Gulf Coast Poker Podcast

On the eve of the 2026 WSOP, who better to offer a preview of the action than Chad Holloway? An industry veteran heading into his 18th straight summer in Las Vegas, Chad's also an accomplished player who won the 2013 Casino Employees Event and a WSOP bracelet. In this episode, Ben and Bill talk with Chad about dropping out of law school, the Harrah's New Orleans cardroom in the mid-aughts,...

In this episode, Gene, Ben, and Bill sat down with John Cressend, a Nola native and a regular on the Gulf Coast tournament scene for over twenty years. John told us about how he got into poker, balancing tourneys with his day job as a certified public accountant, the tax implications of the Big Beautiful Bill, and the next time we might see his alter ego—the Butler—immaculately dressed and stackin...

In this in-person interview, Ben and Bill sit down with the Beau Rivage's cardroom manager Adam Nash to discuss how the first weekend of the Heater went—as you might have guessed, the Gulf South's biggest tournament series got off to a blazing start—and what to expect heading into the second weekend. 1:00: Interview Adam's Tebow speech: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/175M9PwCcM/

Having covered major Los Angeles sports for over 30 years, Eric Geller brings a wealth of experience — and plenty of stories — to the poker world. He currently reports for Gulf Coast Poker and covers tournaments across the Southern U.S. In this episode, Bill, Ben, and Gene have a wide-ranging conversation about Eric's background in both poker and the wide world of sports. 1:00 interview

As the Poker/Sportsbook Manager at Horseshoe Tunica, Dan Higginbotham has over thirty years of experience in the casino industry, working in both commercial and tribal casinos across different jurisdictions. He's seen and done a lot, in other words, and in this episode Dan sits down with Gene, Ben, and Bill to discuss how running tournaments and cardrooms has changed over the years, and what t...

With just over a week until the WSOP Main Event gets going, we invited Will "Monkey" Souther, the founder of the staking group Monkey's Minions, for a preview of his summer crew and how you can support them. John "Cakes" Auville, co-host of the longrunning radio show The Sports Junkies and a first-time Minion, also joined the conversation. Enjoy the episode, and best of luck to...

You'd be hard-pressed to find someone with more intimate knowledge of the Gulf Coast poker scene than Darrell Guillory. A dealer for over thirty years — not to mention a tough tournament player in his own right—Darrell's currently wrapping up his career at Caesar's New Orleans, where he plans to retire at the end of this year. He's also working as a supervisor at this summer's...

We're pulling out a throwback episode with Tom "Dr. Dialtone" Darce, a regular on the Gulf Coast Poker scene for many years. When Tom passed away in March at the age of 58, the community lost an avid poker player and a dear friend. We hope that you enjoy this conversation with him. 1: 00: Roundtable July 10-20th: GCP Event at the Horshoe Tunica https://www.pokernews.com/news/2025/05/al...

Joel Doney is a familiar face on the Gulf Coast poker scene. He got started in New Orleans before moving with his wife to Austin, where he's currently a regular at both the Lodge Card Club and Texas Card House. In this conversation, Joel talks about how he got into poker, how he splits his time between tournaments and cash, two recent big scores—for $90K and $300K, respectively—and last but no...

Evan Benton hails from a little southeast Louisiana town called Houma — also Gene D's hometown — and he grew up in a poker-playing family. Last summer, in the first WSOP tournament that he played, Evan cashed for  $412,484 in Event #28, a $1,500 freezout. We caught up with Evan to talk about growing up in Houma, winning a bracelet, turning pro, getting into the world of private games, and much...

If you've spent time in the Gulf Coast poker scene, odds are that you've seen—or heard—Steve Bierman. A native Louisianan and a cardroom regular for over a decade, Steve has always been quick with a joke and eager to laugh. He also boasts an impressive poker resume, with over $770,000 in Hendon Mob cashes and two WSOP final tables. Steve sat down with Ben, Bill, and Gene to discuss his pok...

Gian Smith is a New Orleans-based artist whose poem "O Beautiful Storm" appeared in Season 2 of HBO’s Treme. He's also a long-time cardplayer and a former dealer at Harrah's Nola. In this conversation, Gian sits down with Gene, Ben, and Bill to discuss writing, acting, and his recent poker-themed short film The Capitalist . 1:00 Roundtable Historic Summer Leads to WSOP Player of th...

Jeff Boski (@ICuRaRook) is a poker pro, a vlogger, a Twitch streamer, and an ambassador for America's Cardroom. He also shipped GCP's Golden Ticket Event at last summer's MGM Grand Summer Poker Festival. In this episode, Jeff spoke with Bill, Ben, and Gene about how he got into poker, transitioning from online to live, tips for grinding out a successful summer in Las Vegas, and much mo...

