Celebrity Poker Players - Does Practice Make Perfect?

Celebrity poker players seem to be fairly common these days. It has to be said, any way to put yourself in front of your adoring public would be most welcome, especially if your career was floundering, who knows who may be watching you, possibly a big casting director with a huge budget for his upcoming epic and you might possibly catch his eye with your onscreen performance in your new unfamiliar role.

Not wishing to be unduly cynical, it is worthy to note that some of these events are not always what they are cracked up to be, with some celebrity poker players, lacking what it takes to really master the game. It's all fine and dandy acting out a part in your favorite TV series, where they have read a script and already know how they are required to play a particular role as the story is played out. You love how convincing they are in this chosen role, but that talent, doesn't always transfer to the poker table as we have often seen.

That said, there are of course some exceptions to the rule. There are indeed some celebrity poker players who excel at the game and even if the event wasn't for charity or being televised, their skill is clearly evident and not just something on tap that they turn on solely for the watching audience.

Back in 2004, Ben Affleck walked away with a tidy $350,000 plus from competing in and winning the poker championship of California State. Was he a regular poker player already or did he just strike lucky?

According to Molly Bloom a former Colorado cocktail waitress who had set herself up as a Poker madam luring the rich and famous to her underground games in Hollywood, he played a leading role along with Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio, in building her $4 million a year poker empire. Affleck, and his other A list buddies were regular players at these games, so it would be a fair assumption the public poker championship he won around the same time, was not entirely down to luck. Well let's face it, all good actors need to rehearse, don't they?