, and the use of sharp objects during sex. Ouch.
I've binge watched 3 seasons of Billions. While it is extremely interesting and captivating, the language is awful. From men and women I counted fck or a derivative 100 times on one episode, then stopped. I know I'm an old fogey, but we didn't use that word in mixed company.😫
Yeah, I guess so. I'm used to hearing it from men but not from women. I imagine it was the time, place and parents that influenced me. Also, the whips, handcuffs, drugs,. the sharp objects that they show in some of the sex scenes are beyond me. thank goodness!! https://t.co/nO5KIAsRDQ
JC Alvarado is on the retirement train, that much we told you last week. We also told you to keep your eyes out for his episode of “I am High Stakes Poker”, and here it is.
The Poll: Polk on Food; Fast on The Fabulous; Negreanu on Nicety
Doug Polk began an interesting poll on food. The thread, contains lots of interesting observations and information appertaining to nutrition.
Here’s how Patrick Leonard feels when he’s got pocket aces, but the internet is making him sit out, and nothing more in life seems more important than pressing that right button.
When you’ve got AA but the internet is making you sit out and nothing more in life seems more important than pressing that right button. https://t.co/muqsSlWQ1y
The current is off, so I bend to my knees and place an ear onto the Third Rail.
Silence.
Vultures circle overhead, waiting for me to leave the dregs of high stakes tournaments that surround me.
The British Poker Open.
The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP).
It’s time to visit the Opera; find a restaurant that serves lion marrow, or wrap that Fabergé egg.
That’s ok for them.
I still have to write something.
We begin our rather scant look at the involvement of high stakes poker players in live-action with a look at the most recent World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event in Maryland.
The $3,500 No-Limit Hold’em WPT Maryland Live! Main Event pulled 495 dogs off the street to fight over a bone worth $319,415. Nitis Udornpim won the event, but to do so, he had to defeat a man who is not afraid of dipping his toes into $25k+ games: Anthony Zinno. The triple WPT Main Event winner finished fourth, and the $111,415 he collected from the cashier is his second-best score of the year behind the £279,920 he received for winning his second bracelet in the summer. Other high rollers who made money in the event were Darren Elias (17th) and Joseph McKeehen (35th).
After the Maryland Live! Casino waved bye-bye to the WPT, the Dusk till Dawn (DTD) cardroom in Nottingham welcomed them for WPT UK. There are no high rollers planned for the series, but several showed up to honour the late, great Dave ‘Devilfish’ Ulliot by competing in the $5,300 No-Limit Hold’em Devilfish Cup. Online star, Richard Trigg topped the 209-entrant field to win the $250,000 first prize. On the high stakes front, Kahle Burns finished 9th, and Jack Salter finished 18th. Burns is enjoying the best live tournament career of his life, bagging $2.27m in gross live earnings. Salter, on the other hand, has not had the best of years, earning 869k.
Bits and Bobs
In August, Jason Mercier won the $50,000 No-Limit Hold’em Super High Roller at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open (SHRPO) before signing off to be at Natasha Mercier’s side while she has their second baby.
It’s popped out.
Went from 2 to 3 amazing boys in my life 😍❤️! welcome to the world Matteo Richard 😊 pic.twitter.com/4u2ITaYBdy
Rainer Kempe is preparing for the World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) by offering his fans an opportunity to win a 1% sweat of his action in the €10,000 Main Event. Kempe, who sits #2 on the Global Poker Index (GPI) Player of the Year rankings, is offering the deal through his ambassadorial relationship with the online poker room GreySnowPoker.
Our @GatsbyKempinho has offered a piece of the potential pie when he plays #WSOPE's €10,000 ME They'll be 4 Wednesday freerolls at 15:00ET: winner of each will win 1% of Rainer’s winnings: Oct 2nd, 9th, 16th & 23rd PLUS play 1 freeroll & be in raffle for 1% Oct 24th (ex winners) pic.twitter.com/VeKY2UTgLf
Finally, a magical moment from Garrett Adelstein has been doing the rounds. Adelstein was competing in a $50/$50/$100 cash game streamed Live at The Bike when he turned it on with an impressive fold on the river. The timing of Adelstein’s performance is perfect in the wake of the Stones Live Stream debacle currently doing the rounds.
