The wait is over for what will be the biggest live-streamed poker cash game in US history. Hustler Casino Live, via Joey Ingram, has revealed the lineup and dates for its May 27-29 $1 million buy-in game, and the cast of characters in action will almost certainly attract a massive audience.
There’s a strong possibility that poker fans will witness the largest pot in US live-streamed poker history. As of now, that record is held by Patrik Antonius, who took down a $1,978,000 pot in February on PokerGO’s No Gamble No Future pseudo-$1 million game that had the poker world talking.
Antonius called an all in bet from Eric Persson, who was drawing dead on the turn with a flush draw, and won the hand with top pair despite missing his nut flush draw.
Million-Dollar Poker Game Details
One player you won’t be seeing on Hustler’s upcoming game is Garrett Adelstein, the winningest player ever on the show. Prior to a recent public fallout between the Los Angeles high-stakes crusher and HCL, many thought “G-Man” would find a seat in this legendary game. But that won’t be the case.
On Ingram’s podcast, before revealing the players, HCL co-owner Ryan Feldman first shared the details for how the game will play. For three straight days — May 27, 28, and 29 — Hustler Casino Live will stream at least 10 hours of a $500/$1,000 ($1,000 big blind ante) cash game where everyone must buy-in for at least $1 million. Fans can expect the listed blinds to be just a starting point and there will almost certainly be multiple straddles on often.
The commentators for the game will be rotated and they will be regulars in the HCL booth, including Bart Hanson, Billy “DGAF,” and David Tuchman. Some players will compete all three days, while others will only play one or two sessions.
The Hustler Casino Live Lineup
The first player disclosed by Feldman to play in the $1 million game is Stanley Tang, the DoorDash founder whom we recently saw on High Stakes Poker.
Next up is “J.R.,” a regular in the biggest games on Hustler Casino Live and as Feldman explained, is a player who has been loyal to the show over the past year. J.R., a successful entrepreneur, is a passionate poker player who only began playing poker regularly just over a year ago. Feldman praised how much improvement J.R. has shown in recent months as a poker player. But he hasn’t run well over the past month and is down on HCL more than $300,000 since December.
Another HCL regular — Double M — was the third player revealed. Double M is a hedge fund manager who often plays in the underground mixed games in New York. He’s been successful in the Hustler big games too as, per the site TrackingPoker.com, he’s up more than $400,000 across 21 sessions.
The fourth player announced is “Blank Check Ben,” a third Hustler Casino Live regular. He’s become one of the more popular players on the show the past year.
Perhaps the most obvious player who agreed to play is Eric Persson, owner of Maverick Casinos, LLC. Persson lost the biggest live-streamed pot in US history on PokerGO to Antonius three months ago. He’s become a polarizing figure in poker and has a love-him-or-hate-him persona.
Brandon Steven, a car dealership owner from Kansas, is the sixth player in the $1 million game lineup. Steven is no stranger to high-stakes televised poker and has appeared in some big games on PokerGO for quite some time.
The seventh player in the game is Nikhil “Nik Airball” Arcot, who is currently battling Matt Berkey in a bitter heads-up contest in Las Vegas. If you’ve followed HCL the past year, you’ve certainly caught Airball in action many times buying in big and playing aggressive.
“Prince Charles,” a crypto investor and another Hustler regular was Feldman’s eighth player announced. And then the names got bigger as the ninth player disclosed is poker vlogger Ethan “Rampage” Yau, who has gone from low-stakes to super high stakes the past year. Feldman said that Rampage will likely be selling pieces of his action on StakeKings.
Rampage is the newest WPT Global ambassador and has evolved quickly up the stakes.
Rob Yong, the former PartyPoker executive and regular in nosebleed games around the world, will have a seat in the historic cash game next month. It will be his first appearance on the show. He’s the first player Feldman announced would be available to play all three days.
Phil Hellmuth’s good friend, Chamath Palihapitiya, a billionaire venture capitalist, will be in the game. Palihapitiya co-hosts the popular All-In Podcast and has an extensive history of playing high-stakes poker.
The next player revealed is a bit of a wild card. Mikki Mase, who has played on HCL a number of times and claims he has won millions beating baccarat, will bring some action and won’t shy away from playing the biggest pots.
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Other Possible Players
The full lineup isn’t set in stone as Feldman and co-owner Nick Vertucci are still chasing a few big name players to commit to the game. One of those individuals is Alan Keating, perhaps the most popular player on Hustler Casino Live these days.
Keating brings action and is beloved among the HCL fan base. Feldman said he hasn’t received a definitive commitment from Keating but expects he’ll be in the game once they iron out the details.
“I’m confident that it’s going to happen,” Feldman on Keating playing in the $1 million game.
Other names that Ingram asked about were MrBeast, the biggest YouTuber in history who played on HCL last May in a game that became the most viewed poker live-stream ever.
Tony G, the loudmouth poker player who has appeared on televised poker games for many years, is a possibility given that his friend, Yong, will be in the game. Feldman said the biggest issue in getting Tony G is he doesn’t like to travel across the world much.