August 4, 2025, unexpectedly became a landmark day for online poker. Until then, Phenom Poker was perceived as just another crypto room, not much different from its peers – CoinPoker, TON Poker, and others. This despite the fact that Phenom initially positioned itself as a room created by pro players, and its team of ambassadors included stars like Daniel Cates, Huck Seed, Sergio Aido, Alec Torelli, Brian Rast (who is also listed as a co-owner of the room), Ben Heath, Anatoliy Zyrin, and many others.
Another key difference is complete transparency thanks to the use of blockchain. Any player's results can be tracked, not hidden away for speculation. The room's internal rakeback is paid in tokens, the price of which has quadrupled over the past four months, from $0.93 to $3.71.
How Poker at Phenom is Going Now
Play on the Phenom Poker was steady, but until August, the highest limit was $300/$600 in mixed games, and even that rarely saw action.
That all changed in early August, when nosebleeds at $500/$1k and $1k/$2k appeared. Soon, $2k/$4k tables were added, and now the Phenom is being called the new Bobby's Room – the legendary hall (or rather, room) of the Bellagio casino, only now online and available for viewers from around the world.
For the new generation of poker fans who missed out on the early heyday of limit games online at PokerStars, it's important to explain what mixed games are. This is a format in which one game alternates with another every 6-8 hands. Previously, the most common limit games played online were the classic set of limit Hold'em, limit Omaha hi-lo, razz, stud, and stud hi-lo (this five-game mix is called H.O.R.S.E.). Then, triple draw and no-limit games were added—Hold'em and Omaha with a 40bb cap (eight games in total).
Phenom Poker has gone even further. In addition to well-known formats like Big O (five-card pot-limit Omaha Hi-Lo) and Lowball (no-limit single draw), they've added games to their rotation that were previously virtually unheard of in the public online arena. These include mixes of mixes: Badugi (a combination of Badugi and Triple Draw), Dramaha Hi (single draw and Omaha), Dramadugi (Badugi and Omaha), and other exotic poker variations. The emergence of new poker variants adds excitement and variety to the game and, theoretically, should somewhat level the playing field for professionals and amateurs; few have sufficient experience in these games. Regulars have mentioned to us that sometimes simply knowing the rules is enough to play them profitably. Although, who knows, maybe it's all down to a life-giving winning streak, as it's very, very difficult to accumulate enough experience to make an objective assessment.
Viktor Blom (the legendary isildur1), has become the face of high stakes poker, just like in the good old days. This summer, he made his mark at the WSOP – several deep runs and four final tables in high-stakes tournaments confirmed the well-known maxim from the days of chess park battles: "You can't drink away skill." Therefore, his appearance at the $500/$1k and $1k/$2k Phenom tables was a real event.
Viktor's first high-profile duel was against player and crypto oligarch Chris "Apotheosis92" Hook (NorthSquad on Phenom) in a $1k/$2k 8-game. In just over an hour, Blom lost around $163k. We've become accustomed to seeing such swings in a short session in recent years only in high-stakes Hold'em or Omaha, but certainly not in mixed games.
The next day, $2k/$4k tables opened, and isildur1 was once again among the first to join. Gradually, Johannes Becker (Pkrphenom123), Mike Gorodinsky (DERLM), Daniel Cates, Jared Bleznick (Theblez), Elior Sion (CrazyElior), and later, Timofey Kuznetsov (CloakAtTheRiver) and Alexander Kostritsyn (d3d3pat) joined the game.
The atmosphere was reminiscent of the golden age, and the chat at the tables enlivened the proceedings.
Viktor Blom's August chart looked like Full Tilt's heyday: upswings of hundreds of thousands followed by sharp declines. The month's total was around -$1.5 million. But it was his involvement that made nosebleeds' rapid launch possible.
A few words are worth mentioning about another revolution brought about by Phenom. Thanks to blockchain, with a little know-how, it's now possible to see the results of absolutely any player. All financial activity related to the game is recorded: entering or leaving tables, rebuys and rebuys, rakeback, deposits, and cashouts.
The graphs in our article show results from cash games, excluding tournaments, leaderboards, and rakeback/bonuses, to provide the clearest picture possible. This approach allows for comparisons between players and a true understanding of how events unfold at the tables. All of this offers hope for the revival of another symbol of the "golden era" of high stakes poker—the open publication of results, a specialty of the legendary website HighStakesDB in the past.
While Blom once again proved to be the most prominent high-stakes player, the financial heroes of August were entirely different.
Mike Gorodinsky confirmed his status as one of the strongest mixed-game specialists. He has five WSOP bracelets and nearly two dozen final tables under his belt. At Phenom, his schedule proved to be one of the most consistent:
Johannes Becker (Pkrphenom123) plays less frequently and is much more careful in his opponent selection. He has less success at the WSOP—one bracelet in 2018—but he currently has the highest winning percentage at Phenom:
Daniel "Jungleman" Cates also made some noise: one day his stack at the table exceeded a million, but he was unable to consolidate his success – the next few sessions sent him into the red by more than $400,000.
Besides Viktor Blom, other participants in the high-stakes wars also suffered major losses.
