In the game of poker, a single mental mistake can be the difference between becoming a World Series of Poker bracelet winner and a cautionary tale. It’s not always easy, however, as long hours and a continuous, relentless mental grind can cause even the smartest player to make obvious mistakes. As the list below shows, even the pros aren’t infallible—in fact, some of them are complete idiots. Some of the entries on the list are mental farts, some of them are premature celebrations, and still others are just head-scratchers. The one thing that ties them together is that they are all complete FAILS!
Mike Matusow folds to Eli Elezra’s call
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4zhsJxyLCI
The self-proclaimed “best player in the world,” ladies and gentlemen. Clips like this (and this, and this, and this) are certainly entertaining, but they sure don’t help his resume very much. To make matters worse, it isn’t the only time you’ll see “The Mouth” on this list.
Jean-Robert Bellande Celebrates a Little Early
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fiXrHbvv_Y
Let’s face it: the river is not very nice to poker “pro” and former reality TV contestant Jean-Robert Bellande. Still, he kind of deserves it for celebrating a victory on the turn when his opponent still has a straight draw. He even finds time to compliment the dealer’s good looks before a river 7 sends the crowd roaring and JRB packing.
Poker Player Celebrates The Losing Hand at WSOP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TN5XWYKJz5s
It’s one thing to celebrate early; it’s another thing altogether to celebrate on the river with the losing hand. Perhaps he should have paid more attention to the hand because last we checked the Ace-high flush beats trip tens.
Mike Matusow Celebrates His Suckout a Little Too Early
Here’s another player who celebrates one card too early. When will they learn? Win like a man, and lose like a man—Mike Matusow does neither. Can’t say I feel bad for him on this one—Matusow’s emotional rollercoaster makes him an annoying player on the best of days.
“I don’t even need to look at the turn and the river… “
Not only does this player begin the hand acting like an arrogant jackass, he then proceeds to run around the arena to celebrate with friends after a loose all-in call flops him top two pair. What’s worse, he then gloats, “I don’t even need to look at the turn and the river.” The poker gods serve him justice, however, and his opponent hits a runner runner higher two pair to win the hand. Call me crazy, but I say that you DO need to look at the turn and the river!
Tom Dwan Calls Patrik Antonius’ $100k Re-Raise With Ace High, Loses $286k Pot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_TDZ50HOFE
Everyone knows that Tom “durrrrr” Dwan is fearless, but there’s a fine line between courage and insanity, and he definitely flirts with it in this hand. It’s one thing to make a hero call for $25 at your local game; it’s another thing altogether to make a hero call for $100,000.
Dealer Mucks Player’s All-In Shove
This is just a terrible hand for everyone involved… except perhaps Estelle Denis’ opponent, JC Tran, who avoided running into her aces (allegedly). Not really sure how the dealer became confused—she was sitting right beside him, shoved all in, and had her hand directly in front of her. Awful.
Tom Dwan Calls Down Daniel Negreanu with 9-High, Loses $91k Pot
Dwan makes “another one of them hero calls,” and calls down a $30k river bet with 9 high. Read that last sentence over one more time–$30,000 with 9 high! It was definitely one of Dwan’s more creative calls to say the least.
Guy Folds KK Preflop In WSOP Main Event
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8K30RExWDBM
I can’t say that I’ve ever folded KK preflop, and for good reason—unless you’re on the bubble of a satellite you really shouldn’t! This player either got caught up in the moment or tried to be a hero; either way, he looked like an idiot to TV watchers everywhere when he folded Kings preflop to Greg Raymer’s (horrible) 4-bet with Jacks. To make matters worse, Raymer quipped, “It had to be a good fold, because you’re not throwing away Aces or Kings, right?”
7-2 Tries to Bluff Quad Kings, Loses $120,000
It’s all well and good to try and look cool at the table by running a bluff with seven-deuce, but when that bluff costs you $120,000 it’s a different story altogether. We’re not entirely sure why his opponent decided to put in a huge re-raise with four-of-a-kind, but hey, there was a lot of bad poker going on in the hand.
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