Negreanu gets on the scoreboard
It was over two years in the making, but Daniel Negreanu finally did it. He finally won a match in High Stakes Duel, beating Eric Persson in the first round of High Stakes Duel 4 Monday night. Each man brought $50,000 to the table, so Negreanu pocketed a $100,000 prize.
Negreanu was previously swept in three matches by Phil Hellmuth in High Stakes Duel 2 in 2021.
PokerGO laid out new rules for the newest season of High Stakes Duel. Previously, one was crowned champ if they won either two or three consecutive rounds, depending on in which round the winning streak started and if they opted to stop. Now, it requires only two rounds no matter when the winning streak begins and it seems that, according to the original announcement of the Negreanu/Persson match, there isn’t even an option for a rematch after two consecutive wins by the same player.
There was also supposed to be an automatic Round 2, with the Round 1 victor bringing the $100,000 they won to the table and the loser ponying up their own $100,000. But on Monday night, Persson said that because of scheduling conflicts, he was unable to play Round 2:
Thus, another player is allowed to step up within 30 days and challenge Negreanu for the $100,000 buy-in Round 2. One would think someone will, especially considering High Stakes Duel 3 went all the way to an $800,000 buy-in.
Friendly competition
Both Negreanu and Persson are known to be vocal at the table and there was no shortage of that in Monday night’s Round 1. It was fun and cordial, though, with both players showing the other plenty of respect. Negreanu also came dressed in a muscle suit as a little goof on Persson.
“I watched some of the streams, some of his highlights, and table talk. He really does a good job of balancing,” Negreanu said of his opponent. “He’ll say things that you would say if you’re bluffing when he has it. He reverses it a lot.”
“Relieved more than anything,” added Negreanu when asked about he felt to win his first High Stakes Duel match. “I just had all the hands. I had so many big hands, and he never really had much going on. He bluffed me a few times. I didn’t really do anything special. I just ran better than he did.”
It remains to be seen when Round 2 will take place because, as mentioned, Daniel Negreanu will need a new opponent. With the World Series of Poker starting in just three weeks, there’s a good chance that the next round will either happen very quickly or have to wait until the summer, especially considering how jam-packed Negreanu’s schedule will be.
Image credit: PokerGO.com