Record-Breaking $4.26 Million Pot! Texas Mike Executes the Most Expensive Bluff in High Stakes Poker History

High Stakes Poker LIVE has elevated televised cash games to an entirely new level in just a week. Players routinely created seven-figure pots, with over ten million dollars on the table, shattering several historical records.

The most dramatic scene unfolded during the final session when Michael 'Texas Mike' Moncek attempted to push Eric Wasserson out of the game with ten-high. The record-breaking hand started with Wasserson raising to $20,000 holding 9 d 7 d. Texas Mike, on the button, found T c 7 c and increased it to $80,000. Wasserson called, leading to a flop of A d K d 9 c.

Wasserson hit bottom pair and a flush draw, while Moncek held only ten-high. Following Wasserson's check, Moncek continued with a $100,000 bet. Wasserson called, and the turn 4 h didn't help Texas Mike. Nonetheless, he fired a second barrel of $330,000, and Wasserson called again.

The river 5 d completed Wasserson's flush. The pot was already at $1,046,000, with both players holding over $1.6 million. Moncek, facing a lack of showdown value, instead tried to represent a higher flush and moved all-in.

Wasserson realized his nine-high flush could lose to many higher diamonds. However, after long deliberation, he concluded that his hand was too strong to fold and called. Moncek revealed a pure bluff, and Wasserson claimed the largest pot in High Stakes Poker history.

The magnitude of this new record is highlighted by the fact that it surpassed a previous record set just two days earlier by nearly $1.8 million. In that prior record game, Andrew Robl faced off against Eric Wasserson, resulting in a $2,478,000 pot.

Losing over four million dollars would signal the end of the session for most players. Yet Texas Mike continued and quickly won back a significant portion of the money in the very next hand. Holding a pair of kings, he clashed with Andrew Robl's ace-king.

This time, the result favored him, and Texas Mike secured a $2,337,000 pot, placing fourth in High Stakes Poker's historical rankings. Two consecutive hands transferred nearly $6.6 million between players. Moncek first lost the largest pot in the show's history with ten-high, only to win back over two million shortly after.

Papo MC Bounces Back from Multi-Million Losses

Meanwhile, Alejandro 'Papo MC' Lococo crafted another of the week's most remarkable stories. The Argentine rapper and professional poker player suffered multi-million losses during Friday's and Saturday's sessions but returned to the table to continue at the same nosebleed stakes.

His comeback culminated in a pot against Rick Salomon. With a $16,000 straddle, Salomon limped with K h J d, and Lococo raised from the button with a pair of 8 s 8 d to $40,000. Eric Wasserson called from the small blind with T h T d, bringing three players to the flop.

Lococo hit middle set on the flop of J s 8 h 6 c, while Salomon held top pair. After Lococo's $50,000 bet, all three players remained in the pot. The turn K c then improved Salomon to two pairs, and Lococo bet $115,000. Wasserson folded, but Salomon shoved his remaining chips into the middle. Lococo called instantly, resulting in a $1,595,000 pot.

The players agreed on two river cards, but neither helped Salomon. Lococo scooped the entire pot and concluded the session with a $1,226,000 gain. This didn’t erase all losses from previous days, but after a challenging start, he achieved an impressive seven-figure comeback.

A Week That Changed High Stakes Poker Records

The latest High Stakes Poker LIVE series didn’t just offer one standout hand. Over several days, numerous seven-figure pots were played, with stacks exceeding ten million dollars, and players were able to lose or gain entire fortunes in a single session.

Wasserson was central to both of the largest games. First, he withstood Robl's massive draw, and two days later, he managed to call Texas Mike's all-in with a relatively low flush. Moncek, on the other hand, reaffirmed his reputation as one of the boldest and most unpredictable players in televised cash games.

Finally, we bring you a recap of the top 5 viewed hands from the latest HSPL session:

Sources: PokerNews, Poker.org, X