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Nobody likes tanking, but it remains part of tournament poker, and tours have spent years trying to rein it in.
Shot clocks are now standard across many events, limiting players to a set amount of time to act, while Triton Poker has taken things even further with its Triton Tempo system, inspired by the chess clock. The EPT, like Triton, has also introduced a set number of hands per level at some final tables to stop players from dragging things out late in tournaments.
There are clear incentives to stall. Extra time can help players ladder up the payouts, and sometimes players will deliberately slow things down when the blinds are about to go up, forcing shorter stacks to commit more chips on the next orbit.
Doyle Brunson once said, "Poker is war. People pretend it is a game." For some players, that kind of gamesmanship is simply part of the psychological battle that makes tournament poker what it is.
But British pro Guy Taylor may have pushed things further than most would consider reasonable during the Aussie Millions Poker Championship 2026 Presented by CrownBet.
