Daniel Negreanu jumped into the Poker subreddit last Sunday for yet another wide-ranging AMA session, and true to form, he didn’t shy away from tough questions.
The GGPoker ambassador and seven-time WSOP bracelet winner fielded queries on everything from US gambling taxes to the future of online poker, from his political stance to his worst-ever bad beat, and even found time to talk about hobbies, books, hit TV poker show Game of Gold, Elon Musk, and what can be done to improve the game of poker.
In this piece, we break down the highlights from his latest AMA.
Poker, Politics, and the IRS
One of the first questions thrown his way was about recent gambling tax changes—specifically the controversial reduction of the cap on loss deductions from 100% to 90% included in the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” and whether this would hurt the industry. For professional players, the rule could be devastating, since it limits their ability to offset winnings with losses.
Negreanu didn’t sound too worried. He actually put a number on it, saying he believed there was a “72%” chance the changes would eventually be repealed, with support coming from both sides of the political aisle.
Expanding on the subject further, he predicted that if the new rules remain in place and players can’t write off their losses, the law would likely collapse under its own weight.
“I think poker will survive and it would be repealed after year one because they will see that rather than an extra $5 billion in revenue, they end up losing a billion,” he explained.
His political stance also came up when a redditor asked if he had shifted from “a bleeding heart liberal to a MAGA.” Negreanu pushed back, saying he doesn’t align with either side: “I consider myself politically homeless and don’t align with either party in their current state,” he answered.
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Fix the WSOP, Grow the Game
Talk of taxes soon gave way to the grind of tournament life. Asked what needs immediate fixing at WSOP 2026, KidPoker didn’t hesitate: stalling.
“Every tourney with a buy-in $5k or greater needs to go with shot clocks,” he said. Without them, he explained, “angle shooters” slow down play to squeeze an unfair edge. For Negreanu, the solution is simple: chess clocks, or at minimum, time-bank penalties for excessive delays.
“At least with a clock, if they take too long they have to pay a price,” he wrote, echoing his long-running push to make poker fairer and more watchable.
One Redditor asked if poker is headed for another boom. Negreanu argued that it’s already happening. The credit, he said, goes to a new wave of content creators streaming poker.
“Growth across the board [is] largely due to all the new content creators and streams people enjoy watching for free on their computer screens,” he observed.
Politics aside, much of the AMA centered on poker itself. Negreanu was praised for his Modern Poker Theory series on YouTube, with one fan suggesting he stream lower-stakes cash games so beginners could learn from his thought process.
While he appreciated the idea, he explained that his focus for more than a decade has been tournaments, and that isn’t changing. He confirmed, however, that he plans to stream the end of the GGPoker WSOP Online Bracelet Series, covering the big buy-in events and possibly some smaller ones too.
Online Poker’s Next Chapter: Evolution, AI, and Mixed Games
When asked about online poker’s future over the next five to ten years, DNegs was cautiously optimistic.
“It will constantly have to evolve and grow in different ways,” he said, noting that operators will need creativity to keep the ecosystem healthy in the face of increasingly sophisticated strategies.
Asked if AI could make online poker obsolete, he described the landscape as a “cat and mouse game.” Players will inevitably try to use AI tools to gain an edge, but operators will have their own technology to fight back.
Fans of non-hold’em formats will be pleased to know that mixed games could be making their way to GGPoker. Asked about the growth of mixed games, Negreanu countered the perception that they are fading. He pointed to rising numbers at the WSOP and said he’s “hopeful” GGPoker will eventually bring them online.
“I would love to see mixed games introduced on the site. I think it will happen,” he said.
When asked whether online WSOP bracelets carry less value than live ones, he gave a balanced answer: officially, they’re the same, but prestige varies. He couldn’t resist pointing out that one of his own most recent titles came in a particularly tough format, the $50,000 Poker Players Championship.
Negreanu was also asked about the controversy surrounding Justin Bonomo’s Palestinian scarf at the WSOP. He explained that while Bonomo was free to wear it away from the cameras, things change on a televised table, where broadcasters want to avoid political messaging. Negreanu contrasted this with national flags, which he doesn’t see as political statements. Pointing to WSOP 2025 Main Event winner Michael Mizrachi, who famously has an Israeli flag tattoo, he joked: “Was he supposed to burn it off?”
Negreanu on Game of Gold
Alongside taxes, online poker, and WSOP structure, Negreanu also shared his thoughts on poker’s booming entertainment scene. Asked about the hit reality series Game of Gold, he was candid: despite its popularity and fan demand, he doubts a second season will ever be made.
His view carries weight because of his role with GGPoker, the company behind the show, and it contrasts sharply with poker fans’ hopes for a comeback. Negreanu doubts a Game of Gold Season 2 will happen.
Beyond the Felt
Beyond poker, Negreanu shared a little about life away from the table. Golf, he said, is his favorite hobby and a perfect parallel to poker in how it forces players to manage bad breaks and keep their composure.
His advice to low-stakes players struggling with losing streaks was to focus on decision quality rather than results, building the mental toughness that comes only with experience. He also confirmed that his DAT Poker Podcast has officially run its course, simply saying it was time to move on.
Relationships and family life came up as well. Negreanu admitted that once he committed to poker, his social circle shifted almost entirely to other players. His mother was skeptical at first, but came around once he proved he could make a career out of it. His father, however, never doubted.
“He always knew I was gonna be just fine,” Negreanu said.
As for whether sponsorship deals and endorsements gave him an edge by making him financially secure, Negreanu actually pushed back: “For me, if I was grinding and needed the money that would make it much easier to play my best game. When the money doesn’t matter to you, it’s easy to be careless and play like an idiot. For me anyway lol.”
In one of the AMA’s lighter moments, a Redditor pressed him on how much of his career earnings came from poker itself versus sponsorships. Negreanu laughed off the question with trademark humility.
“I’m truly terrible with money and have no idea,” he admitted. “Money is never what drove me, and I always had an abundant mindset since I was young.”
Stories, Rivals, and One Big Gambler
Of course, no AMA with Negreanu would be complete without revisiting his history on the felt. Asked about his worst-ever bad beat, he immediately cited the infamous High Stakes Poker hand against Gus Hansen, when Hansen hit a one-outer to win a monster pot.
As for who he enjoys playing against the most? That was easy: Phil Hellmuth. “It’s funny to watch him mumble when he loses a pot,” Negreanu said, showing that even after decades at the highest level, he still appreciates the game’s theater.
Negreanu also revealed that his favorite place to play in Las Vegas isn’t a giant casino floor but the PokerGO Studio. “Really intimate and nice,” he said of the venue. And when reflecting on his own early career, he recalled grinding Toronto charity casinos that moved locations every few days, laughing about how far things have come since then.
Perhaps the most surprising answer of the session came when someone asked who he thought was the greatest gambler in the world. Negreanu didn’t pick a poker player at all, instead naming Elon Musk. In his view, Musk is “wild, risky, and dangerous” but has taken bigger gambles than anyone and ultimately come out a winner.
