Hypocricy Of Annie Duke And The EPL Lamented By Dusty Schmidt

While writing in his column at cardplayer.com, top US poker pro Dusty Schmidt has never shrunk from expressing his opinions, no matter how forthright they may be.
Last week, the PokerStars Supernova elite turned his attention to the recent controversy surrounding registered sex offender Michael J. Divita, who was allegedly pressurised to ‘withdraw’ from the Epic Poker League (EPL) Main Event,  after his 1991 criminal conviction was discovered. He was then merely refunded his $1,500 entry fee to the original qualifying satellite even though he had won through to the $20,000 Main Event.
Calling out EPL Commissioner Annie Duke, Dusty Schmidt referred to her as the ‘Sarah Palin of poker’ and commented:
 
“The irony in this is astounding. Annie Duke herself used to pimp UB which has stolen tens of millions (if not more) for a large fee (and to my knowledge has kept all the money) and rumor has it, has had a number of shady dealings in the past. Her own brother is basically the Bernie Madoff of poker. Yet she is the one telling others that they are too shady to allow a seat in her Epic Poker League, and stealing money from them in the process. Of course if you are one of her friends like Mike Matusow who is a convicted felon, then that is obviously not a problem. What a world we live in.”
Reiterating that he believed Divita had won the $20,000 ticket fair and square, Dusty Schmidt compared the conduct of the EPL as tantamount to stealing and asserted that if Divita had lost and later tried to claim back his buy-in on the grounds he shouldn’t have been able to play in the first place, he would never have received a cent of his money back.
The general theme of Dusty Schmidt’s column was to emphasise the fact he would badly like to see a licensed and regulated online poker industry, highlighted by the fact that there were so many poker-related scamming stories doing the rounds of late.
 
Schmidt then lamented the fact that the example set by the Epic Poker League, which he said was “essentially trying to become the PGA Tour of poker,” only served to perpetuate what he perceived as the current lawless state of poker.