On the 10th episode of the Poker News Daily web series “The Showdown with Jon Friedberg,” actress, model, and poker player Christina Lindley joined us to discuss her rapid rise in the game and how she manages to juggle her time successfully. You can show your love for “The Showdown” by signing up for UB.com, which makes its home on the USA-friendly CEREUS Network, using the deposit code UBPND. Sign up now.
Friedberg started this week’s tenth anniversary show by discussing the field of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which Erik Seidel outlasted over the weekend: “There was a lot of talk about who deserved to be in the 64 players that were selected. Some very well known players were complaining not just that they weren’t invited, but that certain non-poker playing celebrities were invited… Ultimately, the goal of NBC is to get viewers for the show.”
Friedberg continued, “I think the NBC Heads-Up Championship is still great exposure for poker, so rather than bitching about some of the players who were selected, I think we as poker players should all be thankful that this tournament exists in the first place, embrace it as it is, and understand that it’s not just about the best poker, but also bringing in viewers.” Seidel swept 2003 World Series of Poker Main Event champ Chris Moneymaker, a PokerStars pro, in the finals. Read more.
Also up for discussion was calling the clock in live poker tournaments. Readers of Poker News Daily weighed in through e-mail and Twitter and Friedberg explained what the mob thought: “The general consensus was that if it was abused, it’s unethical… As long as it’s not abused and as long as people aren’t stalling… then it’s ethical and within the rules… I never have any fear of calling the clock on people if they’re taking too long. It’s just not fair if our table, in a tournament, can’t get in as many hands as others.”
In 2007 and 2008, the Writer’s Guild of America went on strike, stopping scripted television shows and movies in their tracks. Lindley, an actress, found herself displaced in California and quickly took up poker: “I came into poker around two-and-a-half years ago during a writer’s strike when nothing was going on in Hollywood. I flew home to Tennessee. My Dad lives in Memphis and he took me to Tunica. We walked into a poker room and I fell in love. I’ve never felt that way about anything other than acting.” She started taking poker seriously a year ago.
On her other life interests, Lindley revealed, “I moved to Las Vegas in November. I pretty much made a conscious decision to play poker full-time and I keep getting called back into the modeling stuff. Unless it’s specifically brought to me or my representatives, I’m not going out and seeking it.” According to the Hendon Mob, Lindley has just over $24,000 in cashes from live poker tournaments.
Finally, Lindley lives with Lauren Kling in Sin City. Kling was the featured guest on the fifth episode of “The Showdown” and Lindley gave us the inside scoop on living with a fellow female sensation: “I wouldn’t have moved to Las Vegas if I hadn’t had the opportunity to live with her. It’s great support. We’re both extremely positive, we both work out every day, we take a lot of time off, and we enjoy going out.” The two love each other so much that they have a weekly date.
Check out more of this week’s episode of “The Showdown.” View Part 1 and Part 2.
