It’s been 12 years, but the PokerStars Big Game on Tour is back, with the first episode of one of the most popular poker TV shows airing on Fox Sports 1.
It’s been a long time coming, since the show was shot during the NAPT festival in Las Vegas in November 2023, but poker fans can now look forward to ten episodes capturing the excitement of the high stakes cash game action.
As a reminder, the table is made up of five players and one Loose Cannon.
The Loose Cannon has always been one of the most interesting parts of The Big Game, with that player receiving a $50,000 buy-in and tasked with surviving 150 hands. After that, any profit from their $50,000 they get to keep!
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The first episode features Loose Cannon Nikki Limo, a podcast host and amateur comedian who shone during the audition process and now gets to live the poker dream, playing high stakes poker against a star-studded table.
“I feel like I represent the everyman — the everywoman, if you will!” Limo said. “I really hope to do them justice. I’m going to take the moment in. But at the end of the day it’s about having as much fun as possible for as long as possible.”
- Nikki Limo – Loose Cannon
- Lex Veldhuis – PokerStars Ambassador and professional poker player
- Phil Hellmuth – 17-time WSOP bracelet winner
- Jennifer Tilly – Oscar-nominated actress and WSOP bracelet winner
- Arden Cho – Hollywood actress
- Alan Keating – High stakes cash game player
Loose Cannon in Action Early
Loose Cannon Nikki Limo certainly put her $50,000 to good use from the very first hand. After Alan Keating, raised to $900 from early position, Limo called in the cutoff with Q♥10♥.
The flop came J♥8♥7♦ giving Limo a straight flush draw. Keating bet $1,000 and Limo called. The turn K♦ gave Keating top pair and he again bet for $4,000. Again, Limo called.
The river 9♦ completed Limo’s straight but was momentarily befuddled by the $200 bet from Keating. She then raised to $5,000 and Keating called.
Her rivered straight was good, and she immediately shot up to $61,400.
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Tilly Getting Active
Academy Award-nominated Jennifer Tilly is no stranger to cash games, and with a WSOP bracelet even from the 2005 Ladies Championship she’s definitely not to be underestimated.
She tangled with Alan Keating in a hand where Keating straddled and Nikki Limo 10♥9♥ raised to $1,200 from under the gun. She got calls from Tily K♥J♦ in the small blind and Arden Cho J♠9♣ in the big blind before Keating raised to $6,200.
Tilly was the only caller and the pair saw a flop of K♠4♣2♦, with Tilly check-calling $5,000. Keating then called for an eight on the turn, before the dealer dealt the 8♦. Tilly checked and Keating shoved.
“If I fold, you’re going to laugh at me,” said Tilly as she deliberated. “OK, I call.”
The pair agreed to run it twice, with the 7♥ securing Keating half the pot with a straight and the 8♥ giving Tilly the other half of the pot.
Veldhuis Crushes
The big winner from episode 1 was clearly PokerStars Ambassador and Twitch streamer Lex Veldhuis. A key hand involved him and Alan Keating, who was clearly the most active player at the table.
Four players saw a flop of Q♦3♦3♣. It checked to Veldhuis K♦9♦ who bet $800 and Tily 4♠3♥ called having flopped trips.
Keating 10♦7♦ then check-raised to $4,000 and both Veldhuis and Tilly called.
The turn 8♦ gave both Keating and Veldhuis a flush, and Keating bet $10,000. Again, both players called.
With $44,600 in the middle, the river was the 6♥. Keating bet $18,000. Veldhuis called and Tilly deliberated a little before also calling.
“Diamonds,” announced Keating, but they were no good with Veldhuis’ flush taking down the pot and leaving Tilly short, although she would add on for another $100,000.
Keating Buys-in Big; Loses Big
The Loose Cannon receives a buy-in of $50,000 to The Big Game, and everyone else at the table also buys in for that amount. Everyone, that is, apart from Alan Keating who bought in for five times that amount ($250,000).
He certainly put the stack to work, playing aggressively in a manner he has grown accustomed to on streams such as High Stakes Poker and Hustler Casino Live.
In one hand, Jennifer Tilly opened to $900 from under the gun with 4♥4♦ and called a raise to $3,000 from Keating A♣J♦.
The flop 5♠5♦4♣ gave Tilly a full house and she bet $4,000. Keating called and the turn was the K♦. Both players checked and the rive was the Q♦. Tilly checked, setting the trap, and Keating duly fell for it betting $10,000.
Tilly check-raised to $20,000 but Keating re-raised to $60,000.
“It would be the dumbest fucking thing if you had queen-five, but I’m going to call,” she said, calling and winning a huge pot from Keating.
Hellmuth Quiet in Episode 1
He was famous for one of the most viral hands from the original Big Game, tangling with Loose Cannon Earnest Wiggins in a pot worth almost $200,000.
But Phil Hellmuth was uncharacteristically quiet in the first episode, drawing flack from his tablemates, including Arden Cho who suggested a super-edit of Hellmuth not playing a hand.
“They don’t have to edit much, the just have to cut out 30 seconds!” said Cho.
There’s still plenty of time left for the Poker Brat to get in on the action, and it would be surprising if he stayed as quiet during episode 2.
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Cho and Tilly Rebuy
Jennifer Tilly had added on to her stack after losing out to the flush of Lex Veldhuis, but it was Cho who lost her entire stack first, also in a hand involving Veldhuis.
Four players saw a flop of K♦6♣4♦ where it checked to Cho who had flopped top pair with K♠9♣. She bet $700 and Alan Keating called with 8♣7♥. Veldhuis then check-raised with 4♠4♥ to $4,500. Hellmuth, who had finally entered a pot, was forced to fold K♣5♣ and Cho raised all in for $17,500. Keating folded and Veldhuis called.
The turn 7♠ and river 8♦ saw Veldhuis’ set hold up, and Cho had to reach for more chips. Ironically, Hellmuth would have rivered a straight!
Standings After 31/150 Hands
After his elimination of Cho, Veldhuis has already shot up in the standings and sits with a profit of over $100,000 after 31/150 scheduled hands. However, after adding on, Tilly sits with the largest stack at the table.
The biggest loser is clearly Alan Keating, who started with $250,000 and is sat with less than $100,000 after losing out in a series of spots against a variety of players. Will he be forced to add on? We will have to wait for episode 2!
| Rank | Player | Profit/Loss | Stack |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lex Veldhuis | +$118,900 | $168,900 |
| 2 | Jennifer Tilly | +$66,900 | $216,900 |
| 3 | Nikki Limo | +$27,200 | $77,200 |
| 4 | Phil Hellmuth | -$4,300 | $45,700 |
| 5 | Arden Cho | -$50,000 | $50,000 |
| 6 | Alan Keating | -$158,700 | $91,300 |
Managing Editor
Based in the United Kingdom, Will started working for PokerNews as a freelance live reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time staff in 2019.
He graduated from the University of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He also holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports Journalism.