Thank you for saying it for what it is.

Obviously it's a horribly sad thing what happened and I hope that others in this community who play this unforgiving game can take a lesson from what can happen to even one of the online greats and make lifestyle choices that are on par with the calculated decisions that we make everyday at the table.

My sincerest condolences to his family during this impossibly difficult time.

God bless an online legend.

I was railing a $500 turbo 9m sng on PS in 07 or 08, and a nitty reg berated LH after the following hand: LH opens, NR 3bets IP, LH flats. Flop/turn/river checked down. LH shows 97dd hit a pair and wins vs NR's AK. NR berates him, "that's why you lose in these." (LH's sng stats were actually extremely good (though small sample) from his LAG style which totally differed from how the other regs were playing). He showed that it was possible to crush at the highest sngs using a strategy that was completely different from the norm then, and it had a big impact on my play.

When the family is ready to make a statement regarding the cause of death then they will do so. statements you read that have not been issued by the family are accusations. Please let the family grieve right now, if and when they are ready to disclose any other information regarding his death then A statement from the family will be made. This is going out to everyone that keep speculating on his cause of death and making false accusations it is not right please remember that his family does come on these forums to read. it brings them comfort to know all of the good things that people have said about him and they've been watching the videos and the podcasts
Thank you

I agree with you too gamballer21.... It is very nice to see the stories and to see how people really did respect him in the poker world. And I know for a fact that it's giving comfort to his family as well to see how he inspired so many people

When the family is ready to make a statement regarding the cause of death then they will do so. statements you read that have not been issued by the family are accusations. Please let the family grieve right now, if and when they are ready to disclose any other information regarding his death then A statement from the family will be made. This is going out to everyone that keep speculating on his cause of death and making false accusations it is not right please remember that his family does come on these forums to read. it brings them comfort to know all of the good things that people have said about him and they've been watching the videos and the podcasts

Can someone shed more light on this? Something doesn't make sense to me. He should have had a lot of money at that point after Black Friday where he could sit back and chill or invest in business, or played live and crushed those games. He could of been set for life. I guess I just don't understand why he was so down.

Because, as Barry said, his only stream of income was taken from him and he didn't have many other prospects. It's not as if he'd necessarily have enough to retire on and he likely became accustomed to a lifestyle that was comfortable or at least reliable.....and it sounds like he didn't like live poker.

WSOP 2011: I sit at a 1k wsop event, Tom Dwan comes late to the table, looks at me and asks something along the lines of "are you guys good or do you got trust funds?". Im german, didnt know what trust funds means back then. I said "we got what?", he repeats "trust funds", Im like "what?", he says "nevermind".
Few weeks later, I play some Venetian event. Chad Batista to my right. Little bit into the game he looks at me, says something which I acoustically didnt understand and smiles. I just smiled back. Was too starstruck to ask.

Remember sweating him years ago when I was 16/17 years old in the old 100/50 rebuy tournaments on stars. He made poker fun, played it the right way with aggression at the tables, never fortunate to come across him in person but reading the posts in here he seemed like a nice guy off of it as well.

RIP legend #lilholdem

RIP to a true legend of online poker. I used to love watching him crush.

Wow! Not many would have the nerve to pull that move in orbit #1. I'm guessing the plan was to show the 85o to the table after you folded anything but aces lol. How did you not want to quit poker forever after than hand lol?

I'm guessing there was no plan. I'm sure at the time $1000 was nothing to him, and he was just drunk and having fun. Props for taking the beat like a man though.

It seems very irresponsible to me to put the blame on BF and not on mental illness and addiction. He could have kept playing after BF one way or another with his skill and resources. BF is an excuse, not a cause. The subject is something that many struggle with and it needs talked about, let's not shift the blame to an event.

Yikes

With his skills and resources sure, he couldve still played after black friday. But that requires moving abroad, which isnt appealing to everyone regardless of the resources you have. The sweet thing about online poker was being able to play from the comfort of your own home. Black friday changed that for serious players who had to move out of the country to continue the work from home lifestyle. Its easy to see black friday as the first domino that fell which caused a long chain reaction, not an excuse.

I don't smoke or drink, but facts like these have me baffled that alcohol is perfectly legal and advertised everywhere, yet pot is only legal in a few places and jailtime for the most part in the rest.

No it doesn't.

Not going to derail further, but addiction and mental health are the real issues here, not black friday. Let this guys story of both of those things help others that live with the same demons.

i remember seeing this interview a while back and really appreciated the openness and energetic passion he had for the game. you can tell right away that he was unique and interesting. really like the part at the end where he apologizes for not being good at elaborating...

he was able to shine for a little while doing something that he had a passion for and that is a rarity.

condolences to family/friends...seemed like a one of a kind and a fun person to be around

Damn, this makes me sad. RIP Chad. One of the online players I remember most from the good ol' days.

heartbraking

rip homie. Your legacy will live forever.

RIP Lil Holdem.

You were always one of the toughest opponents.

the family has not made an official statement yet please do not keep the rumors accusations and assumptions going the way they're going that's just not right Remember the family is reading all of the stuff that everyone is writing Don't say things that are hurtful to them when they're ready to release any more information than they will but right now the best thing is to respect their privacy and do not start rumors Thank you

Please do not listen to the rumors accusations and assumptions that are going around. When the family is ready to issue another statement then they will do so but until then please respect their privacy and let them deal with the death of their loved one. Thank you

Please do not post rumors accusations or assumptions. Let's remember that the family is reading all of these posts because a lot of them have been nothing but positive and the family is finding comfort in reading the stories about Chad.

Elymarie, its obvious you are a family member or very close friend of chad's...perhaps his mother or sister? ...either way its clear you were very close to him.

however, you dont need to keep posting the same generic reply over and over each time somebody makes a speculative post about chad's former condition and what his life may have been like before he died. nobody has said anything disrespectful or slanderous about chad in this thread. he is getting unanimous praise about his gameplay and personality on and off the tables. we understand that you are upset, but its not going to do you any good to keep asking people to refrain from their speculation. the name of this forum is NVG - News, Views, and Gossip....people like to speculate on anything and everything related to poker, and sometimes this includes people who have passed away.

dont take offense to anything that has been said on here. pretty much everybody agrees that lil holdem was a formidable opponent and one of the pioneers of the aggressive style in online tournaments. he crushed the tables for years while he was with us, and now that hes gone his status as an online legend and one of the true OG's of tournament poker is cemented. if you are grieving its best to just stop reading this thread for awhile if you are getting upset each time you read a speculative post about lil holdem. only trying to help! sorry for your loss.