Texas’s Jonathan Tamayo clinched victory at the 2024 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, securing a $10,000,000 top prize. However, this win has started a heated argument among the poker community and social media.
Since Tamayo’s win, the poker community has been abuzz with debate over his decision to consult friends and their laptop during the final table of the Main Event. Although the rules allow the usage of solvers and receiving real-time advice, it is worth noting that the public has a negative perception of such behavior.
In an interview with PokerOrg, Jonathan Tamayo discussed his friendship with the Main Event Champion Joe McKeehen and the ongoing laptop controversy.
Jonathan Tamayo’s main event journey started in 2009. In that year, Tamayo made a deep run but failed to reach the final table, ultimately finishing in 21st place and earning $352,000 in the $10k WSOP Main Event.
In 2015, Tamayo was part of the team that helped Joe McKeehen prepare for the WSOP Main Event. Reflecting on that time, Tamayo said, “Joe’s was a lot easier than mine.” McKeehen ultimately won the 2015 Main Event, earning the top prize of $7,683,346.
Back then, the Main Event final table used to take place in November, giving players months to prepare for the final table showdown.
Nowadays, players only get a single day off to prepare for the final table showdown. “You kind of plug the big leaks and don’t worry about the small ones. Whatever happens, happens. You’re not going to fix everything in a day,” Tamayo added.
While having a Main Event on your side is a dream for several players, McKeehen wasn’t very positive about it. According to McKeehen, ‘The Main Event is an impossible tournament to win. You don’t expect to win the main event.’
Speaking up about the laptop controversy, Tamayo commented, “That stuff wasn’t under my control.” Tamayo didn’t tell McKeehen and Nitsche to bring anything. They were just there to give him advice. “My job was to play. You have to be pretty narrow-minded when you’re playing.”
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He further said, “Whatever they [WSOP] decide, I will go with it. Several times, players tell operators what they want, operators listen, and all hell breaks loose because it wasn’t a well-thought out idea.”
Tamayo said that he doesn’t have any idea what needs to happen in situations like this, so he will just leave this matter to WSOP, as people that run tournaments know a lot more about what’s going on.
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