Poker Player Accused of Hiding COVID-19 from Opponents in WSOP Spat

Following the pandemic-driven virtual tournaments and “hybrid” Main Event of last-place year, the World Series of Poker is at present in good vacillation at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino inwards Las Vegas.

Well, it’s trying.

The Series is adjusting to living inwards a mid-pandemic world. That’s no easy exploit for an case that involves packing thousands of people together in one, albeit real large, room to make pass cards and chips back and forth.

Disturbingly, after touching those chips, some of these players also tactual sensation their mouths or their noses. They can’t help it. It’s involuntary. It’s called a tell.

It’s little surprise, then, that some of this nerves should fall come out into the Twittersphere, where three-time bracelet winner Justin Bonomo has accused a buster high-stakes pro of breaching health and refuge rules.

Pro Bonomo

Bonomo did non identify the player he claimed had exhibited COVID-19 symptoms piece playing at the same tabularise as him for deuce days. But he was motivated to complain after acquisition the same participant “tested positive for COVID straight off after the tournament.”

Players negotiating the new WSOP landscape are understandably a little jumpy, especially nigh the hombre inward sit down 3 who is wheezing and sneezing. Proof of vaccination is a requirement for participants this year. But masks are not, at to the lowest degree patch players are seated, although human face coverings make out make obvious advantages at the poker game table.

Back in the Twittersphere, poker fans didn’t get to hold back long to feel out who Bonomo was talking about. That’s because the accused player, Chris “Big Huni” Hunichen, outed himself.

Justin is talking nigh me here!” chirped Hunichen. “First, this is rattling spectacular and overblown. i didn’t know i had Covid until after the 50k [event]. After playing, i hung out with 7-8 of my best friends, as fountainhead as my married woman and cousin. I smoke-dried hookah, blunts, joints, etc, with everyone.”

“Every bingle of i of my friends/wife/kids/cousin well-tried negatively charged the next couple of days. I bought 40 rapid tests, and everyone tested constantly. If just now i of them had tried and true positive, and so i interpret the pointedness here. But if all of them are negative, there is no more right smart anybody from the 50k was infected past me.

“I also was really f****d upwards from COVID and was focussed on staying live and come out of the hospital. In hindsight, I likely should’ve said something,” he added.

Big Huni’s Big Bet

Hunichen caused prompt tilt in Apr 2020. He offered to bet his Twitter followers that to a greater extent than 100,000 people would kick the bucket from COVID-19 inward the US by the next September.

He comfortably won the $10,000 play he said he hoped he would lose. Hunichen told The LA Times at the time he was asthmatic, with a weak respiratory system, and was peculiarly vulnerable to the disease. It likely also substance he should live measured virtually ” hookah, blunts, joints, etc.”

Hunichen said he just wanted to get up knowingness almost COVID-19 among people he matte up were non taking it in earnest enough.

The US reached 100,000 deaths inwards tardily May 2020. To date, there have been more than 777,000.

Thankfully, Hunichen has recovered from his tight bout of COVID-19 and did non become a statistic in his have twisted bet.