Canadian highstakes poker pro Matthew Bergart was yesterday named as the victim of a deadly home invasion shooting in Toronto. Police revealed Bergart was not the intended target of the robbery and was simply in the “wrong place at the wrong time”.
According to police reports, Bergart was visiting an unnamed friend at a townhouse in the Etobicoke district of Toronto when three masked men forced their way in shortly before 2:30am on Thursday morning.
The trio demanded valuables upon which a struggle ensued and Bergart was shot multiple times. The suspects, wearing ski masks and dark clothing, fled in a light-coloured sedan.
Bergart was rushed to hospital but succumbed to his injuries.
Det.-Sgt. Brandon Price told reporters: “We believe this is a targeted situation in that there were valuables that were sought.”
Matthew Bergart was primarily an online player, his sole recorded live cash coming at the 2019 WSOP Main Event where he finished 825th for $18,535.
Online, Bergart was a talented player but was also involved in several banning incidents, including a self-ban from PokerStars when he was 18, an ACR ban, and more recent run-ins with GGPoker.
Although little detail is known about these incidents, a 2022 news article on the Russian site, GipsyTeam.com, covering highstakes cash games gave some insight into his troubles.
In a conversation with Wouter Bemers, Matthew released a brief summary of his difficult career:
Wouter Beumers: So, you were banned from Stars and ACR, you also disappeared from GG, and now you suddenly returned and are ready to play HU with anyone?
Matthew Bergman [sic]: I banned myself on Stars when I was 18. Because of my parents. I was banned from ACR because I played under the account Isidro Pereira and they also suspected me of using a solver. GG acted meanly because in 2019 I won a lot.
Wouter Beumers: The whole world is against you.
Matthew Bergart: But now I’m allowed to play here under my account.
Wouter Beumers: All this does not inspire confidence in me. HU I will not play with you.
Matthew Bergart: You can add me on discord, make sure I play.
News of Bergart’s death was met with shock and sadness on the 2plus2 forum, several posting their memories of him.
– “Always enjoyed railing his games and he was a player never shy of piling in the money if he thinks your going to fold in a certain spot. He used to play under Pmachine on Stars, and skyrocketed into HS recently battling the likes of Barak and Linus. Sadly he passed away way to young. RIP” -TheLove_Below
– “Matt’s been a stealthy crusher since 2015. He climbed his way from small stakes to high stakes at impressive speeds… His poker knowledge was uncanny. His game was not built on solvers but on raw intuition and trial by fire… He didn’t care about the money. He cared about being the best possible player he could be.” – Stupidhead
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