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Male poker player Albert “albiexchewy” Ng has sparked online controversy after winning a $1,000 seat to the WSOP Ladies Championship via an open online satellite held on June 19, 2025.

The satellite, which drew 51 entrants on WSOP.com, awarded a single $1,000 seat to the Ladies Championship, set to run June 26–30 at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. Ng, who is also playing today’s $1,500 Millionaire Maker, claimed the top prize despite not being eligible to play the event without paying a significant premium.

While the online satellite had no gender restrictions, the WSOP confirmed today that male players must pay the full $10,000 buy-in to enter the Ladies Championship, even in the case of a satellite win that grants direct entry. In Ng’s case, that means shelling out an additional $9,000 to claim the seat he won.

The controversy came to light after X user @Elanit raised the issue on the platform, asking whether Ng would be required to pay the difference.

The post sparked a flurry of responses, with WSOP Circuit ring winner Derek Kwan among those criticizing the optics of a male player entering a satellite for a gender-specific event.

Fellow two-time WSOPC circuit ring winner Angela Jordison also weighed in, adding “what are we doing here guys” in response to the satellite win.

This isn’t the first time a gender-related poker controversy has made headlines. Back in 2023, Dave Hughes won the Ladies Event at the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown after Florida state law prevented organizers from restricting entry based on gender.

Despite a $2,000+ bounty placed on his head by fellow players and online observers, Hughes outlasted the female field to claim the $5,555 first prize.

Ng Responds to Controversy

PokerNews caught up with Albert Ng on a break from the Day 1c $1,500 Millionaire Maker which he is currently playing.

Ng, who also holds a circuit ring to his name after victory in a $365 ring event at Bicycle Casino Los Angeles, has over $287,000 in live tournament earnings as per The Hendon Mob.

Addressing the online backlash, Ng said he “fires at everything” and declined to confirm whether he knew the satellite was for the Ladies Championship when he entered.

He added that he currently has no plans to play the event and declined to comment further at this time.

WSOP Confirms Position

The WSOP reaffirmed its policy in a post on its official X account early on June 20, stating: “Any male participant attempting to enter the Ladies Event through WSOP+ or at the cage will be required to pay an additional $9,000 or will be removed from the tournament.”

You can follow all the action from Event #70: $1,000 Ladies Championship with live reporting from PokerNews, starting on Thursday, June 26th and running for a further scheduled 4 days.

Eliot Thomas is a Content Executive at PokerNews, specializing in casino and poker coverage. He has reported from major events including the European Poker Tour and the World Series of Poker.

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