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 WPT
Hollywood Home Game - Episode Three
This episode of the Hollywood Home Game was the worst one ever. I am not exactly sure if it was because of the horrific poker or because one of the
players was so drugged up, he was unwatchable. I had to use my Tivo remote to forward through most of the program. I have to admit that on
one part of the program, I got one of the biggest smiles on my face I have ever had watching any of the WPT events. Ming Na called Daniel Baldwin's
all-in bet and all she had was a pocket pair of deuces. The board was JT976 and her hand was good. I was not smiling because I thought it was a
great call (pretty horrible), but it eliminated the unwatchable Daniel Baldwin and he left in third place. After that hand, she only had to beat
out one opponent and it happened to be the only other woman on the program,
Jennifer Tilly. I have always liked Jennifer, so I actually enjoyed the last
part of the program. Ming won the event, James Woods finished fourth, Robert Wuhl finished fifth, and Joshua Morrow finished sixth.
World Poker Tour Hollywood Home Game - Episode Two
Hollywood Home Game 2 was a typical celebrity poker show. Half the players had no clue how to play poker and there was very little of the show that
was enjoyable to watch. The six celebrities were Camryn Manheim, Norm Macdonald, Lou Diamond Phillips, Fred Willard, Lolita Davidovich and Richard Karn.
The most memorable hand of the tournament was the first. Lou Diamond held AA and doubled the blind to $12,000. Lolita called with pocket eights,
Richard called with pocket tens and Fred called in the big blind with 76 of diamonds. The flop was 862 giving Lolita the top
set. Richard
checked,
Fred checked, Lou Diamond bet $30,000 and all of the players called him. In a normal situation I would think Lolita was trying to set Lou up, but I
am almost positive this was not the case. The turn was a two. Richard checked, Fred bet $20,000, Lou Diamond raised to $70,000, Lolita called,
Richard mucked, and Fred called. The river was a four giving Lolita the nut
full house. All of the players checked including Lolita!!! After she
was awarded the pot she said, "I shouldn't have checked."... DUH!!
The other thing I enjoyed was watching
Daniel Negreanu and
Jennifer Harman's analysis of the hands when the players called them out to ask
them what they should do. In all of the situations, they gave them great advice that worked out for the player.
The best thing in my opinion is knowing that these celebrities are actually going to play in the WPT Championship. I wonder if there is
something called "worse than dead money"? When I watched this event, it reaffirmed my belief that the WPT would be nothing without the phenomenal
poker players that attend their events. The stars of poker can not be replaced even by television stars.
When the match got heads up, I could tell who the winner was going to be because of the way one hand got played out. Lolita got dealt pocket aces
and just called. Richard held T5. The flop was J65, Lolita bet $60,000 and Richard called. The turn was another six. Richard checked, Lolita bet
$60,000 and Richard folded. Lolita did not maximize her win on this hand and to Richard showed poker skill by laying his pair down. Lolita did not
have enough chips on the final hand so they were all-in before the flop. She held A5 and Richard AQ. The board came was KQT75, making Richard the champion.
World Poker Tour Hollywood Home Game - Episode One
The World Poker Tour Hollywood Home Game consisted of six celebrities battling it out to win $25,000 spread around to their favorite charities
and a $25,000 seat to the WPT Championship for the winner. This event was better than other celebrity poker shows I have seen. It might be for the
fact that I am accustomed to the WPT structures and commentary, or it could have been the celebrities were a bit more diverse and interesting.
The players were Jack Black, Mimi Rogers, Drew Carey, Aisha Tyler, Fred Savage, and Steve Harris. All players brought something unique to the
game. Jack and Drew brought their offbeat sense of
humor, Steve Harris brought a sense that the doom of a
suckout was always right around
the corner, Aisha brought a wild style of play, Fred brought some excitement by jumping around like a wild man when he won a hand and Mimi
brought poker skill. I also liked the fact that players were able to use a red card which allowed them to get expert opinions from Daniel
Negreanu and Jennifer Harman. I am curious to see if there will be different "experts" each week. I would love to see at least one episode
where Phil Ivey gives his advice or Gus Hansen evaluates a situation. This makes the program interesting because we get to hear some thought
process about why certain hands might work or not work in a situation. The actual poker involved was mostly average as it is on other celebrity
shows, but Mimi Rogers actually played decent. I was not surprised at all to see her win the event. Although the celebrity shows are not professionals,
I like to see women come out victorious. Mimi also made the money at the Bay 101
Shooting Stars World Poker Tour event.
Celebrity Poker Showdown Final - Season One
Poker is the hottest thing to hit television since Survivor. The question is "How much is too much?" My thoughts are that any kind of poker
that can appeal to the masses is a good thing. When watching some of these shows, I can't help but think that it is not "appealing" at all. Most of
the Celebrity Poker Showdowns were absolutely brutal to watch. Many players had no clue about poker and the commentary was weak to say the
least. However, the final was a little better. I still think the poker was sub-par, but the show had some entertainment value. The five final
contestants were David Cross, Richard Schiff, Willie Garson, Nicole Sheridan and Paul Rudd.
 David Cross
tried too hard to be funny. He wore his bathrobe to the table, rubbed his nipples for good luck and tried to convince tournament
director/announcer Robert Thompson (pictured) to say "Shuffle the fuck up." (The last was slightly amusing). I found Nicole to be more
entertaining. Somebody told Nicole to rub David's nipples and instead she rubbed her own. The way she won the final was even more amusing. She won
one key hand when she held Q6 to David's 76. The board was 63486 and she won a $29,200 pot. Another hand she went against Paul when she made a pair
of sevens on the flop. She moved all-in and he was forced with a decision of whether to call with his AT. He asked a few times how much is it to me?
After Robert told him it was $4300, Paul repeated "$4300 to me?" and Robert said... "still". That got a chuckle from the audience and me.
Paul called and did not improve. But the hand that is going to be remembered was when she held J7 to Paul's pocket sixes. The flop was AT6 and Paul
bet. She said she knows he is bluffing, but she wasn't sure if she had what it takes to win. She called anyway and turned the queen and rivered
the king. The first comment was, "that was maybe the greatest suckout we've seen." She even stated to Paul, "you were robbed."
Phil Gordon said, "I have been playing poker a very long time and I have never seen a more brutal suckout in my entire life." That was the
key hand that led to her victory.
So again, are these kind of celebrity shows good for television? The answer is a simple... it depends. We know the poker value sucks,
but if the celebrities are entertaining, the shows can work.
Commentator Phil Gordon has made
World Poker Tour Bay 101 and
Aruba appearances.
Shannon Elizabeth has played on the show.
Also see E! Hollywood Holdem. |
