On Friday, November 14th, 2025, 40 players declared “I’ll be there for you” during our November Friendsgiving tournament!  🛋️☂️⛲

Just like a classic “Friends” Thanksgiving episode, the night had everything: dramatic twists, hilarious punchlines, and enough tension to make us all shout “Oh… my… God!” 😱 After several hours of play, we arrived at our final table of ten. Now let’s see who carved up the competition and who ended up looking like a fool with Monica’s turkey stuck on his head. 🦃😵‍💫

For our YouTube channel, we’re going to try something new. Instead of individual clips of key poker hands, they will all be edited into one compilation with chapters and timestamps for easy viewing. Watch the entire recap below (complete with “Friends”-style opening credits and transitions!) and/or read on for more details.

The first knockout came when reigning champion, Dylan “Tweed” Brody, opened with K♥️️Q♠️️. On the short stack, Elias Madias went all-in with K♠️️J♠️️. Dylan wasted no time in calling, and off we went!  With his hand dominated, Elias would need a lot of help to stay alive. Unfortunately, the board ran out 2♠️️2♣️️7♣️️9♥️️Q♦️️, putting a metaphorical beef in his poker trifle and sending Elias home in 10^th place. WATCH 🎦

Hungry for more, Dylan opened from under the gun, only to have Ross Lazar shove all-in from the big blind. Dylan snap-called, tabling K♦️️K♠️️.  A tough hand to beat, but fortunately, Ross had the perfect moist-maker against this type of hand as he revealed the 6♥️️7♥️️. However, his excitement dwindled as the flop came Q♠️️9♦️️3♠️️, leaving little for Ross to work with. But hope came in the form of the 5♠️️ on the turn, bringing a double-gutter straight draw. Now with six outs, Ross needed a non-spade four or eight on the river to survive. Alas, the 2♣️️ fell, securing the pot for Dylan once again and leaving this Ross to curse “My sandwich!” to the heavens in 9^th place. 😤🥪 WATCH 🎦

Next, Nick Stanton raised all-in with A♥️️Q♦️️, only to have Aaron “Triple A” Ho re-raise with A♠️️K♣️️ from mid-position. To everyone’s surprise, Jonathan “Jojo” King would overcall the three-bet from late position, also holding A♦️️Q♣️️. With Nick at risk and the main and side pot gathered, a flop of K♠️️6♣️️7♠️️ hit the felt. First to act, Aaron shoved his remaining chips into the side pot. Despite the mountain of moolah in play, Jonathan had no choice but to fold. At that point, Aaron and Nick tabled their hands to determine the main pot. The nail in the coffin came on the turn of K♥️️, followed by the 3♣️️ on the river, cementing Aaron’s victory and packing Nick with the rest of the Thanksgiving leftovers in 8^th place. WATCH 🎦

Down to table scraps, Gautham Nagesh shoved all-in with K♥️️9♠️️ from the small blind, receiving an auto-call from Vince “Birthday Boy” Pavia in the big blind holding 7♥️️8♠️️. Unfortunately, Gautham would get bamboozled when the wicked wango card fell on a flop of 8♥️️5♣️️Q♠️️, giving Vince the lead. The 2♦️️ and 6♥️️ on the turn and river changed nothing, ending Gautham’s run in 7^th place — just like Joey Tribbiani’s career as a game show host. WATCH 🎦

With blinds at 15k-30k, Mike Spangler moved all-in from under the gun with 6♣️️7♠️️ for his remaining 30k, receiving a call from Stephen “Stevie” Belden in the small blind and an auto-call from Aaron in the big blind. Aaron checked his option, leading to a flop of 9♣️️J♦️️6♦️️, giving Mike a pair of sixes. After the flop checked through, a 3♣️️ hit the turn. Stephen bet 60k, leading to Aaron quickly folding his “smelly cat” of a hand. Stephen revealed 8♠️️8♦️️ for a higher pair, leaving Mike just five outs to improve. Could he do it?! As it turns out, “six-seven” may be the hottest meme of the year, but it’s as useless as an airplane’s left phalange. With the 10♦️️ on the river, Mike would have to settle for 6^th place… and officially change his name to “Mike Crapbag.” WATCH 🎦   

