Earlier this week, VIP-Grinders reported that Ren Lin was removed from Day 2 of the World Series of Poker Super Circuit Cyprus Main Event following news of a rules violation.
Seemingly unaware of the seriousness of the offence, Ren Lin coached his friend “RealOA” during final table play and then he went on to win the tournament.
RealOA was clearly stoked after winning the incredibly tough event, thanking his mentor in a public chat of a poker study group without thinking for a minute that what transpired was a breach of fair play rules.
Unfortunately for the pair, the player who finished in third place is also a member of this group and quickly took them to task over the matter.
Sadly for Lin, this lapse of judgement has now cost him the opportunity to play both on GGPoker and in World Series of Poker sanctioned events.

GGPoker Responds to Real-Time Coaching Scandal
GGPoker’s response to one of its ambassadors breaching fair play rules was predictably harsh.
Ren Lin is now indefinitely suspended from GGPoker and its associated events. He will also contribute $96,380 to the funds redistribution as per GGPoker’s rules.
RealOA has been permanently banned and will return $250,523.
The social media comments were split between agreeing with the punishments and the opinion that they were too harsh.
The arguments against tough sanctions all centre around the difficulty in catching offenders. In other words saying that this behaviour goes on all of the time and nobody can ever know.
GGPoker continues to make it clear that it refuses to let unethical players operate freely without fear of getting caught.
“Real-time assistance through private communication channels remains challenging to prevent, but GGPoker’s detection and investigation capabilities will continuously improve. Competitive poker depends on trust and equal conditions. We will not allow anyone to undermine that foundation.”
Were the Punishments Too Harsh?
If the perpetrator was an unpopular character in the game then we doubt there would be any outcry on social media, but that’s not the case here.
Ren “Tony” Lin is one of the most popular players today, known for his infectious humour and friendly manner at the table.
The $96,380 that he forfeited was actually a voluntary contribution due to RealOA not having enough left in his account to cover the redistribution. He just wanted to put things right.
Unfortunately, however, GGPoker cannot be seen to be enforcing rules based on the results of a popularity contest.
Faraz Jaka commented with a lengthy tweet; much of which agreed with the general feeling that Ren Lin is a standup guy.
My thoughts on the Ren Lin ban:
1. It’s refreshing to see WSOP/GG take immediate, decisive action. Since the acquisition of WSOP, you can tell the brand has really stepped up their game across the board.
2. I get why people feel uneasy about the harsh decision when there are… https://t.co/Rzh3qNxS5v
— Faraz Jaka (@FarazJaka) October 22, 2025
He also agreed with the fact that it’s wrong to give somebody a lesser punishment just because they’re well-liked.
Interestingly, he brought up the link between GGPoker and the WSOP, mentioning how it makes sense for operators to share internal blacklists. This was mooted some years ago but nothing ever came of it; could it be the right time now?
The whole thing is so baffling. The champion and Ren Lin only got punished after the 3rd place finisher decided to take it public. The champion posted his winning screenshot in a 500-peple group and thanked Lin for helping him, clearly suggesting that he didn't take his own…
— Justin Q. Meng 🇨🇦 孟庆伟英文写作 (@justinqmeng) October 22, 2025
Justin Meng said the penalty was too harsh given the difficulty in detecting cheats.
Michael Moncek — AKA Texas Mike — described the ban for Lin as “egregious” and called for his reinstatement before the WSOP 2026.
Banning Ren from wsop is absolutely egregious. Ban him from GGpoker that’s fine whatever. Wsop? He’s hurting no one and makes amateurs like myself at any stakes have a way better time! The guy is EXACTLY what poker needs in a live setting. This has to be reviewed before summer https://t.co/CstNVgsr5Q
— Texas Mike (@TexasMike2014) October 22, 2025
Finally, GGPoker left us with one unanswered question in its statement to the poker community.
“Any result from the GGPoker investigation will extend across GGPoker, WSOP, and all partner platforms worldwide.“
Who are the partner platforms exactly and who is expected to be in the near future?
If the main players in the online poker industry team up together, the threat of an almost blanket ban across the big sites will be enough to dissuade many from even thinking about the slightest bit of unethical play.