6 Minutes Read
It’s been a while since we brought you gossip from the poker world, and we return with four juicy updates!
While the legality of poker falls in the grey area in Texas, it is a flourishing sport in the membership-based clubs of Houston. Two poker clubs in Houston were in the news last week, and not for the right reasons.
Last Thursday, three-time bracelet champion Sammy Farha was assaulted by a dealer named AJ, aka Amjad, at the “Legends Poker” card room where he was playing. Farha reportedly has some history with the dealer and might have even got the former fired from the 88 Social club earlier. The club management intervened to stop the attack, and Farha filed a police complaint. However, the dealer community in the area came out in strong support of AJ.
Talking about the 88 Social, the grapevine suggests the club shut down last week. Amidst the numerous rumors, Mike Matusow has shown interest in buying the club off the two-time WSOP Main Event champion Johnny Chan. Chan claims his business partner made away with all the cash in the club’s bank account and safety deposit box while he was away for the 2021 WSOP.
GGPoker Ambassador Daniel Negreanu had some advice to share with players looking to improve their game recently – don’t avoid tough competition. Negreanu tweeted his opinion on the subject but stirred quite a debate in the process. Many like Mike Matusow reacted, giving Negreanu a mouthful. On the other hand, others like Phil Galfond agreed with him.
The Washington-based art company Poker Saint is back in the news! The company had raised the hackles of poker photographers in September, with many from the industry accusing them of using photos without permission or any compensation. While it looked like the matter had died down, new charges have been leveled against the poker-playing owner of the outfit, Brett Butz.
Sammy Farha Assaulted by Dealer at Legends Poker Room in Houston
Remember Sammy Farha, the Lebanese poker pro who famously lost the 2003 WSOP Main Event title heads-up to Chris Moneymaker?! Last week, the three-time bracelet winner was reportedly involved in a scuffle at the Legends Poker cardroom in Houston, Texas.
The 62-year-old poker pro was physically assaulted by a dealer who previously worked at the Johnny Chan-owned club 88 Social. The duo apparently had some history before the incident, with reports suggesting Farha might have been responsible for getting the dealer fired from his previous job.
The poker room brawl was first reported on a Facebook page, A Prominent Houston Poker Live, on Thursday. A member commented that AJ, the assailant who hit Farha, did the right thing and represented the dealer community in the right vein. The member who reportedly works at another poker club, “Prime Social,” located near 88 Social, even offered AJ an entry to a satellite tournament at the venue for doing “the deed on Farha.”
Many commentated on this thread, referring to this former dealer as AJ, MJ, or Amjad. Evidently, Farha was responsible for AJ being fired from the 88 Social.
According to reports, Farha was playing at Legends Poker cardroom when AJ walked up to him and smacked him across the face. He subsequently pushed Farha to the wall shouting, “I’m from Detroit, b***h, we don’t play around.”
The management and other players intervened to try and break the fight. Farha responded by lunging at his assaulter, who slapped him again. Subsequently, the duo was asked to leave the club once the scuffle was broken.
A former dealer from the club spilled the beans on what really happened. “The truth is AJ got himself fired (from 88 Social) for mouthing off to Sammy, even though Sammy was being a douche as always.”
Another source told PokerNews – “I was told that Farha and the dealer had a verbal altercation some weeks ago. The dealer was fired because of it. He showed up that day to play, and when Farha saw him, he said that it was a problem for him to be there. The dealer heard what was said by Farha and confronted him. Words were exchanged, and he slapped him. Farha ran behind the floor guy and said something else, and the guy tried to smack him again but didn’t get a clean shot. I also heard that all dealers stood and applauded when it happened.”
Despite being the victim here, Farha did not evoke much sympathy from the dealer community. One of the reasons could be that he is not liked by many dealers working in the area. “He is despised everywhere,” a dealer reportedly told PokerNews.
