Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Apr 29,rummycircle app download 20252 min read

The title for "Worst Bad Beat in World Series of Poker (WSOP) History" will likely forever go to the quad aces versus Royal Flush ultra-cooler that took place in the 2008 WSOP Main Event.

The hand between Justin Phillips and Motoyuki Mabuchi, recently uploaded to YouTube by PokerGO, is the stuff made for James Bond movies and took place on poker's biggest stage.

The two were among the 6,844 players in the Main Event and happened to be seated at the same table as Everybody Loves Raymondstar Ray Romano, who recently played at the All in for CP charity event at ARIA Las Vegas.

Cameras got to the table on the river with the board reading A♥9♣Q♦10♦A♦. Mabuchi checked from middle position and Phillips — sporting headphones and a tank top and with a Mountain Dew can and blue iPod Nano in front of him — put out a bet.

Mabuchi then proclaimed "gamble!" before splashing his chips and being met with an instant call from Phillips, who showed K♦J♦for a Royal Flush. Mabuchi then showed A♣A♠for quad aces to stun the table and leave his opponent yelling "WOW!"

Wow, indeed, Phillips. Wow, indeed.

Before Mabuchi hit the rail, Phillips reached over the table and shook his hand. "What a horrible river card for you!"

See the all-time bad beat for yourself on the PokerGO YouTube channel.

Other Notable WSOP Bad Beats

Of course, there have been plenty of other horrific bad beats suffered at the World Series of Poker.

Top of mind is the beat Matt Affleck took deep in the 2010 Main Event to eventual champion Jonathan Duhamel.

For those that don't recall the hand, Duhamel cracked aces by making a one-card straight on the river in a pivotal hand that propelled him to his $8.9 million victory, while Affleck received a fraction of that.

It was a similar story for 2023 Main Event champion Daniel Weinman, who cracked kings with jacks late in the event as he was propelled to his $12.1 million victory for "Team Lucky."

More recently, Poker Hall of Famer and ten-time bracelet winner Erik Seidel was eliminated from a $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em event at the 2024 WSOP with 21 players remaining as his opponent hit a one-outer straight flush.

And there are certain to be even more bad beats at this summer's festival, which kicks off on May 27 and runs through July 16.

Get the 2025 WSOP Schedule!