Adelstein called a raise from the villain holding T7o and then check-called a 982 rainbow flop. The villain held QTdd, which gave him the nut straight when the Jd hit the turn. Unfortunately, for Adelstein, it gave him an inferior straight. Adelstein check-raised from $475 to $2,600 and then called when the villain raised to $8,000. The 5h hit the river, and villain bet $14,500, leading to this moment.
“Please allow me to introduce myself. I’m a man of wealth and taste. I’ve been around for a long, long year. Stole many a man’s souls to waste.”
That, ladies and gentlemen, is the opening salvo fired from Mick Jagger’s famous pout during his rendition of ’Sympathy for the Devil.’
From the Rolling Stones to the Stones Gambling Hall in Citrus Heights, California, and those lyrics seem oddly prophetic, right now.
We begin this little hot toddy of a glimpse into the whacky world of high stakes players involvement in live poker games, with a look at a game that’s as far removed from the high stakes scene as you can get.
The Stones Gambling Hall has been live-streaming a $1/$3 (sometimes $5/$5) live cash game for some time, and the ‘man of wealth and taste’ in that game is Mike Postle.
Postle is the type of player that has more moves than a Shaman doing a spasmodic dance around a gutted calf. And it’s drawn some suspicion that his movements have ‘stole many a man’s souls to waste.’
Woo! Woo!
Outing Postle
Veronica Brill is a one time commentator of the game in question and still features in that role from time-to-time. Brill was the first person to draw attention to Postle’s unlikely win-rate through a series of tweets beginning with this one.
If someone is displaying a probability of cheating on a live stream you don't make the entire room not be able to use their cellphones in an attempt to reduce everyone's anxiety and then still promote the player as one of the best.
“Am I sure that this player is cheating? No. Do I think that there is a greater than zero % chance that he is? Yes.”
But it becomes evident that Brill is pointing a digit at Postle when she posts videos of the man playing supersonic poker. Brill backed up her claims by stating that ‘numerous professional poker players had also voiced concerns.’ Brill decided to post on Twitter after alerting the person running the stream some months ago.
Here’s one of those videos.
Get Joey Ingram In Here
It didn’t take long for poker’s Columbo to get on the case.
Joey Ingram created a five-hour video highlighting several ‘suspect’ hands involving Postle. If you have five hours spare, then knock yourself out.
If you don’t have five hours spare, then you’re in luck. Doug Polk carved his findings down to a 28-minute video.
Despite the cheating happening in $1/$3 games, the incident has caused quite a stir within the high stakes legions.
Got alerted to this Stones cheater, watched hands from @Joeingram1 and @haralabob , Q isn’t if he cheats, it’s how you could possibly play at the casino that claims there was no cheating ever again. Anyone playing there deserves their fate.
I know very little about the alleged Stones cheater, but would happily bet on "People who think he's cheating" vs "People who think he's not." in any form of poker/prop bet/etc.
I know very little about the alleged Stones cheater, but would happily bet on "People who think he's cheating" vs "People who think he's not." in any form of poker/prop bet/etc.
Responding on Twitter, Postle said that the allegations would force him to gloat about his 16-year poker career to prove his innocence. Postle called his playing style: ‘unique high variance.’
Vougaris’s ‘travelling wizard’ puts his magical insights down to a few critical factors.
“Putting in an enormous time into not just studying the game, but into human behaviour, picking up on betting patterns, as well as being blessed with very good instincts.”
I will close with a giant thank you to those who know me and have shown support, you’ve helped dry some tears from the heartbreak of this to which I have no words. I shy from positive attention so you can imagine how I feel about the worst attention I could ever imagine. ❤️ all u
Initially, the team at Stones defended the integrity of the game, claiming that a third party investigation team had looked into the allegations, and found zero evidence of any wrongdoing. Tournament Director, Justin Kuraitis, was magnanimous in his support.
