Table Of Contents Five days ago, on Day 1a of the €5,200 Opener event at the PLO Grand Slam, Tom-Aksel Bedell was awarded a free ticket to the €10,300 Championship event for having fired the most bullets. The eight entries Bedell made were worth their weight in gold. The Norwegian high roller turned his freeroll into €438,000 after claiming victory over 191 entries in the PLO Championship, bringing home a beautiful Diamond Poker Series trophy to add to his vast collection.

Table Of Contents The World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) festival came to a close Monday at Thunder Valley Casino with a big winner in December continuing his prowess in tournament poker. The WSOPC Thunder Valley festival awarded 16 gold rings to some lucky and skilled players as well as awarding millions of dollars in prizes. The Main Event went to Akbar Zamani for $187,882, while elsewhere at the series Scott Stewart won his seventh WSOPC ring just one month and one day after winning $2.

Table Of Contents Brazilian poker players dominated the latter stage of the latest PokerStars Sunday Million, with five samba stars navigating to the $1 million guaranteed event’s final table. Two of those Brazilians, Yuri “tecaoo” Martins Gama and Thiago “KKremate” Crema found themselves heads-up. Between them, they took home $$140,246 of the seven-figure prize pool. This week, the $109 Sunday Million was played to a progressive knockout format. PokerStars processed 9,749 entries, resulting in a $25,100 overlay on the $1 million guarantee.

Table Of Contents Bounty hunting is a complicated profession—one that rewards the bold and punishes the reckless. But in the world of poker, taking risks and chasing bounties is all part of the game. PokerStars’ Bounty Builder Series is back, running from February 2-17, bringing two weeks of high-octane Progressive Knockout (PKO) action with $15 million guaranteed across 169 tournaments. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a low-stakes grinder, the Bounty Builder Series has something for everyone, with buy-ins ranging from $5.

Table Of Contents The $1 million guaranteed XL Winter Series Mystery Bounty Main Event drew in a crowd of 1,145 players to 888poker, and Finland’s “wellyxx” outlasted them all. The Finn sat down at the final table second in chips before navigating to heads-up, where they defeated Romania’s “Hxs87” for the title and a total prize worth $108,020. Surprisingly, “wellyxx” wasn’t the biggest winner from this tournament, thanks to the mystery bounty format.

Table Of Contents The Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria in Manila, Philippines, will be full to bursting between February 7 and February 16 when the Asian Poker Tour (APT) calls it home for its first festival of 2025. The APT Manila Classic 2025 schedule comprises 100 scheduled tournaments across several formats and disciplines and boasts ₱143 million ($2.4 million) in combined guaranteed prize pools. City of Dreams, Manila, hosted the 2024 edition of this festival and did so in record-breaking style.

Leaf Trading Cards has announced that a brand-new set of poker trading cards, their first since 2012, will be released by the end of the month. The 2025 Leaf Metal Poker set features some of the biggest names in the game today including Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, Jared Bleznick, and Patrik Antonius, as well as relative newcomers (at least from the last time a set of poker cards came out) like Nikki Limo, Espen Jorstad, and Brad Owen.

Table Of Contents There have been countless books about Las Vegas, but there’s never been one quite like The Las Vegas Book, a new, high-end coffee table book by Joris Dekkers. “It’s been a great project driving it forward from the first idea to towards completion and I’ve loved every step of the way,” Dekkers told PokerNews. “I’ve always been fascinated by Vegas and being a bit of a historian kind of drove me to ask questions every time I set foot in this crazy desert town, but I don’t think any concrete ideas culminated until I visited the Wynn for the first time, which inspired me so much.

Tom Goldstein entered a not guilty plea in a federal court on Monday, and also signed an agreement to stay away from the poker tables while awaiting trial. The SCOTUSblog founder who allegedly hid millions in poker winnings from the IRS is facing 22 counts of tax evasion, preparing false and fraudulent tax returns, and failing to pay his taxes. Goldstein, the infamous “mystery player” who folded the winning hand in a $540,000 pot on Hustler Casino Live last May, once was a prominent lawyer who represented Al Gore against George W.