Next at risk was our final bounty player, Jonathan, using the seductress powers of “Chloe the Copy Girl” to summon K♣️️Q♠️️ in an effort to separate Ross and Rachel during their infamous “break.”  After raising 2x from the small blind, Dylan defended from the big blind with A♥️️7♦️️. The flop came 9♠️️7♥️️6♥️️. With just King high, Jonathan moved all-in, receiving a call from Dylan with his flopped middle pair.  The turn – 7♠️️! With three-of-a-kind, Dylan had Jonathan drawing dead, forcing him out of the tournament in 5^th place. And thus, all of Ross and Rachel’s exes were finally eliminated, ensuring our two love-seeking lobsters could stay together forever. 🦞💘🦞 WATCH 🎦

As the clock turned to midnight, could Vince make his birthday wish of doubling-up come true?  After Aaron opened from the cutoff, Vince called all-in from the big blind. Unfortunately, Vince’s 7♥️️5♥️️ was dominated by Aaron’s K♥️️5♠️️. As the dealer slowly dealt the flop, the window card revealed a “seven… seven… SEVEN!!!” It looked like Vince might actually get his wish… until the 7♠️️ slid over to unveil a K♦️️ and 2♠️️ hiding underneath, giving Aaron top pair and the lead. The 6♠️️ and 8♦️️ on the turn and river were no help, eliminating Vince in 4^th place as he screamed, “Why, God, why? We had a deal. Let the others grow old, not me!” 😩🎂 WATCH 🎦

Down to just Dylan, Aaron, and Stephen, we saw several shoves and brave (some might say foolish) calls, leading to multiple lead changes. Starting it off, Steven shoved from the big blind with A♠️️J♠️️, receiving a call from Aaron with just 2♥️️4♥️️ due to the overwhelming pot odds. The flop came 5♠️️K♣️️6♦️️, adding a gutshot draw for Aaron. The turn came 8♣️️, upgrading his draw to a double gutter. With 14 outs, could Aaron hit? Like Joey after eating an entire turkey, the meat sweats began to pour down Stephen’s face. Alas, the 6♠️️ fell on the river, guaranteeing his survival. WATCH 🎦

Next, Aaron open-shoved from the small blind with K♣️️K♥️️. Dylan wasted no time calling with A♠️️3♣️️. Aaron was at risk, but quickly breathed a sigh of relief when he hit a set on a flop of J♥️️K♠️️4♦️️. The 7♣️️ and 9♦️️ on the turn changed nothing, giving Aaron a vital double-up. WATCH 🎦 

Moments later, the monster stacks clashed as Dylan decided to gamboooooool by calling all-in with 9♥️️T♥️️ from the big blind after the current chip-leader, Aaron, open-shoved from the small blind holding A♦️️K♥️️. With his shorter stack, Stephen prayed for a knockout so he could ladder up without a fight.  Little did they know, Dylan had the poker gods on speed dial as a T♦️️ appeared in the flop’s window, followed by a Q♥️️ and 4♣️️. Now with a gutshot draw along with his overcards, Aaron had ten outs to improve. The turn – 3♦️️. The river – 3♣️️. And just like that, Dylan doubled-up and regained the chip lead. Incredible! WATCH 🎦

Now on the respirator, Aaron moved all-in from the button, receiving a call from Stephen in the big blind. Stephen tabled A♠️️7♠️️ while Aaron revealed Bill and Ted’s favorite hand: “6♣️️9♥️️, dudes!” The flop of 8♦️️9♦️️T♣️️ was an excellent adventure, giving Aaron the lead with a pair of nines. However, Stephen now had an open-ended straight draw, giving him 10 outs and 36% chance to improve. We all held our breath as the 5♥️️ and 5♣️️ landed on the turn and river, allowing Aaron to double-up and party on another day. WATCH 🎦

Stephen was forced to make his last stand with 9♥️️5♥️️, shoving from the small blind followed by a call from Aaron in the big blind with A♣️️5♠️️. Now it was Stephen’s turn to hope for a miracle nine on the board. Unfortunately, it ran out Q♣️️A♥️️7♦️️8♠️️4♣️️, floating Stephen away in 3^rd place like the Underdog balloon during the Macy’s parade. 🎈🗽 WATCH 🎦

At last, it was time to PIVOT to the heads-up match! In this battle of titans, 2x WGA Poker Group champion, Dylan Brody, faced off against WGA Poker Group founder, Aaron Ho. Who would win our version of the Geller Cup while the other becomes just another “moo point?” 🐮 

