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