Hustler Casino Live’s high-stakes regular Sashimi blew up X last week after posting a woman twerking on a poker table while her friends celebrated by raining cards and poker chips down on her.
Sashimi’s title above the post read: "American poker is like this."
The post received over 1 million views combined across platforms.
The comments ran the gamut from playful to appalled to curious to WTF, and one poster stated, ‘If the game had been in Japan, it would have been raided by the police.’
ClubWPT Gold kicks up a sh*tstorm
Sashimi’s video started spreading across the Poker Twitterverse, with a post from the World Poker Tour’s sweepstakes gaming platform ClubWPT Gold adding its own take on the content: "GTO players took this from us."
Was the twerking post fair game for a brand to appropriate and poke fun at as part of its marketing campaign?
Some commenters on the ClubWPT Gold’s repost couldn’t care less and saw it as part and parcel of the brand’s mission for attention and customers, but others found it disrespectful and egregious.
Then popular content creator and BetMGM poker ambassador Abby Merk delivered a sharp rebuke, and it ignited a huge response, with some clapping back at Merk for her own sexualized content.
Doug Polk, a ClubWPT Gold ambassador and one of the game’s most influential voices and content creators, didn’t wait long to weigh in:
Yet through it all, hardly anyone asked one of the more obvious questions: Who is the woman twerking in the video? And what does she make of the viral firestorm?
A Girlsgiving celebration
The woman in question is a semi-regular in a local Los Angeles game hosted by Jamie Vela, a popular host and player on Hustler Casino Live and Bally Poker Live’s cash game streams.
“We were celebrating a Girlsgiving poker evening,” says Vela. “There were about 25 of us, all women. It was a fun $20 PLO tournament; winner takes all.
“It was hilarious that my friend won, because she doesn’t really play PLO. After she won, she jumped on the table and started celebrating. I started throwing chips on her for fun, and it just kind of escalated. We didn't think twice of it; it wasn't a big deal.”
The woman’s name is Rose. She only revealed her first name to PokerOrg, but she did share bits and pieces of her eclectic personal, educational, and work background.
She’s a Utah native who now calls Southern California home, and she loves playing poker with friends when time allows away from work.
She’s employed part-time at a local law firm in marketing and sales, holds a university degree in physics, is a proprietor of a healing practice in So-Cal, and is a published author of three books exploring conspiracy theories, quantum physics, and religious philosophies.
“I love to play poker with my girlfriends,” declared Rose. “I’ve been playing for fun for about ten years. That evening, I won the tournament. And honestly, I was just so excited and a little bit tipsy, so I started celebrating on the table (laughs). I did have shorts underneath my skirt, so it was definitely PG-13 rated.”
The twerking was filmed at Jamie Vela's Girlsgiving home game.A Rose by any other name
Rose had no clue Sashimi had shared the video of her celebratory dance on X. She has zero social media presence or accounts – no Instagram, X, or TikTok.
“Sashimi told me the video got over 1,000,000 views,” Rose told us. “I didn't think anything of it, because I'm not a social media girl. I don't want to be famous or anything like that. I was just having a good time with my girlfriends.
“That evening was an all-ladies game and was 100% about women's empowerment – it was a Girlsgiving celebration and I loved it. When I won, I started dancing on the table, and the girls started throwing chips and cards at me. It was fun. I enjoyed myself.”
As unfathomable as it may sound, Rose hasn’t been tempted to read any of the posted comments, good, bad, or otherwise.
“I don't have a social media account, because people tend to be judgmental. I consider judgment of others a hater-type action or mentality. Outside of my poker game with friends, I keep a professional lifestyle with my business, writing, and work at a local law firm.”
Rose’s advice to the poker world is simple and heartfelt: “Overall, my message to the poker community is that everybody should have fun, whether you're a woman or a man. The girls and I were having a great time playing poker. I thought it was wonderful fun.”
As the interview came to a close, Rose flashed two peace signs and said, “I have a message for ClubWPT Gold. I don't even know you. Have a great day!"
