The poker world is hurting for decent poker-related television programming outside of the World Series of Poker, which is really only seasonal, and the World Poker Tour. “High Stakes Poker” and “Poker After Dark,” probably the two most popular poker TV shows in recent memory, are long gone. Enter “Poker Night in America,” which will attempt to fill the void after announcing last week that it has entered into an agreement to air its new show on the CBS Sports Network starting June 29th.
“Poker Night in America” is the brainchild of Todd Anderson, who, as co-creator of the Heartland Poker Tour, has ample experience in poker production.
“We’re making poker fun again – that’s our real goal,” he said in a press release. “We think poker players and fans have been looking for something new and fresh for a long time. We believe ‘Poker Night in America’ will soon become must-see television for all serious players and fans. Our tag-line says it all “’bringing personality back to poker.’”
Personality seems to be the key word here. The show will feature loads of professional poker players, as well as some amateur players, as they compete in high stakes cash games ($5,000 minimum buy-in, $20,000 maximum) and regional tournaments, though it appears that the cash games will be the focus. The players will also be filmed away from the poker tables (shocker: in one clip, they’re golfing).
One thing that has the potential to hurt “Poker Night in America” is that it is on the CBS Sports Network. It is understandable that it couldn’t find a home on a more mainstream spot on the dial, but the CBS Sports Network is not a go-to destination for sports fans. Programming-wise, it has a vibe similar to that of ESPN’s early days, showing motocross, strongman competitions, auto racing, Arena football, and bowling. When it does show one of the “big four” U.S. sports, it is typically something like mid-major NCAA basketball.
The most visible personality on the CBS Sports Network is sports talk host Jim Rome, who the network surprisingly lured away from ESPN in 2011.
“Poker Night in America” has filmed episodes in four locations so far, with more to come. The venues include Turning Stone Resort in New York, Reno Peppermill, the Rivers in Pittsburgh, and Maryland! Live near Baltimore. Film crews will return to Maryland Live! at the end of July to record additional episodes.
The cast (roster of poker players) for the first episode is lengthy:
Kristy Arnett
David “ODB” Baker
Lauren Billings
Shawn Buchanan
Shaun Deeb
Eli Elezra
Will “The Thrill” Failla
Layne Flack
Matt Glantz
Phil “The Unabomber” Laak
David Levi
Mike “The Mouth” Matusow
Darwin Moon
Greg “FBT” Mueller
Amanda Musumeci
Dennis Phillips
Dwyte Pilgrim
Tom “Donkeybomber” Schneider
Gavin Smith
David Williams
Most of the players were flown from Las Vegas to Turning Stone for filming, though some of them were already on the east coast and were able to make it without the benefit of the show’s air transportation.
“Poker Night in America” will air every Sunday night for 26 consecutive weeks starting June 29th.
