Poker is a great egalitarian game. The barriers to entry are pretty much a deck of cards and a few bucks that you can risk losing while you play the game. Still, it does take some level of skill to be good at playing poker, which makes it surprising that for these celebrities who excel at the game, professional poker is their second career.
There are so many celebrities who not only play poker, but excel at it. It just seems like the hustle and bustle of a star’s daily life would not leave a lot of time for analyzing table math, studying position, or poring over betting tables. With that said, more than a few celebs have added poker to their lifestyle.
A game show about celebrities from film and television, who play poker. Celeb Poker uses the platform developed by PlayTech, one of the world’s leading developers of online poker software. The CelebPoker software is stable and richly featured, with graphical quality and navigational ease held in high priority for user-friendly poker entertainment.
While there’s a veritable cornucopia of celebrities out there playing poker, we narrowed down the list to 10 celebrities we found particularly interesting for their poker-playing acumen.
1 – Gerard Pique
If you’re not into either European football or international celebrities, you may have never heard of Gerard Pique. Pique plays defender for one of the largest, most popular clubs in the world (Barcelona). He also plays for his national team (Spain), and when he’s not busy doing that, he’s married to Shakira. Despite all this, he has managed to rack up an impressive poker career.
Pique learned to play poker during his time at Manchester United where he played prior to moving to Spain.
That’s not a lot for a world-class footballer, but it’s not too shabby when poker’s not his full-time job.
Also, it’s interesting to note that former teammate and Brazilian international Neymar and all-everything Cristiano Ronaldo are also big poker fans, though neither has reached Pique’s level of earnings.
2 and 3 – Ed Norton and Matt Damon
Ever since they starred in Rounders together, when it comes to poker, the names Edward Norton and Matt Damon are inextricably linked… at least in my head, anyway. Regardless, it’s interesting to note that both Norton and Damon found games like their characters would play in while researching their roles. This love of poker has stayed with them ever since.
Damon has continued to play and was famously outed as one of Molly Bloom’s players in the famous “Molly’s Game” poker tables. Fortunately, he seems to have inspired none of the scumbags in the movie and was a gracious player to be around.
Norton’s poker life hasn’t been quite as extensive as Damon’s, but he has gone on to some interesting run-ins with the game. For instance, a game with Norton was recently auctioned off (for charity) by Leonard DiCaprio with the winning bid going for $130,000.
4 – Ben Affleck
It makes sense that if Matt Damon is doing something, Ben Affleck is sure to follow, right? In all seriousness, even without the close connection the two share, Affleck has a love for poker going back to his younger days. He was allegedly thrown out of a casino for reading cards at the table when playing blackjack.
After that, he received coaching in professional play and has earned over half a million dollars playing in poker tournaments, including one big score of almost $360,000 in 2004. Interestingly enough, Affleck was also a player in Molly Bloom’s cash games and, as one might expect, was a very nice guy at the table.
What’s more surprising is Affleck’s reputation for cautious play and small buy-ins. Even though he makes a half-million dollars for one-eighth of a movie (or less), he doesn’t like to lose his money at the table. There’s probably a lesson to learn there.
5 – Jennifer Tilly
Some people may not know that Jennifer Tilly is anything other than a poker star given that a lot of her celebrity sightings have been related to poker in the last few years. However, Tilly was once an actress in a number of A-list films like Liar Liar and The Haunted Mansion and others that are slightly less safe for work such as Embrace of the Vampire and Bride of Chucky.
Today, her IMDb page shows that she’s still active in a number of projects and until recently, was a voice actress on Family Guy. What’s really important is that she has a WSOP bracelet, a WPT win, and nearly $1 million in total wins. She’s a winner at the poker table and on the big and small screens.
6 – Shannon Elizabeth
Like her acting career, Shannon Elizabeth’s poker career has somewhat slowed down. In fact, by her own admission, she was never a hardcore competitive player on the poker circuit. Still, wherever she went, Elizabeth was sure to make an entrance and be noticed.
Despite not being a major force in competitive play, she has earned over a quarter million dollars like some of the other celebrities on the list, including a third-place finish in a major national competition. All in all, this is no small feat of poker prowess.
