Doug Polk is looking for challengers. The high-stakes poker pro is accepting opponents for a series of new heads-up, no-limit hold’em matches in the coming weeks.
The announcement came via Twitter/X on Friday. Each match will last 5,000 hands over three days at stakes of $100-$200 or higher. Opponents who can beat the Lodge poker club co-owner will collect an extra $25,000 bounty.
The bounty escalates with each match Polk wins – increasing by $25,000. If he wins three in a row, the fourth and final match will have a $100,000 bounty.
The challenge is open to all players in the US and Canada who can play on ClubWPT Gold, the online poker site he represents.
Potential Opponents
Polk is known for his skills at the heads-up game. He famously topped Daniel Negreanu in a heads-up challenge in 2021. That event, however, was significantly longer, with Polk walking away with a $1.2 million win after 25,000 hands.
The new challenge features just 20% of that total per match. That ramps up the variance and may offer more of a chance for less-experienced players in a heads-up game to actually win.
As part of his post announcing the new proposal, Polk listed several possible opponents. Some of those included poker pros like Phil Hellmuth, Phil Galfond, Matt Berkey, Luke Schwartz, Phil Ivey, and Bryn Kenney. The list also included businessmen and players Sam “Señor Tilt” Kiki, founder and CEO of Monkey Tilt, and Maverick Gaming CEO Eric Persson.
“I will select an opponent each round based on who will make the most compelling match for viewers,” Polk said.
Officially announcing my new HUNL open challenge.
If you can beat me over 5,000 hands at 100/200+, you win a 25k bounty.
Challenges will take place over 3 days.
Each match I win increases the bounty by 25k. If I win 3 in a row, the 4th and final match will have a 100k…
— Doug Polk (Code Doug) (@DougPolkVids) February 20, 2026
Polk In The News
Polk has made quite a bit of news recently. Last June, the 37-year-old criticized ClubWPT Gold’s new feature allowing players to view their opponent’s hole cards after a hand’s conclusion for a small fee.
The three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner also made an appearance on the streaming stand-up comedy show “Kill Tony” last May, impressing the hosts enough to be invited for a second appearance.
In November, Polk won a heads-up challenge against Ossi ‘Monarch’ Ketola for a $1.2 million win.
