Live Poker Match!: The Besties Vs. Phil Hellmuth, Alan Keating, and Jason Koon

Chamath Palihapitiya won the inaugural filmed All-In Bestie Invitational at the Venetian, while Phil Hellmuth was the first player eliminated. The deliberately absurd “five-minute turbo” format made the event more social spectacle than serious tournament.

Jason Koon said his career poker winnings had reached about $70 million. The hosts introduced him as one of the greatest cash players ever—and possibly the best current one—giving unusual weight to his views on poker strategy and tournament design.

The All-In group is seriously considering a premium tournament series built around player experience rather than punishing schedules. Pros criticized mainstream stops for treating players poorly and favored better venues, food, reasonable hours and two-day formats, believing players would pay for the upgrade.

Molly Bloom said she never played poker while running her games and had stayed out of the poker scene until this event. She added that the government takeover left her without much money to play, making the appearance a genuine return.

Alan Keating nearly fought another guest at Carbone, with the men threatening to take the dispute outside. The argument ended with an apology, and after they continued the night together, the group said they had become friends.

Chamath described a specific exploit against Hellmuth: he believes Hellmuth avoids three-street hands, so he deliberately compresses pots into two streets. His method was to check the flop and use a small turn bet, attempting to induce action while denying Hellmuth his preferred structure.

The table’s Stu Ungar stories portrayed a prodigy already dominating adult gamblers at 15, not merely a gifted later champion. They said mob-connected backers toured him through East Coast gin games while letting him keep about 10% of winnings; one player’s grandfather reportedly lost his money to Ungar.