Card Sharps in Poker: Famous Names and Master Techniques

To consistently grind a profit in poker, you need a high level of skill. Hundreds of hours of study and practice will secure an edge over your opponents. However, not everyone is prepared to systematically work on their game. Many players choose a simpler, more dishonest route. Let's discuss card sharps of the past and present, as well as the methods used to combat them.

Key Facts About Poker Frauds

• A card sharp is a professional crook in the world of card games, making their living by deceiving opponents. 

• Cheating techniques include: marking the deck, false shuffling cards, collusion with other players, and using technical devices.

• The golden era of card-sharping was the mid-19th century. Swindlers raked in maximum profits on Mississippi steamboats, in Wild West saloons, and across European casinos.

• History's most famous sharps include: George Devol, Canada Bill Jones, Doc Holliday, and Wyatt Earp.

• Card cheats didn't disappear with the advent of online poker. Among modern players, notorious reputations have been earned by: Russ Hamilton, Mike Postle, Ali Imsirovic, Bryn Kenney, and Phil Ivey.

• 21st-century frauds utilise: bots, RTA, ghosting, multi-accounting, chip dumping, and superuser accounts.

Who Are Card Sharps? 

A card sharp is a professional cheat in card games. They make their living through sleight of hand, technical aids, and colluding with accomplices. For instance, they might mark card backs in advance to know an opponent's exact holding and manipulate the action. The Russian term "shuler" (card sharp) was imported from Poland in the mid-18th century. The roots of the Polish "szuler" trace back to the German card game "scholler". 

Two hundred years ago, a card sharp could end up shot dead at the table. In modern times, cheats have their winnings confiscated and their names blacklisted.

An honest player builds an edge through constant self-improvement. A cheat bets on forbidden techniques. If a poker player accidentally spots an opponent's card and exploits that information, they aren't considered a sharp. A true cheat systematically breaks the rules to gain an unfair advantage—like buying or manufacturing infrared glasses to see through the deck.

The laws of most countries treat card-sharping as outright fraud. If a cheat is caught in the act at a live venue, security will:

• confiscate their winnings;

• escort the offender off the premises;

• blacklist them, banning them from the casino permanently.

In cases of severe violations, venue staff will summon the police and hand the fraudster over to law enforcement.

In online poker, the punishment is typically milder. Poker rooms usually ban the account and confiscate the bankroll. It rarely escalates to fines or prison time.

The Mississippi Steamboat Era (1830s–1880s): The Golden Age of American Card Sharps

In the 19th century, steamboats were crucial for travel between cities. River transport connected the largest US settlements: St. Louis, Memphis, and New Orleans. Wealthy Americans travelled on these vessels: cotton plantation owners, merchants, cargo shippers, and adventurers. Card games became a popular leisure activity during the journeys. 

Steamboat passengers played: five-card draw, faro, euchre, and blackjack. Card tables ran around the clock. Travellers fell into a trap—physically unable to leave the game for days. Before long, these closed circles of wealthy passengers attracted grifters like George Devol and Bill Jones.

George Devol

Over a 40-year "career", he won around $2,000,000. Adjusted for inflation, his winnings would exceed $75,000,000 today. In 1839, ten-year-old George ran away from home and got a job on the steamboat "Wacousta" earning $4 a month. On the job, the boy watched elegant professional players and decided to follow in their footsteps. By age 14, Devol could false-shuffle a deck in seconds, and by 16, he had won $2,700 during the Mexican-American War—fleecing soldiers of their money.

Wealthy passengers and 24/7 games acted as a magnet for card sharps.

George was famous for his cold pragmatism and indifference to his victims. He regarded honest players as "suckers" and had no qualms about taking winnings in the form of slaves, whom he "cashed out" at $1,000 per person. By 1860, Devol's fortunes began to decline. Two factors worked against him: 

1. The American Civil War;

2. His growing notoriety.

Consequently, George swapped steamboats for trains. "Doing business" in carriages proved tougher. Hunting for marks took more time and effort, and often didn't pay off, as wealthy people rarely travelled by rail. After retiring, Devol wrote his autobiography, "Forty Years a Gambler on the Mississippi", which remains a key historical record of the golden age of card cheats. George died in 1903, spending his final years in poverty.

Canada Bill Jones

William "Canada Bill" Jones also secured his place in cheating history. If George Devol was famous for record profits, Jones was remembered as a genius actor. Canada Bill was a master at playing the country bumpkin. He wore oversized clothes, spoke in a squeaky voice, and asked foolish questions. William projected the image of easy prey, attracting players effortlessly. 

Jones was born in Yorkshire, England, but moved to Canada in 1860. Soon after, he made his way to the Mississippi and partnered up with George Devol. At the peak of his career, Canada Bill made up to $150,000 a year. His main source of income was a simple street game—Three-Card Monte. The setup is simple:

• The dealer shuffles 3 cards and invites players to find the A♠️;

• Accomplices take turns guessing correctly, staging easy wins;

• The mark falls for the trap and joins the action;

• The dealer palming the target card rakes in the mark's cash.

Huge earnings didn't save William from a destitute end. Jones lost all his ill-gotten gains playing in other card games.

How the Golden Age Ended

The era of Mississippi sharps was brought to a close by the railroads. By the end of the 19th century, passengers abandoned steamboats in favour of trains, which squeezed out the competition. George Devol and other cheats shifted to trains but failed to replicate their success. Rail travel didn't offer the right conditions, and the crowd was different—wealthy passengers rarely took trains. The aftermath of the Civil War also took its toll; post-war economies rarely foster flush victims. 

The Wild West and Saloons (1860–1900): Cheating as Part of the Legend

Card games weren't confined to Mississippi steamboats. In the 19th century, Americans conquered the Wild West, driving toward the Pacific coast. Along the way, settlers built new towns. The central hub of any classic Wild West settlement was the saloon, combining a bar, a hotel, and a casino. 

