Barry Carter on PStrat with his take on the FanDuel/PokerStars report.

Everyone is wondering what Dara O’Kearney is about to reveal.

It’s been almost 24 hours since Dara O’Kearney teased, “Big announcement coming tomorrow. I predict it will shock a lot of people.”

Now the suspense is real. What could it be?

A new sponsorship deal for the Chip Race Podcast, maybe? What if PokerStars steps in as a sponsor and signs them up? That would definitely turn some heads.

Or… what if it’s something completely different and genuinely shocking?

Guess we’ll find out soon.

Jungleman investigation into private poker clubs continues.

Brad Owen speaks out about the current state of poker.

A long X post from Brad Owen talks about the current state of the poker industry, with a specific focus on vlogging, content creation, and how things have changed over the years to where even some of the best players in the game are starting to create content – something they used to laugh at – because that’s what it takes to land ambassador roles with major sites these days.

He also talks about his own struggles at the felt and major swings, largely caused by his desire to win a big title – one thing he feels still missing on his poker resume.

Barry Carter absolutely nailed it with this one.

Do poker streams have future on prediction markets?

What’s the maddest story you’ve heard at the poker table?

Tony Dunst challenges Phil Hellmuth to put is money where his mouth is.

Hellmuth thinks we are in the middle of a poker boom. I am not so sure and neither is WPT host Dunst, who is calling for Phil to lay $10k on the line.

Do you think the WSOP main will break 10k entries this year?

WSOP quietly fixed a Main Event error after sharp eyes caught it.

Well, this is interesting 👀

For a brief moment, the WSOP+ app listed the $10,000 Main Event buy-in breakdown as $9,270 + $730.

That immediately raised eyebrows because every other $10K event on the schedule is structured as $9,300 + $700.

Turns out? The app was wrong.

Credit to Kevin Mathers, Blaise Bourgeois, and Ian Simpson for spotting the discrepancy and asking the right questions on X. After it was flagged, Jeff Platt, who now works with WSOP, confirmed the correct structure is $9,300 + $700 and shortly after, the app was updated.

In the end, it got sorted.

But this is the Main Event. The biggest tournament in poker. The details have to be right.

When you sit down at a million-dollar final table, you expect fireworks, not fumbles.

But at the LAPC Commerce Classic, an experienced player managed to fold a guaranteed chop, handing his opponent a massive pot.

Cue the fireworks.

Learn all about all the changes to the Chip Race podcast.

Episodes are still free, but if you want the juicy behind the scenes content, that is only available on Patreon and you need to subscribe.

Well worth the money imo and since losing their sponsor it’s a great way to keep supporting the show.

So cool to see and hear Jen Shahade on main stream British radio.

Matt Savage, Executive Tour Director, shares his thoughts on visiting Cambodia for the WPT.

Chad’s poker thrift store finds continue.

This time, he stumbled upon an old-school WSOP chip set.

My favorite was the retro WPT plug-and-play gaming console he found!

I can’t wait to see what else he unearths—it’s like a poker time capsule.

Women in Poker summer events now all in one place.

Here is some top player reaction to WSOP 2026 schedule.

Uh oh… did WSOP make a scheduling blunder?

Ladies’ Event is on Day 2 of the Tag Team Event, a tournament many female players compete in as well.

Alex O’Brien, book author and poker pro, seems to think so.

Well… he got a point 😉.

Another poker scandal in the making?

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a poker player in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a prop bet.

Billionaire is teaching 1 million women and girls how to play Texas Hold’em.

This article may be from 2023 but I went down a rabbit hole courtesy of PokerNews and Phil Hellmuth and before you know it, your on a Time magazine article from 3 years ago.

And now I am acquainting myself with Jenny Just and her Poker Power mission to get more Women in Poker.

Niall Farrell added to PartyPoker Tour roster.

Not many people may be aware, but PartyPoker revealed at the end of 2025 that it has a dedicated roster team representing the PartyPoker Tour.

The team already features a strong lineup, including Barry Carter, Sam Acheampong, Joe Beevers, Natalie Bromley, and Glenn Brown. Now, they’ve added even more firepower with the signing of Scottish poker pro and Triple Crown winner, Niall Farrell.

