High Stakes Duel is an American poker television program that airs on PokerGO and premiered on July 30, 2020. The original series was announced by PokerGO on July 22, 2020, and would see two players play heads-up No-Limit Hold'em in a poker tournament format to decide a winner.
The show is filmed exclusively in the PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and is aired on PokerGO and PokerGO's YouTube channel.
Per the rules of High Stakes Duel, the initial buy-in level is $50,000 for Round 1. With each round that follows, the buy-ins double. Round 2 is a $100,000 buy-in, Round 3 is a $200,000 buy-in, and so on. A player earns the right to walk away as High Stakes Duel champion if the player wins three consecutive matches prior to Round 4 or two consecutive matches starting with Round 4. The winner of High Stakes Duel receives the High Stakes Duel Championship Belt.
Format
High Stakes Duel is a series of heads-up poker matches. The first round of High Stakes Duel has a $50,000 buy-in with the two players involved playing No-Limit Hold'em in a heads-up poker tournament format to decide the winner who advances to Round 2. The player that lost the match has the first option to challenge the winner to a rematch in Round 2 where the stakes will double to $100,000 per player. If the player that lost decides not to challenge for a rematch, then the challenger seat is open to any player. The stakes double each round, and in order for a player to walk away with the prize pool, they must win three consecutive matches before Round 4 or two consecutive matches starting with Round 4.
Results
History
After premiering on July 30, 2020, High Stakes Duel has now completed its third series, High Stakes Duel 3. Jason Koon defeated Phil Hellmuth in High Stakes Duel 3 Round 5, and when no challenger stepped forward, Koon was declared the winner.
High Stakes Duel 1
Round 1 of High Stakes Duel premiered on July 30, 2020, with Phil Hellmuth and Antonio Esfandiari facing off in the inaugural match of this PokerGO original series. Each player bought in for $50,000.
Esfandiari took the early lead in the match before Hellmuth turned the tide and mounted a comeback. The final hand saw Hellmuth win a race holding pocket sevens against Esfandiari's queen-jack. Following the match, Esfandiari immediately issued his challenge for Round 2.
Round 2 of High Stakes Duel aired on September 24, 2020, with Hellmuth and Esfandiari putting up $100,000 each. The two went back and forth throughout the match before Esfandiari's jack-ten couldn't outdraw Hellmuth's king-ten. Like in Round 1, Esfandiari challenged Hellmuth for a rematch.
Round 3 of High Stakes Duel aired on October 21, 2020, with Hellmuth and Esfandiari playing for $400,000 having each bought in for $200,000 each. Hellmuth dominated Esfandiari throughout the match as the final hand saw Esfandiari all-in with ace-three against Hellmuth's ace-ten. Both players flopped an ace, and Esfandiari's chop outs never fulfilled as he was handed his third consecutive loss to Hellmuth. Esfandiari was out of challenges, and with Hellmuth having the option to cash out the $400,000 prize pool or take on a new challenger in Round 4, Hellmuth decided to cash out and was crowned the High Stakes Duel winner and awarded the High Stakes Duel Championship Belt.
High Stakes Duel 2
High Stakes Duel 2 was announced in March 2021 with a highly anticipated match between the defending champion Phil Hellmuth and his newest challenger Daniel Negreanu. Round 1 of High Stakes Duel 2 premiered on March 31, 2021, with Hellmuth and Negreanu each buying in for $50,000. Negreanu dominated the match from the start before Hellmuth mounted an epic comeback that saw him as low as 7,000 of the 200,000 chips in play. Once the tide had turned and Negreanu was short, he would run into Hellmuth's pocket nines and fail to improve. Negreanu immediately challenged Hellmuth for Round 2.
Round 2 of High Stakes Duel 2 aired on May 5, 2021, with Hellmuth and Negreanu each buying in for $100,000. Unlike the previous match, this one saw many lead changes between Hellmuth and Negreanu before the final hand saw Hellmuth shove ace-four and Negreanu called with a pair. Hellmuth would make a runner-runner flush and secure his second consecutive victory over Negreanu.