Daniel Negreanu has delivered his verdict on the controversy that overshadowed the final table of the $1,500 WSOP Millionaire Maker last week.
He said that the headline should be that “both players will get their money” but added that there were “no winners” in the episode that delivered a “black eye to poker.”
Negreanu also offered up new information he had heard from players close to the situation, including that the third-place finisher was also spoken to about a potential deal but had turned it down.
After an investigation into suspicious play and suspected heads-up chip-dumping, the WSOP announced that there would be no official winner and no bracelet, and the first- and second-place prize money would be chopped by Jesse Yaginuma and James Carroll.
Yaginuma made a comeback from a huge chip deficit heads-up, and by doing this, claimed a $1 million bonus from rival operator ClubWPT Gold.
Jesse Yaginuma and James Carroll at the Millionaire Maker final table
Negreanu: No blame to the players
Talking on his daily WSOP vlog on Wednesday, Negreanu said he didn’t blame the players for what happened, saying they’d been put in a "brutal spot" by ClubWPT Gold’s promotion.
He also claimed that one of the players was in "severe financial hardship," had a short time to make the decision at the Millionaire Maker final table and that he "now regrets that decision."
Negreanu went on to say that he heard the third-place finisher was also approached to take part in a deal but had said he wanted no part in it.
That adds a new dimension to three-handed play, as Yaginuma and Carroll would have had a significant financial incentive to eliminate Josh Reichard in third. Negreanu doesn’t say that three-handed play was affected.
As for the promo by ClubWPT Gold, Negreanu said, “If they did this knowingly, knowing there would be a controversy, and I don’t see how you don’t see it happening, it’s the sleaziest promo I’ve heard of in 30 years. If you didn’t know and you didn’t foresee this, there’s obliviousness and incompetence there… Shame on you if you knew; if you didn’t, do better.”
He went on to say that all it had done was give a “black eye to poker. Make no mistake, that’s what it is. ESPN wrote a piece about cheating at the WSOP. That doesn’t benefit anyone. This is just bad for poker; there are no winners here.”
Negreanu has very close links with the WSOP. He’s an ambassador for GGPoker, which now owns the WSOP brand.
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