These days, Treva Moulton is enjoying life in Biloxi as a retired grandma. But she's also known for being the Queen of the old Grand Casino cardroom, where she worked from the mid-1990s to the summer of 2005. On this month's podcast, Treva told Gene, Ben, and Bill about growing up in Liberty, Mississippi, working at the Grand and the Beau Rivage, and organizing the upcoming Grand Casino re...

Eric Vogel (@evbass504) is a Nola native and a musician who's toured with the Wooten Brothers, Nigel Hall, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Fred Wesley, Tribal Gold, and the New Orleans Suspects, just to name a few, as well as with his own band, Eric’s Gonna Die. He’s also a poker pro who can mostly be found in the cash games at Harrah’s New Orleans. In this episode, Ben and Eric discuss music and poke...

Prior to this year, Matt Higgins was already an accomplished poker pro with over a million dollars in live tournament cashes. In this episode, Matt joins Bill, Gene, and Ben to discuss his career and also his blazing hot start to 2024, which includes a first-place finish in Event #1 of The Beau Rivage Heater and another first (plus his fifth WSOP ring) in Tunica. 1:00: Roundtable Jonathan Little W...

Andrew Neeme is a professional poker player, a vlogger, an organizer of meetup games, a co-owner of The Lodge Card Club, a traveler, a drinker of tasty cocktails, and a brand ambassador for the World Poker Tour. He's a busy guy, in other words, and in this episode Andrew joins Bill, Gene, and Ben to chat about what he's been up to recently as well as this month's WPT Championship tourn...

Adam Nash, the Beau Rivage's poker room manager, is also an avid Slugfest brawler. In this episode Gene, Ben, and Bill talk with Adam about the upcoming Million Dollar Heater tournament series, his career in poker, his background in MMA, and his current bout with cancer. 1:00: Roundtable 2023 Gulf Coast Poker awards Global Poker issues expanded statement exonerating player under RTA investigat...

Alec Wilson is a Pensacola-based pro who's enjoyed recent tournament success. In this episode Gene, Ben, and Bill talk with Alec about his career in poker, his experience playing as one of Monkey's Minions in the 2023 WSOP Main Event, and his journey from disability to health. 1:00: Roundtable Preston McEwen Dominates Cherokee With 7 Final Tables in 7 Months Hackers Rig Casino Card-Shuffli...

Steph Noh is the lead NBA writer for The Sporting News. He's also an avid poker player who grinded the Las Vegas and New Orleans cash games for over a decade. In this episode Bill, Gene, and Ben talk with Steph about all things poker and basketball. Steph's TikTok Steph's selected writings 1:00: Monthly Roundtable WSOP full schedule 28:30: Interview Moving to Vegas to be a pro poker pl...

Come listen to Gulf Coast regular Jamie Kizer talk about how he got into poker, jockeying between PLO cash games and NLH tournaments, and stories from the felt 1:30: roundtable: upcoming GCP tournaments, the Texas card club and casino landscape, and high-stakes grudge matches 24:00: interview with Jamie

Pat McNamara, a stage and film actor who was also a beloved member of the New Orleans poker community, died last month . Today on the podcast, listen to Ben Saxton's 2019 interview with Pat. 2:00: Monthly Roundtable: The Million Dollar Heater, Jared Ingles catches fire, and the GPI Poker Awards 15:30: intro to the Pat McNamara interview (a condensed written version is available here ) 20:00: h...

This month's conversation is with Jerry and Prissy Giroir, the well-liked Lafayette couple you'll often see at WSOP Circuit stops and events across the Gulf Coast. 2:00: Intro 9:15: Monthly Roundtable: The State of Texas Poker, Recent Poker Films, the FTX Scandal, and the Curious Case of Annie Duke Texas Poker Rooms Under Threat from Proposed Bill to Close Loophole FTX Crypto Crash Draws O...

Chuck has been on a massive heater lately in Pearl River and Poker Gras...Listen to how he purchased a brand new tractor with his winnings...How he got started in Poker...and how you get people to fold Kings AIPF 3 handed  **Chuck lives on a compound that is almost completely off the grid and he has lousy cell reception so we had to end a little early**

Come listen to Mark Davis/Wild Bill/GeneD talk about Mark's latest win in the WPT Seminole Main Event beating Darren Ellis (All Time Winner on WPT Mains)...We discuss some hands from the FT...including the "King High" hand...we discuss the "Chop Discussion"...Mark Explains about the Chance Kornuth Coaching Experience...and him hanging with some of the best players in the Gulf C...