Gaming tables attracted cowboys, soldiers, prospectors, trappers, and cheats alike.

Saloon patrons preferred five-card draw, faro, and monte. Famous gunslingers and adventurers also played in these saloons: Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, and Bat Masterson.

Doc Holliday

Doc Holliday received a classic education and qualified as a dentist. A promising medical career was cut short by a grim diagnosis: the young doctor had tuberculosis. In the mid-19th century, the disease was untreatable. In search of a dry, warm climate, Holliday headed west. He began to make a living by gambling. An analytical mind, solid education, and the inability to practice dentistry made him the ultimate professional gambler. 

Doc Holliday became close friends with another poker enthusiast and historic figure—Wyatt Earp. In 1878, Holliday saved Earp's life in a gunfight. Doc's character has been regularly featured in Westerns, even inspiring the creators of one of the best-selling games in history, Red Dead Redemption 2.

Wyatt Earp: The Sharp with a Marshal's Badge

Wyatt Earp lived a long and controversial life. Official history paints him as a legendary lawman and gunslinger. In reality, Wyatt gambled professionally, owned saloons, and had a highly questionable reputation. He knew games inside out, frequently acting as a dealer and house operator. The most famous episode of Earp's life is the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Hollywood romanticises the battle, but the clash with the Clanton gang was more of a classic ambush. 

Wyatt's clean image is tarnished by his dark dealings at the card table. The marshal regularly rigged the deck in faro and was arrested for cheating in Los Angeles. Running saloons and hosting games allowed Earp to consistently turn a profit through shady methods. Wyatt died at 81, and unlike most of his peers, he finished his life as a wealthy man.  

Bat Masterson: From Gunslinger to New York Journalist

Bat Masterson's CV included stints as a buffalo hunter, army scout, sheriff, and sports writer. Poker also held a special place in his life. Masterson lived by a strict code of honour and tried to remain an honest man—a rare trait in the Wild West. 

Bat made his living from gambling and was considered an expert in poker and faro. At the table, Masterson stuck to his principles and refused to resort to cheating. The only suspicious incident of his gaming career occurred in 1902, when he was arrested in New York on charges of running a rigged game. The charges were later dropped because the plaintiff left town and failed to appear in court. 

Execution for Collusion

In modern casinos, cheats are escorted out and blacklisted. The Wild West operated under a different brand of justice. If a cheat was caught with a marked deck or cards up their sleeve, they could be hanged right in the saloon. Thus, only the bravest, most desperate, or foolish chose the path of a cheat. Some players met their demise at the table without even breaking any rules. 

James "Wild Bill" Hickok was shot dead mid-hand. His death gave rise to the legendary "Dead Man's Hand".

The Old World — European Casinos and Aristocratic Cheats of the 19th Century

In Europe, players preferred baccarat and other card games, and the cheats differed from their American counterparts. In the Old World, gambling attracted the wealthy and the aristocracy. If a player was caught cheating, they weren't lynched in the casino; they were challenged to a duel. A sharp was seen not merely as a rule-breaker, but as a criminal threatening the social order.& />

Three gambling hubs competed for global supremacy:

• Baden-Baden. Flourished after casinos were banned in France. Russian literary giants Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky played at the local tables. 

• Monte Carlo. The gambling capital of the 19th century. Massive casino revenues allowed the principality to abolish direct taxation for its citizens.

• Homburg. The first project of François Blanc, the famous casino architect and operator. The German town attracted the global elite. Success in Homburg earned Blanc an invitation to Monte Carlo, where he became world-famous.

The most high-profile card-cheating scandal occurred in Great Britain in 1890.

The Royal Baccarat Scandal

In September 1890, Sir William Gordon-Cumming, a lieutenant colonel in the Scots Guards, was accused of cheating during a game of baccarat. Alongside him at the table was his long-time friend and future king, Edward VII. To avoid public disgrace, William was forced to sign a declaration promising never to play cards again in exchange for the silence of those present. However, the secret leaked, and the officer sued for slander. Even the Prince of Wales was called to testify, marking the first time in 500 years a British heir to the throne gave evidence in court.

The court found Sir William guilty. He was dismissed from the army and ostracised by high society. He wasn't lynched, but it was a devastating result nonetheless. 

Cheats of the Russian Empire

Gambling also flourished in the Russian Empire. Every Russian monarch tried to crack down on cards, with each issuing decrees banning games of chance. Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was the first to act; the Law Code of 1649 declared gambling a serious crime, and offenders were branded with hot irons. Later, card games were banned by Peter I, Catherine II, Alexander I, and Nicholas I. Yet, none succeeded in stamping out the vice.

Among the Russian Empire's most famous sharps were:

• Baron Geramb. Gained notoriety during the reign of Catherine II. The cheat dressed flamboyantly, wrote poetry in Latin, and travelled by dog-sled. Contemporaries described Baron Geramb as the slickest sharp of his era, leaving his opponents stripped "down to their last shirt".

• The Zanovich Brothers. Began their cheating careers in Europe. In 1770, the brothers met a wealthy Englishman and invited him to a game, fleecing him for around £90,000. They later moved to Venice but were quickly jailed. After escaping, they fled to Russia. In the Empire, the Zanoviches continued their card scams but became even more famous for counterfeiting 700,000 roubles.

Organised rings of cheats also operated in Russia. For instance, Nikolai Gogol wrote his famous play "The Gamblers" based on real-life accounts of card sharps.  

Cheating Techniques of the Past

To secure their profits, cheats had to be incredibly inventive. They deployed false shuffles, marked decks, mechanical devices, and collusion. Let's break down these techniques. 

Sleight of hand is a card sharp's ultimate weapon, but cheats also adopted the latest scientific advancements.

Marking. The oldest and most common form of deception. The cheat made subtle marks on the back of cards to identify rank and suit. Techniques varied:

• Pegging. Tiny pinpricks or fingernail marks on the card borders, visible only under certain angles or when light passed through.