And in true Barry Carter fashion, he welcomed Niall to the team with yet another humorous post, keeping the announcement light-hearted while celebrating a serious addition to the roster.

Interesting… NJ may ban gambling push notifications.

The Mike Postle drama that just won’t quit.

Hollywood’s latest bet is on Benny Binion thanks to Rocky Balboa.

This one sounds fun!

Sylvester Stallone’s Balboa Productions is moving from the boxing ring to the poker table, teaming up with Cole Hauser and MGM Television to adapt Doug J. Swanson’s Blood Aces. Hauser will star as Benny Binion, the Texas outlaw who helped invent the World Series of Poker and built Las Vegas as we know it.

Meanwhile, Netflix is prepping its own Vegas series with Martin Scorsese and the Rounders writing team, with PokerStars pro Maria Konnikova also involved.

Doug’s doing an AMA for poker content creators.

Plenty of poker players do AMAs, and Doug Polk is doing one today focused on aspiring poker content creators.

If you’re building (or thinking about building) poker content, it’s a good chance to ask direct questions about the process.

Head over to X and ask him anything related to that topic.

Brazil. That’s the only correct answer.

I’m not even checking the options. Just look at the results from WSOP Online bracelet series on GGPoker, or SCOOP and WCOOP on PokerStars. The consistency, the volume, the depth of runs, Brazil is always at the top.

If we’re talking about the general poker population, the everyday grinders, the online regulars, no country comes close to Brazil right now. The numbers, the results all back it up.

Sure, if the debate is strictly live poker, the USA probably has the edge and will take the gold medal, probably Canada second.

But if we include just online results, Brazil has to be at the top along with the USA (too bad, USA is segregated from the rest of the world).

Ahh, I see the options now. I’m going with Team Canada 🇨🇦 😅

Is poker waiting for its Queen’s Gambit?

Kim Lund, Founder & CEO of Aftermath Interactive, shared an interesting take on LinkedIn:

Poker deserves its Queen’s Gambit moment.
An argument can be made that what Queen’s Gambit did for chess, Rounders did for poker. But that movie is 20+ years old. Since then, the world of poker has yielded a vein of narrative gold just waiting to be mined.
How should do? How should it be done? Is it too late?

Our colleague Ivan asked a very similar question in his op‑ed last year — Makings of the Ultimate Poker Movie: Can Poker Have Its Queen’s Gambit? — exploring whether poker could find a modern breakout narrative the way Queen’s Gambit did for chess.

Read Ivan’s piece on Pokerati.

Money stolen from rooms during WSOP Paradise.

And according to Weisman, the money stolen has still not been recovered.

I have never been to Atlantis, but it seems from the comments that this might be a more common problem there than we think.

Big names make it to Goldstein’s “Secret Poker Ledger”.

Tom Goldstein’s poker game has shifted from the felt to the courtroom, with his “secret poker ledger” now at the center of a federal trial. This ledger, which lists some of the biggest names in poker and business, was introduced as evidence by prosecutors who allege Goldstein committed tax fraud and lied to mortgage lenders.

Some notable entries include Dan “Jungleman” Cates, billionaire Chamath Palihapitiya, real estate mogul Bob Safai, and WSOP bracelet winner Tony Gregg. According to PokerNews, the ledger was never shared with Goldstein’s accountant, which became a key point in the trial.

The trial continues in Maryland, with more high-profile names and details emerging as the case unfolds.

Apparently Hellmuth has made $20 million from PrizePicks investments.

In his latest brag-post, Phil Hellmuth takes PrizePicks founder Adam Wexler out for a $50K shopping spree and admits to making $20M in a recent investment with the company.

Is it just me, or do all these posts about Hellmuth’s investments, portfolio, and money leave you feeling grossed out as well?

Loving this breakdown of profit from Robin Poker.

Lukas outlines all of his profit since he started playing poker professionally in 2020.

I found it super refreshing to see his profit broken out like this. It somehow makes the streams feel more real. Or is that just me?

Of course Phil Hellmuth was at the Super Bowl.

Hellmuth eyes million dollar cash game.

Phil Hellmuth, the self-proclaimed greatest tournament player ever, might finally step into the lion’s den of high-stakes cash games.

PokerNews reports that he is likely to play in the upcoming Million Dollar Game at Hustler Casino Live, an event where the buy-in alone is enough to make even seasoned pros sweat.

