If your feed has been flooded with a poker player collapsing in celebration at a final table, you are not watching something that just happened. The clip making the rounds shows high-stakes pro Justin “BoostedJ” Smith tearing his ACL during a World Poker Tour final table in 2009, and it has resurfaced thanks to a fresh wave of reposts from major poker accounts.
The moment looks dramatic because it was. Smith spikes a miracle river card, leaps to celebrate with his friends, and then immediately crumples as his left knee gives out. What makes it even more memorable is that he stayed in the tournament and finished third for nearly half a million dollars.
Justin BoostedJ Smith Poker Player
Justin Smith, better known online as BoostedJ, was one of the most feared young cash game players of the late 2000s. He built his reputation in the online poker boom, then transitioned to live high-stakes tournaments and cash games, regularly sitting in some of the toughest games in Las Vegas.
By the time he reached the televised final table at the WPT Bellagio Cup V in 2009, Smith was already respected in elite circles. He was only 21 years old at the time, which adds to the shock value when you see the clip labeled as if it just happened.
Justin Smith ACL Injury At WPT Final Table
when poker player Justin Smith TORE HIS ACL at a $1,100,000 @WPT Final Table 😱 pic.twitter.com/p9w1NkM67L
— World Poker Tour (@WPT) January 26, 2026
The injury occurred three-handed at the Bellagio in a $15,000 buy-in WPT event that drew 268 entries. Smith got all-in holding K-J against pocket eights and was behind heading to the river. The board ran A-7-3-Q, and he needed a ten to make a straight.
The river delivered exactly that. As the card hit the felt and the crowd reacted, Smith jumped up to celebrate. His knee buckled almost instantly. What looked like a harmless hop turned into a torn left ACL that required surgery soon after.
Despite the injury, he continued to play and ultimately finished third, earning $465,000. The image of him wincing through the pain while still battling at the table is part of why the clip continues to resonate with poker fans.
WPT Bellagio Cup V 2009 Results
The WPT Bellagio Cup V final table featured several well-known pros, including Erik Seidel, Alexandre Gomes, Alec Torelli, and Faraz Jaka. It was one of the stronger fields of that era, blending online crushers with seasoned live veterans.
Smith’s third-place finish remains one of the more unusual highlights in WPT history, not because of the payout or prestige, but because of how it happened. Tournament poker rarely produces a physical injury as part of the storyline, especially not at a televised final table.
Alexandre Gomes won the $15,000 buy-in tournament for almost $1.2 million.
Why The Justin Smith ACL Clip Is Going Viral Now
The clip resurfaced after the World Poker Tour shared it again on social media in early 2026, framing it as one of the wildest moments in tour history. From there, sports pages, gambling accounts, and general viral video aggregators pushed it to new audiences who had never seen it before.
Many posts present the footage without context, leading viewers to believe it is a recent event. In reality, the moment is nearly two decades old, but the combination of shock value, a massive pot, and a visible injury makes it perfect for short-form video platforms. Poker rarely intersects with highlight culture in this way, which is why the clip keeps finding new life.
For longtime fans, it is a reminder of how intense tournament poker can feel in the biggest spots. For everyone else, it is simply one of the strangest celebration injuries you will ever see on a poker stage.
