WSOP Investigating Millionaire Maker Collusion Claims

The World Series of Poker is investigating a possible case of collusion with the heads-up final of the “Millionaire Maker” event, officials said Thursday. 

For now, the first and second-place prizes have been withheld. The declared winner is Jesse Yaginuma, but again, a full review is underway. 

This comes after a poker player who cosplays as Jack Sparrow was arrested for allegedly attacking two people. 

More About The Possible Collusion

WSOP officials are specifically looking into Yaginuma’s matchup against opponent James Carroll. They’re looking into whether or not Carroll threw the match as part of a deal between the two. 

It should be noted that poker players often discuss the prize winnings and how they want to distribute them, especially when the jump from second to first place is substantial. This helps give fair payouts. However, that’s not what’s being alleged here. 

Instead, Yaginuma stood to win an extra $1 million on top of his $1,255,180 prize winnings for winning the tournament. He had the extra $1 million because of his ClubWPT Golden ticket, which he won online. 

This ticket provides players with an additional $1 million if they win one of 11 events, including this one. 

So, if Yaginuma were to win, he’d have an increased prize pool. 

Essentially, the speculation is that if Yaginuma won and they had a backroom deal, they’d each make more money than if Carroll won and they split, or something similar.  

However, Carroll held 90% of the chips, so Yaginuma’s chances of winning should be fairly low. 

Thus, he’s being accused of chip dumping. This is a strategy that players use to intentionally lose chips by making poor plays or folding. 

Onlookers noticed some things that he did that may be considered unusual or passive for his brand of play. 

These include passing on multiple pre-flop raise opportunities, shoving all-in pre-flop holding pocket aces, and being aggressive with a three-bet with 8-3 offsuit. He then folded to a four-bet, which puzzled some. 

Essentially, he played too cautiously at times, had opportunities to win more money, and then seemingly bluffed without any real intent behind it. 

This is all odd for Carroll, who has two WPT titles and two WSOP Circuit rings. 

WSOP Rule

WSOP Rule 40b states that collusion includes chip dumping. However, right now, there have been no formal complaints, and there’s nothing definitive to suggest that either player had any wrongdoing. 

However, an investigation is ongoing, and the WSOP's removal of mention of Yaginuma’s win from social media accounts is something worth keeping an eye on. 

We’ll see what comes of this after a more thorough investigation.