Updated on 22 Feb 26 by
Barry Carter
Poker Expert

Darren Elias targetted by armed robber

We recap some stories from the weekend including 888poker's current rake incentive and three soul reads.





Elias home targetted in robbery

Darren Elias
Darren Elias

We start with a sad reminder that poker players are often targetted by robbers under the assumption they carry a lot of cash. 

Four time WPT Champion Darren Elias was out when a man forced entry into his house and held his babysitter at gunpoint looking for cash and valuables, according to NBC Philadelphia.  

Luckily she was able to escape and call the police, both her and Elias's child were unharmed. Poker player Shannon Soroka has been charged with the crime and police think Elias was deliberatly targetted. 

Rake or Break....broke

Last night 888poker held three tournaments with the promise of either they hit their target prizepool or you get your rake back.

Two 'Rake or Break' tournaments hit their target, but the $320 buy-in event missed the $100,000 target, meaning they refunded $5,640 in rake back to the players rather than incur a $9,760 overlay:

Soul read one

Finally, three hands did the rounds last week which come under the soul read category, this first one from the PokerGO Super High Roller cash game:


Soul read two

Last night Marty Mathis won MILLIONS South America, with self-confessed soul reads like this:

Soul read three

And finally, here is a reminder why high stakes cash regulars should probably be quite happy that Phil Galfond is busy trying to make the next big poker site rather than play against them online:


Which was the better soul read? Let us know in the comments:


Barry Carter
Poker Expert

Barry Carter is the editor of PokerStrategy.com and the co-author of The Mental Game of Poker 1 & 2, Poker Satellite Strategy, PKO Poker Strategy, Endgame Poker Strategy, GTO Poker Simplified, Mystery Bounty Poker Strategy and Beyond GTO. In 2025, he won the Global Poker Awards for Best Book and Twitter Personality of the Year.