Some poker careers explode.
Brad Booth’s burned hot… then vanished… Now he’s back!

No safety net.
No guardrails.
And very much a disappearing act.

If you’re new around here, every week we dig through poker’s back rooms and main stages looking for the stories people don’t usually tell.
The ones that explain what this life actually costs.

This week’s story is about going too far — and trying to find your way back.

This episode won’t air publicly until Friday, but as a way to thank our loyal newsletter subscribers, you get it today.

Brad didn’t come up through training sites or solvers.
He came up through smoky rooms, bootleg beer, and underage casino sessions.

Small town outside Vancouver → Yukon → Vegas.

Hockey kid.
Card games with no check-raises.
Backroom poker fueled by six-packs and bravado.

Then the Yukon.

Long drives.
No-limit games in hotel rooms.
Bankroll built the hard way.

Then Vegas.

Before no-limit was normal.
Before Bellagio was what it is now.
Brad helped spark one of the first no-limit games there — then basically never left.

He lived inside the Bellagio.
Played 19 hours a day.
Took shots everyone else was afraid to take.

And for a while?

It worked.

High Stakes Poker.
Televised cash games.
Bobby’s Room.

And one hand that still echoes through poker history.

Phil Ivey.
$300,000.
4-high.

If you know, you know.

You’d think that’s where the story peaks.

It’s not.

Because when the money stopped compounding…
when online poker cracked…
when Black Friday hit…

Brad didn’t just downswing.

He disappeared.

No phone.
No goodbye.
No plan.

This episode is Brad telling that part himself — what led up to it, what happened out there in the Oregon woods, and why he eventually came back.

Not with ego.
Not with excuses.
Just honesty.

This isn’t a redemption arc tied up with a bow.

It’s a real one.

If you ever wondered what happens after the cameras stop rolling…
If you ever pushed things too far chasing the game…
If you’ve ever needed to start over quietly…

This one will hit.

Before you dive in…

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This episode is about what happens after the rise.

It’s about consequences.
About humility.
About rebuilding when nobody’s watching.

Brad Booth didn’t chase the spotlight.
He ran from it.
And then, finally, turned around to face it.

📺 Watch the Full Episode with Brad Booth

See you next week!
— Art & Justin
🃏 @artparmann & @justinyoung07

📌 Don’t forget to subscribe for more behind-the-scenes stories from the world’s funniest, fiercest, and most feral poker personalities. (it really helps us!)

PS: Want to play high stakes in Las Vegas — but in a game that still feels like home?
Come play with us at Table 1.

PPS: Check out our Cardplayer Featured Stories — the best hands, moments, and madness from the pod.