Hustler Casino Live’s big cash game has been much in the news recently, with Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey dropping in to play, but the big talking point this week was the fight that almost broke out between Nick Vertucci and Jerry “the Whale”…
A Heated Argument during the Hustler Casino Live Stream
Vertucci is co-owner, along with Ryan Feldman, of the Hustler Casino Live livestream that has proved very popular recently, commentating on the highstakes $200/$400 game last weekend that brought Ivey and Dwan together, along with Garrett G-Man Adelstein.
However, it was as a player the night before that saw Vertucci involved in a serious confrontation with a reg known as Jerry after having time called on him in a highly entertaining hand.
In an NSFW incident, Nick was battling another reg known as Mayhem, with Vertucci’s deep tank on the turn quite enjoyable for viewers as he tried – and even paid – to guess Mayhem’s hand.
For Jerry, who had been kicked off the show previously, it was all too dull and time-consuming, and he tried to call a clock on the stream owner, which didn’t go down well at all.
“Are you out of your fucking mind? There’s fucking $12k in there, I’m trying to make a decision,” Vertucci shot back, adding: “Dude, you’re way out of line…I don’t care how big of a fucking whale you are!”
That jibe set Jerry off, with his basic premise being, “We have an agreement, you leave me the fuck alone…” but Vertucci wasn’t done yet.
His reply: “We have another agreement, fuck you!” quickly escalated into offers to fight and threats of violence, with Jerry having to be manhandled away from Vertucci.
Nick Vertucci apologizes publically
Security, floor staff and the not inconsiderable size of a pleading Mayhem – “I loaned you $5k, please respect me this one time” – dragged Jerry out of the card room.
Meanwhile, Vertucci was giving it the big man speech back at the table: “I gotta stand down cos we’re on stream? So sick that I can’t get up and knock his ass out.”
Poker reddit was quick to pick up on the incident, with some wondering if it was publicity for the Ivey and Dwan show…
— Letting Jerry back into the game was a bad decision. Especially considering you’re about to host one of the most hype cash games there. Lol…
— Yeah, there was a part of me that was thinking… “is this a setup to get more attention for Ivey playing?” Unlikely though, both their personalities are fairly extreme.
Extreme or not, shortly afterward Jerry reappeared to say sorry and shake hands, with Vertucci himself taking to Twitter to apologize for his own part in the stramash.
I want take a moment to publicly apologize for my behavior last night on stream. I was running bad and I let a player get under my skin. My reaction was not becoming of who I should be in that situation and what we are building.
— Nick Vertucci (@NickVertucciNV) October 20, 2021
Although rather unusual, there have been several fights that have spilled over into physical confrontations. Phil Hellmuth famously lost a car park straightener against Sam Grizzle.
Phil Ivey’s bodyguard was also seen in action in an altercation in Bobby’s Room. Although the video has apparently since been deleted.
Apparently between Ivey's bodyguard and some guy in the game.
— Jimmy Fricke (@jvfricke) June 25, 2017
One clip that hasn’t disappeared was last December’s fight between a dealer and a player at the Aria, which saw patrons scrambling to break up the fisticuffs.
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