The game’s lineup is still a mystery, but regulars like Nik Airball and Alan Keating are expected.

Sponsorship package pulled before it even begins.

Thomas Clack, the 2025 National Poker League Player of the Year, has lost his Grosvenor Poker sponsorship after being suspended by the iPoker Network. His violation? Having a GTO solver open while playing an online tournament. According to Clack, he was just using it to check his play after hands, not to cheat.

“I wasn’t trying to use it to cheat. I was just studying with GTO out whilst I was playing. After a hand had been played, I looked it up to see if I played it well. I wasn’t using it to affect my play, but I had it open, which was silly.”

Grosvenor confirmed the decision, stating Clack no longer met the criteria for the £40,000 sponsored pro package. Any remaining prizes will be paid out in due course.

Feb promos over on GG are going to be massive.

Oooh this is fun. Who’s ever seen a WPT plug-and-play game before?

Hidden within Hellmuth’s Home Game it seems a special ladies event might be coming soon.

Andrew Robl’s testimony at the Tom Goldstein trial reads like a pitch for the next poker movie.

According to PokerNews, Robl told a federal jury that he coached Goldstein for heads-up matches starting in 2016, leading to around $50 million in profits for Goldstein, Robl, and other pros in on the deal. The matches included showdowns against billionaire Alec Gores and mysterious opponents known only as 'Tango’ and 'Chairman.’

Robl wasn’t the only one involved. Poker pro Keith Gipson and heads-up specialist Phil Galfond also helped prep Goldstein for the games. Robl summed up their coaching as 'just kind of teaching him the basics’ and adapting to different opponents.

Goldstein faces charges for tax evasion, falsifying tax returns, and making false statements to mortgage lenders. PokerNews notes that Robl declined to comment after his testimony.

Mateos ' answer is EVERYTHING.

Phil Hellmuth is all set to take on cash games in 2026.

The 17-time WSOP bracelet winner seems to have his mind set on cash games in 2026, announcing that he’s set aside a $1.5 million bankroll to play a bunch of sessions throughout the year.

Despite his undeniable achievements in tournaments, Hellmuth’s cash game skills have often been questioned by his peers. It seems that Poker Brat has made a decision to set the record straight and show the world that he’s not afraid to mix it up in ring games.

Looking forward to it!

Never congratulate your opponent until the cards are all face up.

As PartyPoker says, no easy answers.

Phil Hellmuth, 17-time World Series of Poker champion, has officially moved to Las Vegas and picked up a new home for $2.8 million.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Hellmuth bought the late Elaine Wynn’s Park Towers condo, marking the second sale from Wynn’s estate.

'Vegas has been very, very good to me and I love it here,’

The flat, just under 5,000 square feet, features four bedrooms, five bathrooms, and panoramic views of the Strip.

Got to hand it to ClubWPT Gold, they nailed this one. 👏

Turns out DNegs was mentioned in the Epstein files, but maybe not in a way you would expect!

It shows the reach of poker, has no bounds.

Before he was the face of high-stakes poker, Antonio Esfandiari was just a guy who got arrested for selling weed and then learned a few magic tricks.

Pokerati traces his unlikely rise from San Jose to the main stage, where in 2012 he took down the first Big One for One Drop, walking away with $18 million.

The article highlights how Esfandiari’s win wasn’t just about the money. It helped launch the era of million-dollar buy-ins and brought poker’s charity side into the limelight.

Pokerati credits this win for making high-roller tournaments the new normal, and for cementing Esfandiari’s place in the game’s history.

David Sklansky, the revered author of The Theory of Poker and three-time WSOP bracelet winner, found himself in an unusual spot last week: the Las Vegas Detention Center.

As reported by PokerNews, the 78-year-old was arrested on suspicion of domestic battery but was released after the district attorney chose not to pursue formal charges.

Details of the alleged incident remain unclear. Police offered no comment on the investigation, and PokerNews notes Sklansky’s bail was set at $3,000.

Sklansky, known for his mathematical approach to the game and for shaping modern poker strategy, still frequents Vegas card rooms.

WTAF. Dentistry at the poker tables?

AI glasses spotted over at PartyPoker Live Sheffield.

🎙️New podcast in the works from Adam Schwartz.