Presuming this fight could result in a legal battle, a GoFundMe was started for raising $20,000 to financially assist AJ for legal fees he may have to bear. According to the Facebook thread, it doesn’t look so bad for AJ, as he was recently hired at another poker club, “Empire.”
Once a fan favorite with appearances in popular TV shows like Poker After Dark and High Stakes Poker, Farha was spotted at the Legends Poker club on Friday morning, speaking to a police officer. The player has filed a police complaint, but it is unclear whether Legends has banned AJ entry into the club.
For now, the dealer community is standing firmly by AJ.
Mike Matusow Keen to Buy Johnny Chan’s 88 Social
Last week, the Johnny Chan-owned “88 Social” poker club in Houston closed doors amid claims of financial impropriety. Since October, the club had placed daily limits of cash withdrawals for players and even canceled its December Winter Classic series at the last moment. As players complained that they could not cash out chips, rumors surfaced most of Chan’s clientele had moved across the road to a rival cardroom.
One of the players tweeted their dilemma.
Anyone seen Johnny Chan around lately? his poker room in Houston locked its doors today, hundreds of thousands in chips can’t get cashed in
hmmmmmm
— Dan Ross (@HoldemMedia_Dan) December 4, 2021
While many were still contemplating what happened, Mike “The Mouth” Matusow volunteered to step into Chan’s shoes and run the club. In the latest episode of his podcast “The Mouthpiece,” Matusow broke the news, sharing how he had invited the Poker Hall of Famer to his show, but Chan refused.
Chan confided with Matusow on the crisis, sharing that while he was in Las Vegas for the 2021 WSOP, his business partner had emptied the club’s bank account and safety deposit boxes. Chan’s legal problems aren’t this simple, though. In 2019, he became part-owner of the club, then known as 52 Social, after brokering a not-so amicable settlement.
To Chan’s surprise, Matusow offered to bail Chan out of the trouble by buying off the property. Matusow has been planning to move to Texas for some time now, and Chan’s financial troubles have presented him with just the perfect business opportunity to make a move.
Matusow said on “The Mouthpiece,” “I’ve been on the phone with some people, very close friends of mine, to discuss buying the club, and me moving from Vegas to Houston. I know that could come as a shock to most of you, but I’ve been debating moving to Texas for close to two years now, so it’s not anything out of the ordinary.”
He added, “I see this as a business opportunity for a club that was doing really well before this happened. So, I’ve got a bunch of phone calls set up for tonight just to see what we’re going to do.”
Just had long talk with Jonny Chan discussing what is going on and allegations with his 88 club in Houston! Tune into “TheMouthpiecePodcast” today at 4 pm pacific to hear the truth of what exactly is going on in Houston! #TheMouthpiecePodcast
— Mike Matusow (@themouthmatusow) December 6, 2021
But running the club may not be that easy for Matusow. Casino gambling in Texas continues to be a grey area since the U.S. state’s laws don’t technically permit it. Cardroom owners have managed to get away by banking on a legal loophole that enables them to run a membership-based club instead of a traditional casino. Such card rooms cannot collect rake and operate by charging players a membership or seat fee.
Despite the contentions surrounding poker’s legality, the game has boomed in the state, with Houston and Austin becoming hubs for massive guaranteed tournaments and lucrative cash games.
The 88 Social club has been shut all week, and only time will tell if Matusow can sidestep the legal clouds surrounding the property and take charge.
Daniel Negreanu Advices Players Not to Avoid Tough Competition
GGPoker Ambassador Daniel Negreanu has always been upfront about sharing his advice on the game. Last week, Negreanu had some advice for players – don’t avoid tough competition if you want to improve your game.
Negreanu tweeted the advice.
Random poker thought:
Constantly avoiding tough lineups is good for your bankroll in the short term, but long term, it will be difficult to improve as a player.
Accumulating bad habits and not testing yourself can make you worse.
— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) December 5, 2021
Not many liked what Negreanu had to say, and some even commented that it was easy for Negreanu to say so – he didn’t have to worry about losing money.
