A Florida man entered a poker tournament on Saturday, and won big.
Now you might be thinking, why is this important? Don’t guys enter poker tournaments all the time?
But like any “Florida Man” story, there’s a humorous, yet odd, twist to the story.
70-year-old David Hughes won the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown in Fort Lauderdale, Florida this past weekend. But the tournament was for females only.
Nevertheless, Hughes simply identified as a woman and was allowed to play. Florida casinos cannot prevent men from doing so because of anti-discrimination laws.
Whether Hughes has inherent advantages than his female counterpoints is less clear than in other forms of competition, since poker is a game of cards. But it nevertheless angered the women at the tournament, who were justified in their frustration.
Eventually, on of the women took matters into her own hand. Ebony Kenney, offered a $300 “bounty” to any of the players who would target Hughes and knock him out of the tournament, with the reward eventually reaching $2,000 thanks to others contributing.
Playing the @WPT ladies event today, and Dave here is the only man. (Filmed w/permission!)
— Ebony Kenney | Poker & Purposeful Pleasure (@Ebony_Kenney) April 29, 2023
While we appreciate the dead money, I really wish men would get what these events stand for.
So I put a $300 bounty on his head and Tamra & Noah Piderit matched it. 🥳🥳
Let’s get him. pic.twitter.com/dXVZVlriAP
You can just hear the passive aggression oozing through the screen.
Despite the incentive, Hughes managed to reach the end of the tournament and win $5,555 in prize money.
But Hughes didn’t just enter to get a big payday. Other players at the event said they heard Hughes mocking transgenderism and society’s unwillingness to draw distinction between the two genders.
British poker player Charlie Carrell thought the stunt was funny, and said that Hughes actions highlights the stupidity of the transgender movement, and that there’s a need for boundaries to be put in place.
1) Hilarious that he won.
— Charlie Carrel (@Charlie_Carrel) April 30, 2023
2) It pokes fun at the idea that anybody can identify as a woman and be allowed to enter women's spaces.
It's a real issue that people are taking advantage of in many different areas, including sports, prisons, and changing areas. This has lead to… https://t.co/EKgnPgU9sO
Poker Hall of Famer Linda Johnson, however, was less enthused by Hughes’ actions, but still called for the separation of the genders.
“I love ladies-only poker tournaments. I would have no problem with them having a men’s only and I wouldn’t enter it as I would not qualify for it,” Johnson wrote. “I would have no problem if they had a tournament for 26-year old, motorcycle riding, Mohawk-haircut seniors and I wouldn’t enter it because I wouldn’t qualify. I don’t think men should play in ladies-only tournaments.”
Related: What?! Lia Thomas: 'Feminists' Who Want To Protect Women's Sports Are 'Transphobes'
Now both reactions seem to echo relatively simple logic: keep men with men, and women with women. But the bigger point is that Hughes once again showed how transgenderism and “self-identification” helps bypass that boundary.
If anyone can simply say they identify as the opposite gender, then we get a situation like this, with women losing out on a payday because a man hijacked the system. That is, in effect, transgender’s royal flush that no one can top.
Unless, of course, everyone stops going all in to support transgenderism not just in poker, but any other competition setting. Only then will this progressive agenda - and those who support it - be forced to fold ‘em and walk away.
