Mike Matusow Talks Smack, Phil Laak is Back & 2024 WSOP is Close!

In the 824th episode of the PokerNews Podcast, which is sponsored by PokerStars, Chad Holloway, Mike Holtz & Kyna England come to you from Level 9 Studios in Las Vegas to discuss the latest poker news, stories, and gossip.

That includes diving into old-school legends Mike Matusow and Phil Laak being back in the poker spotlight, the former having crushed on Hustler Casino Live (HCL) -- including being a part of a big set-over-set hand -- and the latter returning to High Stakes Poker. That opened up a discussion on the Poker Hall of Fame, and whether or not either of those players deserve to be in.

From there, the crew discusses chopping in poker, which was spurred by poker pro Nick Pupillo negotiating a kind chop in the WPT Rolling Thunder Mystery Bounty Event. Hear their thoughts on chopping in general, as well as some fun chop stories.

Kyna then gives props to her Game of Gold costar Olga Iermolcheva, who was recently featured on a magazine cover, explains the meaning behind her Team Hotdog hoodie, and reveals she'll be attending the upcoming RGPS Reno. Finally, the crew wraps things up by looking ahead to the 2024 World Series of Poker (WSOP) by sharing what events they're most excited about.

Did you know the PokerNews Podcast is no longer just audio? That's right, we've added a video show as well that you can view on the PokerNews YouTube Channel.

Time Stamps *Time | Topic* 00:20 | Phil Hellmuth April Fool’s Day Mask Prank 01:00 | Sponsor: PokerStars 01:23 | Of which old school players were you a fan? 04:00 | Mike Matusow plays on Hustler Casino Live 05:31 | Set-over-set hand on HCL 09:00 | Poker Hall of Fame backlog – Should Matusow be in? 17:19 | Phil Laak back in the poker spotlight 21:13 | A look at the upcoming PokerStars UKIPT 22:50 | Nick Pupillo negotiates himself a nice chop 23:38 | What do you think of chops in general? 25:00 | Do you have any interesting chop stories? 26:01 | Chad’s WSOP bracelet chop story 29:00 | Olga Iermolcheva from Game of Gold makes a magazine cover 33:03 | The 2024 WSOP is right around the corner 33:34 | What events are you most excited about? 34:37 | PokerNews DeepStack Championship 38:23 | Team Hotdog 39:21 | Kyna headed north for the RGPS Reno