Table Of Contents Romania’s “amormori” is on cloud nine today after they turned a $25 investment into $9,158 and an 888poker XL Winter Series title. The Romanian grinder outlasted 4,674 opponents in the $100,000 XL Winter #45 – Mystery Bounty Mini Event and scooped a significant slice of the guarantee-busting $105,187 prize pool. Although “amormori” became the tournament’s champion, they did not walk away with the largest payout. Mexico-based “MuyB1eN” captured the biggest prize of the event courtesy of pulling the jackpot bounty from its golden envelope.

Table Of Contents Justin Gavri might be the unluckiest player in High Stakes Poker history, and the bad run continued during Monday’s newest episode on PokerGO. If there’s a silver lining for him, at least he wasn’t on the short end of a $613,000 pot. Markus Gonsalves, however, was the losing player in the largest pot to this point of Season 14. Seth Gottlieb, on the other hand, won the monster pot without having a monster hand.

Table Of Contents In the RunGood Poker Series Tulsa $800 Main Event, a total of 517 entrants smashed the initial guarantee, creating a $361,900 prize pool. Of those, 63 players cashed, each hoping to end the day with a shiny black ring on their finger. After ten hours of play, only one player’s dream became reality. Kansas’ Brian Craig started the day in 15th place, holding a modest chip stack. He stayed steady throughout the tournament, gradually building his momentum.

Table Of Contents Tom Vogelsang has been a force to be reckoned with in high-stakes No-Limit Hold’em tournaments for the past few years, traveling the European circuit to play five- and six-figure buy-ins. However, Vogelsang also knows his way around four cards, most notably winning a $25,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha tournament in 2022. Today, he added a Diamond Poker Series PLO trophy to his collection by winning the €5,200 Opener at the PLO Grand Slam, conquering a field of 225 entries on his way to victory.

Table Of Contents The Grosvenor Portsmouth Gunwharf was the venue for the first 888poker UK Poker League (UKPL) stop of 2025, and it did not disappoint. The £560 buy-in UKPL Portsmouth Main Event drew in 273 entrants, and Jordan Daniels emerged victoriously after being part of a four-way deal at the final table. Thirty places were paid, with the money bubble bursting on Day 2. Seasoned pros Jack Hardcastle, Thomas Clack, and David Docherty were among the first in-the-money casualties.

Table Of Contents After an enthralling day of action in the $3,300 Main Event at the 2025 Merit Poker Western Series, Umberto Ruggeri has been crowned the champion after overcoming a record-breaking field of 791 inside the stunning Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino. The Italian player battled through countless emotional highs and challenging moments to claim the coveted trophy after cutting an undisclosed deal with Mihai Niste and Muhtar Taysi when three players remained.

Table Of Contents The massive $1 million guaranteed XL Winter Series Mystery Bounty Main Event has an $888 buy-in, but if you are able to log into your 888poker account this morning, you have a chance of playing in this tournament for free. The Mystery Bounty Main Event needs almost 1,200 entries to hit the seven-figure guarantee, but the current attendance stands at 1,006. With that in mind, 888poker is showing its generosity by running two special XL Winter Series Mystery Bounty Main Event freerolls that have 25x $888 seats across their prize pools.

Table Of Contents The Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT), which kicked off Season 16 in the New Year, wrapped up its stop at Bally’s Black Hawk Casino on Sunday night. The $1,110 buy-in Main Event attracted 636 entries over a trio of starting flights and awarded a $615,420 prize pool. Walking away with a $127,849 top prize and his first MSPT title was established poker pro Faraz Jaka, the patriarch of JakaCoaching.

Table Of Contents Nick Schulman’s recent win in a PokerGO Tour (PGT) high roller brought out the calls for 2025 Poker Hall of Fame induction (as if he hadn’t already done enough). No doubt the now six-time PGT and World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner is HOF worthy. He’s crushed it on the felt the past 20 years and in the broadcast booth, mostly on PokerGO, for what seems to be a decade now.