• Crimping. Intentionally bending the card paper. An experienced cheat could feel the tiny crease during a shuffle.

In the 20th century, the technique evolved with the use of ultraviolet ink, visible only under special lighting, remaining completely invisible to the naked eye. Later, cheats escalated this by using contact lenses to spot the marks without extra table equipment.

False Shuffling. The cheat simulates shuffling cards while preserving a prearranged order in the deck. To a casual observer, the shuffle looks perfectly clean, with cards flying smoothly. Other deck-handling manipulations include:

• Second Dealing. The dealer slickly deals the second card from the top instead of the top card, keeping the top card for themselves. 

• Bottom Dealing. Dealing cards from the bottom of the deck, allowing the dealer to control the action exactly as planned. 

The Holdout. A mechanical device designed for cheating. The holdout was rigged to a sleeve or a belt under a vest. A system of springs, levers, and clips allowed the cheat to retrieve or hide a card at the perfect moment. For example, if a player in a game of draw poker held four hearts, the holdout could supply the fifth to lock up the flush. The first designs of these mechanical poker prosthetics were recorded in the 1880s.

Palming. A technique where a card is concealed in the palm of the hand. The card leaves the deck and is reintroduced when needed. This move was often combined with false shuffles. The sharp secretly stole a card to present it at showdown. Palming was invented back in the early 18th century.  

The Cold Deck (Cooler). A sharp prepared a pre-shuffled deck in advance with stacked hands. At the right moment, they swapped it with the active deck. This worked perfectly in games like faro or baccarat where cards weren't shuffled after every hand. The setup guaranteed the dealer a monster hand, but also gave the opponent a strong second-best hand, ensuring they loaded up the pot and lost more. 

Over time, the term "cooler" evolved. Today, it describes an unavoidable setup where two players catch such strong hands that neither can escape the action—like AA versus KK pre-flop in a NL Hold'em blind battle. 

How Online Poker Cheats Operate

Technological advances have made cheating in live casinos incredibly difficult. Hundreds of cameras and security personnel track every move. Cards are shuffled by state-of-the-art machines, and casinos share blacklists. However, this tech boom birthed online poker, and card sharps quickly adapted. Let's look at the most common forms of modern cheating.

Collusion. Team play violates the fundamental rules of poker, yet players still try to beat the system. Cheats join the same table and share hole card information. This extra data gives them a massive advantage. In September 2021, GGPoker banned Ali Imsirovic and Jake Schindler for collusion, returning $1,160,000 in confiscated funds to affected players. 

With nearly 100 WSOP bracelets awarded every year, a piece of gold hardware is nothing new. An outright dump job on a live stream, however, is unforgettable.

Scandals also hit live tournaments. One shocking example was the HU battle at the WSOP-2025 between Yaginuma and Carroll. Yaginuma stood to win a $1,000,000 bonus for securing the bracelet. Carroll held a massive 9:1 chip lead at the start, but surrendered it through bizarre limps and folds. Yaginuma won, but organizers launched an investigation and voided the results of the tournament. 

While players weren't officially charged with a crime, both received lifetime bans from the WSOP and Caesars properties. Industry media almost unanimously labeled the match the most barefaced collusion effort in poker history.

Multi-Accounting. A player sets up multiple accounts to play in the same tournament simultaneously, artificially boosting their odds. The biggest scandal occurred in 2007 when PokerStars disqualified the WCOOP Main Event winner playing under the alias "TheV0id". The champion was stripped of the title and the $1,228,330 prize after a PS investigation confirmed the account was part of a multi-accounting scheme. 

Ghosting. This happens when a weak player reaches a major final table and lets a professional take over their screen. Room rules strictly forbid ghosting; only the account owner is permitted to play. One high-profile case involved Ivan Deyra on Winamax Poker. In 2021, he won €78,000 using his father's account. This blatant breach of terms forced Winamax to terminate his ambassador contract.

Bots. The single biggest threat to online poker. These are algorithms playing under the guise of humans. AI gets stronger by the day, and bot scandals erupt regularly. In 2026, professional poker player Martin Zamani posted a 30-second clip showing a setup with 25 computers running bot software 24/7 on Ignition Poker. In January 2024, an investigation by TylerRM exposed a massive bot ring running rampant in Winning Poker Network tournaments.

RTA (Real-Time Assistance). Solvers created a brand-new threat. Programmes like GTO Wizard advise players in real-time. Cheats input hand details on the fly to get instant, optimal decisions. GGPoker banned Bryn Kenney and forty other players for using RTA. Kenney is a poker legend and the world's all-time money leader. As of June 2026, his career earnings stood at $85,234,888. Banning such a high-profile figure and former brand ambassador required ironclad evidence. 

Ali Imsirovic went from being crowned Player of the Year to being branded as one of the game's biggest pariahs.

Superusers. To debug software, developers create administrative master accounts. Some of these accounts allow users to view opponents' hole cards in real-time. Unsurprisingly, some rogue staff couldn't resist exploiting this ultimate edge. 

In 2008, UltimateBet players noticed impossible win rates from several accounts, notably "NioNio", who won over $600,000 in just 64 hours by making uncanny folds and raises. While UB initially denied the claims, they eventually admitted to the superuser scandal and paid a $1,500,000 fine. In total, 23 accounts were involved in the scam. The scandal devastated player trust, causing a massive exodus, and the site eventually shut down.

GGPoker demonstrated how to handle cheats swiftly. In December 2023, a 2+2 forum member flagged account "MoneyTaker69", who boasted an absurd win rate with 53/17 stats. An investigation confirmed that MoneyTaker69 had exploited a client vulnerability to see his exact equity at any point in a hand. GGPoker promptly banned the user, confiscated his bankroll, and redistributed the funds to the victims.

Top 5 Most Notorious Cheats of the Modern Era

While George Devol and Bill Jones dominated the 19th century, modern poker has seen its own share of high-profile villains: Russ Hamilton, Mike Postle, Ali Imsirovic, Bryn Kenney, and Phil Ivey.