“It is unfortunate that these allegations were made public with absolutely no evidence,” Wrote Kuraitis. “The reputation of my team and an exciting/fun player are now being publicly mobbed.”
Since Ingram’s detailed investigation, Stones has decided to shut down all poker operations while a third party investigation team takes a fresh look. Ingram responded by pleading with them to choose a different team than the first bunch calling them ‘the worst investigation team in the history of investigations.”
The scandal has picked up such a head of steam that Scott Van Pelt covered it on SportsCentre.
The Numbers
While there is no direct evidence that Postle cheated, it seems the numbers are going to make it extremely difficult for Postle to back out of this one.
As this Twitter poster notes.
“I cannot begin to fathom how many times you would have to win Powerball in a row to get this probability. Actually, you know what f*cuk you, I’m going o tell you. The odds of winning Powerball is 292 million to 1. This guy to do this at a 40bb/100 win-rate would be the same as winning the Powerball millions 11 times in a row; this is several orders of magnitude higher than the atoms in the universe.”
How?
Postle seemed to play exclusively on the livestream, where the casino live streams the action. The format allows someone to see the hole cards, and to pass on that information to Postle, allowing him to play in God mode.
Ingram’s investigation also revealed instances where Postle lost in the game, and how it coincided with the absence of a particular member of the Stones team.
It gets uglier.
One of the players Postle beat was Kevin “Racks” Roster, the amateur poker player who melted our hearts at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) dying of cancer.
Poker legal eagle Mac VerStandig is already on the case.
Regarding the @StonesLivePoker situation, @VerStandigLaw & I have been engaged to bring suit to address these wrongs on behalf of victimized players. If you played on a stream & would be willing to discuss your experience, pls DM me. We look forward to pursuing our case in court.
We will keep you up to date with the investigation as it unfurls.
Phil Ivey
If you ask me this question – “how does a case go through court?” my answer would look something like this:
You have your day in court.
You win, or you lose.
There is an appeal.
You win or lose for good.
It’s not.
After watching ‘Making a Murderer’, I’ve learned that taking a case through the courts is like watching a colony of ants devouring a wounded elephant lying in a pool of treacle.
And that’s a good thing for Phil Ivey.
The man the poker Shaman believes is the best there is, and the best there ever was may have lost his $10.13m fight with Atlantic City’s The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, but the war rages on, and there is no dying of the light in sight.
Thanks to the due diligence of Haley Hintze over at Flushdraw, we know that last week, the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments from both sides of the fence, before the spitting contest moved to a New Jersey appellate court.
From what I can glean from Hintze’s research, the court was expecting The Division of Gaming Enforcement (D.G.E.), and Casino Control Commission (CCC) to provide information on the legal framework in which, the Ivey v Borgata case might sit.
Neither the D.G.E. nor the CCC provided a framework, and so the judge asked the two sides to present known cases where New Jersey gambling law N.J.S.A. 5:12-115(a), had been a critical factor in deciding the case.
The Arguments Begin: Ivey is on the Button
I don’t know if they flipped a coin or played a game of Ip, Dip, Dog Shit, but the counsel for the Borgata played their hand out of position, with Ivey’s legal team sitting on the button.
The Borgata’s representation, Jonathan Massey, quoted this section of the N.J. lawbook.
“Section 115(a)(2) makes it unlawful,” he wrote, ‘[k]nowingly to deal, conduct, carry on, operate or expose for play any game or games played with cards, dice or any mechanical device, or any combination of games or devices, which have in any manner been marked or tampered with, or placed in a condition, or operated in a manner, the result of which tends to deceive the public or tends to alter the normal random selection of characteristics or the normal chance of the game which could determine or alter the result of the game.”
Nothing new there then.
Ivey and his partner “Kelly” Cheung Yin Sun, knew they could manipulate the cards in a manner where the normal chance of the game would change, and Massey argues this is enough evidence to take back the $10.13m and change.