Jared Bleznick, with his inimitable loose style, first won a million and then played several sessions against Timofey Kuznetsov and Johannes Becker. The match with the German pro caused significant damage to Jared's bankroll:
The duel with Truteller (CloakAtTheRiver) ended with a symbolic victory for Timofey and was remembered for the following dialogue:
Here are a couple of hands from their match:
$2k/$4k 8-games (Limit Holdem): Jared Bleznick: $438,004 (SB) / Trueteller: $71,977 (BB)
- Preflop:
Jared raises to $4,000, Trueteller 3bets $6,000, Jared calls- Flop:
Trueteller bets $2,000, Jared calls- Turn:
Trueteller bets $4,000, Jared raises to $8,000, Trueteller 3bets $12,000, Jared calls- River:
Trueteller bets $4,000, Jared raises to $8,000, Trueteller 3bets $12,000, Jared calls- Showdown:
Jared: (full house, nines full of aces)
Trueteller: (full house, aces full of eights)
$2k/$4k 8-games (Pot-Limit Omaha $500/$1000, 40bb CAP): Jared Bleznick: $117,840 (SB) / Trueteller: $81,683 (BB)
- Preflop:
Jared calls to $500, Trueteller raises to $4,500, Jared calls- Flop: ($10,493)
Trueteller checks, Jared bets $3,463, Trueteller calls- Turn: ($17,419)
Trueteller checks, Jared checks- River: ($17,419)
Trueteller bets $17,419, Jared raises to $31,537 (all-in), Trueteller calls- Showdown:
Jared: (set of deuces)
Trueteller: (full house, deuces full of kings)
Matthew Valeo (IceMan), owner and CEO of PhenomPoker, also had a poor showing at the new tables. Playing the biggest games cost him over $300,000. Hopefully, the rake he collected will allow him to continue investing in the development of his poker room. Chad Eveslage (fluidsolid), a Bobby's Room regular, has also struggled to adapt – his results are similar, but in his case, the experts' predictions look much more encouraging.
Elior Sion, the 2017 WSOP Players' Championship winner and renowned mixed-game specialist, also made an appearance at the high-stakes tables. Alexander Kostritsyn also returned online just this week. Let's hope his return isn't short-lived. Yuri Dzivilevsky (NRG) remains a tournament player; his cash game on Phenom has been a mixed bag, with his overall results currently slightly down.
But just like 10-15 years ago, regulars don't always start the game on their own. For the high-stakes tables to come alive, it takes wealthy amateurs willing to take risks for the thrill of it. It's their participation that turns high-stakes poker at Phenom into a full-fledged spectacle.
One such player was entrepreneur and crypto trader Jordy Alexander (pckrchp), a WSOP Razz Championship bracelet winner. For him, high-stakes play was a real challenge: coming from the crypto world, he was a welcome guest first at Bobby's Room and then at the highest stakes of Phenom. His interim results would be the envy of many professionals:
Another example is Hungarian player Bence Bodish (bzmot). His name isn't widely known, yet he was a catalyst for high-stakes action before the advent of Isildur & Co. By playing in the highest-stakes games, he managed to improve his results and post a healthy profit:
While renowned high rollers create a unique atmosphere at Phenom, it's the grinders who ensure the action remains stable. Two names stand out here.
Firstly, Tolyawa (Anatoliy Zyrin) is one of the main popularizers of limit games in the Russian-speaking world in recent years, and the room's official ambassador. Until recent sessions against the world's strongest mixed-stakes players at stakes up to $300/$600, his results looked consistent: tens of thousands of hands played and a solid positive performance (especially considering rakeback).
Here's how he described them on his Telegram channel:
Due to the growth of crypto and the token phenom, at some point I hit a bankroll peak I hadn't seen since 2019 (back then, I had three consecutive offline wins). In my excitement, I went to rewarm at high stakes and got a fair punch in the face: I lost almost six figures from the peak in a few days. 😐
But according to Truteller's advice, 100-200 is now played easily, and serenely.
Complete (Adam Owen), on the other hand, has been the most frequent rake-paying leaderboard player. Since the end of the World Series of Vegas, he's been playing virtually every day.
His earnings are a classic rollercoaster: peaks of up to $50,000 and sharp drops to almost nothing. He's currently slightly down, but his consistent play and volume, rewarded with substantial rakeback and bonuses, are likely pushing him into a healthy profit. Adam also actively attracts new players to Phenom through his social media channels and earns a decent amount through the "Refer-a-Friend" program.
The past month and a half of the most expensive games have provided enough to draw conclusions.
Top 3 by Winnings:
1) Johannes Becker +$1,050,000
2) Mike Gorodinsky +$930,000
3) Bence Bodish +$469,000
Top 3 by Losses:
1) Viktor "Isildur1" Blom – $1,500,000
2) Jared Bleznick – $635,000
3) Daniel Cates – $400,000
August was a turning point for Phenom. The launch of $500/$1k, $1k/$2k, and $2k/$4k tables took the room to a level online poker hadn't seen in years. Several factors coincided. First, a year had passed since its launch, and the room had been actively developing during that time, adding new features and improving its service almost daily (though there's always room for improvement – the site still crashes regularly; for example, waitlists have been down for two weeks now, and before that, they couldn't launch tournaments). Second, many professionals found time off after the WSOP and returned to online play.
The puzzle for mixed games has come together perfectly: there are always action lovers at various limits (and at first, Phenom even discussed the idea of paying regulars to start tables!), there's a core of in-house regulars, and the platform itself does everything possible to quickly adapt to the needs of visitors.
We remind you that GipsyTeam players have the opportunity to earn additional rakeback at Phenom Poker until October 6th .
– All GipsyTeam players who earn at least $300 rake per month participate
– Prizes are paid to the Phenom account after the end of the promotion
– The higher the rake, the higher the bonus:
- $300 rake → reward $15
- $2,000 → $100
- $10,000 → $500
- $20,000 → $1,000
If you don't have an account, message "Phenom" on our Telegram @gipsyteamsocial2 , where we'll help you create one and answer all your questions about the room. You can play with more than just Isildur!
- Increased rakeback and personal bonuses
- Help with deposits and cashouts
- Access to mobile applications
- Solving problems with accounts
- Technical support
- Questions about the site and forum