Russ Hamilton. The 1994 WSOP Main Event champion, UltimateBet consultant, and the mastermind behind the superuser scandal. He directed developers to build backdoors, using them to make millions. Hamilton avoided jail time due to the grey-market status of online poker in the US at the time. 

Mike Postle. This mediocre pro posted god-like win rates on the Stones Gambling Hall live stream. The peak of his suspicious play was folding pocket kings pre-flop when one player limped and another isolated. Mike acted as if he knew the active player had pocket aces. Folding KK on stream triggered immediate scrutiny. Viewers analysed past broadcasts and noticed Postle constantly staring at his phone, which he kept in his lap. He later filed a $330,000,000 defamation lawsuit, but the case was dismissed by the court. 

Kenney faced massive allegations, but evaded severe penalties and continues to play high-stakes poker.

Ali Imsirovic. This rising star managed to collect a royal flush of accusations. In 2022, Ali faced claims of multi-accounting, ghosting, RTA use, and collusion. GGPoker banned him first, seizing $320,000 in funds. Live tournament operators and casinos soon followed suit, issuing indefinite bans. Alongside Imsirovic, Jake Schindler—a WSOP champion with $36,000,000 in career earnings—was also blacklisted.

Bryn Kenney. In 2022, Kenney was accused of collusion, multi-accounting, RTA use, and running a cult-like stable. Lauren Roberts, a high-stakes player backed by Bryn, confirmed the allegations. Professionally, Kenney admitted only to minor infractions, such as coaching stable members mid-tournament. While his reputation took a severe hit, he was not blacklisted. He continues to play the highest stakes and remains at the top of the all-time money list. 

Real-Time Assistance remains a massive threat to the integrity of online games. To combat this, poker rooms and solver developers are joining forces.

Phil Ivey. The ten-time WSOP bracelet winner used "edge-sorting" to beat baccarat games. In 2012, Ivey won $22,000,000 across two casinos: Crockfords and Borgata. Ivey noticed printing defects on card backs and used them to identify card values. Knowing what card was coming next gave him a massive edge. The casinos refused to pay and sued for fraud. After years of litigation, courts ruled in favour of the casinos.

How Rooms and Casinos Fight Back

Venues and sites are working hard to protect the game. Live casinos deploy security teams backed by overhead cameras tracking every table. Routine dealer rotatations every 30 minutes and burning the top card prevent sleight of hand. Casinos also use RFID-enabled chips to track chips on the floor. At the WSOP, a 30-minute stream delay prevents players from receiving outside information during hands.

Typically, online poker players are targeted by scammers off the tables, losing funds through phishing links and other social engineering traps. 

Online rooms deploy advanced measures to combat cheats, including:

• Proprietary Security Clients. The poker client scans active processes for blacklisted software. For example, PokerStars forces Flopzilla to close when the client is running. Rooms also track VPN usage, mouse movements, and transaction patterns. If a player who typically deposits $50 suddenly loads up $5,000, the system flags the transaction for manually review.

• Transparency Reports. Some rooms have faced criticism for staying silent on their security efforts. Today, many platforms publish regular reports detailing banned accounts and seized funds. Partypoker and Pokerstars lead the way; in April 2025, partypoker banned 291 accounts and confiscated $71,771.

• Solver Partnerships. Solvers like GTO Wizard are a double-edged sword: they help players study but empower RTA cheats. To stop this, rooms and solver developers share database logs. In 2025, GTO Wizard helped GGPoker identify and ban 31 RTA users.

• Player Collusion Busts. Many of the biggest botting and superuser rings were uncovered by players analysing hands, finding statistical anomalies, and posting their findings. Platforms react to the public outcry, investigate, and take action—just like in the UltimateBet and GGPoker superuser scandals. 

Regulatory bodies also monitor security. Licensing commissions in Malta, Gibraltar, and the UK audit generator software and publish the results. Independent labs test random number generators (RNG) and issue compliance certificates. For example, PokerKing features an official compliance audit by iTech Labs on its homepage.

Player Security — 5 Key Rules for Safety

Protecting your bankroll requires vigilance. In live games, track your chips and keep your eyes off your phone. Some pros photograph their chips at every break to provide evidence in case of a dispute. For online players, we recommend the following rules:

• Play on Licensed Sites Only. Check the footer of the site for licence and registration details. For instance, RedStar Poker is owned by RSP Entertainment group and operates under Curaçao licence OGL/2024/168/0127. Trust matters; PokerStars, with 25 years in the game, is infinitely more secure than a skin like Pinco Poker.

• Never Share Your Account. Most rooms strictly prohibit sharing accounts. Doing so will lead to a permanent ban and the confiscation of your funds.

• Avoid Illegal Software. If a site bans HUDs or hand converters, don't use them. The extra HUD stats are not worth risking your entire bankroll. The same applies to RTA and bots.

• Report Suspicious Activity. If you spot weird play patterns, take notes. Build a profile and send it to support. If they ignore, take it to the forums. Proving collusion is tough, but public pressure works.

• Secure Your Accounts. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) and use strong, unique passwords. Most hacks happen because of weak passwords or shared emails, not state-of-the-art hacking. Never use the same password for your poker account and your email.

Follow basic cyber safety. Check the address bar to ensure you are on the official site domain, and never click suspicious links sent via Telegram or other messaging apps.

How to Master the Game

You don't need to cheat to make money in poker; top professionals make millions purely through masterclass play. Reaching that level, however, requires serious study. You need books, training videos, software, stable hand reviews, and coaching. Navigating this on your own can take years. FunFarm is designed to fast-track your progression.

Hone your theoretical knowledge in real-game simulator scenarios.

