“Choker”, a new mixed mind sport described as a hybrid between two well-loved, age-old games, chess and poker, has become increasingly popular among players and fans from both worlds. In fact, an app version of the game was recently made available, courtesy of award winning game developer Andrew Finan. The successful launch was then followed by an exciting tournament, The Challengers Choker Cup!
The contenders are high achievers in the worlds of chess and poker, including British Grandmaster Simon Williams, Hungarian Grandmaster Anna Rudolf, US International Master Eric Rosen, FIDE Master Alexandra Botez, Chess and Choker Player Raffael Santos, as well as high-stakes poker player and hedge fund manager Bill Perkins, and top Twitch streamer and Canadian poker pro Matt Staples.
A mystery wildcard player will also take part in the challenge.
The event is comprised of a series of knockout matches taking place every Thursday, beginning May 7 through to June 25. Rosen and Santos defeated Williams and Rudolf respectively during the first two matches, and just this week, a new player has advanced to the next round.
Perkins Defeats Staples in Third Match
The third match of The Choker Cup involved Perkins and Staples, two prominent figures in the world of poker. Perkins is a businessman, focusing on venture capital and energy markets. He plays high-stakes poker on the side, competing in some of the world’s highest-level international tournaments, such as Triton Poker. He is also the man behind Thirst Lounge, a popular Twitch poker channel.
Staples’ poker background is equally colorful – he is among the leading poker streamers on Twitch with more than 52,000 followers. He’s been crushing the online felts and currently serves as online ambassador for the world’s second largest online poker site, partypoker.
Both Perkins and Staples are chess lovers too and their participation in the Choker Cup showcased their skills in the popular board game. Matt Staples was leading in the early stages of the match, scoring 2-0, but Perkins recovered and leveled the game to 2-2. The thrilling match ended with Staples running out of time and Perkins emerging as the winner. The hedge fund manager now moves to Round 2, scheduled to take place in June.
The last quarterfinal match will take place between Botez and the mystery wildcard contender next week.
Choker Cup Rules
The knockout match begins with both players being dealt five cards each. Each cards depicts a chess piece. The players are allowed to check, bet, call, raise or fold after the second, fourth, and fifth card is dealt. After the betting rounds, if neither of the players decided to fold, they then put their chess pieces in specially-marked zones.
When the actual chess game starts, each of the players will have seven piece in total, including a king, and a pawn initially placed in front of the queen. The players will then compete the traditional chess way, and the game could conclude in a checkmate or chokemate, but they still have other options to win the match.
Grand Final Features US Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura
The first match saw Rosen scoring 3-0 against Williams. A week after, that score was replicated when Rudolf lost to Santos.
The matches are livestreamed by chess24.com, with commentary from top Twitch streamer and Choker ambassador Jeff Gross, alongside English International Master and London Chess Classic director Malcolm Pein. The livestream features a short interview with the ultimate winner of each match.
Chess and poker can be considered sister games as they require similar skillsets. Popular poker pros such as Daniel Negreanu and Charlie Carrel have recently developed a passion for chess, while other top players including Dan Smith, Dan Harrington, and Mike McDonald all played chess before even playing poker.
The eliminations round will continue through to June 18th, and the last remaining player will then compete with American Grandmaster and five-time US Chess Champion Hikaru Nakamura in the Challengers Choker Grand Final on June 25.