With a nearly 2:1 chip advantage, Dylan slowly chipped away at Aaron’s stack until there was hardly anything left. At blinds 50k-100k, Dylan raised to 200k from the small blind, followed by Aaron shoving for his last 285k. Dylan called and tabled K♥️️7♥️️.  Aaron was behind, holding J♦️️9♠️️. It looked like a Friendsgiving miracle when the J♠️️ flashed in the window as the flop was turned over. However, it was just a tease as the K♦️️ and 3♣️️ followed, landing Dylan firmly in the lead with top pair. The Q♠️️ on the turn gave Aaron a gutshot straight draw and a total of nine outs as we headed into the river. Could he do it?! The answer… no! The 6♣️️ on the river meant Aaron would have to settle for 2^nd place while Dylan claimed the championship mug once again, setting a new WGA Poker Group record as a 3x champion! Congratulations Dylan! 🎉👑🔥 WATCH 🎦

Here is a summary of the tournament results. Congrats to all our finalists! 

1^st – Dylan “Tweed” Brody
2^nd – Aaron “Triple A” Ho
3^rd – Stephen “Stevie” Belden
4^th – Vince “Birthday Boy” Pavia
5^th – Jonathan “Jojo” King
6^th – Mike Spangler
7^th – Gautham Nagesh
8^th – Nick Stanton
9^th – Ross Lazar
10^th – Elias Madias

Special thanks to my wife, Nichole, for helping run the tournament as well as to Jay Moriarty and the Burbank Moose Lodge. I’d also like to thank our amazing dedicated dealers — Adam Cole, Jeff Meyers, Grant Taylor, and Henry Harper. 

From the appetizer to the final dessert, this Phoebe buffet of a poker tournament had it all. I’d like to give thanks this Friendsgiving to all of you for making this WGA Poker Group so special. Let’s do it again soon… or more specifically, in January. Please stay tuned for updates via facebook or the e-newsletter. Also, please subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Until then, Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Holidays, and please enjoy these photos from the tournament! Gobble gobble!  🦃🍽️

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On Friday, September 12th, we rolled out the red carpet for our Emmy Edition Tournament where 48 hopefuls dressed in their finest show swag took their seats and dreamed of walking away with poker’s equivalent of a golden statue: the WGA Poker Group Championship mug! 🏆

Like any awards ceremony, the night had its share of dramatic speeches, surprise twists, and performances worthy of primetime. So let’s cue the orchestra and see who took home the hardware from this star-studded final table. ✨

Short-stacked in the big blind, Robert “Arjay The Writer” Webb made his all-in entrance with J♣️️4♣️️. Three co-stars joined the scene, leading to a flop of 8♠️️5♠️️K♣️️. Dylan “The Druid” Brody bet, Mike “Nacho Plissken” Carreon called, and Waco O’Guin folded. The turn: T♣️️. Check-check. On the river: 2♥️️. Dylan fired again and Mike stepped aside. Robert’s Jack-high was no match for Dylan’s 9♣️️8♦️️ for a pair of eights. And with that brief but memorable performance, Robert was out in 8^th place.

On a flop of A♠️️A♣️️8♦️️, Waco shoved with 8♥️️5♠️️, only to be snap-called by Dylan’s A♦️️3♠️️. Despite what the graphic says, Waco had a 0.1% chance to win by going runner-runner for quads. Unfortunately, the turn and river of 3♣️️ and 7♠️️ were no help, leaving Waco to be written out of the script in 7^th  place. A crowd favorite gone too soon.

Vince shoved with K♦️️J♦️️, flopping top pair on J♣️️3♠️️Q♠️️ and looked destined for a comeback story. But when the turn of 4♥️️ and river of A♥️️ hit the board, Andrew “Stephanie” Hill Newman revealed A♠️️9♠️️ for top pair, stealing the scene and sending Vince home in 6th. The Academy can be so cruel.

Guy “River Rat” Yosub went all-in with J♦️️2♥️️ on a flop of T♠️️8♣️️K♣️️, hoping to win the award for “Best Bluff.” After Dylan exited stage left, Mike swooped in like Kanye at the VMAs to call with 8♠️️8♦️️ for a set and hogged all the glory. The 7♣️️ and Q♠️️ on the turn and river would officially roll credits on Guy, drowning the River Rat in 5th place.

With K♦️️6♦️️, Trevor “Larry David” Kess shoved all-in against Mike’s Q♥️️5♠️️ on a flop of 2♣️️8♣️️5♦️️. The turn 4♠️️ gave him a gutshot straight draw, but the river 10♠️️ would mark a series wrap on Trevor, bowing out in 4^th place.

