Another one bites the dust. Randy “nanonoko” Lew, one of the top Twitch streamers in the world, is the latest to leave Team PokerStars.
Removing the PokerStars patch is becoming quite popular these days. Numerous pros including CardsChat ambassador Jeff Gross, have done the same in the past couple of years. Whereas, over at Partypoker, the stars are hopping on board.
Why ‘nanonoko’ Left PokerStars
Lew shared details about his decision to leave the world’s most popular online poker site on Twitter. The online poker legend refrained from insulting his former employer on the way out. But he did refer to the poker site’s decision to ditch the Supernova Elite rewards program which benefited high-stakes grinders in 2016 as a “debacle.”
He had mostly positive things to say about the poker site he’s represented for nearly 10 years, however. Lew was with PokerStars before Black Friday in 2011 and remained with the company up until this week. He wrote that his passion for poker “did decline as time went on.”
“I still love poker and consider it my profession,” he posted. “But there wasn’t an itch that I need to grind day in and day out.”
Despite Lew’s popularity on Twitch – he has over 52,000 followers – he admits he really doesn’t enjoy streaming. And having to stream as part of his role with PokerStars made his job less pleasurable.
“While I think it’s great platform, it felt too forced for me and I didn’t enjoy it,” he said of Twitch.
The online poker situation in the US was also becoming a problem. He said it’s “hard to have a life in the USA” when he’s required to travel outside the country just so he can stream his online poker sessions.
“I nod my head to all of the people who are capable of putting in the hours of streaming everyday,” he wrote. “It truly is a unique grind in itself. It simply isn’t for me.”
In closing, he thanked PokerStars for giving him the opportunity to represent the company in 2009.
What’s Going on at PokerStars?
While Partypoker has added big name stars such as Fedor Holz, Mike Sexton, and Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier over the past year, PokerStars ambassadors are ditching the company at an alarming rate.
So far this year, Jeff Gross and Barry Greenstein were among the high-profile players to leave Team PokerStars. Last year, Jason Mercier, Vanessa Selbst, and “ElkY” also resigned.
The current Team Pro roster is down to just 20 names and only Daniel Negreanu and Chris Moneymaker are leftovers from the poker boom era.
If the trend continues, Moneymaker and Negreanu might be the only ones left. Yet, somehow, PokerStars will continue dominating the online poker industry.
