What did Martin Kabrhel do? Poker star investigated by World Series of Poker after winning $2.3 million

Martin Kabrhel is a a World Series of Poker veteran, who has won multiple bracelets in the tournament over the years. In this years edition he placed third, and bagged a $2.3 million prize. However, soon after this, he was being investigated by the tournament authorities for allegedly cheating in the game. This allegation was levied against him by Dan Smith who was ousted in the final round of the tournament.

Given the stakes of the tournament, it's quite natural to see players levy such allegations against each other. However, this incident happened while the final stage of World Series Poker.

Exploring the cheating allegations against Martin Kabrhel during the World Series of Poker tournament

Dan Smith, who accused Martin Kabrhel of cheating mentioned that he was marking cards. Moreover, the latter was seen standing midway during a hand as well, which is against the rules, because that would allow them to see marked cards.

Kabrhel has denied these allegations on social media vehemently. Here's what he had to say:

"On behalf of yesterday situation I feel necessary to speak up. @Andrew_Robl yesterday posted on twitter an accusation that I'm marking cards and cheating in poker tournaments. I was shocked by how quickly people took it as true, pure statement with no evidence"

While there were a lot of people including his fellow contestants who accused Kabrhel of cheating, other individuals spoke in his favor after meticulously going through the World Series of Poker streams. While fans on social media are still divided on the matter, the investigation by the World Series of Poker authorities is still underway.

After being eliminated Dan Smith stood up from his seat and wished everyone good luck for the remainder of the tournament, before turning to Kabrhel, accusing him of marking cards. He further stated that he hoped that the authorities banned him from tournaments because he of his antics. It's believed that Kabrhel will be suing the individuals who accused him of cheating during the tournament.

What is card marking in poker?

Card marking is a technique where players mark the back of a card in such a way that it's possible to know their values without turning them over. This technique is unethical and does count as cheating because it gives the person who's marked the cards an unfair advantage, while some consider it to be a winning strategy.

There are different ways of marking cards in the market these days, and some of them can be seen across the table itself. Now, in tournaments like World Series of Poker, if someone is believed to be marking cards then the common sentiment would be to change decks then and there, because it's hard to prove if someone's marked a card without proper evidence.

Eitherway, the tournament authorities are investigating the matter, and the verdict for the same should be available in the coming few days.