22 Jan 12

The Top 5 Televised Poker Bust-ups

Poker is not always a gentlemanly game, and today we capture some of the most hostile hands ever caught on screen.

5. Mike Matusow vs Shahram Sheikhan

Going deep in the Main Event is always going to be a tense affair, but when you throw two of the most volatile players in the game into the mix, sparks were always going to fly.

4. Drunk Scotty

One of the most surprising moments in recent WSOP history was the manner in which fan-favourite Scotty Nguyen won the $50,000 HORSE event in 2008. A very drunk Scotty took out his frustrations on Erick Lindgren, Michael DeMichelle, the cocktail waitresses, and anyone else who gets in the way.

3. Lex Veldhuis vs ElkY

There have been several prize fights in poker that have come about as the result of a prop bet, but they tend to disappoint, and in particular, lacked a bit of venom. That changed late last year when Lex Veldhuis and Bertrand 'ElkY' Grospellier finally had their kickboxing match. There was some genuine animosity between the two men going into the fight.

2. Prahlad Friedman vs Jeff Lisandro

The small matter of an ante led to one of the most memorable bust-ups in WSOP history, when Prahlad accused Lisandro of not putting his in.

1. Tony G vs Surinder Sunar

His hand against Ralph Perry might be his most memorable single hand, but the atmosphere at the Aviation Club when Tony G and Surinder Sunar got heads-up for a WPT Title was one of the most intense you are ever likely to see. Tony G is merciless at the final table and you can clearly see him getting to everyone at the table, despite their best efforts to ignore him, including eventual champion Sunar.



by Barry Carter