Robbie Strazynski asked Negreanu how much time the latter thought players should spend testing their skills. To this, Negreanu replied that he didn’t have a percentage in mind but sounded confident playing in easy games didn’t challenge player`s enough to play their best.
Dude you literally have zero worries about money. Think about normal people that do.
— JayDee (@pow_dee) December 5, 2021
Well, the end goal is to make money though, right?
I get that the "cost" would be not (long-term) making even more by improving.
What % of the time would you recommend "testing ourselves" at tougher tables if we're "printing" at easier ones?
— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) December 5, 2021
I don’t have a percentage in mind but it’s clear to me that playing in easy games allows you to win without needing to play your best and you can lose access to that ability if it isn’t sharpened.
— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) December 5, 2021
Mike Matusow also junked the advice, stating everyone doesn’t get a chance to play against the top 10 players in the world.
Dnegs everyone dont play with top 10 players in world everyday! Poker is about making money and there's a million games where you don't need to know every combo and gto hand in poker to absolutely crush the game! https://t.co/V9XUZ6Ow4R
— Mike Matusow (@themouthmatusow) December 6, 2021
Another player pointed how Barry Greenstein had said he’d rather play with bad rich players than good poor players.
In his latest podcast, Brandon Adams also commented that the edge for good players has significantly reduced since the advent of solvers.
But a whole bunch of people came out in Negreanu’s support.
I think Long term, you will make more money by Not avoiding tough line up, just that its takes special character, special kind of person to stay in the game with persistence and endurance w back of bankroll. Stay safe Daniel daniel?❤️
— john park (@freeursoul3) December 5, 2021
The big distinction is which is a priority for any player! If the priority is only to make $$ then @cardplayerlife I get the point. Daniel is yes, make $$, but to challenge yourself & get better you need to change the opponents you play. A result – u can potentially make more!
— Benjamin McCall (@BenjaminMcCall) December 7, 2021
Negreanu found strong support in Run It Once Poker (RIOP) founder Phil Galfond, who jokingly added everyone should play heads-up challenges against him.
Agreed 100%. Most people are too short-sighted when it comes to their career.
— Phil Galfond (@PhilGalfond) December 6, 2021
They should all play HU challenges vs me.
— Phil Galfond (@PhilGalfond) December 6, 2021
Poker Paint Re-Ignites Controversy Over Copyright Infringement
Washington-based art company Poker Paint owned by poker player Brett Butz found itself back in the firing line over alleged copyright infringement. The controversy first surfaced in September when several prominent poker photographers called out Poker Paint for using their photos without consent or providing compensation. Months later, poker photographer Danny Maxwell charged the company for continuing to use images without permission.
Butz said he was trying to work with all photographers in his defense, but some were demanding an exorbitantly high price for their photos.
On December 5, Maxwell called out Butz on Twitter for continuing the copyright infringement even after apologizing for it in September. He wrote – “Brett, you are still using some copyrighted images in your pictures, mine included. Please cease & desist and remove any/all of my photos from these images.”
Maxwell added, “2020 was a rough year for a lot of people and like a lot of other people I was out of work while @PokerPaint @brettblaster were profiting off my work & the work of the other poker photographers out there. His level of ‘reaching out’ is sending an email with just a contract and no other information, thinking that we would just sign over anything to him. Lunacy!”
Butz wasn’t happy about the tweet and responded, “Let’s not give this guy a platform, thanks.”
Butz’s brazen ignorance of the copyright issue angered many. Poker reporter Christian Zetzsche replied, “There are several copyrighted pictures that I can spot within a few seconds to which you have no rights whatsoever. It doesn’t seem as if you have learned your lessons from the previous infringement.”
Drew Amato added – “He (Butz) has never spoken a word to me and randomly emailed a contract [that] he expected me to sign that had everything listed at 10%… he takes zero accountability and constantly makes out like we owe it to him to work together.”