7 – Tobey Maguire
The former Spider-Man actor, Maguire has been playing poker for over 15 years. Since then, he has gained a reputation as a tough opponent at both live and online events. Still, unlike some of the other players on the list, his poker reputation carries a bit of a dark side. It’s rumored he won’t play without a special deck shuffler (that he paid for and owns).
Also, while playing in extremely high stakes games with Affleck and Damon, Maguire is rumored to have been quite a jerk to people like Molly Bloom, whose games he played in. Those rumors don’t bear repeating here, but suffice to say, if he hadn’t brought in some big players those games, it’s hard to see him continuing to be allowed to play.
8 – Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps is a true competitor who has partially replaced victory in the pool with victory at the poker table. He learned poker from Jeff Gross, a former roommate, who has since gone on to be a professional poker player. Phelps himself has yet to become an active, professional poker player but, by all accounts, he has the chops to do so and has several decent finishes even as a less active professional.
9 – Brad Garrett
Stand-up comedian Brad Garrett has long been a fan of playing poker while starring as Ray Romano’s brother in Everybody Loves Raymond and the voice in a lot of live action and cartoon shows. Despite an impressive list of movies on his IMDb profile, Garret still finds time to be a semi-active professional poker player.
Over time, he has risen to prominence in the poker world enough to earn a slot in Poker Night in America where he held his own against others at the table. He also got into a pretty famous argument with Phil Helmuth, but there are lots of celebrities and non-celebrities who would be more than happy to do that.
10 – Jason Alexander
While his most famous role George Costanza rarely won much of anything, Jason Alexander has made poker into a second profession. To date, he won Celebrity Poker Showdown, pulling down a lot of money for his favorite charity. He has also made numerous appearances in other poker shows where he has built a reputation as a fierce poker competitor.
Fortunately, he rarely plays like Costanza, but according to one of his interviews, did play a George Costanza-like match and actually rode it to victory. There was probably some luck involved, but I’m always happy to see anything related to George win.
Conclusion
Poker By Viaden
Poker is a great game that draws everyone from all walks of life. It’s also a great equalizer in that you have to be good at the game to win. As the celebrities in the list above can attest, being rich or famous doesn’t ensure your victory (though clearly being rich probably isn’t much of a hindrance).
Still, no one really needs another reason to throw down some chips at a table. If you could rub elbows with non-poker celebrities while earning some money at the table, that’s not a bad motivation for playing poker, now is it?
Even better, the list above includes just 10 celebrities out there who know their way around the table. There are hundreds more just waiting to get their game on. Can you imagine how cool it would be to say you took a pot off a movie star? So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and play!
Celeb Poker On Iphone
In this new Card Player series, we rank things in the poker world in an attempt to stir up some debate.
This week we take a look at the best celebrity poker players, who even without their celebrity status would be noteworthy in the poker community. Although, some probably wouldn’t have the bankroll to be a force in the biggest cash games and highest buy-in events around, but that’s besides the point. Celebrities help to legitimize the poker industry to casual outsiders of the game. Here are some of the best at doing this task:
1. Gabe Kaplan: It’s hard to think of any celebrity in poker more skilled than Kaplan. The 66-year-old New York native, arguably best known for his role in the 1970s sitcom, Welcome Back, Kotter, transitioned himself into quite the card shark, eventually landing a gig as the host of GSN’s High Stakes Poker in 2006. In addition to the cash game notoriety, Kaplan has cashed for more than $1.1 million in tournaments, $131,000 of which came at the final table of the 2007 World Series of Poker $50K H.O.R.S.E. Kaplan is the Phil Ivey of celebrity poker players.
Celeb Poker Mtt
2. Tobey Maguire: The Spider-Man star is so good compared to his celebrity peers, he was sued. Well, not exactly. Maguire, who is currently facing litigation for more than $300,000 in poker winnings at a series of underground Hollywood home games, is allegedly a $10-million winner lifetime in these celeb invite-only affairs (11-time WSOP winner Phil Hellmuth tossed out the figure in a 2007 episode of Poker After Dark). It seems fair to assume that the 36-year-old actor has won more on the felt than any person on this list.