In a limped family pot, the flop came T♦️️2♥️️5♦️️. Dylan bet, Mike shoved all-in, Andrew folded, and Dylan called. Mike revealed 2♣️️2♠️️ for a flopped set, but Dylan showed 3♦️️4♦️️ for an open-ended straight and flush draw. Despite his powerful made hand, Mike only had a 60% chance to win. Dylan’s sun run would continue as the turn of A♠️️ completed Dylan’s straight. Devastation!  But Mike wasn’t out yet… With 23% equity, he could still make a full house or quads on the river. Everyone held their breath as the 8♣️️ hit the river, sealing Mike’s exit in 3^rd place. A brilliant run by the first-time final table finalist and I have no doubt we’ll see Mike as a nominee again soon.

Alas, time to hand out the big award!  During heads-up play, Andrew shoved with J♥️️6♣️️ against Dylan’s J♦️️4♦️️. Andrew would start with a slight advantage, though it’s important to note that their kicker will often not play, causing a split pot one-third of the time. The flop of 7♦️️J♣️️3♦️️ gave both top pair but Dylan an almighty flush draw. But how lucky can one man be? Apparently, very lucky! Like Seth Rogen at the Emmys, it was a clean sweep when the turn of 2♦️️ hit the felt, completing Dylan’s flush! Drawing dead, the J♠️️ on the river only added insult to injury as Andrew was forced off the air in 2^nd place. Sorry bud, blame the FCC…

It’s official, the award for “Outstanding Poker Performance” goes to…

Dylan “The Druid” Brody!

With fearless bets, a red-carpet-worthy poker face, and a knack for stealing the show, Dylan claimed his second career WGA Poker Group title. A true star, proving once again that, sometimes, sequels can be better than the original. 📺

Here is a summary of the tournament results. Congrats to all our finalists! 

1^st – Dylan “The Druid” Brody
2^nd – Andrew “Stephanie” Hill Newman
3^rd – Nacho “Plissken” Carreon
4^th – Trevor “Larry David” Kress
5^th – Guy “River Rat” Yosub
6^th – Vince Pavia
7^th – Waco O’Guin
8^th – Robert “Arjay The Writer” Webb
9^th – Jojo “Jojocoin” King
10^th – Mike “Boston Mike” Schaub
11^th – Aaron “Triple A” Ho

Special thanks to my wife, Nichole, for helping run the tournament as well as to Jay Moriarty and the Burbank Moose Lodge. I’d also like to thank our amazing dedicated dealers — Tyler Wong, Randi Barnes, Joe Boothe, Henry Harper, Vince Pavia, Christian Bersani, and Lisa Dickey. 

From bold bluffs to shocking rivers, this tournament delivered all the beats of a prestige drama and the laughs of a late-night talk show (the ones left anyway).  I can’t wait to see who gets nominated next time.

Our next tournament is planned for November. Please stay tuned for updates via facebook or the e-newsletter. Also, please subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Until then, please enjoy these photos from the tournament and remember to thank Sal Saperstein on the way out. 🎭

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The WGA Poker Group’s “Christmas in July” tournament kicked off with sleigh bells ringing and chips clinking in a heatwave of holiday spirit. With 40 players donning festive attire and jockeying for the championship mug, it was a jolly celebration of bluffs, bounties, and all-around poker merriment. And like any family holiday gathering, things got stressful — fast. 🎅⛱️ ☀️

As the last ten players battled to see who would make the final table, a three-way all-in transpired with all the chips going in the middle. Zach Robbins held the 9♥️️5♣️️, AKA “The Dolly Parton.” Jason Mac held the T♥️️T♦️️. Dominating all of them was Jeff Bushell holding the K♠️️K♦️️. The flop came 7♦️️3♦️️2♥️️. No change. The turn brought the 3♠️️. A ten and a ten only would spell doom for Jeff’s pocket kings. Like a lump of coal, the T♣️️dropped on the river, giving Jason a winning three-of-a-kind and knocking both Zach and Jeff out in 10^th and 9^th place. Bah! Humbug!

