Two more players have been permanently banned from GGPoker after the security team uncovered additional cases of account-sharing violations involving a player using the screen name “Hinaru” in yet another high-profile GGMillion$ tournament.
As a result of this violation, the operator will be redistributing over $115K to affected players, in accordance with its reconciliation policy.
This development comes just weeks after the operator banned two players, including one of its own ambassadors, for violating fair play policies, specifically account sharing (ghosting), also coming in the high-stakes GGMillion$ event.
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Another GGMillion$ Scandal
The latest incident occurred during last Sunday’s GGMillion$ tournament, which drew 160 entries and generated a prize pool of $1.6 million. The event was paused once it reached the final nine players and resumed for the final day on Tuesday, standard procedure for this premier high-stakes event.
However, when the final table began, chip leader “Hinaru” was observed sitting out. During the tournament’s livestream, GGPoker ambassador and commentator Jeff Gross repeatedly noted that the player was being blinded out, adding that the situation was related to a Game Integrity issue. No further explanation was provided at that time.
GGPoker finally revealed the full story behind the incident. Before the final table resumed, the operator’s security team discovered that the Mongolian player “Hinaru,” who had entered as chip leader, had breached the site’s policy, prompting immediate action to protect the tournament’s integrity.
According to GGPoker’s investigation, the account belonging to Hinaru was being operated by someone other than the registered account holder, a clear case of “ghosting,” which constitutes cheating and violates the operator’s integrity standards for online poker.
Consequently, both Hinaru’s account and the individual who used it (whose identity was not disclosed) have been permanently banned.
Hinaru, who entered the final table as the chip leader, was blinded out during the live broadcast on November 11. The account took no action and ultimately finished in fifth place for a payout of $115,752. However, those winnings have since been canceled and will be redistributed among the affected players as per GGPoker’s reconciliation policy.
“This case demonstrates GGPoker’s commitment to proactive enforcement,” the operator said in a statement. “Account sharing and ghosting undermine competitive integrity. When one player competes under another’s account, it creates unfair advantages and damages trust in the game. We will not allow this on our platform.”
“GGPoker employs comprehensive monitoring systems designed to detect suspicious activity and policy violations. Our security team continuously reviews gameplay patterns, account behavior, and other indicators to identify potential breaches,” the site added.
The tournament was ultimately won by Winamax ambassador Adrian Mateos, widely regarded as one of the best tournament players, marking his sixth victory in this event.
Second Integrity Breach
This marks the second major integrity breach in recent weeks involving GGPoker’s flagship high-stakes GGMillion$ event, which carries a $10,300 buy-in. Just last month, GGPoker released another statement announcing that two players, including well-known high-stakes pro and GGPoker ambassador Tony “Ren” Lin, and the tournament winner “RealOA” — had been suspended after being found guilty of violating fair play rules.
As a result, GGPoker redistributed nearly $350,000 to affected participants, including $250,000 from RealOA’s disqualified winnings. Lin personally contributed an additional $96,380 to cover the remaining shortfall, ensuring that the full $346,903 prize pool was returned to impacted players.
That incident, too, involved ghosting. Lin had provided real-time strategic advice to RealOA during the GGMillion$ event, which ultimately led to RealOA’s victory. GGPoker permanently banned RealOA and imposed an indefinite suspension on Lin.
Lin’s real-time assistance reportedly occurred during a break while he was playing the WSOP Super Circuit Cyprus $5,300 Main Event. Once GGPoker confirmed his involvement, Lin was disqualified before the start of Day 2, his stack was removed, and he was escorted from the venue by security personnel.
Shortly after, Lin issued a public apology on X, admitting to providing coaching during an active tournament and taking full responsibility for his misconduct.
These cases are part of a broader crackdown on cheating in online poker. Last year, GGPoker disqualified the winner of a $25,000 buy-in WSOP Online bracelet event, revoked the bracelet, and redistributed more than $1.1 million to affected players, one of the largest redistributions in online poker history. Although details were not officially disclosed, the violation was widely believed to involve either multi-accounting or real-time assistance.
Earlier this year, GGPoker also announced the banning of 31 player accounts, likely linked to the use of real-time assistance tools, following its collaboration with GTO Wizard.
