The Tragedy of Poker

This is the final article that will appear at Poker Uncensored, as the Founder is retiring from poker journalism effective July 7, 2025.

In 2015, I didn’t personally know anyone who had killed themselves, died from overdosing on drugs, or murdered their spouse to try to cover gambling debts. I knew suicide, drug abuse, and problem gambling were things that existed, I just didn’t personally know anyone it impacted.

Then I started playing poker. I then started writing about poker. A decade later people I sat down with at the poker table in New England had actually killed themselves and overdosed on opiates. One I played with actually did murder his wife hoping to collect an insurance payout to cover gambling debts. He was found guilty of Murder by a jury, his appeals denied, and now his children get to spend the rest of their childhood with no mother and a father who is locked up in jail for life.

Poker is filled with people who are misogynists and homophobic. In no other community have I seen so much hatred and vitriol directed towards women and towards homosexuals. Female players should be treated as equals to male players, but they often come under attack for success rather than getting the praise they deserve.

And then there are the death threats. On a weekly basis, someone from the poker world would threaten to murder or beat me up. If it wasn’t for these people I probably wouldn’t need a Smith & Wesson, but thankfully here in the United States we have a Constitutional right to keep and bear arms to defend ourselves from criminals looking to do us harm.

The Bible in tells us “the love of money is the root of all evil” in the 6th Chapter of First Epistle to Timothy. In poker that pretty much seems to be the case. Thieves, scoundrels, cheaters, and fraudsters run rampant. They are often allowed to get away with it suffering no serious consequences because the poker community just accepts it as a part of the game. Endorsement deals result in some of the most influential players keeping quiet in order to protect the revenue stream coming in from their sponsors.

This is my final piece as a poker journalist. After years of writing about poker and being heavily involved in the poker community, I’ve finally accepted that things are headed in the direction of getting worse, not better. There are some good people in the poker community and people that I can call good friends of mine, but I will be focusing my time and effort elsewhere. My parting advice to others is to consider doing the same.

—Matt Soleyn, Founder, Poker Uncensored