3. Jennifer Tilly: As perhaps the most accomplished tournament player on this list (with the exception of Kaplan), Tilly does boast a WSOP $1,000 ladies championship bracelet. The former actress has accumulated nearly $600,000 in career tournament earnings, despite some notoriety for mistakes made in televised cash games. Along with her bracelet, she won a $5,000 event at the Bellagio last summer for $124,455 and a WPT invitational tournament in 2005 for $25,000.
4. Rick Salomon: The son of a former Warner Bros. executive vice president is a poker aficionado, but perhaps best known for his supporting role in 1 Night in Paris. Despite tabloid stardom, Salomon has found time to rack up $237,000 in career tournament earnings, which includes a win in a 2006 Bellagio Cup event. To this day, he can still be found in some of the biggest cash games in Las Vegas and around the country. His results in these games are unknown, although for what it’s worth, he did manage to dust off a $50,000 buy-in at a Rio cash game this summer — in about 30 seconds.
5. Sam Simon: Although you might be drawing dead to notice him in a crowded poker room, The Simpsons co-creator has quietly amassed quite the list of poker accomplishments. He has won three no-limit hold’em tournaments over the past three years, totally more than $100,000. Combined with a deep run in this summer’s WSOP main event, Simon has collected $344,000 in lifetime earnings. Interesting fact: Simon was married to Jennifer Tilly from 1984-1991.
6. Ben Affleck: With a $10,000 buy-in major no-limit hold’em title on his poker resume, the movie star has accomplished what many seasoned pros are still longing for. Despite the $356,400 win in the 2004 California State Poker Championship, Affleck has not parlayed the experience to tournament stardom. He outlasted a meager field of 90 players en route to capturing his one and only big-time poker tournament win, and if it wasn’t for his run-good back in 2004, the poker community might associate him more with his best friend; Rounders star Matt Damon (who reportedly is awful at competitive poker). Affleck is also an alleged participant in the high-stakes Hollywood home games, and mixed reviews of his results have come forth.
Www.celebpoker.com
7. Nick Cassavetes: A participant on PokerStars’ The Big Game and GSN’s High Stakes Poker, the director of the quintessential chick flick, The Notebook (2004), has proved to be anything but gooey with emotion at the poker table. In addition to holding his own against the top cash game players in the world, Cassavetes has cashed for $142,000 lifetime in tournaments. He was close to a WSOP main event final table in 2005, finishing in 93rd place for $77,000. Like Maguire, the director is also being sued for poker winnings.
8. Bruce Buffer: Buffer has racked up $259,047 in prize money on the felt and he has also appeared on Poker After Dark. The Bruce Buffer Poker Room was also named in his honor at the Luxor in Las Vegas, as his accolades in the poker world have been adding up since his breakout tournament performance where he made the final table at the 2005 World Poker Tour Celebrity Invitational.
9. Shannon Elizabeth: “So uh, ‘grinder’ is the expression?” – The former American Pie actress plays a lot of tournament poker, and has some results to justify the hours at the felt. Elizabeth finished third in the 2007 NBC National Heads-Up Championship (invitation only) for a score of $125,000. Unfortunately for her, 2007 has, up until this point, been the peak of her poker career.
10. Michael Phelps: Although he has just one final table and a measly $5,213 in career tournament earnings, the millionaire Phelps could become a force on the circuit once his Olympic career winds down. In a Card Player interview a while back, Phelps, who is also a backer, said he loves the game, and is excited about improving on the felt in the near future. Not much is known about his skill level, but he should have the time and the resources to take a shot in retirement.
Honorable Mentions (based on career tournament earnings):
Teddy Sheringham ($249,055), Fatima De Melo ($233,269), Alexia Portal ($160,762), Orel Hershiser ($90,000), James Woods ($65,504), Boris Becker ($61,315), Lou Diamond Phillips ($51,476), Jason Alexander ($29,107), Trishelle Cannatella ($20,000), Ray Romano ($18,176), Norm MacDonald ($15,208), Ricki Lake ($7,732), Cornell Iral Haynes, Jr. (a.k.a. Nelly), Brad Garrett.