Table Of Contents Kristen Foxen won the $10,100 PokerGO Tour (PGT) Kickoff Series finale for the second consecutive year on Saturday, and it paid $197,625. The almost certain future Poker Hall of Famer dominated a final table that included Jeremy Ausmus, Andrew Moreno, and four other high-stakes crushers. Intense Poker Action at Final Table Foxen ran over the final table, but it wasn’t all smooth sailing. She began Saturday’s Day 2 session at the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas with more than double any other stack.

Table Of Contents The third championship in the Global Poker Championships (GPC) Season 2024-25 is here, with the Grizzly Games VIII roaring into action from January 27 and running through to February 16. The Grizzly Games VIII comes off the back of the hugely successful Eagle Cup VIII and GOAT VI in 2024 and serves as the perfect warm-up for the upcoming Rattle Snake Open VIII and the GPC Season 2024-25 Finals: Gold Coin Final hosted online and the live Sweeps Coin Showdown in Las Vegas later this year.

Table Of Contents The Global Poker Monsterstack Series IV has come to an end with some big winners on the social poker site. None of them, however, can top the prize won by “PaThePokerStars,” champion of the Sweeps Coin (SC) Main Event. Both SC and Gold Coin (GC) players competed in juicy online poker tournaments from January 6-19, winning GC, SC, and some pretty sweet Global Poker merchandise. The series featured 90 total events — 45 GC and 45 SC — including a series-ending Monsterstack Invitational.

Table Of Contents Like father, like son. Phil Hellmuth ended up at the same table as his son, Phillip Hellmuth III, on Thursday in a $5,100 buy-in PokerGO Tour Kickoff Series event, and the father and son duo were eliminated by the same player. John Riordan took out the 17-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner with ace-king against pocket jacks after hitting a set. He’d then eliminate the poker champ’s offspring with the same hand, the second time versus pocket nines, again hitting a set.

Table Of Contents At least $1 million is guaranteed to be won in the 888poker XL Winter Series Mystery Bounty Main Event, but you must hurry if you want to be in with a shot of capturing a slice of those seven figures because only four Day 1s remain. The 888poker XL Winter Series Mystery Bounty Main Event costs $888 to enter. Some 748 entries have been processed, with 110 progressing to Day 2, meaning another 431 players need to enter for the $1 million guarantee to be hit.

Matt Berkey, on Thursday’s Only Friends podcast, informed his audience that he’ll be taking on a new heads-up opponent, and it’s none other than sports card shop owner Jared Bleznick. Both players have previously competed in heavily publicized high-stakes battles. Bleznick recently defeated Patrik Antonius, the 2024 Poker Hall of Fame inductee, three consecutive times for a $350,000 profit on PokerGO’s High Stakes Duel. Berkey demolished the trash-talking Nik Airball at Las Vegas’ Resorts World in 2023 for $1 million, and it took him just 60 hours of play to win.

Table Of Contents The World Series of Poker Circuit at Harrah’s Pompano Beach kicks off in two weeks’ time. The festival will include 18 WSOPC ring events and almost daily satellite events. The first tournament will kick off on January 30. The event is the Double Stack Opener, a $400 no limit hold’em event with 40,000 starting stacks and a $50,000 guarantee. This guarantee is just one of $2,775,000 in total guarantees that include a $400,000 guaranteed $600 Mini-Main Event, a $250,000 guaranteed $1,100 Mystery Bounty, and the $1,000,000 guaranteed $1,700 Main Event.

Table Of Contents Irish online poker players are facing a major upheaval later this year when the Gambling Regulation Act 2024 comes into force. President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, signed the act into Irish law in October 2025, with it being fully implemented in October 2025. The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 is designed to bring Ireland’s gambling industry into the 21st century. Several welcomed changes revolve around player protection, including requiring all gambling operators to obtain licenses, establishing Ireland’s first gambling regulator, and a raft of player protections, including banning credit cards and credit facilities as payment methods.

Table Of Contents Popular British pro Patrick Leonard added $124,800 to his live poker tournament earnings and claimed the early lead on the 2025 PokerGO Tour leaderboard with a victory in the second event of the PGT Kickoff Series. Leonard was one of 96 entrants who ponied up the $5,100 buy-in; those players created a $480,000 prize pool that the top 14 finishers shared. Day 1 ended with only seven players in the hunt for the title.