For beginners, we feature the FF Start course. Over 30 lessons, you will build a rock-solid foundation, culminating in a final exam. Graduates are invited to join FF Player's Path. This advanced track is designed to turn you into a professional, getting you out of the micro-stakes to target a solid monthly income of $1,200. Consistent profits require skill; hundreds of hours of study and practice will secure your edge. But for those unwilling to do the work, there is always a darker path. Let's look at the history of card-sharping, how sharps operate, and the systems used to shut them down.

Key Facts About Poker Frauds

• A card sharp is a professional crook in the world of card games, making their living by deceiving opponents. 

• Cheating techniques include: marking the deck, false shuffling cards, collusion with other players, and using technical devices.

• The golden era of card-sharping was the mid-19th century. Swindlers raked in maximum profits on Mississippi steamboats, in Wild West saloons, and across European casinos.

• History's most famous sharps include: George Devol, Canada Bill Jones, Doc Holliday, and Wyatt Earp.

• Card cheats didn't disappear with the advent of online poker. Among modern players, notorious reputations have been earned by: Russ Hamilton, Mike Postle, Ali Imsirovic, Bryn Kenney, and Phil Ivey.

• 21st-century frauds utilise: bots, RTA, ghosting, multi-accounting, chip dumping, and superuser accounts.

Who Are Card Sharps? 

A card sharp is a professional cheat in card games. They make their living through sleight of hand, technical aids, and colluding with accomplices. For instance, they might mark card backs in advance to know an opponent's exact holding and manipulate the action. The Russian term "shuler" (card sharp) was imported from Poland in the mid-18th century. The roots of the Polish "szuler" trace back to the German card game "scholler". 

Two hundred years ago, a card sharp could end up shot dead at the table. In modern times, cheats have their winnings confiscated and their names blacklisted.

An honest player builds an edge through constant self-improvement. A cheat bets on forbidden techniques. If a poker player accidentally spots an opponent's card and exploits that information, they aren't considered a sharp. A true cheat systematically breaks the rules to gain an unfair advantage—like buying or manufacturing infrared glasses to see through the deck.

The laws of most countries treat card-sharping as outright fraud. If a cheat is caught in the act at a live venue, security will:

• confiscate their winnings;

• escort the offender off the premises;

• blacklist them, banning them from the casino permanently.

In cases of severe violations, venue staff will summon the police and hand the fraudster over to law enforcement.

In online poker, the punishment is typically milder. Poker rooms usually ban the account and confiscate the bankroll. It rarely escalates to fines or prison time.

The Mississippi Steamboat Era (1830s–1880s): The Golden Age of American Card Sharps

In the 19th century, steamboats were crucial for travel between cities. River transport connected the largest US settlements: St. Louis, Memphis, and New Orleans. Wealthy Americans travelled on these vessels: cotton plantation owners, merchants, cargo shippers, and adventurers. Card games became a popular leisure activity during the journeys. 

Steamboat passengers played: five-card draw, faro, euchre, and blackjack. Card tables ran around the clock. Travellers fell into a trap—physically unable to leave the game for days. Before long, these closed circles of wealthy passengers attracted grifters like George Devol and Bill Jones.

George Devol

Over a 40-year "career", he won around $2,000,000. Adjusted for inflation, his winnings would exceed $75,000,000 today. In 1839, ten-year-old George ran away from home and got a job on the steamboat "Wacousta" earning $4 a month. On the job, the boy watched elegant professional players and decided to follow in their footsteps. By age 14, Devol could false-shuffle a deck in seconds, and by 16, he had won $2,700 during the Mexican-American War—fleecing soldiers of their money.

Wealthy passengers and 24/7 games acted as a magnet for card sharps.

George was famous for his cold pragmatism and indifference to his victims. He regarded honest players as "suckers" and had no qualms about taking winnings in the form of slaves, whom he "cashed out" at $1,000 per person. By 1860, Devol's fortunes began to decline. Two factors worked against him: 

1. The American Civil War;

2. His growing notoriety.

In reality, George swapped steamboats for trains. "Doing business" in carriages proved tougher. Hunting for marks took more time and effort, and often didn't pay off, as wealthy people rarely travelled by rail. After retiring, Devol wrote his autobiography, "Forty Years a Gambler on the Mississippi", which remains a key historical record of the golden age of card cheats. George died in 1903, spending his final years in poverty.

Canada Bill Jones

William "Canada Bill" Jones also secured his place in cheating history. If George Devol was famous for record profits, Jones was remembered as a genius actor. Canada Bill was a master at playing the country bumpkin. He wore oversized clothes, spoke in a squeaky voice, and asked foolish questions. William projected the image of easy prey, attracting players effortlessly. 

Jones was born in Yorkshire, England, but moved to Canada in 1860. Soon after, he made his way to the Mississippi and partnered up with George Devol. At the peak of his career, Canada Bill made up to $150,000 a year. His main source of income was a simple street game—Three-Card Monte. The setup is simple:

• The dealer shuffles 3 cards and invites players to find the A♠️;

• Accomplices take turns guessing correctly, staging easy wins;

• The mark falls for the trap and joins the action;

• The dealer palming the target card rakes in the mark's cash.

Huge earnings didn't save William from a destitute end. Jones lost all his ill-gotten gains playing in other card games.

How the Golden Age Ended

The era of Mississippi sharps was brought to a close by the railroads. By the end of the 19th century, passengers abandoned steamboats in favour of trains, which squeezed out the competition. George Devol and other cheats shifted to trains but failed to replicate their success. Rail travel didn't offer the right conditions, and the crowd was different—wealthy passengers rarely took trains. The aftermath of the Civil War also took its role; post-war economies rarely foster flush victims. 

The Wild West and Saloons (1860–1900): Cheating as Part of the Legend

Card games weren't confined to Mississippi steamboats. In the 19th century, Americans conquered the Wild West, driving toward the Pacific coast. Along the way, settlers built new towns. The central hub of any classic Wild West settlement was the saloon, combining a bar, a hotel, and a casino. 

Gaming tables attracted cowboys, soldiers, prospectors, trappers, and cheats alike.

