PokerStars Adds to US Ambassador Roster Ahead of Potential State Merge

PokerStars recently welcomed Michigan-based poker streamer David Kaye to its list of US Ambassadors. 

Kaye made the announcement, “I’m so happy and honored to become a PokerStars Ambassador. I’ve been playing poker with my friends for years and turned my hobby into my dream job, so being part of the PokerStars family is pretty amazing.”

This newest addition comes potentially before a big move for PokerStars: shared liquidity between PokerStars MI and PokerStars NJ. While PokerStars MI has not announced when it will be implementing its shared pools, players are speculating it may be happening soon. 

Now Representing PokerStars

David Kaye hails from Haslett, MI, and has been playing poker for over 10 years. He fell in love with the game while watching the World Series of Poker on T.V. and soon started playing and streaming online under the name of DavidKayePoker. 

His following has grown over the years and with thousands of fans on Twitch and YouTube. He stood out in 2021 when he won big on PokerStars MI and has been making a name for himself in the online poker scene ever since. Kaye shared a little about his experience streaming and how it brought him to where he is today.

“Within a few weeks of streaming I loved it and told myself that if I ever had a reasonable chance to do this full-time, I would love to pursue it,” he says. “Streaming and poker really came out of left field for me as I previously never had any plans to create poker content or play poker professionally prior to starting my stream. In September 2021, I pursued poker and streaming full time.”

Both Kaye and PokerStars MI are excited about the partnership. 

In a recent press release, Managing Director of PokerStars US Severin Rasset said, “We’re proud to grow our team in the US and add David to our epic roster of ambassadors…At PokerStars, we have always championed new talent who are driven to grow, have great potential, and who create fun content, so we’re excited to welcome David.”

David joins the US Ambassador team alongside chess champion Jennifer Shahade and poker streamers Keith Becker & Mark Foresta (PokerStars PA).

Jennifer Shahade is a two-time chess United States Women’s Champion, Talk speaker, author, and semi-professional poker player. She was signed by PokerStars as a “Mind Sports Ambassador” in 2014.

Poker streamers Mark Foresta and Keith Becker, known online as “naigo1” and “AccidentalGrenede” respectively, were signed by PokerStars PA in 2021.

Signing Right Before Merger?

In May of this year, Michigan became a part of the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA). The MSIGA makes it possible to share player pools between states. While MI has been a part of the agreement for months, little to no progress has been made. 

PokerStars has been teasing a merger between PokerStars MI and PokerStars NJ for a while, even hinting that the brand has “exciting news” in store for the Fall. Players are wondering if this new ambassador signing is another hint that PokerStars will be the first to bring multi-state poker to MI. 

As a new spokesperson for PokerStars MI (and the success to back it up), David Kaye has the potential to influence other players’ views in the state.

“I’ve been very impressed with the cash game stakes available and tournament prize pools for a player pool that only consists of one state,” he says, discussing Michigan. “It makes me incredibly optimistic about the potential of the regulated online poker market in the US if more states continue to opt-in, particularly into the interstate compact which would allow for multiple states to play together in the same player pool.”

Mac Daniel is a Michigan native and freelance writer for PlayOnlineCasino and PlayOnlineSportsBetting. He has experience writing about a wide variety of topics, including healthcare, tourism, non-profit organizations, and most recently casino and sportsbetting news. To check out more of his work, visit: playonlinemichigan.com