It was another fun week over at the Hustler Casino, which gave us several great nights of poker to watch in real time.
Blank Check Ben was back in action on Friday, locking horns with Mariano, as both tried to assert their dominance over the game.
Friendly banter, big pots, and a few crazy plays from Ben and Big Mike marked the week, as Mariano looked to profit on all the action.
Thursday night saw some serious PLO action play out on HCL as well, with Jonny English running the show and walking away with a six-figure win.
If you missed this week’s streams, keep reading and get the full scoop on some of the biggest pots and best moments.
Blank Check Ben Isn’t Buying What Mariano’s Selling
Ever since his return to Hustler Casino Live, Blank Check Ben has seemingly been playing even wilder than before, often making the kinds of plays we wouldn’t expect even from him.
In this Friday’s episode, he seemed especially frustrated with Mariano, whose aggressive playing style makes it difficult for players like Ben to see many flops.
When Big Mike opened with his 9♦6♦, Mariano set the trap with A♣K♠, and Ben willingly walked into it, re-raising to $3,800 with nothing but 8♥2♦.
Mike managed to find a fold, and Mariano expectedly re-raised once again, making it $14k to go this time. This should have been the end of the hand, but it wasn’t, as Ben simply didn’t believe Mariano.
With a hand too weak to call and go to a flop, Ben decided to put Mariano to the test right now, moving all-in for $84k effective. This bet got snap-called by Mariano, whose AK was simply too strong to fold.
Ben bemoaned his luck, as he seemed to believe Mariano was often full of it in this spot, which may be true. This time around, however, the Argentine poker vlogger had the goods.
The players decided to run it twice, which meant Ben could still find some salvation, but reload chips were ready in his hand should they be needed.
The first board ran out 10♦J♣2♣7♣Q♠, giving Mariano a straight and securing the first half of the pot.
The second flop brought J♠8♣9♣, which once again improved Ben’s hand to a pair. The turn 9♥ and the river Q♥ failed to improve Mariano’s hand, so he would have to contend with a chop and a tiny $300 win this time around.
Despite this hand, it was Mariano’s night on Friday, as he won in excess of $150k, while Ben ended up dropping about $35k, which was a modest loss considering the kinds of plays he was going for.
Big Mike Goes for a Big Call
Big Mike has been one of Hustler Casino Live’s most action-oriented players for a long time now, so this Friday he decided to make sure no one forgot he’s capable of making a big play in any spot.
The hand started with Blank Check Ben opening it up to $500 holding 10♦7♥, and both Anastasia with 10♣8♣ and Big Mike with A♥2♥ coming along for the ride.
When action got to Mariano, who was holding J♠9♠, he went for a 3-bet to $3,500 in the hopes of thinning out the field. While Anastasia got out of the way, the other two made the call and went to the flop.
The flop was a dream for Mariano, as J♦9♦2♣ gave him top two pair. He decided not to fire a c-bet, and the action checked around.
The turn card was the 4♠, and this time Mariano bet out for $11,500, approximately the size of the pot. Ben took some time to fold his hand, but only because he didn’t realize action was on him, while Big Mike made the call with his bottom pair.
Mariano has been bluffing all night long… will Mike call with just BOTTOM PAIR?! 😳 https://t.co/w1mrsT2qTR
— Hustler Casino Live (@HCLPokerShow) October 10, 2026
When the river paired the board, as the 9♥ appeared, Mariano knew he had the best of it, and was always going to go for max value.
He moved all-in, which meant Mike would have to commit his entire $44k stack if he wanted to see a showdown.
It was a tough decision, as many potential draws Mariano could have had missed, but Big Mike made it look easy, as he snap-called with nothing but a pair of Deuces.
He quickly got the bad news, as Mariano had almost the best possible hand in this scenario, while his Deuce could not even beat a single pair.
This hand, combined with a 60% VPIP on the night, led to Big Mike dropping almost $100k in a relatively timid game, while Mariano topped the charts with a $158k win.
Tomer and Jonny English Get Into an Omaha Cooler
Thursday night was Omaha night on Hustler Casino Live, as a group of players came together for some high-stakes PLO, which always means lots of action.
One particularly big pot started with Levon raising to $1,000 over a top of a few $200 limps, holding A♥K♠4♥2♠. Jonny English was next to act with a beautiful 10♣9♦8♥7♦ for a full rundown, so he made the call.
Tomer had a relatively disjointed A♠J♦9♣9♥ but came along anyway, and Henry closed the action with a call of his own.
The board brought 10♠9♠10♦, giving both Tomer and Jonny full houses. Little did he know it, but Tomer’s full house was drawing dead, as there was no card he could hit to improve.
Despite that, Tomer led out for $4k into a $5k pot, which got rid of everyone but Jonny, who made a sneaky call.
The turn card was the Q♠, which meant there were now a few hands Jonny could lose to, but when Tomer bet $13k, it was music to Jonny’s ears.
He moved all-in for just under $33k, got a quick call from his opponent, and could start counting the chips, as Tomer had no outs.
Spots where your opponent is drawing dead on the turn don’t come up too much in PLO, so this was a very fun scoop for Jonny English, who ended up taking home more than $113k after absolutely dominating the table.
Despite this loss, Tomer only lost $6k in the game, while the likes of Evan, Henry, Dr. H, and Martin all lost five figures over the course of the game.
