One is the loudest-mouthed player of our time, the other a mild-mannered poker genius – but when Erik Seidel made an innocent tweet today about NBC firing Megyn Kelly, it was Mike Matusow who retorted with a $60million Full Tilt reminder:
Wish NBC would fire me https://t.co/8SFU9eWYBt
— Erik Seidel (@Erik_Seidel) 25. Oktober 2018
You got 60m from full tilt as 1 of biggest owners while others took fall and are struggling I’m sure you will live! https://t.co/hlbJQ2xMUE
— Mike Matusow (@themouthmatusow) 26. Oktober 2018
The Full Tilt Scandal
The full story of the biggest scandal in the history of poker remains shrouded in claims, denials and plenty of secrecy, but while Matusow was one of the many losers, Erik Seidel has had a seemingly smooth and lucrative ride through the maelstrom of allegations over the years.
Some 19 pros were caught up in the fallout when Full Tilt was forced to close its doors in 2011 after Black Friday led to indictments of those at the top of the online poker food chain.
400 Million Dollar in player funds have disapeared!
An estimated $440million or so disappeared into a black hole, much of it believed to have been shared out among the directors and star players, but coming from the supposedly protected general player funds – leaving thousands of ordinary players and pros alike without a bankroll almost overnight.
Team Full Tilt at the time included not only Seidel and Matusow, but most of the biggest and best in the game, Howard Lederer, Phil Ivey, Chris Ferguson, John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, Phil Gordon, Erick Lindgren, Andy Bloch, Gus Hansen, Allen Cunningham, and Patrik Antonius included.
Poker’s biggest-ever Ponzi Scheme?
Matusow has gone on the record several times to lash out at those who gained the most from what has been called a ‘Ponzi scheme’ – the fiasco costing him a huge chunk of his net worth.
It’s not quite clear how accurate Matusow’s “$60million” claim of Seidel’s share in the Full Tilt profits is, Howard ‘The Professor’ Lederer’s chunk stated as $42.5million in several sources.
Those who profited most, however, eventually paid back only a tiny fraction – if anything – of the money, PokerStars finally stepping in to repay most of the money in recent years after buying out Full Tilt Poker.
Apologies? Way too little, way too late
Both Lederer and Chris Ferguson have been seen as pariahs by many in the game ever since.
Public apologies from both at recent World Series of Poker festivals doing little to dampen the anger many of those involved in online poker still feel – Daniel Negreanu among them.
Seidel, however, spoke out fairly quickly at the time, stating: “Like a lot of people I was pretty disgusted about how things were run and what happened.”
Matusow’s Mouth
That hasn’t stopped Matusow from adding his recent take on Seidel’s share of the proceeds, but of course Mike ‘the Mouth’ is famous for speaking out and out of turn on all manner of subjects over the years, on both social media and at the tables.
It’s unlikely that Seidel – one of the game’s quiet men – will respond in kind to Matusow, but it’s a reminder that in poker things are rarely forgotten or forgiven.
Get the best Partypoker deal!
Ready to hop into some poker action yourself? Get the best Partypoker deal and claim your free $22 Tickets, up to 50% rakeback and take part in our exclusive promotions, including:
- Exclusive $30,000 VIP Leaderboard
- Exclusive Party Chase
- $10,000 MTT & SNG VIP Leaderboard
- $1,500 VIP Rookie Leaderboard
Terms and conditions apply. New customer offer and 18+ only. Should you require help regarding your gambling pattern, please visit www.begambleaware.org.
