Chance Kornuth tells the story of the sickest cash game of his life lasting 68 hours surviving on sandwiches and turning $5k into $500,000!
13 years ago, I took a trip down to Dallas to play a private PLO cash game.
Little did I know, I would end up playing for 69 hours straight, eat 15 McGriddles breakfast sandwiches and end up +$517K from the session.
Here’s the story of the 69 hour session 👇
— Chance Kornuth (@ChancesCards) April 17, 2023
Chance Kornuth was a fearless 24-year-old at the time, but nothing had prepared him for the session of a lifetime.
He recalls “walking into a $4M dollar penthouse with huge TVs blanketing every wall, chefs preparing top notch food and beautiful masseuses giving rich business guys massages as they splashed chips around a poker table… I thought that I had died and gone to heaven!”
The game was PLO and the stakes started out “small” at $25/$50, although he remembers they played “with straddles and as people got stuck, stacks got deeper, rebuys got larger, and the blinds got bigger.”
The first signs that he had struck a potential goldmine came early…
I bought in for $5k like the majority of the other players and the PLO game began.
I could tell this was going to be a juicy game because there were 3 all-ins in the first orbit and players were reloading $10K clips like they were playing $1/$2 at their local casino.
— Chance Kornuth (@ChancesCards) April 17, 2023
Poker was a different game back in 2010 says Kornuth: “Back then, PLO was basically just bluffing when players checked and trying to stack their aces when they 3-bet as no one had balanced ranges or really knew what they were doing.”
His initial $5k buy-in had been upped to $20k with add-ons, but he had amassed a stack of over $100k, though a bad bluff saw him take a breather on the penthouse balcony – and then come back even stronger.
“I came back feeling fantastic and went on probably the biggest heater of my life. The next 24 hours were a blur – At least 20 cups of coffee, 5 McDonald’s McGriddles and a lot of big pots pushed in my direction.”
After playing 24 hours, I had almost $200k in front of me & was playing short handed with some business guys and the self proclaimed “ Greatest One Eyed Poker Player in the World”.
Truth be told, after being friends with this guy for 15 years now, he truly is the G.O.E.P.P.W.
— Chance Kornuth (@ChancesCards) April 17, 2023
By the time the epic game was two days in, Kornuth was sitting with more than $400k, with only the one-eyed player and a dentist left at the table.
Desperate for sleep but unable to “leave a game that was so good”, a monster pot appeared – one that ended the marathon session and almost cost a player his eye!
He had 3457ds and had me in pretty bad shape (even more so since another player folded QQ).
He wanted to run it once since it was the only way he could get even, but we settled on 3 times (so there was blood) since I asked nicely, each run out would get ⅓ of the pot…
— Chance Kornuth (@ChancesCards) April 17, 2023
Second run out, Q45, 3…8!
I was rooting for a deuce or ace, turns out I made the most unexpected two-pair of my life to lock up $200k…
— Chance Kornuth (@ChancesCards) April 17, 2023
“Final run out Q45, T…Q!!!!! I counterfeited his two-pair with the ONE OUT Queen, “YESSSS” I exclaimed. The G.O.E.P.P.W. went on a tirade and angrily took his eye back out of the pot.”
The monster pot was enough to finish off Kornuth’s opponents but there was no ill-feeling: “They were nice enough to give me the keys to a random room down the hall to sleep for a bit before I drove home.”
Chance Kornuth remembers the mixed feelings of joy and exhaustion: “As I staggered towards the room, I was beyond delirious. After 69 hours straight of PLO on zero sleep while only putting $1.99 breakfast sandwiches and heavily caffeinated beverages in my body, the room was moving as if I was on a small ship.
“I cashed out $517,000 after the dust settled. To this day, it is still my biggest cash game win ever and I’ll never forget “the 69-hour session”.
Do you have a story of Kornuth-level marathon poker sessions you’d like to share? Join the discussion on our social media!
- Get the best rakeback deals
- View all poker strategy articles
- View the latest poker news
- Watch more poker videos
- Get the biggest poker bonus
- Watch the best Twitch Poker streamers
Terms and conditions apply. New customer offer and 18+ only. Please gamble responsibly! Should you require help regarding your betting pattern, visit www.begambleaware.org