Saloon patrons preferred five-card draw, faro, and monte. Famous gunslingers and adventurers also played in these saloons: Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, and Bat Masterson.

Doc Holliday

Doc Holliday received a classic education and qualified as a dentist. A promising medical career was cut short by a grim diagnosis: the young doctor had tuberculosis. In the mid-19th century, the disease was untreatable. In search of a dry, warm climate, Holliday headed west. He began to make a living by gambling. An analytical mind, solid education, and the inability to practice dentistry made him the ultimate professional gambler. 

Doc Holliday became close friends with another poker enthusiast and historic figure—Wyatt Earp. In 1878, Holliday saved Earp's life in a gunfight. Doc's character has been regularly featured in Westerns, even inspiring the creators of one of the best-selling games in history, Red Dead Redemption 2.

Wyatt Earp: The Sharp with a Marshal's Badge

Wyatt Earp lived a long and controversial life. Official history paints him as a legendary lawman and gunslinger. In reality, Wyatt gambled professionally, owned saloons, and had a highly questionable reputation. He knew games inside out, frequently acting as a dealer and house operator. The most famous episode of Earp's life is the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Hollywood romanticises the battle, but the clash with the Clanton gang was more of a classic ambush. 

Wyatt's clean image is tarnished by his dark dealings at the card table. The marshal regularly rigged the deck in faro and was arrested for cheating in Los Angeles. Running saloons and hosting games allowed Earp to consistently turn a profit through shady methods. Wyatt died at 81, and unlike most of his peers, he finished his life as a wealthy man.  

Bat Masterson: From Gunslinger to New York Journalist

Bat Masterson's CV included stints as a buffalo hunter, army scout, sheriff, and sports writer. Poker also held a special place in his life. Masterson lived by a strict code of honour and tried to remain an honest man—a rare trait in the Wild West. 

Bat made his living from gambling and was considered an expert in poker and faro. At the table, Masterson stuck to his principles and refused to resort to cheating. The only suspicious incident of his gaming career occurred in 1902, when he was arrested in New York on charges of running a rigged game. The charges were later dropped because the plaintiff left town and failed to appear in court. 

Execution for Collusion

In modern casinos, cheats are escorted out and blacklisted. The Wild West operated under a different brand of justice. If a cheat was caught with a marked deck or cards up their sleeve, they could be hanged right in the saloon. Thus, only the bravest, most desperate, or foolish chose the path of a cheat. Some players met their demise at the table without even breaking any rules. 

James "Wild Bill" Hickok was shot dead mid-hand. His death gave rise to the legendary "Dead Man's Hand".

The Old World — European Casinos and Aristocratic Cheats of the 19th Century

In Europe, players preferred baccarat and other card games, and the cheats differed from their American counterparts. In the Old World, gambling attracted the wealthy and the aristocracy. If a player was caught cheating, they weren't lynched in the casino; they were challenged to a duel. A sharp was seen not merely as a rule-breaker, but as a criminal threatening the social order.& />

Three gambling hubs competed for global supremacy:

• Baden-Baden. Flourished after casinos were banned in France. Russian literary giants Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky played at the local tables. 

• Monte Carlo. The gambling capital of the 19th century. Massive casino revenues allowed the principality to abolish direct taxation for its citizens.

• Homburg. The first project of François Blanc, the famous casino architect and operator. The German town attracted the global elite. Success in Homburg earned Blanc an invitation to Monte Carlo, where he became world-famous.

The most high-profile card-cheating scandal occurred in Great Britain in 1890.

The Royal Baccarat Scandal

In September 1890, Sir William Gordon-Cumming, a lieutenant colonel in the Scots Guards, was accused of cheating during a game of baccarat. Alongside him at the table was his long-time friend and future king, Edward VII. To avoid public disgrace, William was forced to sign a declaration promising never to play cards again in exchange for the silence of those present. However, the secret leaked, and the officer sued for slander. Even the Prince of Wales was called to testify, marking the first time in 500 years a British heir to the throne gave evidence in court.

The court found Sir William guilty. He was dismissed from the army and ostracised by high society. He wasn't lynched, but it was a devastating result nonetheless. 

Cheats of the Russian Empire

Gambling also flourished in the Russian Empire. Every Russian monarch tried to crack down on cards, with each issuing decrees banning games of chance. Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was the first to act; the Law Code of 1649 declared gambling a serious crime, and offenders were branded with hot irons. Later, card games were banned by Peter I, Catherine II, Alexander I, and Nicholas I. Yet, none succeeded in stamping out the vice.

Among the Russian Empire's most famous sharps were:

• Baron Geramb. Gained notoriety during the reign of Catherine II. The cheat dressed flamboyantly, wrote poetry in Latin, and travelled by dog-sled. Contemporaries described Baron Geramb as the slickest sharp of his era, leaving his opponents stripped "down to their last shirt".

• The Zanovich Brothers. Began their cheating careers in Europe. In 1770, the brothers met a wealthy Englishman and invited him to a game, fleecing him for around £90,000. They later moved to Venice but were quickly jailed. After escaping, they fled to Russia. In the Empire, the Zanoviches continued their card scams but became even more famous for counterfeiting 700,000 roubles.

Organised rings of cheats also operated in Russia. For instance, Nikolai Gogol wrote his famous play "The Gamblers" based on real-life accounts of card sharps.  

Cheating Techniques of the Past

To secure their profits, cheats had to be incredibly inventive. They deployed false shuffles, marked decks, mechanical devices, and collusion. Let's break down these techniques. 

Sleight of hand is a card sharp's ultimate weapon, but cheats also adopted the latest scientific advancements.

Marking. The oldest and most common form of deception. The cheat made subtle marks on the back of cards to identify rank and suit. Techniques varied:

• Pegging. Tiny pinpricks or fingernail marks on the card borders, visible only under certain angles or when light passed through.

• Crimping. Intentionally bending the card paper. An experienced cheat could feel the tiny crease during a shuffle.

