Negreanu takes a $116,500 lead
A six-figure score for KidPoker but how much will it matter when the challenge moves to the online felt?
If you were hoping for fireworks in the eagerly awaited feud between Doug Polk and Daniel Negreanu you would have been left wanting, as it was a very civil affair. Polk and Negreanu were very friendly towards each other throughout, even making jokes and discussing strategy.
Last night the two played the first 200 hands of their 25,000 hand match live in the PokerGO studios. After four hours of play Negreanu walked away with a $116,500 lead heading into their online match.
Of course those 200 hands are relatively inconsequential given that a further 24,800 are set to be played online at WSOP.com over the next few months, across two tables of $200/$400. All this match did was set a tone and give the rest of the feud a bit of publicity.
Ultimately the tone it set was cordial and it could be the case that by the time this is all said and done, win or lose, the two men might bury the hachet.
I was happy that despite our history, and with all the divisiveness in the country right now, that @DougPolkVids and I could be civil and put on a show that the poker community could both be proud of and enjoy the fireworks.
Online Friday 2:30pm PST
— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) November 5, 2020
Same. I know a lot of people wanted some IRL drama but the reality is we are both there to play. Looking forward to Friday. https://t.co/wQKbkw2BCi
— Doug "Truck Driver" Polk (@DougPolkVids) November 5, 2020
Or, as Negreanu inferred in the promo video for this stream, it could be that once Polk gets back online he will get back to trolling and this match just showed the difference between how most of us act in real life vs online.
No word yet on when those first online matches will take place but they will all be streamed online, probably by several outlets but Upswing Poker have confirmed they will stream every match.
You can watch the full match from last night below, courtesy of PokerGO:
What did you think of the match? Let us know in the comments:
