Report: Indicted Lawyer Won $26M in Poker Against Infamous Dan Bilzerian Foe
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Superstar attorney Tom Goldstein, while facing federal charges, in a tell-all interview, claimed he won over $26 million in heads-up poker matches against Alec Gores, the billionaire who supposedly lost around $50 million to social media playboy Dan Bilzerian.
In a feature story for The New York Times Magazine, Goldstein spoke at length for the first time since being indicted in January on tax fraud charges related to high-stakes poker games, offering fresh insight into a case that has captivated the legal, political and poker worlds.
Speaking with legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin, Goldstein opened up about his second life that involved super-high-stakes heads-up matches where he would regularly win and lose tens of millions. Goldstein, who the government alleges failed to pay taxes in 2016 and several subsequent years, also denied any criminal wrongdoing, stating that he always intended to pay the taxes he owed.
"Millions of people file and then pay late, as I did," said Goldstein, who previously pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Goldstein Names Poker Opponents
Many of the charges against Goldstein, and intrigue into the case, stem from 2016 heads-up matches he played against "three ultra-wealthy individuals" that resulted in over $50 million in profit.
Those individuals were identified in the indictment only as "Foreign Gambler-1," "Foreign Gambler-2," and "California Businessman-2," but Goldstein's interview appears to shed light on their identities, as well as that of his financial backer, California billionaire Stewart Resnick, who gave him a $10 million line of credit for poker matches.
Goldstein's first match in 2016 against a gambler known as "Tango," who matches the indictment's description of "Foreign Gambler-1," resulted in a $13.3 million profit. A later match against a gambler known as "Chairman," who matches the indictment's description of "Foreign Gambler-2," netted Goldstein $9.9 million.
Goldstein rounded out the year by taking on billionaire Alec Gores, who matches the indictment's description of "California Businessman-2." That resulted in what Goldstein said was his biggest-ever poker haul: $26.4 million.
Gores, whose high-stakes poker ventures are documented in the classic book "The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King," more recently had a high-profile beef with Bilzerian, a close friend of Goldstein who also claims to have beaten the billionaire out of tens of millions.
"I just have convinced myself, because I won $50 million in heads-up poker, that I am a savant at heads-up poker," Goldstein told The New York Times, noting that he had sold about 75% of his action in these matches.
After his heads-up success, Goldstein took on American real estate mogul Bob Safai, who matches the indictment's description of "California Businessman-3." He lost $14 million and had all of his action this time, meaning he was responsible for covering his full losses.
Figures in Goldstein Indictment
| Identification in Indictment | Name | Occupation | Relationship to Goldstein |
|---|---|---|---|
| "California Businessman-1" | Stewart Resnick | Billionaire entrepreneur | Gave Goldstein a $10 million loan for poker matches |
| "Foreign Gambler-1" | "Tango" | High-stakes gambler | Played heads-up and lost $13.4 million |
| "Foreign Gambler-2" | "Chairman" | High-stakes gambler | Played heads-up and lost $9.9 million |
| "California Businessman-2" | Alec Gores | Billionaire investor and entrepreneur | Played heads-up and lost $26.4 million |
| "California Businessman-3" | Bob Safai | Real estate mogul | Played heads-up and won $14 million |
$88 Million in Heads-Up Profits
Goldstein kept the identities of some figures private, including two professional poker players who coached him, as well as a businessman he called "The Southerner," who PokerNews reported earlier this year he had beaten for $51 million starting in 2022.
Goldstein even cited his success against The Southerner as the reason he retired from law in 2023 — "I was beating him. And that was just a way more interesting life" — and went so far as to call playing with The Southerner "a way I can make a quarter-billion dollars for the rest of my life."
Goldstein spoke about playing with A-list celebrities Leonardo DiCaprio and Kevin Hart, who PokerNews revealed in March hosted a 2024 birthday party in Greece where prosecutors allege Goldstein "lost a substantial sum of money."
The interview offered insights into Goldstein's friendships with Bilzerian and Malaysian gambling mogul Paul Phua, whom he represented after a raid at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas over an alleged illegal betting operation (Phua was later acquitted).
Goldstein also reflected on his overall poker performance. He claims to have won $88 in heads-up matches, most of which went to investors, but says he is down between $10 million and $15 million overall in poker, mainly due to losses in ring games without any backing.
In an excerpt for Bilzerian's 2021 autobiography, Goldstein described himself as a "net winner" in poker.
Goldstein's only public appearance at the poker table occurred in the 2024 Hustler Casino Live Million Dollar Game, where he showed up masked and playing as a mystery player named "Thomas." The unknown player at the time infamously folded the winning hand in a $540,000 pot, one of the biggest blunders in livestream poker history.
Goldstein's trial is scheduled to begin in the coming weeks. The charges against him include tax evasion, falsifying tax returns, failing to pay taxes, and making false statements to two separate mortgage lenders.
*Lead image courtesy of gores.com
