a post-tournament interview that the blueberries were "brain food" and the reason he won. Gold's WSOP win was marked by an uncanny ability to goad his opponents into either calling his bets when he had an unbeatable hand or folding to him when he was weak. He consistently told his opponents that he was weak or strong, telling the truth sometimes, and sometimes lying, with the net result of successfully deceiving his opponents most of the time. Prior to the 2006 WSOP Main Event win, Gold had compiled a solid record in tournament competition, using lessons learned from poker legend and previous two-time WSOP main event winner and owner of 10 WSOP bracelets, Johnny Chan. Gold's "table talk", though both an asset and a source of criticism for his tendency to tell opponents his actual hand during play, was contrary to WSOP rules. In one case at the final table, Gold actually flashed one of his hole cards to an opponent (a face card), creating enough uncertainty that his opponent folded the better hand. However, Gold was never penalized for any rules infraction. Prior to his elimination in the 2007 WSOP, Gold was issued a warning for his tactics. As of the end of 2008, with just 13 in-the-money tournament finishes and only two wins, Gold's total live tournament winnings exceed a record $12,100,000, and he was the first person to eclipse the $10,000,000 mark in tournament poker. Most of his tournament winnings have come at the WSOP, where he has amassed $12,067,292 in cashes. Immediately after his WSOP win, Gold called his stepfather, Dr. Robert I. Gold, who could not attend as he was suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease. Gold pledged to use his winnings to make his stepfather more comfortable. His stepfather died four months later on December 13, 2006. Winnings controversy Just prior to the 2006 WSOP, Bodog.com Entertainment and Gold entered into a business relationship when Gold agreed to find celebrities willing to play in the main event under the Bodog banner in exchange for a paid entry into the main event. Gold partnered with Crispin Leyser to help with this task in exchange for half of Gold's winnings, according to Leyser. After Gold won, Leyser says that Gold reneged on the deal and had decided to keep the entire $12 million prize. Leyser sued Gold on August 22, 2006, which resulted in Chief U.S. District