Massey also reached into the gambling archives, emerging with the Houck v Ferrari case. It has nothing to do with pirates or elite car manufacturers. Instead, it’s a case where a bunch of blackjack players were found guilty of breaking gambling laws, after deploying ‘hole-carding’ techniques – a method of seeing the dealer’s down card, and then adjusting bets accordingly.
Massey reminded the appellate court that in the Houck v Ferrari case, the court decided that ‘hole-carding’ altered the typical randomness of the game and that they should view ‘edge-sorting’ in the same light.
Ivey’s Turn
After heading back to their hotel room, doing some smudging, watching an episode of Making a Murderer, having 40-winks, waking up and eating runny eggs, Ivey’s brief, Louis M. Barbone played his hand.
As Barbone was on the button, he did have the ability to comment on Massey’s 2014 Blackjack case, stating that The Borgata willingly allowed Ivey and his accomplice to change the randomness of the game. Therefore, The Borgata has to share responsibility for acceding to their demands.
The case that Barbone used to prove that edge-sorting should be an acceptable practice in Baccarat, was another blackjack case involving a renowned card-counter Doug Grant.
“As recognized in ‘Doug Grant’, where the rules of the game are being followed, the normal chance and randomness of the game cannot be manipulated.”
The appellate panel will now digest and decide sometime in the next 20-years, and we promise to bring you the resolution, probably when Jason Mercier’s kids are being inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame.
Image by Poker Central
The last drops of rain slide to the bottom of the sill. Ash from a neglected cigarette, tries to reach its grave. Hard-boiled eggs bathe on the stove while sourdough bread refuses to colour in the toaster, and a raspberry leaf teabag marinates in a Bahamian Starbucks cup. Away from the action, jittery digits finger the remote control leapfrogging through channels as the mind throws out a gym membership reminder.
It stops fingering.
It’s found something.
PokerGO.
The investigation begins.
Ever since the sword of Damocles fell onto the heads of TV stations in the wake of Black Friday, there has been nothing except famine when it comes to poker TV shows.
Cary Katz changed all of that.
The busiest non-professional competing in the high stakes circuit created Poker Central, turned it into a poker piñata and gave the community whacking sticks.
It’s been a while, but on Saturday, September 28, a new six-part mini-series hits the shelves. Cinematically shot in 4k, “Legends of the Game,” delivers some of the most absorbing stories of gambling’s history.
Here is the lineup.
Benny Binion – The Story of the World Series of Poker
The series debuts with a look at the life and times of Benny Binion, including the birth of the most iconic poker festival ever created.
Stu Ungar – The Tragic Hero
Premiering October 5, the camera pokes around the life of a player still considered to be the best there ever was. Stu Ungar’s story is as tragic as it is brilliant, and PokerGO plans to give it another feather dusting.
The Poker Trail – The Birth and Rise of Poker
If you like history and poker, then this one is for you, as the PokerGO team take a trip down memory lane covering ground in Europe, New Orleans and the steamboats of the Mississippi.
Il Ridotto – The Story of the First Casino
Another stab at history, as the team, travel back 500-years to 17th Century Venice, and how the world’s first casino came into being.
Mob Vegas
It wouldn’t be a gambling docuseries without butchers at the mob, and how they turned Las Vegas into one of the most famous locales in the world.
The Incomparable “Chip” Reese
Like Ungar, the late, great, David “Chip” Reese is also considered to be one of the best there ever was, and in the final episode of the series, we learn why.
“The history of poker has birthed some incredible stories that have shaped the world of gambling today,” said Sampson Simmons, President of Poker Central. “Our goal is to share these compelling stories to an audience of poker fans and beyond in a way that has never been done before.”
A PokerGo subscription costs $10 a month, or $8.50 if you invest in an annual subscription.
For that price, you gain access to shows such as “Stories From The Felt,” “INSIDERS: Super High Roller Bowl 2018,” “Hand histories,” and some of the best high stakes cash game and tournament action on the planet.
