Poker Pro Dwyte Pilgrim Accused of Hustling Players
A poker pro, Dwyte Pilgrim, has been publicly accused of defaulting on a loan and vehemently refusing to pay.
Fellow poker pro Aaron Massey pointed the finger at Pilgrim but he is not the only one making such accusations.
"We both played every live tournament and were at almost every stop together," said Massey. "In September 2012 I had my big win at Winstar and finally had money for the first time. He was ecstatic for me, and over the next four months we got even tighter. He would always text me encouraging things, building me up. He would talk about how we are about to do this thing together, and stuff like that. I kind of knew that he may be treating me differently because I won Winstar, but a lot of people were."
Masey claims that a bet was placed between the two players. Whoever was to finish higher in the CardPlayer rankings at the end of the calendar year would win $5,000 and a vacation costing a minimum of $2,500.
"In January 2013 we were at Borgata," Massey continued. "It was the day before the WPT Main Event. I had just won a prelim a few days prior, and Dwyte knew I had money in the safe in my room. He texted me and asked if he could come to my room to talk about something very serious and it had to be in person. He showed up somber, and started to tell me a story. He said that his bank account had been frozen just days prior. He said he got a notice that it would be frozen for 40 days as they cleared up the issue. He explained his story and then asked me if I could lend him $7,500."
A reluctant Masey told Pilgrim ‘If this story isn't true, and I lend you money based on a lie, and I don't get paid back then it is the same as stealing.'
Masey says he would ultimately go on to lend Pilgrim the $7500.
"From that point until now, I have tried to setup every/any payment plan with him," said Massey. "I have asked for as little as $1/day. Then $1/week and he still said no. He has lied to me many more times about money coming in but he never follows through."
Masey claims other players have come forward with similar accounts of being fleeced by Pilgrim. One of those players, Brian Hastings, confirmed this to PokerNews.
"I staked him in a few live tournaments this summer/autumn, he chopped a $1k bounty tourney at Parx for $9,600 total — including five $500 bounties — then claimed he couldn't get the other $7,100 from Parx due to his license being in poor condition and unverifiable," Hastings said. "He claims to date that he hasn't been paid out, but I have strong suspicion that he's not being truthful about that."
PokerNews has since reached out to Pilgrim and was provided with the following statement:
In January 2013, Aaron and me had a POY bet. That same January I asked Daniel Negreanu if he wanted a POY bet. I was in a great situation, no worries no problem, you got to be if u ask Daniel if he want to have a POY bet.
Shortly after I had some problems. I asked three friends to help me. I needed cash for a month or two. They did, and everything was cool. In February, right after playing a $10,000 Main Event, I got some life changing news. From there I had some of the toughest times of my life.
I was in a financial bind that which took me out of playing for the rest of year. I wasn't able to pay back my arrangements on time. I've had some of the toughest years over the last couple years and never got back on track.
I never duck a call or text from anyone. I've always intended on paying, but honestly did not have it. If it wasn't for the thing that happened, I would have paid back on time. I'm sorry my mishaps hurt anyone, but it wasn't done with malicious intent.
I've got nothing but love for everyone who ever helped me. Moving forward, after I owed Aaron for a while he would call and his text would get aggressive. He called me on a rough night and I quoted a rap song, which he took as a threat. I instantly replied and apologized.
I play with hundreds of players a week. My family and friends all know my character. I'm ok with this whole situation, but hopefully we can fix it ASAP. At the end of the day we all take hits, but it's how you bounce back. Real homies ain't hating, and hating homies ain't real.
My pride and ego was high when I took myself out of the game. I was one of the strongest players in the world. It was easier to walk away than ask for help, especially when you are the one that everyone expects to be the one helping.
When you're at the top, no one knows who their friends are. When you're down, you know whom your friends. See you at the top.
- Nagash Rath, Gambling911.com
