Hustler Casino Live made history Friday, and into Saturday afternoon, by completing the first ever 24-hour poker live-stream.
The show began just after 1 p.m. PT Friday and wrapped at around the same time the following day. During the hundreds of hands played, there were numerous six-figure pots and one player — Santhosh Suvarna — lost over $1 million. Poker fans were also treated to the return of popular high roller Alan Keating, who had his usual roller coaster poker session.
Hustler Casino Live, the most popular live-stream in poker by a country mile, attracted a massive audience deep into the night and into the early hours of Saturday morning. More than 20,000 were tuned it during peak hours and over 11,000 still watched down the home stretch. Much of why so many were intrigued by the historic show is due to the plethora of monster pots below. But first, here are the cumulative winnings from the session (FYI: nobody played the full 24 hours).
| Player | Chip Stack |
|---|---|
| Charles Yu | $689,009 |
| Professor | $335,000 |
| JBoogs | $217,100 |
| J.R. | $158,200 |
| Andy Stacks | $106,000 |
| Alan Keating | $6,300 |
| Sashimi | $13,000 |
| Nik Airball | $345,800 |
| Matt Hanks | $392,000 |
| Santhosh Suvarna | $1,139,000 |
Charles Yu, who lost over $700,000 on Monday, was the game’s biggest winner at $689,009 profit.
Hanks Misreads Hand, Mucks a Chop
One of the challenges to playing long poker sessions is staying alert at all times. Matt Hanks, known just as “Hanks” to most within the high-stakes community, mucked his cards in a six-figure pot he actually chopped.
Hanks was all in with 9♠9♣ for $110,000 against the 10♥10♦ of J.R. preflop. Both players called for the dealer to run it twice. The first board came out J♣2♣Q♣9♠8♣, giving Hanks a flush and ensuring he’d win at least half the pot.
When the second board went J.R.’s way, the $231,000 pot should have been chopped. But Hanks, who never turned his cards face-up, threw his cards into the muck, clearly unaware he hit a flush on the first run-out and had lost to a straight.
Biggest Pot of His Life
Jeremy “JBoogs” has played on Hustler Casino Live dozens of times in the past two years, but the biggest pot he ever played came on Friday night in a cooler against Keating.
The hand started innocently with JBoogs raising to $12,000 from the small blind with 9♠9♣ before being called by Keating’s K♠10♦ in the straddle and Mo’s 7♥5♠ in another straddle. After the flop came out Q♥3♣Q♣, all the players checked to the action 9♥ turn card.
This time, JBoogs bet $12,000 with the full house he’d just picked up and then called a raise to $40,000 from Keating, who was bluffing with a gutter ball. Mo, of course, moved out of the way with seven-high. The river was the J♦, completing the straight, which of course was no good.
JBoogs checked his full house, setting the trap for Keating to bet $115,000, and JBoogs just called instead of raising to take down a pot of $349,000, the largest of his life.
Aces vs. Kings for a House
After winning a bunch on Monday, Super High Stakes Week was brutal for Santhosh, a casino owner from India, but Friday’s session was his worst of all with a $1.1 million loss. The pot that set him back the most was played against Nikhil “Nik Airball” Arcot.
Santhosh had K♥K♣ and four-bet to $72,000, but Airball jammed all in for $310,000 effective with A♠A♣, creating a pot of $623,000. The first run-out went 5♦5♣J♠7♠10♣, good for Airball, whose aces also held up on the second board. Down over a million bucks, Suvarna exited the game immediately following that cooler hand.
Keating Punts to Airball
Keating is a fan favorite on Hustler Casino Live because he plays so loose. At times, it works out for him. But sometimes, such as the hand you’re about to see, it costs him a ton of money.
Mo raised the hand in question to $6,000 with K♥Q♠ on the button, but Airball picked up A♦A♣ in the straddle and bumped it up to $26,000. Keating, in the next straddle position with K♣2♣, four-bet to $70,000, forcing Mo to fold. Nik Airball wasn’t about to muck pocket rockets, so he moved all in for $195,100.
Keating, likely coming to the conclusion that he was pot committed, made the call and then decided to run it twice for a $397,300 pot. The first board of 2♠8♥9♥J♠Q♥ was safe for Airball, as was the second board of 4♠6♥7♣Q♦9♦.
Santhosh Not a Believer
Keating’s loose table image often gets him paid off when he has a monster. Take, for example, a $314,900 pot he took down against Santhosh, the biggest loser in the game.
Santhosh called from the small blind with 9♦7♥ before Keating made it $12,000 with A♥A♦ in the straddle. A call was made and the flop ran out 8♦7♦3♥. Keating bet $15,000 and received a call. Both players saw the 10♠ on the turn. It went check-bet $35,000, and then another call.
The river was the 8♥ and Keating bet $95,000, going for maximum value with pocket aces. He’d get his wish when Santhosh called to find out the bad news. It simply wasn’t his day.
No player stuck it out for the entire 24 hours, but Hanks did play 19 hours, most in the game. Keating was second with 16.5 hours of play, followed by 15.5 hours of service from Nik Airball.