How Will WSOP Solve the Case with the Winner Accused of RTA Use?
The issue of Real-Time Assistance (RTA) in poker is back in the news. There was much controversy in poker circles when it emerged that the 2024 World Series of Poker Main Event winner, Jonathan Tamayo, received help from sideline associates using poker software to run simulations and relay if he had played previous hands correctly during the final table of the $94 million competition.
Will a WSOP online poker player have his account funds seized?
Despite what appeared to be a clear breach of Item 64 of the World Series of Poker 2024 rules, Tamayo was allowed to keep his $10 million winner’s prize. However, his antics seem to have opened a can of worms, which live and online poker operators are now keen to put a lid on.
Whistle-Blowers Make the Case for Ruscitti RTA Breach
At the weekend, WSOP Online, an online poker room restricted to players aged 21-plus and based in a handful of US states – such as Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania – took to X (formerly Twitter) to outline its terms of service, policies and operating procedures.
The site was seemingly reacting to the news one of its customers, Kevin Ruscitti, playing under the alias ‘GR4ND_THEFT’ – has had his account suspended following allegations that he was using ‘real-time assistance’ (RTA) in the form of a poker solver. Days earlier, Ruscitti won a major online tournament worth $38,341.
Disgruntled Michigan-based online poker players have worked hard to expose what they believe are Ruscitti’s wrongdoings. According to SpadePoker, “They began the months-long job of verifying that Kevin was indeed using RTAs in his play. Only when they had enough information did they contact the WSOP with their findings.” One, Mario Arribas, also presented the findings on the X social network.
Ever play against GR4ND_THEFT on @WSOPcom? The reigning @WSOPcom Player of the Year and recent online bracelet winner Kevin Ruscitti’s account was suspended, almost certainly due to his failing numerous GTO Wizard fair play checks. Hope @WSOPcom / @WSOP / @GGPoker does the right… pic.twitter.com/i0tgYVKkTc
— Mario Arribas (@MarioPartyPoker) October 22, 2024
Star’s Say Zero-Tolerance? WSOP Saying Nothing Yet
At the beginning of 2024, PokerStars Casino and online poker room described RTA as a “persistent problem”. It declared, “We’ve been successfully identifying and removing bots from our ecosystem for almost 20 years.”
The same PokerStars blog stated: “Our proactive detection rate is more than 95 per cent. Less than five per cent of accounts closed this year were first identified by our players. It is fair to say we take a zero-tolerance policy on Real Time Assistance use.”
WSOP Online did not use such stern speech in its most recent, October 26, X posting but did state it “discloses few specifics on security protocols designed to prevent, identify and address breaches of fair play.”
It also said its standard operating procedures include “software which identifies the running of scripts, RTA’s and similar programs” and a “cross reference of available RTA tools for matching hands [played] on WSOP Online.”
Will Kevin ‘GR4ND_THEFT’ Ruscitti be allowed to keep his recent winnings – and any additional funds in his account – if WSOP Online discover he has used a poker solver to aid in his gameplay? Given operators’ tough stance on the relatively new enemy of RTA software, it has to be considered very unlikely.
