ShareJustin Bonomo seems to be going out of his way to alienate people this year. His political views are well known, but during 2023 he has raised the stakes, shall we say.
The conflict in Israel/Gaza sent Bonomo into overdrive and he has been upsetting people on Twitter ever since that fateful day two months ago.
After Bonomo’s recent signing to Run It Once, Doug Polk couldn’t resist poking a little fun, fully aware that at least half of the poker community would enjoy it and agree with him.
“It seems that people are demanding an explanation of why @RunItOnce’s big recent pro signing announcement includes Justin Bonomo.
“As we were planning this relaunch of our Elite program, war broke out in the Middle East, and one of our biggest new signings became extremely unpopular in the poker community as a result of his views on the conflict.”
Let’s get one thing straight before we start and make the situation clear: Phil Galfond can hire who he wants, regardless of their political views.
Justin Bonomo getting paid to make training videos is purely about his ability to play poker tournaments and nothing else.
But on the flip side; poker players can also vote with their wallet, and we know how that will work out.
Phil Galfond was unimpressed with Polk’s take, clearly expecting better from another training site owner.
“Such BS to leave out context, Doug: My post ALSO says that @RunItOnce has 4 of the top 5 players on Poker’s All Time Money List while Upswing has 0 in the top 10.“
But it wasn’t just Polk having a pop. It turned out that there were many in the poker community who were unhappy that Bonomo could snag such a prestigious role. As Phil Galfond said, he has four out of the top five live tournament earners in his stable while Polk has none out of the top ten.
The above tweet kind of sums it up for many people but the response pretty much covers what the other half of the community thinks.
“It is a problem because he doesn’t treat people that he despises equally and he despises a large portion of people. I wouldn’t want him as my coach or on my company because I wouldn’t trust that I would get his best. If he likes you he will but he’s driven in hate”
Shaun Deeb was one commentator that made his feelings clear, somewhat surprising to many who know that he often protests against cancel culture.
Another accused Galfond of not paying attention to what kind of posts Bonomo sends on a regular basis.
“Phil - stop commenting on this. Your last post shows you don’t understand the what Justin has been spreading online & what he’s supporting. It’s not just a different political position. You should actually be ashamed for not just signing off on it but providing bigger platform.”
Whatever people think, Phil Galfond owns Run It Once and can hire whoever he likes and he made it clear that this is the path he will march down.
Let’s see if there is any more protest when the Elite membership doubles in price from $99 up to $199.
