Says she used it after a hand
Late last week, a blurry, year-old image that Americas Cardroom (ACR) Pro Ebony Kenney posted to social media became a hot topic in the poker community, as it showed Kenney with real-time assistance (RTA) software open while she was playing in ACR’s “The Venom” tournament. The reaction from poker players and fans was swift and overwhelmingly negative.
On Sunday, Kenney released a statement to try to explain her side of the story.
“After losing a big hand,” she wrote, “I opened GTO Wizard to run the spot while I was not in a hand.”
“Let me be absolutely clear:” Kenney added, “I have not, and have never, used RTA software in real time to gain an unfair advantage while playing.
She went on to say that when she does use GTO Wizard, it is to review past hands or practice, but never uses it during an active hand.
“I fully understand how this looks and the weight of my actions, not just as a poker player but also as an ambassador for the game.” Kenney continued. “I take full responsibility. I love poker with my whole heart and stand firm in doing my part to uphold the integrity of the game.”
Kenney added that she is open to having people analyze her hand history to prove that has not used RTA software during play.
Few are buying it
The explanation did not sit well with the poker community, with many telling her that she should step down from her role as an ACR pro.
One interesting opinion came from one of the best online MTT players of all time, Benjamin Rolle, who said that even if Kenney is truthful and only used GTO Wizard after she was done with the hand, it is still a very bad look.
“I don’t understand why people still believe that analyzing a spot after a hand is justifiable,” Rolle tweeted. “It is not as bad as doing it during a hand, but it is still very bad. It gives you an unfair advantage. You get to see real-time results for a situation on your table. You get to see the perfect solution for preflop and postflop, which gives you an unfair advantage for upcoming hands that will likely be in similar situations.”
Not the first ACR Pro in the crosshairs
Adding insult to ridiculousness, this same situation just occurred less than a month ago with another ACR Pro, Nacho Barbero. Just like Kenney, Barbero posted a picture of his monitor that showed open ACR tables and GTO Wizard, though this image was recent, not from early 2024.
Barbero claimed that he was not playing at all, but rather coaching some players on a Discord call and “looking at some spots for them” with GTO Wizard. Even so, many questioned why he would be using RTA software to help someone while they were playing.
For those wondering, using RTA software is explicitly against the rules at most online poker rooms, including ACR. The site’s rules state, “Any tool, software, or piece of material that offers real-time advice (RTA) on how to act at the table, that reduces, influences, or eliminates the player decision making process during a hand in play” is illegal.
By the sounds of it, what Kenney did is probably permitted, assuming she is being honest. But boy oh boy, just don’t. Don’t. And for Pete’s sake, don’t take a picture of your screen and post it on the internet. The stupidity of that action is arguably less forgivable than RTA use itself.
Image credit: World Poker Tour via Flickr.com
