Poker After Dark: World Champions Week Airs on 2/11

Poke r players looking to improve their game can learn a lot from watching this week’s match on NBC’s Poker After Dark.

The zany banter and offbeat shenanigans witnessed in some of the previous episodes of this show will take a back seat this week to intense focus and high drama as 6 former World Series of Poker Champions square off and attempt to win the $120,000 winner-take-all first prize.

Those competing in this highly instructional and entertaining match are Chris “Jesus” Ferguson (2000), Johnny Chan (1987, 1988), Berry Johnston (1986), Jamie Gold (2006), Phil Hellmuth (1989), and Huck Seed (1996). In addition to having won the crown jewel of poker, these 6 have also collectively accumulated 36

WSOP bracelets and have combined lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $41 million.

Perhaps the biggest question on everyone’s mind is whether or not Phil Hellmuth can pull off a three-peat. After possessing the worst record at 0-6 on the first two seasons of PAD, Hellmuth has back-to-back victories this season and will look to become the first three-time winner in the history of the show. Phil’s been on a heater lately, and nothing would make him happier than to score a sweep in PAD’s 3rd season.

Johnny Chan has appeared on two previous editions of Champion’s Week, winning the match in Season 1 and finishing 2nd to Joseph Hachem in Season 2. Chris Ferguson also has a win on Poker After Dark, and has an overall record of 1-3. Jamie Gold and Huck Seed also return seeking their first victory, with previous PAD records of 0-3 and 0-2 respectively.

This will be our first look at Berry Johnston, who may not be as well known to younger viewers as the others. Berry not only won the Main Event in 1986, but also holds the record for the most cashes in the WSOP Championship, and has cashed 26 years in a row at the World Series, also a record. He was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2004, an honor also bestowed on Johnny Chan in 2002 and Phil Hellmuth in 2007.


Brief profiles of all six players follow. The match will begin airing on NBC late night Monday at 2:05 a.m.,
February 11, and will continue for five consecutive nights in the same time slot. A special program called the “Director’s Cut” will air late night Saturday, February 16, at 1:00 a.m., right after Saturday Night Live. This show will feature Marianela with a behind-the-scenes look at the week with highlights and insightful player interviews.


There’s something about Champions Week that seems to really bring out the competitive juices of the players. This PAD title is perhaps the one that players fortunate enough to participate most want to win, as evidenced by the fierceness of this competition and the reluctance most players exhibit to gamble with marginal hands. One of the players described this match as a war of attrition, a spot-on analysis as 5 of the 6 players made it to the $800/$1600 blind level. Look for some great poker and for one situation where an actual flip of a coin decides the fate of a particular hand.


Ferguson, Chris: (Seat 1)
• Nicknamed “Jesus” and one of poker’s most recognizable players
• World Series of Poker Champion in 2000 and owner of five WSOP bracelets
• Career tournament winnings in excess of $6.15 million, and ranks 18th on the all-time money list
• Runner-up in both the 2005 and 2006 National Heads-Up Poker Championship, an amazing feat
• Earned a Ph.D. in computer science from UCLA in 1999, and is a former ballroom and swing dance instructor



Chan, Johnny: (Seat 2)
• Known as the “Orient Express”
• Back-to-back World Series of Poker Champion in 1987 and 1988
• Lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $6.22 million, and ranks 17th on the all-time money list
• Owns ten WSOP bracelets, tied for 2nd with Doyle Brunson
• Portrayed himself in the 1998 popular poker movie Rounders



Johnston, Berry: (Seat 3)
• Nicknamed “Numbers” and highly respected for being a gentleman at the tables
• Winner of 5 WSOP bracelets, and was the World Champion in 1986
• Career tournament winnings in excess of $3.20 million
• Trails only Phil Hellmuth, Men Nguyen, and T.J. Cloutier for most WSOP lifetime cashes
• Inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2004



Gold, Jamie: (Seat 4)
• Former Hollywood talent agent turned television producer
• Began working in the entertainment industry as an intern at the age of 16
• 2006 World Series of Poker Champion, winning $12 million for his victory by outlasting 8772 players
• First person in history to eclipse $10 million in tournament winnings
• Is currently planning the biggest celebrity charity poker tournament ever in memory of his recently deceased father

Hellmuth, Phil: (Seat 5)
• Known as the “Poker Brat,” a name he now embraces, and was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in July 2007
• 1989 World Champion, and won his 11th World Series bracelet in 2007, making him the first person in history to do so
• Career tournament winnings in excess of $9.82 million, and ranks 4th on the all-time money list
• Had another stellar World Series of Poker in 2007, and now has more World Series cashes (63) than any other player in history
• Is now involved in 18 separate business, and is highly acknowledged as the game’s best self-promoter



Seed, Huck: (Seat 6)
• Intimidating presence at the tables standing 6’7” tall, though he rarely speaks while playing
• Owns 4 WSOP bracelets and was the 1996 World Series of Poker Champion
• Lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $3.61 million
• Studied electrical engineering at Caltech, but took a leave of absence in 1989, started playing poker, and never returned
• Once shot 4 rounds of golf in one day with only 3 clubs breaking 100 each time to win a prop bet

News Added: 19 February, 2008

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