Mike Matusow’s One-Outer Heartbreak Ends Deep WSOP Seniors High Roller Run

Mike Matusow’s run in Event #40: $5,000 Seniors High Roller at the 2025 World Series of Poker came to a crushing end during Day 3 action. The four-time WSOP bracelet winner was eliminated in 15th place after a dramatic blind-versus-blind confrontation that concluded with a one-outer river card. The hand occurred during Level 21 with blinds at 10,000/25,000 and a 25,000 big blind ante.

Marc Rivera raised from the small blind, and Matusow responded with a three-bet from the big blind. Rivera four-bet shoved for just under 500,000 chips, and Matusow, who had him covered, made the call. Rivera tabled ten of hearts and ten of clubs. Matusow revealed the king of spades and the jack of clubs.

The flop came queen of spades, jack of spades, and two of spades, giving Matusow a second pair and a strong lead in the hand. With the king of spades in his hand, Matusow also blocked Rivera from making a flush. The turn brought the ace of clubs, which changed little. However, the river came the king of hearts, giving Rivera a straight and the winning hand. Matusow stood up from his chair and shouted, “One out!” as the chips were pushed to Rivera.

Matusow was left severely short-stacked and eventually finished in 15th place, earning $31,243.

Current Form at the 2025 WSOP

Matusow entered the 2025 World Series of Poker in strong form. Two weeks into the 56th edition of the series, he had already recorded five cashes, including a final-table finish in the $10,000 buy-in Seven-Card Stud Championship, as well as a 46th-place finish in the $10,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha High-Low 8 or Better Championship. Matusow considers the latter event to be his best game.

He has said he is healthy and feeling sharp at the table. According to Matusow, he quit taking painkillers in February 2024 and believes he now has the correct mix of mental health medications in balance with his other prescriptions. He stated that he is financially stable and has paid off all his past debts.

Past Career and Personal Challenges

Matusow has won four World Series of Poker bracelets between 1999 and 2013. He also reached the final table of the WSOP Main Event in both 2001 and 2005. Over the years, he has become known for emotional outbursts at the table and has frequently been involved in dramatic exits from tournaments – a pattern that became so familiar ESPN commentators coined the term a “Mike Matusow Blowup.”

He has experienced numerous personal struggles, including addiction to illegal drugs and sports betting. In 2004, he served six months in the Clark County Detention Center after pleading guilty to buying drugs for a friend who turned out to be an undercover Las Vegas police officer.

Matusow says his chronic back issues began in 2008 while riding as a passenger in Dan Bilzerian’s car. He later underwent spinal surgery in 2014 to treat a disc protrusion. He has also stated that he suffers from intercostal neuralgia, a nerve condition involving damage between the ribs, which contributed to his painkiller dependency.

In 2016, Matusow said he lost a significant amount of money and hit rock bottom. He mentioned losing his belief in God during this time but said he regained it, which he credits with helping turn his life around.

A Documentary on His Life

Matusow’s personal and professional life was chronicled in the documentary Matusow, directed by Frank Zarrillo. The film was released on Amazon Prime in December 2024 and is now available for free on YouTube. Zarrillo began filming during the 2021 WSOP and aimed to portray Matusow’s life and story with honesty.

The film includes Matusow’s account of a conflict with 2004 WSOP Main Event champion Greg Raymer. Matusow explained in the documentary that his behavior during their confrontation stemmed from his belief that Raymer, as the only other good player at the table, should not have played aggressively against him. Matusow had hoped to work together implicitly to eliminate weaker opponents, which Raymer declined to do.

Poker Hall of Fame and What’s Next

Matusow has more than $10 million in career live tournament earnings, according to the Hendon Mob Poker Database. He hopes to win a fifth bracelet this summer and believes that such an achievement would enhance his chances of being inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame.

The 10 finalists for the 2025 Hall of Fame will be announced on Tuesday. The inductee will be revealed on July 11. Matusow has expressed hope that he will be inducted while his 87-year-old mother is still alive to see it.

David Baker Eyes Title, Other WSOP Events Continue

Following Matusow’s elimination, David “ODB” Baker enters the final four of the $5,000 Seniors High Roller with the chip lead. Baker has three WSOP bracelets from 2012, 2019, and 2023, all in mixed games. He is now aiming to win his first bracelet in No-Limit Hold’em.

Matusow publicly wished Baker luck on X, writing, “Good luck to my friend David Baker to take it down.”

In the $1,500 buy-in Monster Stack tournament, 3,217 players advanced to Day 2 from a total field of 9,920. The prize pool is $13,682,160. The top 15% of players—1,488 in total—will make the money. Play resumes at 11 a.m. local time.

Andrew Moreno currently holds the largest known stack among fantasy league players, with 135 big blinds.

In the $1,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event, seven players return, with Carlos Leiva leading the field. Dylan Weisman is in sixth place.

In the $1,500 Razz event, nine players remain. Allan Le is currently in first place, with Shaun Deeb in third and Maxx Coleman in fourth.

The $250,000 Super High Roller begins tomorrow at noon. As usual, we can expect this year’s tournament to feature many of poker’s biggest names.