In the 20th century, the technique evolved with the use of ultraviolet ink, visible only under special lighting, remaining completely invisible to the naked eye. Later, cheats escalated this by using contact lenses to spot the marks without extra table equipment.

False Shuffling. The cheat simulates shuffling cards while preserving a prearranged order in the deck. To a casual observer, the shuffle looks perfectly clean, with cards flying smoothly. Other deck-handling manipulations include:

• Second Dealing. The dealer slickly deals the second card from the top instead of the top card, keeping the top card for themselves. 

• Bottom Dealing. Dealing cards from the bottom of the deck, allowing the dealer to control the action exactly as planned. 

The Holdout. A mechanical device designed for cheating. The holdout was rigged to a sleeve or a belt under a vest. A system of springs, levers, and clips allowed the cheat to retrieve or hide a card at the perfect moment. For example, if a player in a game of draw poker held four hearts, the holdout could supply the fifth to lock up the flush. The first designs of these mechanical poker prosthetics were recorded in the 1880s.

Palming. A technique where a card is concealed in the palm of the hand. The card leaves the deck and is reintroduced when needed. This move was often combined with false shuffles. The sharp secretly stole a card to present it at showdown. Palming was invented back in the early 18th century.  

The Cold Deck (Cooler). A sharp prepared a pre-shuffled deck in advance with stacked hands. At the right moment, they swapped it with the active deck. This worked perfectly in games like faro or baccarat where cards weren't shuffled after every hand. The setup guaranteed the dealer a monster hand, but also gave the opponent a strong second-best hand, ensuring they loaded up the pot and lost more. 

Over time, the term "cooler" evolved. Today, it describes an unavoidable setup where two players catch such strong hands that neither can escape the action—like AA versus KK pre-flop in a NL Hold'em blind battle. 

How Online Poker Cheats Operate

Technological advances have made cheating in live casinos incredibly difficult. Hundreds of cameras and security personnel track every move. Cards are shuffled by state-of-the-art machines, and casinos share blacklists. However, this tech boom birthed online poker, and card sharps quickly adapted. Let's look at the most common forms of modern cheating.

Collusion. Team play violates the fundamental rules of poker, yet players still try to beat the system. Cheats join the same table and share hole card information. This extra data gives them a massive advantage. In September 2021, GGPoker banned Ali Imsirovic and Jake Schindler for collusion, returning $1,160,000 in confiscated funds to affected players. 

With nearly 100 WSOP bracelets awarded every year, a piece of gold hardware is nothing new. An outright dump job on a live stream, however, is unforgettable.

Scandals also hit live tournaments. One shocking example was the HU battle at the WSOP-2025 between Yaginuma and Carroll. Yaginuma stood to win a $1,000,000 bonus for securing the bracelet. Carroll held a massive 9:1 chip lead at the start, but surrendered it through bizarre limps and folds. Yaginuma won, but organizers launched an investigation and voided the results of the tournament. 

While players weren't officially charged with a crime, both received lifetime bans from the WSOP and Caesars properties. Industry media almost unanimously labeled the match the most barefaced collusion effort in poker history.

Multi-Accounting. A player sets up multiple accounts to play in the same tournament simultaneously, artificially boosting their odds. The biggest scandal occurred in 2007 when PokerStars disqualified the WCOOP Main Event winner playing under the alias "TheV0id". The champion was stripped of the title and the $1,228,330 prize after a PS investigation confirmed the account was part of a multi-accounting scheme. 

Ghosting. This happens when a weak player reaches a major final table and lets a professional take over their screen. Room rules strictly forbid ghosting; only the account owner is permitted to play. One high-profile case involved Ivan Deyra on Winamax Poker. In 2021, he won €78,000 using his father's account. This blatant breach of terms forced Winamax to terminate his ambassador contract.

Bots. The single biggest threat to online poker. These are algorithms playing under the guise of humans. AI gets stronger by the day, and bot scandals erupt regularly. In 2026, professional poker player Martin Zamani posted a 30-second clip showing a setup with 25 computers running bot software 24/7 on Ignition Poker. In January 2024, an investigation by TylerRM exposed a massive bot ring running rampant in Winning Poker Network tournaments.

RTA (Real-Time Assistance). Solvers created a brand-new threat. Programmes like GTO Wizard advise players in real-time. Cheats input hand details on the fly to get instant, optimal decisions. GGPoker banned Bryn Kenney and forty other players for using RTA. Kenney is a poker legend and the world's all-time money leader. As of June 2026, his career earnings stood at $85,234,888. Banning such a high-profile figure and former brand ambassador required ironclad evidence. 

Ali Imsirovic went from being crowned Player of the Year to being branded as one of the game's biggest pariahs.

Superusers. To debug software, developers create administrative master accounts. Some of these accounts allow users to view opponents' hole cards in real-time. Unsurprisingly, some rogue staff couldn't resist exploiting this ultimate edge. 

In 2008, UltimateBet players noticed impossible win rates from several accounts, notably "NioNio", who won over $600,000 in just 64 hours by making uncanny folds and raises. While UB initially denied the claims, they eventually admitted to the superuser scandal and paid a $1,500,000 fine. In total, 23 accounts were involved in the scam. The scandal devastated player trust, causing a massive exodus, and the site eventually shut down.

GGPoker demonstrated how to handle cheats swiftly. In December 2023, a 2+2 forum member flagged account "MoneyTaker69", who boasted an absurd win rate with 53/17 stats. An investigation confirmed that MoneyTaker69 had exploited a client vulnerability to see his exact equity at any point in a hand. GGPoker promptly banned the user, confiscated his bankroll, and redistributed the funds to the victims.

Top 5 Most Notorious Cheats of the Modern Era

While George Devol and Bill Jones dominated the 19th century, modern poker has seen its own share of high-profile villains: Russ Hamilton, Mike Postle, Ali Imsirovic, Bryn Kenney, and Phil Ivey.