Table Of Contents Oak Cliff Card Club in the Dallas area has a unique business model that might be of interest to Texas poker players. The card room, located about an eight-minute drive from downtown in the suburban town of Cockrell Hill, opens Jan. 25. This won’t be your typical Texas poker club, although the poker games will be just as juicy. The owners have a plan to build the business without charging hourly seat fees.

Table Of Contents Federal investigators claim high-stakes poker pro Gal Yifrach’s alleged illegal gambling operation continued for more than a year after being indicted in March 2022. A grand jury filed a superseding indictment against the 2018 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner on Jan. 16, 2025 in the United States District Court Eastern District of California. The court document reviewed by PokerNews doesn’t have many noticeable changes from the initial indictment, other than two key differences.

Table Of Contents From January 9-21, Florida’s Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood hosted the 2025 Lucky Hearts Poker Open (LHPO), which was comprised of 54 events. The series catered to a combined 12,531 entrants and awarded $11,478,070 in prize money. Among those to win titles were Fabian Foster (Event #1: $600 Deep Stack NLH for $141,365), T.K. Miles (Event #31: $1,100 Deep Stack NLH for $45,350), Yuval Bronshtein (Event #44: $1,100 Mixed PLO for $24,588), Nick Pupillo (Event #47: $3,000 H.

Table Of Contents Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi has done a lot in poker, from amassing more than $17.6 million in lifetime earnings according to The Hendon Mob to winning six World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelets – the latest an online bracelet from last summer – but one thing he’d never done was win a Charity Series of Poker (CSOP) Event. That all changed last weekend when he took down the CSOP $300 All In for St.

Table Of Contents The World Series of Poker Circuit Choctaw Durant ended on Monday, when the Main Event final table ended with all the chips in Eric Taylor’s stack. The series saw some other notable stories unfold, including Pamela Belote becoming the most decorated woman on the WSOP Circuit and David Yarbrough of Humble, Texas winning two events back to back. However, the biggest story of the festival was Taylor’s $259,721.

Table Of Contents The biggest event of the 888poker XL Winter Series, the $109 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed Weekend Mystery Starter has crowned its champion. A field of 1,246 entries left a sizeable overlay on the guarantee, and Brazil’s “djjazz222” took full advantage of the added value, eventually coming out on top and taking home $11,010. Day 2 of the $150,000 guaranteed event saw the field whittled to a more manageable final table of eight.

Table Of Contents Andrew “LuckyChewy” Lichtenberger is the first winner of the PokerGO Tour Kickoff series as he held off red-hot Nick Schulman to win $117,600 and his seventh PGT title. The $5,100 buy-in event marked the start of a series with five high roller tournaments in PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas from Jan. 20-25. It drew 84 runners for a prize pool of $420,000. The final table included Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel (7th - $16,800), online all-star Patrick Leonard (6th - $21,000) in a rare PokerGO Studio appearance and two-time bracelet winner John Riordan (4th - $39,900).

Table Of Contents The votes are in for the 6th Annual Global Poker Awards and there are plenty of notable standouts. PokerStars ambassador and two-time award winner Caitlin Comeskey is nominated for four awards, while fellow GPA winners Joe Stapleton and Marle Spragg are both nominated in three categories. Among the players and industry figures nominated in two categories include Daniel Negreanu, Nikki Limo, Dara O’Kearney, David Lappin, Barry Carter, Barny Boatman and content creator Abby Merk, who was nominated for both Rising Star in Content Creation and Best Media Content: Short-Form Video for her entertaining collaboration with Comeskey at the 2024 World Series of Poker (WSOP).

Table Of Contents Years before he was federally indicted on tax evasion charges related to millions in poker winnings, Tom Goldstein’s high-stakes poker and gambling escapades were documented in Dan Bilzerian’s 2021 autobiography The Setup. The social media playboy, whose dad and former company are facing some legal issues stemming from his cannabis business, and the esteemed private attorney were longtime friends who met playing poker and later raced around a Las Vegas racetrack in luxury sports cars as part of a $385,000 prop bet.