Caitlin Comeskey was known more for her poker content than her skill at the tables prior to this summer.
But after her successful run at the World Series of Poker, that’s no longer the case.
“I’ve always thought I was dope as hell. I’ve always thought I was a crusher,” Comeskey said. “But I definitely think other peoples’ opinion is starting to change.”
Comeskey started Day 5 of the WSOP Main Event in 65th place and was in solid position Friday at the final break of the evening at Paris Las Vegas.
Allan Sannier of France held the unofficial lead with 222 players still in contention for the $10 million first prize. Defending champion Michael Mizrachi was eliminated late on Day 5.
The $10,000 buy-in No-limit Hold’em World Championship continues Saturday at Paris Las Vegas with Day 6. The remaining players are guaranteed at least $57,500.
Comeskey was a recreational poker player while she lived in Los Angeles, but started to grind cash games more seriously after she moved back to her home state of Texas in 2019.
“I was making more money playing poker than I was working my salaried hotel job so I went full time with poker at the beginning of 2021,” she said.
In 2022, Comeskey started dabbling in longform vlogs on YouTube and her big break came that October after the controversial hand between Robbi Jade Lew and Garrett Adelstein that took place during a “Hustler Casino Live” stream.
Comeskey, who studied acting and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from New York University, posted a comedy sketch in which she parodied many of the key figures from the scandal. The video went viral on social media, and Comeskey continued to produce popular videos.
She won Rising Star in Content Creation at the 2022 Global Poker Awards and was named Best Short-Form Content Creator the following year. In 2024, Comeskey was nominated for four awards but eventually lost interest in creating content.
“I was just very disillusioned with the influencer marketing setup in the game and I decided if I was going to stay in the industry it was going to be as a player,” Comeskey said.
Determined to prove her skills on the felt, Comeskey studied intently and has cashed in eight events at this year’s WSOP, including the Main Event. Last month, she made back-to-back final tables, finishing fourth in the $1,000 Ladies No-limit Hold’em Championship and fifth in the $10,000 buy-in Seven-Card Stud High-Low 8 or Better Championship for a career-best $97,785.
Comeskey also proved her mixed-game prowess by winning the $600 buy-in No-limit 2-7 Single Draw event in May at Aria. She has over $537,000 in career live tournament earnings, according to the Hendon Mob Poker Database.
“Everybody talks (expletive) on everybody in poker. It’s very much a part of our culture that everyone thinks everybody is bad,” Comeskey said. “But certainly I, more than most probably, got my fair share of (expletive) talking or people not respecting my game or not thinking that I worked hard on my game. Definitely there’s a shift in how people are perceiving me this year.”
Comeskey was at a table with several pros to start Day 5 and moved to one of the ESPN feature tables during the afternoon. She scored a massive double-up before the final break, coming from behind with ace-queen of clubs to make the winning flush against Christopher Selami’s ace-king.
“I can’t lose at this point. I really do feel like it’s a freeroll for me,” Comeskey said. “I’ve already done so well this summer and proved who I am and what I have to offer as a player. I’m satisfied with what I’ve done in a sense, but I also won’t be happy until I hoist the bracelet.”
Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on X.
