Threads that have popped up on PocketFives and TwoPlusTwo this week have reported possible heads-up sit and go bots on the Merge Gaming Network. David Jung, CEO of Hero Poker, a Merge site, posted information concerning the potential bot ring on PocketFives and commented, “I’ve checked the players in question, and they aren’t on Hero, so I can’t post any further info on it, but I’ve sent out urgent emails to Merge to get back to me on something definite.”

The original poster on TwoPlusTwo, KingOfAces, fingered five Merge user accounts he was suspicious of: Slawomir, GhettoBlaster, N1xDSD1, coldasice22, and CaviarChamp. He noted that the five players hail from the United Kingdom, have only been at the tables for two months, have since become regulars at 200nl, are winning players according to PokerTableRatings, have never played against each other, don’t chat, sit out as soon as their effective stack reaches 200 big blinds, and make “similar bet sizes in similar spots.”

KingOfAces added, “Never seen them tilting even if they lose 3BI to me in 30 hands; I have never seen them bluff 3 streets with total air, every time they 3-barrel bluff, they are on a missed draw; they never check-raise as a bluff, they always have some equity; and I have never seen them tank.”

KingOfAces posted a wealth of stats on the nearly half-dozen Merge Gaming Network accounts in question. In that department, highlights include nearly identical pre-flop button raising percentages (80%), big blind calling ranges (40%), donk bets on the flop (1%), donk bets on the turn (4%), check-raises on the flop (12%), and check-raises on the turn (2%). He added, “I have played with many different players and there never seems to be such uncanny similarity/consistency among so many regs playing on a site (same stakes, same country) at similar hours during the day.”

The five players also seem to have the same 4betting range, according to the original poster, of AQo+ and 99+, and “never 4bet with any other hands regardless of the match dynamics.” The group of potential bots has a 4bet shove range of 22-66 or 77 and, according to the whistleblower, “Their 3betting and 4betting ranges never change. It doesn’t matter if I start 3betting 25%+, they still won’t open up their 4betting range.”

In addition to the aforementioned group of five Merge Gaming Network user accounts, KingOfAces gave another seven users that seem to match the same profile: blisterer, HeilStalin, RussianFlower, WCToiletWC, RPMPMSRP, FOVAMEEE, and chinatownqueen. He has between 3,200 and 9,600 hands on each of his five original targets and about 35,000 overall.

On TwoPlusTwo, several posters questioned whether the bots’ strategy should have been brought to life or simply exploited. Among those suggesting the latter might be more profitable was Jonathan FatalError Aguiar: “They play like that and never quit and you are releasing this to the public? Sounds like an incredibly exploitable strategy.”

Answering the critics, KingOfAces contended, “This is a clear question of game integrity which is destroyed by the presence of these players (bots). Once I came to the conclusion, the right thing to do was to make everyone aware of it.” He added that the bots have reportedly disappeared once he posted on TwoPlusTwo, although some have appeared to continue playing as late as Tuesday morning.

Despite arguing that he was preserving the integrity of the game, KingOfAces continued to come under fire from members of TwoPlusTwo. One poker community member remarked, “I really do think that you should stay out of this and let other people (including fish) protecting themselves. We are not Merge’s police.” Another inquired, “If you don’t want to play against them, then don’t. What do you want people on here to do? Why are you posting this info here instead of contacting Merge?”

Carbon Poker’s Terms of Service specifically forbids bots and claims, “Our software package used to access and use the carbonpoker.ag service contains certain features designed to detect use of automated programs that enable artificial (non-human) intelligence to play on our site.”

When prompted for reaction to a potential sit and go bot ring, Carbon Poker officials declined to comment and an e-mail sent to Lock Poker was not returned at press time. It was later revealed that the original five accounts singled out by KingOfAces were not from Lock Poker.

We’ll keep you posted with the latest on the rumored heads-up sit and go bot ring.