Less than a day after Scott Seiver pulled out of High Stakes Duel III, PokerGO has found a replacement. Jason Koon will be sitting down opposite Phil Hellmuth when the next episode goes live on a date that is still to be decided.
Scott Seiver pulled of the series yesterday for personal reasons. In the process, he forfeited his ability to win back his $400k loss from the previous round. Seiver replaced Tom Dwan who replaced Nick Wright on HSDIII. The previous seasons of HSD (I and II) were both three-nil wipeouts in Hellmuth's favor each played against a single opponent (Antonio Esfandiari in the first season, Daniel Negreanu in the second).
Koon tweeted about his upcoming match saying, "The legend @phil_hellmuth and I will be playing each other in a $800,000 buy-in heads up match!"
GTO v. White Magic
Koon is an exciting candidate to be the nemesis to Hellmuth's hubris.
A real internet pro with a deep background in solvers and game theory-driven play, Koon is a stark contrast to Phil Hellmuth who still relies heavily on "soft" skills like live tells, table dynamics, and individual psychology.
So far, this "white magic" has worked out well for Hellmuth. The poker brat is going into his match with $1.25 million in profit from winning nine of the ten matches he's played. The stakes are high enough this round that the $800k buy-in could knock Hellmuth down to $450k in profit should he lose. If he wins again, he's looking at passing the $2 million mark.
That doesn't include any appearance fees or sponsorships he's garnered from his run on the show.
Either way, it will be an exciting match played for the highest stakes on HSD yet. Will Hellmuth be cutting another notch in the hourglass-shaped table, or will this end his run on the show for good?
Phil Hellmuth's complete results on High Stakes Duel
| Season | Episode | Challenger | Winner | Buy in | Total Profit (Δ) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Stakes Duel I | #1 | Antonio Esfandiari | Hellmuth | $50k | $50k (+$50k) | |
| High Stakes Duel I | #2 | Antonio Esfandiari | Hellmuth | $100k | $150k(+$100k) | |
| High Stakes Duel I | #3 | Antonio Esfandiari | Hellmuth | $200k | $350k (+$200k) | |
| High Stakes Duel II | #1 | Daniel Negreanu | Hellmuth | $50k | $400k (+$50k) | |
| High Stakes Duel II | #2 | Daniel Negreanu | Hellmuth | $100k | $500k (+$100k) | |
| High Stakes Duel II | #3 | Daniel Negreanu | Hellmuth | $200k | $700k (+$200k) | |
| High Stakes Duel III | #1 | Nick Wright | Hellmuth | $50k | $750k (+$50k) | |
| High Stakes Duel III | #2 | Tom Dwan | Challenger | $100k | $650k (-$100k) | |
| High Stakes Duel III | #3 | Tom Dwan | Hellmuth | $200k | $850k (+$200k) | |
| High Stakes Duel III | #4 | Scott Seiver | Hellmuth | $400k | $1.25m (+$400k) | |
| High Stakes Duel III | #5 | Jason Koon | TBD | $800k | TBD (±800k) |
Featured image source: PokerGO
