Missing Person Plea as Main Event Hopeful Disappears in Vegas The family of a Japanese man who travelled to Vegas to play the Main Event have issued an urgent appeal to help find him after he disappeared last week

Yuto Moriyasu Twenty-six-year-old Yuto Moriyasu arrived in Vegas from Japan at the end of May, with plans to play the Main Event. Moriyasu, however, did not appear in any of the starting flights for this year’s Main Event, nor on the subsequent late registration on days 2abc or 2d. The authorities and his family are now desperately asking people for help as the Japanese national has not been in contact since July 2nd.

Standard of WSOP Dealers Called Out after Bizarre Hand One of the strangest hands of the summer has led to calls to improve the standard of dealers at the WSOP. A mucked card used to flop a set sparked the debate.

(Photo courtesy of WSOP/Spenser Sembrat) With tens of thousands of players all desperate to play the WSOP, it’s no easy job catering for them, and that of course includes attracting enough good dealers to service the 100-bracelet summer shindig. Nevertheless, some basic standards need to be met and it seems that we are quite far from achieving that, if recent evidence is anything to go by! Poker vlogger Lexy Gavin-Mather found herself in trouble when her pocket 7s were at risk against pocket 10s.

$1million Chip Dumping Allegations Mar WSOP Victory Jesse Yaginuma pulled back a 10-1 chip deficit to land WSOP gold and a $1milllion bonus but has sparked claims of a chip dumping deal.

Jesse Yaginuma and James Carroll (courtesy of WSOP) The grand finale to Event #53: $1,500 Millionaire Maker saw both heads-up players – Jesse Yaginuma and James Carroll – lock up $1million payouts, with $250k and the bracelet still to play for. Yaginuma, however, was in line to pick up a ClubWPT Gold promotional bonus of another $1million, having qualified by bagging one of the sweepstakes-style online site’s Gold Rush tickets.

JokerStars Scammer Banned from Club for RFID Cheating JokerStars Poker Room in Houston Texas has uncovered a brazen cheating scam involving RFID cards and a hidden card reader.

(pic courtesy of JokerStars Poker Room FB) No, not the slang name for online giants PokerStars, but rather a poker club in Houston, Texas – JokerStars Poker Room – which has uncovered a cheating scam involving RFID cards and a hidden card reader. The bare-faced attempt to cheat a highstakes poker knight at the social poker venue was revealed by PokerNews this week, when three players – former club employee Carlito, and two of his guests, Marcelo and Ivan – were caught on camera following a security review.

WSOP Controversy: Male Pro Wins Ladies Event Satellite A male professional sparks backlash after winning a WSOP Ladies Championship satellite. Check the community reaction and the rules here.

Albert Ng Ng, a.k.a. “albiexchewy”, entered the $33 buy-in online satellite on June 6th and, after firing two bullets, defeated 49 others to bag the $1000 seat to this year’s Event #70: $1,000 Ladies Championship. As soon as news broke, X/Twitter erupted in expected fashion… I’m hoping Albert misclicked reg, but people who do this on purpose are people who can’t do the right thing unless a law or rule prevents them.

Chaos Erupts Near WSOP Venues as Gunman Opens Fire on Las Vegas Strip Two people have been shot dead after a gunman opened fire near the Bellagio fountains on the Las Vegas Strip last night.

Police officers were patrolling in the area on Las Vegas Boulevard at around 10:40 p.m. local time and rushed to the scene upon hearing gunfire. A Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department statement said: “On June 8, 2025, at approximately 10.40pm, LVMPD officers were on routine patrol in the 3600 block of South Las Vegas Boulevard when they heard gunfire coming from the west side of the street. “The officers immediately ran toward the area where the gunfire was heard and located two individuals suffering from apparent gunshot wounds.

RTA Accusations Fly as Player Caught ‘Cheating’ What appears to be possible RTA cheating has been caught on camera. A player was filmed checking a solver while appearing to simultaneously play on WSOP Online.com.

The RTA allegations are the first of this year’s World Series of Poker, after last year’s summer festival hit the headlines several times. The Main Event finale was ruined by scenes of eventual winner Jonathan Tamayo running from table to rail where his coach/backer Dominik Nitsche was reportedly running sims. Other incidents included players being accused of using charts during play and prompted the WSOP to beef up rules on what is and isn’t allowed.

Martin Kabrhel in First Controversy of 2025 WSOP Three-time WSOP bracelet winner Martin Kabrhel has been penalised for excessive time-wasting. The Czech pro had his shot clock reduced to just 10 seconds.

Three-time WSOP bracelet winner Martin Kabrhel has been penalised for excessive time-wasting. The Czech pro has seen his shot clock reduced from 30 seconds down to just 10 as his tablemates grew tired of his antics. Martin Kabrhel (courtesy of WSOP) Kabrhel is a top 5 disliked figure in the game for his generally bad behaviour, including time-wasting, excessive speech play, angleshooting and alleged cheating. Today he was running deep in Event#5: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha when he fell afoul of the officials.

