The reigning Michigan World Series of Poker (WSOP) Online Player of the Year has been suspended by the organization. Kevin Ruscitti (pictured) plays under the online alias GR4ND THEFT. He had his WSOP online account frozen on October 23 after cheating allegations were leveled against him on social media.
The move came just days after he won a $38,242 online tournament via the WSOP online platform.
Various poker players based in Michigan either accused Ruscitti directly on social media, or claimed they had already reported him weeks ago to WSOP staff. The common claim was that he used Real Time Assistance, or RTAs, which tell poker players the optimum move for each situation based on the math of game theory.
Michigan-based Ruscitti posted on social media to deny the allegations. He has previously won seven WSOP online circuit events, as well as cashing $61,165 in live tournament earnings.
The Allegations
A Michigan-based player called Ryan Hiller first started suspecting Ruscitti several months ago of using real time assistance software.
Hiller used the Fair Play Check function on GTO Wizard, a non-live analysis tool for use in theory practice or reviewing sessions. It uses AI to analyze thousands of hands, looking for deviations and patterns of play that could suggest cheating.
Hiller says he found evidence. He said he had played against Ruscitti for years, and he was usually a snap caller. However, in recent months, he noticed he would have the odd tense hand where he would bank 30 seconds or more on the river before calling and winning the pot.
Hiller says after running the software on Ruscitti’s games, these situations came up often, and the algorithm usually flagged them as indicative of using software. The software also anonymously checks to see if anyone had solved the exact hand in question at the time it was reportedly played. Several of them matched.
Hiller also claims to have found a significant bump in Ruscitti’s career online winnings that aligned with the time he first became suspicious
In recent months, other players also did research into their own histories with Ruscitti. Those who agreed they found similar evidence to Hiller pooled their data and sent their allegations off to WSOP.
The Response
Ruscitti denied the allegations in a post on the Michigan Poker Forum Facebook group. He said his account had temporarily been frozen because of accusations from one player, although others have since confirmed their involvement in reporting him to WSOP.
“Not only do I not use GTO Wizard, I don’t even use a HUD (ED: heads-up display) when I play pokerstars. You don’t need GTO Wizard when you are a wizard,” he wrote.
“Like I’ve been playing poker 12 hours a day every day for the past four years, and for whatever reason, it’s hard for some people to accept the fact that maybe I’m just a good player…. Anyways, once I’m proven innocent, I’ll be back.”
Cherish Andrews, who Ruscitti beat to the WSOP Online Bracelet event he won earlier this month, says she didn’t see anything wrong with his play at the time, but hopes that WSOP will act quicker in the future. She posted about hearing the allegations on October 22, the day prior to Ruscitti’s WSOP suspension.
“I don’t know for sure that this guy is cheating. But my post was more to drive WSOP, because it literally took someone winning a bracelet for them to pause his account and investigate. Which is crazy,” Andrews said.
“If regs that play on your site all the time are coming to you for weeks with what they deem as proof, then you need to do something about it right away.”
The suspension of an online player of the year for potential cheating is not a good look for WSOP. The org also saw some controversy earlier this year after railmates of live Main Event 2024 champion Daniel Tamayo were seen consulting solvers and talking to the eventual champion between hands. Which is not technically breaking the rules, but was highly controversial.
The WSOP brand was also recently bought by online poker giant GGPoker. It paid Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment $500 million to acquire the world’s biggest live poker operation.
David is an online casino expert who specializes in online slots and boasts over 10 years experience writing about iGaming. He has written for a wide range of notable publications, including eSports Insider and WordPlay Magazine.
David graduated Derby University with a BA Degree in English Literature and Creative Writing.
