PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) hostess Joanna Krupa joined this week’s installment of the UB.com sponsored poker news show “Poker2Nite.” The franchise airs at 11:00pm ET every Wednesday on Versus.
“Poker2Nite” opened with discussion of the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Bay 101 Shooting Star event, which played out last week from the California casino. WPT Live Updates Hostess Jacque’s interview with winner McLean Karr aired and still shots of UB.com pro Phil Hellmuth curled up in the fetal position after busting in sixth place also hit the big screen. “Poker2Nite” host Joe Sebok critiqued Hellmuth’s antics: “When you think of Phil, you don’t think of the 11 bracelets. You don’t think of the heads-up win. You think of the crying. You think of the screaming and complaining. He just needs to play the game.” Hellmuth has never won a WPT title.
Then, discussion turned to the epic high-stakes poker matches featuring Isildur1 that have been the centerpiece of Full Tilt Poker for the last few weeks. On the mystery Swede, who many believe to be Viktor “blom30” Blom, Sebok told “Poker2Nite” viewers, “This kid has a lot of skills, a lot of talent, and he’s not going anywhere.” A vignette asked poker pros who they think Isildur1 is, with Tom “durrrr” Dwan responding, “Some guy who won a lot of money off me and then lost it all to a lot of other people.” That sums it up.
Sebok and “Poker2Nite” co-host Scott Huff debated the need for a World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit, whose recently-held Main Event at Caesars Atlantic City attracted 174 players. Sebok remarked, “A lot of the locals come out and play” and added that the WSOP Circuit and Heartland Poker Tour should team up for jointly hosted events around the United States.
One of the top poker news headlines of the week was the introduction of the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Tournament of Champions, which will take on an All-Star Game format. Fans will vote to determine 20 of the field’s 27 spots, but Sebok was not looking forward to the new addition to the WSOP schedule: “I don’t like it at all. The fact that they’re only using bracelet winners doesn’t sit well with me. There are too many all-stars.” Only bracelet winners can qualify for the event, save two sponsor exemptions.
Sebok singled out Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, and Doyle Brunson as locks for the fan vote. Possible exemptions include Gus Hansen and Patrik Antonius, who have never won a bracelet.
Krupa then joined the show and noted that her first live poker experience was on behalf of a sponsor during the 2006 WSOP. The NAPT hostess explained, “I was basically thrown into the situation. It was nerve-wracking.” Her NAPT duties will include commentary and playing in charity events.
Krupa also described her experience on the ABC reality series “Dancing with the Stars,” telling viewers, “It was definitely the hardest thing I’ve ever signed up to do.” The show involved 14 weeks of nonstop dancing. Then, she showed Sebok a few moves, as the two danced the Lambada on the “Poker2Nite” stage much to the chagrin of Huff. Krupa appeared on the ninth season of “Dancing with the Stars” and finished fourth.
Finally, Dana Workman joined the set for “P2N Online,” a recap of the week’s Twitter, forum activity, and social media buzz. An image of Antonio Esfandiari and Phil Laak that appeared on TwoPlusTwo kicked the segment off. Then, poker pro Tony G’s concern over Hellmuth’s well-being following his Bay 101 exit was discussed. Finally, Workman showed footage of Prahlad Friedman balling it up on the basketball court.
Poker2Nite airs every Wednesday at 11:00pm ET on Versus.