Phil Hellmuth Lets Fans Decide – Play or Boycott 2025 WSOP Main Event? Phil Hellmuth has put it to his fans to decide whether he plays the 2025 World Series of Poker Main Event or goes ahead with his one-man boycott.

Phil Hellmuth has put it to his fans to decide whether he plays the 2025 World Series of Poker Main Event or goes ahead with his one-man boycott. Phil Hellmuth – Photo Credit: Hayley Hochstetler The Poker Brat owns a record 17 WSOP gold bracelets and has played in every main event since, but he recently announced that the gruelling format was too much for him now and he would be giving this year’s edition a miss.

Counterfeit Poker Chip Scam Discovered at Texas Card House The Texas Card House Dallas has foiled a plot to introduce counterfeit chips into their cardroom and warned players to “avoid trading or buying chips”

The Texas Card House Dallas has foiled a plot to introduce counterfeit chips into their cardroom and warned players to “avoid trading or buying chips” Sources have claimed that those behind the counterfeit chip plan have been identified and reported to the authorities but it is unclear whether chips made their way into the TCH Dallas games. According to reports, the culprits were caught almost as soon as they attempted their brazen fraudulent scheme.

Alleged Angleshooter Alexander Shevliakov responds to Accusations The player accused of angle-shooting at last weeks EPT has responded claiming there were “no angles no tricks just an unfortunate sequence in a high-pressure spot.”

The player at the centre of the EPT Monte Carlo Main Event angle-shooting controversy has responded this week, claiming there were “no angles, no tricks, just an unfortunate sequence in a high-pressure spot.” Hi, my name is Alexander Shevliakov, and this is my message regarding the AKs hand against Jamil Wakil. I held off posting this immediately because I wanted to speak privately with Jamil first and give him the full version.

Tom Dwan Sectioned in London with Mental Health Issues Tom Dwan has the poker community worried after apparently being sectioned in a mental health hospital in London.

Tom Dwan has the poker community worried after apparently being sectioned in a mental health hospital in London. Dwan has tweeted multiple bizarre posts over the past few days. Dwan began to post about UK and US government yesterday, mentioning or tagging the likes of US president and vice-president Donald Trump and J.D. Vance, along with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Secretary of State for Home Department, Yvette Cooper.

$12million per year to play Super High Rollers Claims Daniel Negreanu It costs a whopping $12million to play the world’s biggest buy-in events says Daniel Negreanu. Only three players cleared that number in winnings last year.

It costs a whopping $12million to play a years’ worth of the poker world’s biggest buy-in events says Daniel Negreanu. According to Negreanu, only three players cleared that number in winnings last year. Daniel Negreanu (courtesy of PGT) The GGPoker ambassador outlined the changes over the years, stating: “You need to cash for $12 million+ to turn a profit if you play all the Triton, WSOP, and other high rollers.”

Will Trump’s Tariffs Hurt the 2025 World Series of Poker? Could Donald Trump’s tariffs send shockwaves through the 2025 World Series of Poker disrupting players and costs in a ripple effect?

There can’t be many people on this planet who haven’t been following the news about the U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on the rest of the world. Jobs, savings, pensions, etc, have all been at the forefront of many people’s minds, understandably. But how will this affect our own industry? It’s a situation in flux, right now, but with the 2025 World Series of Poker on the horizon we could see some unexpected outcomes over the summer.

Eric Persson Defeats Doug Polk in “Code Doug” Challenge Finale Doug Polk has failed to save face by beating his nemesis Eric Persson in a heads-up match to end his “Code Doug” Challenge after coming close to ending up in the red for his overall result.

Doug Polk has failed to save face by beating his nemesis Eric Persson in a heads-up match to end his “Code Doug” Challenge after coming close to ending up in the red for his overall result. After a rollercoaster of a month where the Upswing Poker founder set out to win $100,000 to give away, Polk found himself in the hole for tens of thousands, wondering if he was going to end up with egg on his face.

Matt Berkey’s Only Friends Podcast to End After three years and 700 episodes Matt Berkey’s Only Friends podcast has unexpectedly lost its home and will likely shut down at the end of April.

After three years and 700 episodes, Matt Berkey’s Only Friends podcast has unexpectedly lost its home and will likely shut down at the end of April. Earlier this week, fans tuned in to hear all about the return of Nik Airball to Hustler Casino Live, and instead got the bad news that Berkey’s landlord had given 30 days notice for them to exit the premises. Matt Berkey has been a polarising figure for some in the poker community, but you can’t knock the effort that he has put in to show up every day — yes really, every day — to generate discussion about the most pressing matters in poker.

Doug Polk Back in Profit After 143 Hours of Streaming Upswing Poker found Doug Polk is finally back in profit in his $100K in a month challenge following a disastrous start. After a total of 143 hours of streaming Polk is up a grand total of $521 up for an hourly rate of $3.64.