Now down to our final table of eight, tensions were tighter than Santa’s belt after a night of endless cookies and milk. The first player awake on Christmas morning was Andrew Hill Newman, who unwrapped K♦️️Q♦️️ and looked ready to deck the halls. But Guy Yosub, sitting pretty with 9♥️️9♣️️, was hiding a little Christmas magic himself. The flop came down 9♠️️K♣️️2♥️️. A holiday horror — top pair for Andrew but a set for Guy. The turn brought the T♣️️, giving Andrew a gutshot straight draw. Unfortunately, the river was a meaningless 7♠️️. Just like that, Andrew’s Christmas vacay was over, exiting in 8th place.

Next came Jeff Chan, bringing A♦️️J♦️️ to the holiday melee against Jason Mac holding the A♣️️Q♠️️. The flop: 8♠️️K♥️️Q♦️️, maintaining Jason’s lead. The turn was J♣️️, giving Jeff a pair for some seasonal hope to win alongside his chop outs. But the river? 6♥️️. Sorry, just socks and disappointment in this gift box, busting Jeff in 7^th place.

Just back from Hawaii, the newly tan Jay Moriarty called all-in with Q♠️️9♦️️after a shove from Guy with K♣️️Q♣️️. Guy was still riding high due to his previous win and some holiday spirits from the bar downstairs. Jay would need a Christmas miracle to stay alive. Unfortunately, the board ran out 5♣️️3♦️️4♦️️5♠️️ T♣️️, sending him back to the tropics in 6^th place, sobbing and singing “Mele Kalikimaka” all the way home.

Short stacked and out of options, Myles Warden bet the last of his Christmas bonus on 2♦️️3♦️️(AKA “Michael Jordan”) versus Jason Mac’s 7♦️️9♥️️. In a case of “talk about overkill”, the board ran out 6♦️️K♥️️7♥️️7♠️️9♠️️, giving Jason a boat to sail across a sea of poker chips, leaving Myles to drown in 5^th place.

Then came our most exciting holiday showdown between Joshua Malina with J♥️️J♦️️ against Mike Schaub’s T♥️️T♣️️. The flop delivered Q♠️️9♥️️8♦️️, bringing gutshot straight draws for both players, but Joshua was still best. This is the one time you don’t want to hit your set. As Krampus would have it, the turn came the J♣️️, giving Mike a miracle straight! Now holding three-of-a-kind, Joshua needed the board to pair on the river to survive. The river: 6♥️️. And thus, Joshua’s WGA Poker Group debut came to an end in 4^th place, but I get the feeling this won’t be his last appearance at our final table.

Jason Mac tried to sleigh one last player with A♦️️7♣️️, facing off against Mike’s J♥️️6♥️️. The flop of 7♦️️K♦️️J♠️️ put Mike out in front with a pair of Jacks. The turn brought 5♥️️, changing little. The river of 6♦️️was a needless snowball to Jason’s face, giving Mike two pair and busting Jason in 3^rd place.

Down to two: Guy Yosub versus Mike Schaub. Who would be our new champ, and who would be going Ho Ho Home?! In the final hand, Mike was first to act, shoving all-in from the button with A♦️️5♥️️. Guy called all-in with the K♥️️8♣️️. With both players holding live cards, it was anybody’s game. The flop: T♥️️T♣️️6♣️️. A blizzard of tension set in. The turn: J♥️️. Mike just needed a clean river to make his mid-summer Christmas wish come true. Could he do it?! The river… 2♥️️! Looks like it’ll be a “Blue Christmas” for Guy as he bows out in 2^nd place, but a holly jolly holiday for Mike as he becomes our newest WGA Poker Group champion! 🧦🏆

Here is a summary of the tournament results. Congrats to all our finalists and bounty hunters who knocked out everyone on Santa’s naughty list! 

1^st – Mike “Boston Mike” Schaub
2^nd – Guy “River Rat” Yosub
3^rd – Jason “Mac Attack” Mac
4^th – Joshua Malina
5^th – Myles “Mighty” Warden
6^th – Jay “Moose “Moriarty
7^th – Jeff “Jorf Chonk” Chan
8^th – Andrew Hill Newman

Special thanks to my wife, Nichole, for helping run the tournament as well as to Jay Moriarty and the Burbank Moose Lodge. I’d also like to thank our amazing dedicated dealers — Tyler Wong, Jeff Meyers, Brent Boyd, and Zach Robbins. 

Our next tournament is planned for September. Please stay tuned for updates via facebook or the e-newsletter. Also, please subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Until then, please enjoy these photos from the tournament! Happy not-the-holidays! 🎄🦌🔔

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