Doug Polk can’t seem to catch a break recently at the World Series of Poker (WSOP), especially in the Main Event.
The three-time bracelet winner had an insane roller coaster start to his 2026 WSOP Main Event on Day 1d, which began at 11 a.m. PT on Sunday. Polk took a bad beat, doubled up, then lost 90% of his stack in a brutal cooler … all within the first hour of poker’s World Championship event.
More than 3,300 players registered for the final Day 1 starting session at the time of publishing. Polk was among that group of players, and he was hoping for a better outcome than last year’s bad beat exit.
Can He Make a Comeback?
Polk doesn’t play many WSOP events these days, although he did enter the $25,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold’em Championship last month, only to bust his first bullet on a cruel bad beat to Alex Keating. Last year, on the feature table in the Main Event near the money bubble, he was all in preflop with aces with a big stack and lost it all to pocket kings.
Day 1b started off for Polk similar to how it ended in 2025. He had an over pair (pocket kings) and three-bet preflop, only for his opponent to flop a set. That set him back minutes after the marathon tournament began. But he would soon earn a double-up when, oddly enough, he flopped a set to crack pocket kings.
The rungood didn’t last, however. Moments later, he called an early position raise to 500 from the button with pocket 6’s, as did the big blind. The flop came out Qx6x2x and the original raiser continued for 1,100. Polk made it 4,400 to go, receiving one call, while the big blind folded.
The turn was the Ax, and the preflop raiser checked and then called Polk’s bet of 9,000. Following the 3x on the river, action checked to Polk, who bet 21,000. His opponent then jammed for 48,000, sending The Lodge Card Club co-owner into the tank. He said he went into the tank to “complain” but would ultimately call only to find out he was up against pocket aces.
That hand cost Polk 90% of his stack. He would make it to the first break of the day with just over one-third of his starting stack, and still time to spin it back up.
Polk recently announced he would be stepping away from his active ownership duties with The Lodge just two months after the Texas card room reopened following legal issues that have been settled.
Polk has entered the WSOP Main Event more than a dozen times, with small cashes in 2011 and 2023.
Follow WSOP Main Event Live Updates
