Celebrity Poker Showdown

Unfortunately i only caught the last two episodes of this show (including the championship game), but it was pretty entertaining. It was nice to see the celebrities candid in their demeanor. Hopefully this show has done moderately well (although almost no posts here is an ominous sign) and there will be at least a second season at some point this year.

I love this show and have learned a lot about poker from watching it. The celebrities are entertaining and some of them actually have skill and don't just base their game on luck. Plus they are doing it for charity so that is always good. I would recommend watching for a good laugh and some interesting poker play. I love Phil Gordon he is so cool and funny and his tips from the lounge are of course always helpful.I love it when the tournament director says "Shuffle up and deal" I always laugh a little when he says that. Sometime the real action in the losers' lounge though depending on who is in there. I would love to see Phil play with some of them sometime.

I watched all episodes of this show, and didn't much like it. Although there was a certain joy in watching celebrities outside their normal mindsets, the poker was just not very good. In no limit holdem, there is a fine line between brilliant and stupid, and nearly all of the amateurs crossed over it.

But I'm a poker fan, so I might be biased. It's kinda like watching celebrity softball or celebrity stock car racing. You level of enjoyment is inversely proportional to how seriously you take the sport in the first place. (And yes, the fact that I refer to poker as a "sport" let's you know where I sit on the subject.

Another thing that disappointed me was Kevin Pollack. He cracks me up, and I was excited that he was hosting the show. But he simply wasn't funny on this show. His gag lines seemed to be written for him, and his impressions seemed like they were from out in left field. I understand that he is being replaced by Dave Foley for the new season.

If you're not a poker purist, and just want to see Ben Affleck and David Schwimmer hang out, it's worth a look. But don't expect to see any of these folks behind a stack of chips in Vegas anytime soon.

Normally I love Celebrity Poker. I agree with most of you that they do not necessarily play GOOD POKER...but it is fun to see them in a social setting. Unfortunately, Mary McCormack used very bad judgment in her "showing"(using the term loosely!). Bringing a baby to a poker table is way, way out there!! Bringing her mammary glands in such a stupid display is even worse. As a Woman, I resent her being so crude and vulgar in discussing a perfectly normal function such as breast feeding. The association of the display and the function was totally tasteless and stupid. One would hope that a lady of her age could discern the difference. I have no qualms about breast feeding and especially when done in public as a necessity and normal thing for baby's well being. The obvious flaunting and discussion was wrong. Discretion, Mary....(discretion)....not a dirty word. The tasteless bantering by the guys was instigated by Mary and had no place in a poker tourney!!!

Anyone who watches this show thinking they're going to gain some great insight into playing poker is fooling themselves but from an entertainment standpoint the show is definitely worth the time. It's kind of unfair to slam the celebrities for not being expert poker players (even though several of them, including Mimi Rogers, James Woods and Ben Affleck have moneyed in big name events). Some of them play like boneheads (Bobby Flay, I'm looking at you!) but overall the level of play is at least as good as you'd expect from journeyman-level players. While you won't become an expert player from watching, if you pay attention to what Phil Gordon has to say you will pick up some good tips.