Ryan Feldman, former EP of Live at the Bike, signs deal to set up stream with Hustler Casino.

[JeffDime]

I just read on Twitter that Ryan Feldman, who ran the LATB stream for years before leaving because of an apparent disagreement with ownership, has signed a deal to run a live-stream from the Hustler Casino. He signed along with a Nick Vertucci, who is a recreational player & a staple in the LATB High Stakes Friday Stream, and also promises to bring big name regs such as Garret Adelstein along for the ride.

Feldman announced months ago that he was let go from the Bike due to the pandemic. At that time he also disclosed that he had not been involved in running LATB for 6 months prior and he was only working at the Bike in his capacity as hosting the big game off stream. He was clearly upset with the Bike, who he felt had made promises to him that they did not keep. It seems like he will be getting his revenge, as if he is able to get all these players to move, it should dramatically effect the LATB stream. This seems like a major coup.

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https://twitter.com/TheRyanFeldman/status/1325942466344701952

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https://twitter.com/TheRyanFeldman/status/1325944983602360320

[JeffDime]

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https://twitter.com/HCLPokerShow/status/1325949928766517248

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https://twitter.com/TheRyanFeldman/status/1325943711906242562

[JeffDime]

Few initial thoughts-

I was a casual viewer but did tune in for the High Stakes Friday streams pretty often. I did notice Feldman was conspicuously absent from doing any commentary for many months before the casino shut down. Looking back now, it is obvious he wasn’t involved but strange that this was not acknowledged by any one else at LATB. The news was only broke after Ryan disclosed it in Twitter after he was let go from his hosting job at the Bike during the pandemic cut backs.

Looking back the quality of the games were just not as good during the time Ryan was no longer Executive Producer. It does not surprise me that many players felt more loyalty to Ryan than either the Bike or LATB (which is a separate entity).

I would imagine this was a pretty lucrative deal. Nick Vertucci being the conduit to the other regs. It always struck me that the Bike took full rake from these games. I am sure the players were given other perks but it will be interesting to see the setup at Hustler. With PokerGO behind a paywall and Feldman taking many popular regs with him, I would expect this to be a success.

[GambleBotsChafedPenis]

good find jeff...

looks like LATB might be done and dusted if they lose guys like garrett and andy...high stakes fridays were must watch viewing if you enjoy watching poker...

[Dan Druff]

Good pickup for Hustler. Interesting that they're starting up a stream during the time of COVID.

I get along well with Ryan. Maybe we can have him on radio soon.

[JeffDime]

Good pickup for Hustler. Interesting that they're starting up a stream during the time of COVID.

I get along well with Ryan. Maybe we can have him on radio soon.

That would be a great interview. I wonder if he had a 1 year non-compete clause in his contract with LATB like many in sales/marketing jobs? If he didn’t, that will certainly now change moving forward. That could explain the timing of the deal. Was he negotiating with a number of LA casinos or was Hustler the only real alternative? I doubt the vaccine announcement from Pfizer has anything to do with this, but it is quite the coincidence.

I would imagine you know the ins and outs of the LA Poker scene better than most anyone. Can you see this potentially giving more exposure and bringing more players to the Hustler? I am not at all aware of the geographic and other particulars that would come into play to ultimately move the needle.