Internet Star Dan Bilzerian Sets $100M Heads-Up Poker Match Versus Billionaire

Posted on: October 14, 2021, 07:53h. 

Last updated on: October 14, 2021, 09:34h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.

Instagram personality and poker player Dan Bilzerian says he has stumped his half of $100 million and is ready to play in what would be the biggest Heads-up poker game of all time.

Dan Bilzerian
Dan Bilzerian, left, claims he won $40 million from billionaire Alec Gores, right, more than a decade ago, a figure the latter disputes. (Image: YouTube/Bloomberg)

Speaking to Logan Paul’s Impaulsive podcast on Tuesday, Bilzerian said it is now up to his proposed opponent, the Israeli-born billionaire venture capitalist Alec Gores, to put his money where his mouth is. And he can afford to. According to Forbes, Gores has an estimated net worth of $2.5 billion, ranking 391st on the Forbes 400 in 2020.

According to Bilzerian, the match was Gores’ idea. The Gores Group founder was reportedly incensed by claims in Bilzerian’s new book, The Setup, about the amount of money that changed hands in private high-stakes games over a decade ago.

Molly’s Game

Bilzerian, who is not considered to be an elite player by the poker community, has long said he won big in the notorious Hollywood big games, organized by Molly Bloom. These games were later immortalized in the book Molly’s Game, later a film of the same name.

Gores played in Molly’s Game with Bilzerian, too, and at that time, the pair would also privately play Heads-up, according to The Setup. It was during these matchups that Bilzerian claims he took around $40 million from the billionaire.

Bilzerian told Logan Paul that Gores recently got in contact with him to dispute that figure, saying it wasn’t as much as that, and why don’t they play for “real money.” Gores initially suggested $25 million.

I said [to Gores] I’ll play you for $25 million at the Aria if you want to wire money over. And then he was like, ‘I don’t wanna play you unless it’s for at least $50 million.’” Bilzerian said. “I was like, ‘I’ll wire in $50 million to the Aria in 10 days if you want to play, and we can televise it if you want.’ And so he’s challenged me twice, so I think we might play for $100 million.”

Ruderman Lawsuit

Bloom changed the names of the characters in her book. But Bilzerian’s and Gores’ participation in her games is confirmed by court documents. In 2011, a group of investors brought a lawsuit against several players in the game, including Gores and actor Tobey Maguire.

The investors had been robbed by a fraudulent hedge-fund manager, Bradley Ruderman, who had, in turn, lost more than $5 million in the games. The plaintiffs were seeking restitution from the players.

Several, including Gores, settled out of court.