A professional poker player had strong words for his rival across the table on Sunday, accusing him of cheating after getting eliminated from a high-stakes poker game.
Dan Smith and Martin Kabrhel went head-to-head in the final hand of the evening, a hand that Smith lost after Kabrhel showed a pair of sixes. But instead of wishing everyone luck and going on his way. Smith wished everyone except Kabrhel luck and accused him of cheating.
“Good luck most of you. I hope you get barred,” Smith said while pointing at Kabrhel.
Kabrhel, not a native English speaker, asked Smith what he meant by “barred.” Smith replied, “Banned.”
Smith continued, “Your antics are the worst of anyone I’ve ever played with. Everyone else, it was great playing.”
The heated exchange around the table then went online, as other poker players accused Kabrhel of cheating and Kabrhel defended himself. Self-described poker socialite Hayley Hanna took to Twitter to call Kabrhel “known scum.”
“Dan is 100% right,” Hanna wrote. “Martin should be banned. He has a history of repeatedly marking cards to try to cheat and everyone in the high roller community knows it. Not only that but Martin makes the experience unpleasant by being rude, yelling in peoples ears nonstop, taking full time when he knows he’s folding, standing over people to ‘see their stack’ when he’s clearly trying to angle. I’ve never seen such an egregious and blatant attempt to angle and cheat in a tournament in my life.
“Whether you think Martin is entertaining or not is irrelevant. The guy is a known scum who is always going to try to cheat and angle, and he should not be allowed to play with the other players who are the best in the world who have the upmost integrity for the game. Keep the integrity of the game! Ban the cheaters!”
Andrew Robl posted video of what he claims appears to show Kabrhel marking cards.
Eventually, Kabrhel himself took to Twitter to defend himself.
“On behalf of yesterday situation I feel necessary to speak up,” Kabrhel wrote. “@Andrew_Robl yesterday posted on twitter an accusation that I’m marking cards and cheating in poker tournaments. I was shocked by how quickly people took it as true, pure statement with no evidence and started media blizzard in which I am portrayed as cheater.
“You can accuse me of controversial manners, bad jokes, uncomfortable play, or whatever stickers you put on my autistic behavior, you can call me pain in the a– but calling me a cheater is something completely out of line.
“I am not a cheater, this is not true!! This gossip is damaging me not only as poker player, but also my business activities and my family. That’s why I have decided to take legal action against Andrew Robl, because in such a professional tournament series as WSOP.
“It is very easy to prove such accusations are pure lies. I just can’t believe how easy it’s for people to join such accusations just by their personal antipathy towards my person.”
World Series of Poker organizers told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the allegations against Kabrhel are part of an “ongoing investigation.”