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Chips Fly As Poker Player Flips Over Three Tournament Tables

North Carolina World Series Of Poker Circuit Event Delayed For Two Hours

by Sean Chaffin  |  Published: Feb 24, 2025

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“A tournament director’s worst nightmare,” Matt Savage called it.

There was a bizarre incident on Sunday in the $1,700 main event at the World Series of Poker Circuit stop at Cherokee Casino in North Carolina.

With just a handful of tables remaining, someone in the casino area flipped over three tables – sending chips spilling out over the floor, delaying the tournament, and leaving the rest of the field wondering why someone would take such measures.

According to WSOP Circuit regular David Moses, the man “took a running start and crab scuttled under tables.”

The delay took place with 65 players left as the tournament was headed for a break, and video of the incident quickly spread on social media. Security guards took the suspect from the tournament area as event staff attempted to gather chips and recreate stacks that were scattered on the floor.

The table flipper’s name and motivation for the incident are not yet known. The man reportedly said that god told him to do it, according to other players on the scene. In one of the videos, the suspect can be heard yelling at security personnel. "Get off me. I’m not hurting anyone.”

Although there was talk of chopping up the prize pool and canceling the tournament, those in attendance reported that staff immediately cleared the room and began working to verify chip stacks. Play resumed about two hours after the incident.

Poker has seen some bizarre behavior throughout the years. In 2019, a player in the WSOP main event in Las Vegas was disqualified after pulling his pants down and throwing one of his shoes at the dealer. He was later arrested after climbing on top of a craps table at the Luxor.

*Image by Shutterstock

 
 
Tags: Poker Disqualification,   Poker DQ,   Poker Freak Out,   Poker Table Flip,   Bizarre,   Public Tilt,   WSOP Circuit,   Cherokee,   North Carolina
 
 
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