Despite what many think, poker is very much alive and well. It boasts a player pool of one hundred million gamblers worldwide, with sixty million residing in the US. It may not get as much attention in the mainstream as it did in the mid-2000s, but the sector as a whole is still going strong, and it is shown as PokerGO's High Stakes that have helped it maintain its position in the gambling sector.
For those unfamiliar with card TV programming, High Stakes is shown on PokerGO, a subscription service that added this reincarnation of the former GSN show of the same name to its 2020 lineup. The original ran for twelve seasons, debuting in 2006.
The native production was taped at various Vegas venues, starting at the Golden Nugget. The revival is also a series of cash games, but it now includes a separate duel version, where two highly skilled players compete against each other in the No-Limit Texas Hold 'em format.
Unlike in High Stakes Poker, in Duel, players face off with an initial buy-in of $50,000 that doubles each round. To claim victory and walk away with the prize pool, one must win three consecutive rounds before Round 4 or two consecutive ones starting with Round 4. Below, we run through the most vital moments in all iterations of this show amidst Duel's fifth season, which began in mid-November with a match between Partick Antonious and Jared Belznick poker and WSOP's bad boy.
Hellmuth vs. Esfandiari Trilogy – The Ending in Game 3 of Duel 1
Phill Hellmuth, nicknamed the Poker Brat or Lumestackin, is one of card gambling's most recognizable faces. He has been around the block more than a few times, so to speak, and won the WSOP Main Event in 1989, currently ranked in the twenty-sixth spot on the Hendon Mob's all-time money standings. In the first round of High Stakes Duel, the revival premiered on July 30, 2020, Phill went toe to toe with Antonio Esfandiari, The Magician, in the program's inaugural match-up.
Esfandiari took the lead in the initial contest. Still, Hellmuth successfully mounted a come-from-behind win via a decisive hand in which he held a pocket seven against Esfandiari's queen jack. Close to two months later, a rematch occurred, another super close contest, in which Hellmuth again prevailed through a king-ten over Esfandiari's jack-ten.
The stakes went to $200,000 each for Round 3, which aired on October 21, 2020, where these competitors vied for a pool of $400,000. In the final hand, Hellmuth's ace-ten bested Esfandiari's ace-three after both hit an ace on the flop, with Hellmuth's kicker ultimately securing the win. Esfandiari went all-in but lost, ending the series.
Phil Hellmuth's Comeback in Round 1 – HSP Season 1
While Hellmuth is a big name in the game, the pride of Canada, Daniel Negreanu, or Kid Poker, is undoubtedly even more immense. He has won over $54 million in event winnings and has earned the title of WSOP's Player of the Year twice. Global Poker Index also recognized him as the top card gambler from 2004 to 2014. Negreanu can also get called one of the few pros who has brought a small dose of mainstream popularity as one of the realm's top go-to names.
In the first season of High Stakes Poker, one of the show's most memorable moments occurred on a table that featured Barry Greenstein, Amnon Filippi, Eli Elezra, Gus Hansen, Tex Dolly, Antonio Esfandiari, and, of course, Daniel Negreanu. The incident in question transpired between the latter legend and Gus Hansen. That is a famed Danish pro who is also a ranked world-class backgammon player with three WPT open titles under his belt.
In this 2006 game, at the height of televised poker mania, Hansen met Kid Poker in a hand where he held five and five, opening with $2,100, while Daniel held six and six and re-raised. The flop brought nine, six, and five, giving both a full house, which led to Hansen check-raising, improving to quads on the turn with another five. Negreanu, holding a full house, called Hansen's $24,000 bet. After hesitation, Hansen went all-in, and Negreanu called, only to lose a $575,700 pot.
Tom Dawn's Legendary Bluff – HSP Season 5
Tom Dawn, more famously known as Durrr, is a man whose career proves that playing online poker can lead to worldwide card gambling stardom. According to lore, he started his Internet poker journey with only $50 in his online balance. By age twenty, he earned more than $5.41 million on Full Tilt in 2008 alone. The following year, 2009, Dawn appeared on the fifth season of High Stakes Poker.
Without question, the most remembered episode of that season and one of the show's most talked about overall is when Tom matched up against former mathematician Barry Greenstein and 2008 ME WSOP winner Peter Eastgate. Dawn challenged these masters by betting over $100,000, which successfully intimidated both, causing them to fold. Dwan outplayed two legends with better hands with this nifty bluff and, in turn, created an iconic moment that will live forever in HSP history.
