Dan Bilzerian can’t seem to stay out of the headlines. While he may not have been directly involved in the latest talking point, the self-style bad boy has helped set a new poker record in India.

BlitzPoker has channeled the spirit of Dan Bilzerian to set new online poker records in India. (Image: BlitzPoker)

Bilzerian can’t take all the credit for what BlitzPoker has achieved. However, the site he’s linked to is making noise with the Indian Online Poker Championship (IOPC).

The series is currently in progress and comes to an end on January 31. Between now and then, BlitzPoker will pay out a guaranteed $4 million which, at the time of writing, is a national record.

It took 30 sessions, but Doug Polk now has a $1 million lead against Daniel Negreanu in what has become a lopsided affair. After Wednesday’s beatdown on the virtual felt, it’s no longer a matter of if Polk will win, but by how much.

Daniel Negreanu is now down a cool milly to Doug Polk. (Image: YouTube)

Those who bet on Polk before this challenge began in October are looking pretty smart right about now. The tides have certainly turned over the past week. Although Polk has led ever since the second session, and was up by nearly $1 million 18 sessions in, “DNegs” had been rather competitive for quite some time — key-phrase, “had been.”

Those days are over and it’s become a one-sided match the past four sessions. Since Day 26, Polk has turned approximately a $520,000 profit, which includes a $299,000 win on Day 30 (Wednesday). So much for what was turning into an impressive comeback.

Today, Jan. 20, 2021, is Inauguration Day in the United States. It’s a time of hope and renewal. In addition to representing a powerful moment of transition, it comes with a highly orchestrated set of pomp and ceremony, each with its own set of rules and procedures. Before our new president can begin to govern – before he even takes his oath of office – he must learn the rules and procedures of our nation, so that he may be fully equipped to act.

There’s a new game being played in America. Make sure you know what you’re stepping into when you get back to the table. (Image: Jon McNaughton)

Similarly, many of us, at the beginning of 2021, are on the precipice of a new start in poker. With prospects for a coronavirus vaccine coming and with many of our old haunts still closed, many of us will be stepping into games we haven’t played in before.

Inauguration Day may be a time for optimism, but there is also much work ahead, which is why now may be a great time for our own poker renewal.

Doug Polk and Daniel Negreanu both claim the other is getting ridiculously lucky during their heads-up challenge, but neither can prove it. That’s because viewers only see hands that make it to showdown. So, perhaps they should start letting the fans view the cards (on delay, of course).

Hey, Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk, let us see your cards. (Image: YouTube)

The poker stars have now completed more than 17,000 hands of a 25,000-hand heads-up No-Limit Hold’em poker challenge. Polk, as expected, holds a sizable lead of $703,000, but Negreanu has been more competitive recently than most anticipated.

I’ve watched somewhere around 75% of the hands played. From my perspective, Polk’s clearly been the superior player in terms of skill. But, I must say, his edge hasn’t been as great as I predicted before the match began in October. I still give Negreanu very little, if any, chance to win, even if he runs hot. But, I’m highly impressed with his play against arguably the top heads-up NLH player ever.