Russ Hamilton. The 1994 WSOP Main Event champion, UltimateBet consultant, and the mastermind behind the superuser scandal. He directed developers to build backdoors, using them to make millions. Hamilton avoided jail time due to the grey-market status of online poker in the US at the time. 

Mike Postle. This mediocre pro posted god-like win rates on the Stones Gambling Hall live stream. The peak of his suspicious play was folding pocket kings pre-flop when one player limped and another isolated. Mike acted as if he knew the active player had pocket aces. Folding KK on stream triggered immediate scrutiny. Viewers analysed past broadcasts and noticed Postle constantly staring at his phone, which he kept in his lap. He later filed a $330,000,000 defamation lawsuit, but the case was dismissed by the court. 

Kenney faced massive allegations, but evaded severe penalties and continues to play high-stakes poker.

Ali Imsirovic. This rising star managed to collect a royal flush of accusations. In 2022, Ali faced claims of multi-accounting, ghosting, RTA use, and collusion. GGPoker banned him first, seizing $320,000 in funds. Live tournament operators and casinos soon followed suit, issuing indefinite bans. Alongside Imsirovic, Jake Schindler—a WSOP champion with $36,000,000 in career earnings—was also blacklisted.

Bryn Kenney. In 2022, Kenney was accused of collusion, multi-accounting, RTA use, and running a cult-like stable. Lauren Roberts, a high-stakes player backed by Bryn, confirmed the allegations. Professionally, Kenney admitted only to minor infractions, such as coaching stable members mid-tournament. While his reputation took a severe hit, he was not blacklisted. He continues to play the highest stakes and remains at the top of the all-time money list. 

Real-Time Assistance remains a massive threat to the integrity of online games. To combat this, poker rooms and solver developers are joining forces.

Phil Ivey. The ten-time WSOP bracelet winner used "edge-sorting" to beat baccarat games. In 2012, Ivey won $22,000,000 across two casinos: Crockfords and Borgata. Ivey noticed printing defects on card backs and used them to identify card values. Knowing what card was coming next gave him a massive edge. The casinos refused to pay and sued for fraud. After years of litigation, courts ruled in favour of the casinos.

How Rooms and Casinos Fight Back

Casinos and poker rooms lead the fight against cheats. In live venues, security departments monitor game integrity. They are backed up by hundreds of table-specific cameras. Regular dealer rotations every 30 minutes and burning the top card systematically prevent manipulation. Casinos also employ RFID trackers to monitor chip movements. From 2024, WSOP event streams run on a 30-minute delay, neutralizing any real-time tracking from outside variables.

Typically, online poker players are targeted by scammers off the tables, losing funds through phishing links and other social engineering traps. 

Online poker operators deploy layered systems to shut down card sharps, including:

• Proprietary Security Clients. The poker client scans active processes for blacklisted software. For example, PokerStars forces Flopzilla to close when the client is running. Rooms also track VPN usage, mouse movements, and transaction patterns. If a player who typically deposits $50 suddenly loads up $5,000, the system flags the transaction for manually review.

• Transparency Reports. Some rooms have faced criticism for staying silent on their security efforts. Today, many platforms publish regular reports detailing banned accounts and seized funds. Partypoker and Pokerstars lead the way; in April 2025, partypoker banned 291 accounts and confiscated $71,771.

• Solver Partnerships. Solvers like GTO Wizard are a double-edged sword: they help players study but empower RTA cheats. To stop this, rooms and solver developers share database logs. In 2025, GTO Wizard helped GGPoker identify and ban 31 RTA users.

• Player Collusion Busts. Many of the biggest botting and superuser rings were uncovered by players analysing hands, finding statistical anomalies, and posting their findings. Platforms react to the public outcry, investigate, and take action—just like in the UltimateBet and GGPoker superuser scandals. 

Regulatory bodies also monitor security. Licensing commissions in Malta, Gibraltar, and the UK audit generator software and publish the results. Independent labs test random number generator (RNG) and issue compliance certificates. For example, PokerKing features an official compliance audit by iTech Labs on its homepage.

Player Security — 5 Key Rules for Safety

Protecting your bankroll requires vigilance. In live games, track your chips and keep your eyes off your phone. Some pros photograph their chips at every break to provide evidence in case of a dispute. For online players, we recommend the following rules:

• Play on Licensed Sites Only. Check the footer of the site for licence and registration details. For instance, RedStar Poker is owned by RSP Entertainment group and operates under Curaçao licence OGL/2024/168/0127. Trust matters; PokerStars, with 25 years in the game, is infinitely more secure than a skin like Pinco Poker.

• Never Share Your Account. Most rooms strictly prohibit sharing accounts. Doing so will lead to a permanent ban and the confiscation of your funds.

• Avoid Illegal Software. If a site bans HUDs or hand converters, don't use them. The extra HUD stats are not worth risking your entire bankroll. The same applies to RTA and bots.

• Report Suspicious Activity. If you spot weird play patterns, take notes. Build a profile and send it to support. If they ignore, take it to the forums. Proving collusion is tough, but public pressure works.

• Secure Your Accounts. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) and use strong, unique passwords. Most hacks happen because of weak passwords or shared emails, not state-of-the-art hacking. Never use the same password for your poker account and your email.

Follow basic cyber safety. Check the address bar to ensure you are on the official site domain, and never click suspicious links sent via Telegram or other messaging apps.

How to Master the Game

You don't need to cheat to make money in poker; top professionals make millions purely through masterclass play. Reaching that level, however, requires serious study. You need books, training videos, software, stable hand reviews, and coaching. Navigating this on your own can take years. FunFarm is designed to fast-track your progression.

Hone your theoretical knowledge in real-game simulator scenarios.

For beginners, we feature the FF Start course. Over 30 lessons, you will build a rock-solid foundation, culminating in a final exam. Graduates are invited to join FF Player's Path. This advanced track is designed to turn you into a professional, getting you out of the micro-stakes to target a solid monthly income of $1,200.