It's back! High Stakes Poker has returned to the small screen, and the thirteenth season of the show's run kicked off with a bang, but from a perhaps unlikely source.
Regulars Andrew Robl and Jennifer Tilly headlined the table, joined by Season 12's Justin Gavri and newcomers Sean Dempsey, Bo Brownstein, Masato Yokosawa, and Sameh Elamawy. With the blinds at $200/$400 with a $400 big blind ante, it didn't take long for the mix of seasoned veterans and fresh faces to lock horns.
First blood drawn
The source of the early action came from one of the newcomers, the businessman Elamawy, who took it upon himself to take on one of the biggest winners in High Stakes Poker history and terrorizer of cash games everywhere from Los Angeles to Macau, Andrew Robl.
In the very first hand of the night, a double-straddled pot, Elamawy opened the action to $5,500 with 
. Already, a great start. The action folded around to Robl with his $1,600 straddle in play and he defended with 
. On the 
flop, the action went check, check.
The 
turn prompted Robl to bet $10,000 into the $12,900 pot. Elamawy, undeterred by his opponent's aggression, made the call with his seven-high holding. The river 
didn't connect with either player and Robl opted to shut down with a check. Elamawy pondered for a second before reaching for chips and betting $22,000. Robl picked up his cards, saying, "That's why you don't play the queen-six offsuit," as he flung his cards towards the dealer.
Elamawy then did what everyone should do in that spot: he tabled his seven-high; he set the tone.
"Oh, you're a psycho," said Robl. "Now I really declare war."
War declared, war delivered
Robl's declaration held its weight as, just moments later, he set his sights on revenge. There was no straddle on, so Elamawy's raise with 
came to just $2,000. Tilly called behind with 
and the action folded through to Robl in the big blind. The 
he looked down at was good enough for a three-bet to $14,000.
Elamawy didn't take long to make the call, but Tilly, with a reluctant sigh, folded. With $30,700 in the middle, the 
flop provided Elamawy with the best draw but kept Robl's holding ahead, despite the equity disadvantage. Robl's $8,000 continuation was met with a quick call from his opponent and the two players saw the 
turn. After seeing a check in front of him, Elamawy, perhaps emboldened by perceived weakness or trying to extract maximum value from a holding like Robl's, bet $17,000.
The PokerGO cameras cut to Robl and you could almost see the cogs turning in his head, right up to the moment that he cut out a raise to $65,000. In short order, Elamawy pulled back his two $1,000 chips and sent forth a $50,000 brick in their place. Robl rose up to take a look at the $120,000 left in Elamawy's stack.
On the river 
, Robl again pumped the brakes on his bluff with a check. To the surprise of commentators Nick Schulman and AJ Benza, Elamawy opted to move all in for the rest of his money, bluffing with the best hand. Robl tossed his cards into the muck and Elamawy added $89,700 to his stack.
Losing battles to win the war
The third and final confrontation between Robl and Elamawy wasn't the biggest pot of the night, but it exemplified a classic piece of military strategy: losing a battle to win the war. Also, it showed audiences exactly why Robl has managed to remain at the top of the food chain in the high-stakes cash game realm for as long as he has.
Gavri's $2,000 raise with led Robl to three-bet with 
to the tune of $6,000. Elamawy called from the small blind with 
and Dempsey came along with his 
in the straddle. Gavri made the call as well, closing the action, and the four players went to a 
flop. Robl, with the nut flush draw, continued his aggression with a bet of $8,000 and only Elamawy, with trips, made the call.
With $40,900 in the middle, the 
turn brought the flush home for Robl and he bet once more, this time tossing forth a lone cranberry worth $25,000. Elamawy, not yet drawing dead, made the call with a cranberry of his own. The river 
improved Elamawy to a full house, and he checked the action over to his opponent. Here, you see why Robl has managed to stay afloat on the high-stakes seas. Whether it was a live read, a gut feeling, or something else, Robl managed to find a check back to minimize his loss. It was, as Nick Schulman said on comms, "sensational."
For the third time this episode, Robl tossed his cards the dealer's way after losing a pot to Elamawy. This time, however, a wry smile was present.
Robl and Elamawy will fight on in the upcoming episode of High Stakes Poker, airing next Monday evening at 8pm ET exclusively on PokerGO.