Upswing Poker found Doug Polk is finally back in profit in his $100K in a month challengefollowing a disastrous start. After a total of 143 hours of streaming, Polk is up a grand total of $521 up for an hourly rate of $3.64. There were plenty of doubters when he announced his lofty goals last month, staging: “I’m setting out to win $100,000 in one month on the new online poker site Club WPT Gold.

Nik Airball to Make Long-Awaited Return to Hustler Casino Live After a low-key ban of one year Nik Airball will once again be gracing the stage of the Hustler Casino Live set tomorrow night.

After a low-key ban of one year, Nik Airball will once again be gracing the stage of the Hustler Casino Live set tomorrow night. Nik AirballIn October of last year, Airball did make a return to the show, but that was at the Onyx Club Merit Cyprus. Tomorrow night, though, it will be for real in Los Angeles. All the Makings of a Classic Show So what do we have in store for tomorrow night?

Bankroll Challenge Woes for Doug Polk and Rampage Poker Doug Polk and Ethan “Rampage” Yau suffer Bankroll Challenge setbacks in pursuit of 6- and 7-figure goals.

It has been a tough old time recently for the ever-popular ‘Bankroll Challenges’ with both Doug Polk and Ethan “Rampage” Yau suffering setbacks in pursuit of 6- and 7-figure goals. Bankroll challenges have been part and parcel of poker for at least two decades now, players looking to turn next to nothing into a significant something, cheered on by their fans on social media. Back in 2006, Chris “Jesus” Ferguson took 18 months to go from literally zero playing online freerolls to his $10,000 target.

Former WSOP Main Event Champ Slammed for Rude Behaviour The saying “money can’t buy class” has reared its ugly head yet again in poker. 2015 WSOP champ Joe McKeehen was criticised for throwing his bag at a dealer.

The saying “money can’t buy class” has appeared yet again at the poker tables, with 2015 WSOP Main Event champ Joe McKeehen coming in for criticism after throwing his bag at a dealer. Jo McKeehen, 2015 WSOP main Event champion McKeehen, who picked up $7,683,346 when he defeated Josh Beckley heads-up for poker’s biggest title back in 2015, was criticised for his behaviour on the 2plus2 forum. “I’m no pro and I play poker for fun and I like the challenge of learning the game at a deep level, wrote JamesBond007$$$.

Highstakes Colluder Jinlong Hu Cashes Twice at Triton Series A known cheater has cashed twice at the ongoing Triton Poker stop in Jeju. Chinese pro Jinlong Hu was recently issued a formal warning for collusion

A known cheater has cashed twice at the ongoing Triton Poker stop in Jeju. Chinese pro Jinlong Hu was recently issued a formal warning for collusion at the U Series of Poker in Vietnam. Jinlong Hu Collusion Hu has cashed twice in the past week at Triton Jeju in South Korea, picking up more than $100,000 in prizemoney. However, a 2plus2 forum poster was quick to point out that just two months ago Hu and another Chinese player had their heads-up battle halted for collusion.

Bonomo Lew and Postle on Doug Polk’s WSOP Potential Ban List Doug Polks list of who is or isn’t likely to be banned from the upcoming WSOP sees Justin Bonomo Mike Postle and Robbie Jade Lew all come under scrutiny.

Doug Polk has compiled a list of who is or isn’t likely to be banned from the upcoming World Series of Poker. Justin Bonomo, Mike Postle, and Robbie Jade Lewallcome underPolk’s scrutiny. DougPolk’sBanList Interest in the potential ban for poker cheats rose after Fedor Holz recently hinted that GGPoker’s online crackdown on cheats could be extended to live play. GGPoker Ban Cheats GGPoker, who will be running the WSOP for the first time since their $500million deal last year, announced last week that 31 players had been kicked from the site for “violating fair play rules.

Poker player Mark Toulouse Cashes after Dying During Tournament Canadian poker player Mark “Doc” Toulouse died in Dallas mid-tournament this week. Mark was already in the money when he suffered a suspected heart attack.

Canadian poker player Mark “Doc” Toulouse died in Dallas mid-tournament this week. The popular 73-year-old player was already in the money when he was rushed to hospital with a suspected heart attack. His stack was later blinded out for a 26th spot finish. Mark “Doc” Toulouse (courtesy of WPT) The sad and unusual news was originally broken by Todd Witteles, who initially wrote on his Poker Fraud Alert site: “I am getting a report that Mark “Doc” Toulouse, a popular player in the Texas poker scene, passed away during a tournament at Texas Card House Dallas.

Chamath Palihapitiya Plans to Revolutionise High Stakes Tournament Poker Social Capital founder Chamath Palihapitiya has announced plans to launch a new high-stakes tournament series that revolutionises the landscape.

Former Facebook executive and Social Capital founder Chamath Palihapitiya has announced plans to launch a new high-stakes tournament series that revolutionises the landscape. Chamath PalihapitiyaThe billionaire entrepreneur has long been known to enjoy the occasional flurry into the world of high-stakes poker, but now it looks like he wants to start cleaning up the scene from all of the little annoyances which have crept into the game over the last two decades.