Poker Writer
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy defeated Eric “Barstool Nate” Nathan in a heads-up poker grudge match dubbed “King of the Felt” on Wednesday night. The two sports pundits and influencers had been hyping up the poker battle for months. Finally, they sat down to play in front of a livestream audience on the Barstool Gambling YouTube channel.
Although many poker players and serious fans criticized the play, the stream proved popular with Barstool’s audience, peaking at more than 17,000 viewers. Fans of Barstool content tuned in to watch the two battle for a $40,000 prize. Both men engaged with fans on X before and after the four-hour match.
Barstool Nate Makes ‘Worst Fold In History’
The most viral moment of the stream came when Barstool Nate incorrectly folded pocket kings. Barstool content has always lent itself to hyperbole and the machine got going in response as many declared it “the worst fold in the history of poker.” Nathan earned widespread jeers from the Barstool fans in the aftermath.
One response to a posted video of the hand eviscerated the fold:
This is legit the worst fold in the world. Folding K-K on a Ten-high board heads-up for 1/8 pot is mind boggling.
While another called out Nathan’s entire performance:
Nate’s sole purpose at Barstool is to talk poker and Dave still puts him in a blender. Literally worthless.
Despite the pans from the audience, Nathan still saw the stream as a positive for himself and for possible future Barstool poker endeavors.
The stream had ginormous numbers! Everyone is stoked. And poker content at Barstool works!! $20k comes and goes but proof of concept is forever. https://t.co/b4bGIsxCK8
— Eric Nathan (@BarstoolNate) September 4, 2025
Barstool Employees Have Varied Levels of Poker Experience
Nathan has been a poker hobbyist for a few years and has been the driving force behind Barstool wading into poker. He makes regular appearances at the World Series of Poker. According to the Card Player archives he has more than $60,000 in career earnings.
His most notable result came in the 2024 WSOP Main Event where he cashed with a 717th-place finish.
Ben “Mintzy” Mintz is another Barstool employee who has interest in poker. He appeared on the PokerGO featured tables during WSOP Main Event coverage the past two years and can be seen playing WSOP Circuit events from time to time.
Despite the victory, Portnoy is not a regular poker player. He prefers to stoke controversies and make large sports bets.
But content is everything for Portnoy and Barstool. If “El Presidente” deems the viewing numbers of “King of the Felt” strong enough, Barstool fans may find more poker content going forward.