The Controversy
What did Poker Paint do to invite the ire of the poker photographers? The company takes images clicked by photographers at various live poker events and digitally alters them to present multi-colored stylized versions of the same. All watermarks and copyright details are removed, including the photographer’s name.
Some of Poker Paint’s pieces have been gifted to high-profile poker players, others sold, and some are commissioned. The artwork has glimpses of French Cubism and German Expressionism and has received many positive reviews.
However, it does represent a violation of copyright laws. Maxwell, Drew Amato, and Joe Giron have asked Poker Paint to remove their images in recent months.
Hayley Hochstetler, a photographer who works for PokerNews and Run Good Poker, first brought out the issue.
This account reached out for my permission to use one of my photos back in June. I politely declined and explained my reasoning why.
A month later, the same person messaged me, having ignored my previous wishes, with an edited image that I had told him he couldn’t create. https://t.co/TYE6ka2PNU
— Hayley Hochstetler (@hayleyocho) September 25, 2021
He knows what he is doing. I told him no and he did it anyways.
Some people are saying this is a “grey area” involving copyright. It’s not. He is simply stealing other photographers work without permission, illegally changing it, and selling it for a profit. pic.twitter.com/KMAGj10NJL
— Hayley Hochstetler (@hayleyocho) September 25, 2021
Eric Harkins of Image Masters added to the discussion – “He’s (Brett Butz) been doing it for a while. We don’t hate his stuff, but we are frustrated with his ethics – or lack thereof.”
Giron said – “If you are truly committed to making things right to us content creators, you need to remove all content you don’t have the authorization to display or sell. Then, a process has to start to make an audit and full accounting of your sales as it relates to the sold works of art from the unauthorized usages to compensate us.”
Is Poker Paint’s Work Legal?
Three months down the line, Butz seems to be back to using images without permission and reworking them. According to PokerNews, several poker photographers have confirmed they sent Butz and Poker Paint a cease-and-desist order.
Daniel Strelitz raised the issue of whether Poker Paint’s work was even illegal.
Is what pokerpaint did legally wrong or just morally wrong?
Can someone explain to me why what he did is immoral cuz I don’t get why it’s bad
— Daniel Strelitz (@dDeoxyribo) December 5, 2021
Thomas “SrslySirius” Keeling responded. “Yes, it’s blatantly illegal. What do you suppose would happen to you if you took Avengers: Endgame, ran it through a Snapchat filter, and tried to sell Blu-rays of it?”
Dan Ross of Hold’em Media added – “What he is doing is absolutely illegal, and he’s well aware it is… many major poker entities have served him with Cease & Desist letters and he’s knowingly violating those … next step lawsuits.”
Butz Remains Defensively Adamant
Butz was initially defensive about his work. In September, he claimed that even though he had taken photographs clicked by others, his work represented original effort. However, he said he did not want to offend photographers and thus “not opposed to giving photographers a percentage.”
Butz later posted an apology on the Poker Paint Twitter handle.
— PokerPaint (@PokerPaint) September 27, 2021
After Maxwell’s latest allegations, Butz defended himself and told PokerNews – “I’m trying to work with almost everyone. This is dragged on because some people wanted 40% … 40%, which is a bit ridiculous. I respect shooting for it, but it’s not that big of a part of the creation process. I moved up from 2% to 20-25%.”
On being asked if he could share the names of any photographers he was currently working with, Butz snapped – “Don’t see why that’s relevant.”
He added, “It’s not as many people as I thought, but there will be plenty of ambitious photographers to work with over the summer at next WSOP!”
Asked if Poker Paint has changed anything in the way they’re handling the situation, Butz added – “Plenty of things, I’m not a fan of how you’re asking these questions. They decide to slander my company instead of reaching out to me? This is already blown up more than it should.”
Looking at Butz`s replies, this controversy doesn`t look like it`s going to die down again anytime soon!