Nemo “akaNemsko” Zhou a chess and poker participant received a seat into the upcoming WPT World Championship on the WPT World platform valued at $12,000. She determined to offer it away by way of a contest, which her poker coach and alleged boyfriend Alex “Thallo” Epstein received, and now poker Twitter is crying foul.
The World Poker Tour (WPT) will host a historic occasion Dec. 12-20 at Wynn Las Vegas with its WPT World Championship, the primary ever $15 million assured dwell poker event.
As such, the WPT has been allowing its WPT World ambassadors resembling Nemo to offer away seats and journey bills to the $10,400 buy-in occasion.
However on this case, many poker gamers are of the impression that the participant who gave away the WPT package deal did so in a dishonest method. Some went as far as to accuse her of “rigging” the competition.
PokerNews Dwell Reporter Wins WPT Contest
Poker Contest Particulars
It began with Zhou, whereas live-streaming her play on WPT World, profitable the $12,000 package deal after rallying from a large heads-up deficit. She then posted on Twitter particulars for methods to win the competition, which known as for watching her upcoming video and being one of many first 10 to touch upon the video with a selected “code phrase” to be discovered inside the video.
My editor will launch the video any time from now till midnight PST, even I received’t know when. Solely the primary 10 co… https://t.co/dRjY0OlVpx
— Nemo (@akaNemsko)
From these 10 feedback, she would choose one particular person she felt was most deserving of the precious prize. Various viewers, unaware of when the video would drop, spent hours refreshing her web page hoping to get in a remark with the code phrase in time.
Poker Coach Wins Giveaway
Alex “Thallo” Epstein
On Thursday, the chess grandmaster introduced that she was giving the WPT World Championship package deal to World Sequence of Poker bracelet winner Alex Epstein, extra generally generally known as “Thallo” in poker circles.
Thallo was among the many first 10 to remark, making him eligible. However many aren’t so certain the competition was legit given that he’s, by her personal admission, her poker coach and, as some have mentioned, her boyfriend.
The same old suspects any time a potential scandal breaks in poker have been fast to cry foul on Twitter. Shaun Deeb, as anticipated, was one of many first to offer his two cents.
“Each giveaway has guidelines some individuals ought to be barred from profitable this can be a clear one @WPT ought to actually contemplate eradicating this seat and doing a correct giveaway for the group,” Deeb later wrote.
After taking some warmth from the poker Twitter critics, the host of the competition mentioned that subsequent time she runs a giveaway, she’ll simply draw the winner out of a hat, which additionally did not go over nicely for her.
@akaNemsko You’re feeling responsible but you give it to your boyfriend? Not your coach your boyfriend… Who bent the foundations… https://t.co/h1PUqicvK4
— The Vegas Pig (@DColpoys23)
Most who posted crucial feedback directed at Zhou weren’t a part of the competition. However there was one particular person who claims to have been among the many first 10 to remark however her remark being eliminated.
@VegasHayls @DColpoys23 Thanks for talking up. I by no means need to be that one that’s taking part in a giveaway an… https://t.co/LomU3ippAY
— Frances H. (@NLHCajun)
Twitter consumer @NLHCajun then wrote: “Each single particular person that’s standing up for these of us who have been cheated of a good likelihood within the current $12k seat giveaway scandal…thanks! Let this function a reminder that this poker group is a household of integrity and that makes us all winners.”
There’s one different side of this that wasn’t an excellent search for the competition winner and chess participant, and that’s Thallo apparently edited his remark in response to the giveaway video. That made some suspicious that some nefarious habits had taken place. One Twitter consumer shared a screenshot of Thallo’s touch upon the giveaway YouTube video that reveals it was edited.
In one other tweet that has since been deleted however captured in a screenshot, Thallo admits he edited the remark. However he defined that he commented as rapidly as potential to make sure he was within the high 10 after which edited it later to incorporate the code phrase.
Chess Participant, Contest Winner Reply
Following the criticism, each Thallo and Nemo gave detailed explanations for his or her actions. However most do not appear to purchase their tales or their denial that the competition was rigged.
Zhou wrote: “I tousled. Once I received the seat, I used to be excited and overwhelmed. I needed to share that with Thallo, who has invested hours and hours serving to me enhance my sport and I acquired carried away. If I needed to offer him the seat, I ought to have completed so immediately. I mustn’t have run the competition for the seat and let him be eligible; it wasn’t honest to everybody else who participated.”
She went on to apologize and mentioned that Thallo had opted out and he or she would maintain a random drawing for the seat later. Thallo, who confirmed in a tweet that he’s “rejecting the seat,” was additionally lively on Twitter Thursday evening defending himself towards the mob.
@ToddWitteles @akaNemsko I actually by no means seen this in any manner as deception. I noticed the giveaway announcement with e… https://t.co/BbddrA1Lfq
— Thallo (@Thallo_Poker)
Matt Berkey, co-host of the Remedy for Why podcast, argued that Nemo is not the one who ought to obtain the criticism from the poker group.
“It is actually unfair that Nemo is taking all the warmth right here when it is fairly clear to me he understood the ramifications & optics. It will get spun because the poker group being chilly & poisonous, alienating outsiders, however in actuality he willingly threw his woman to the wolves,” Berkey tweeted.
@Thallo_Poker Do not try this. Do not deflect. It will get much less traction than a ballot on what number of eggs Landon eat… https://t.co/GbH8YjmjvA
— Matt Berkey (@berkey11)
With the Robbi-Garrett saga having fizzled out, the poker group seems to be in want of a brand new scandal to obsess over. Whereas this one possible will not attain the mainstream information just like the Hustler On line casino Dwell hand did, a minimum of it is actually drawing loads of curiosity forward of one among poker’s greatest occasions in years.
