Tony G Wins Biggest Online Poker Pot of All Time in PLO

Lithuanian poker legend and former Member of European Parliament Antanas Guoga, known affectionately in the industry as ‘Tony G’, won a pot worth $7.75 million last night in what was the richest online poker hand of all time.

How did the hand go down? It was a unique pot in many ways, not least for the fact that it took place in cryptocurrency.

Where Was the Hand Played?

The hand in question took place in crypto on the website for which Tony G himself is a high stakes poker player, CoinPoker. The online poker site, which has a number of high stakes cash games running, was played at blind levels of $5,000/$10,000, with a $2,000 ante.

At the end of the hand, Tony G was $7.75 million richer, with the biggest single pot won online in a poker hand going his way. CoinPoker has become a haven for some big names over the past few months, with several pots worth millions being won since the start of 2022. In January, one pot between Tony G and King’s Casino owner Leon Tsoukernik saw the pair chop up a pot worth $1.8 million.

While everyone enjoys a chop pot, it’s a lot more fun when a player scoops the lot. This time around, three players were at the table at the start of the hand. Tony G was sharing the Coin Poker online felt with ‘Chattahoochee’ and ‘HannibalGetya’.

What Exactly Happened in the Hand?

Before the flop, action saw the pot already worth $448,000. The flop came A-Q-T with two clubs and the ace of hearts. At this point, ‘HannibalGetya’ bet just over half the pot and only Tony G called. On the turn of an eight of hearts, two flush draws were there on the turn and the possibility of a second straight.

‘HannibalGetya’ bet out a massive $903,000, but Tony G wasn’t content to just call, raising all-in for a total of an eye-watering $3.42 million. ‘HannibalGetya’ made the crucial call and with the biggest pot of all-time in online poker, the cards were on their backs. Tony G held J-K-3-Q and had flopped the nut straight.

‘HannibalGetya’ only had two pair with A-Q-4-3, but had a massive re-draw to the river with a nut flush, a backdoor straight draw but was unable to hit any of his outs and the monster pot – worth an incredible $7,750,650 to be precise – went the way of the Lithuanian.

You can see the hand play out in all its glory right here:

The Biggest Online Poker Hand by Far

Tony G now holds the title of winning the biggest online pot of all-time, but how close is it to the monster pots that went before? Turns out, not very. Back in 2009, Viktor ‘Isildur1’ Blom lost a pot worth $1,375,999 against Patrik Antonius in Pot Limit Omaha at blinds of $500/$1,000. The Finnish player took the money when his made straight held against the Swedish player’s open ender.

Blom was also involved in the second-biggest pot in online poker at the time, but back in that hand, he happened to end up on the right side of the situation to the tune of $1,127,955. Beating Phil Ivey on Full Tilt Poker back in 2009, again in $500/$1,000 PLO, Blom’s pocket kings were good enough to take down the pot with the board showing J-K-J-T-5, with pocket jacks the only hand that could have beaten him.

The third biggest poker pot in online history until Tony G’s big win was the $974,631 that Ali Imsirovic won against Tan Xuan in 2020 on GGPoker. Playing Ante NLHE on the site at blinds of $500/$1,000/$200, Imsirovic rivered the nut flush and Xuan – who had flopped top two and was determined to barrel them to his doom – was nowhere near winning once the cards were revealed.

Tony G’s huge win on Coin Poker puts all these pots in the shade, but will someone win bigger in time? You can bet on it… the only question is which site will host the all-in and call.