| High Stakes Poker | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Presented by | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 15 |
| No. of episodes | 212 |
| Production | |
| Producers | |
| Production location | Nevada |
| Running time | 43 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | GSN |
| Release | January 16, 2006 (2006-01-16) – December 17, 2007 (2007-12-17) |
| Release | March 1, 2009 (2009-03-01) – May 21, 2011 (2011-05-21) |
| Network | PokerGO |
| Release | December 16, 2020 (2020-12-16) – present |
High Stakes Poker is an Americancash gamepoker television program. The poker variant played on the show isno limitTexas hold 'em. The first four seasons ran from January 16, 2006 to December 17, 2007 onGSN. The next three seasons ran from March 1, 2009 to May 21, 2011, and was simulcast in3DTV onN3D.[1] The show was revived on December 16, 2020 onPokerGO.
The show was hosted byA. J. Benza in the first five seasons, alongsideGabe Kaplan. In the sixth season,Kara Scott replaced Benza as Kaplan's co-host, with Scott conducting interviews from the poker room floor. In the seventh season,Norm Macdonald replaced Kaplan as Scott's co-host. Beginning with the eighth season, Benza and Kaplan returned as hosts.[2] After the first episode of the tenth season, Kaplan retired and was replaced byNick Schulman.[3]
The first season ofHigh Stakes Poker, taped at theGolden Nugget inLas Vegas, was first broadcast on January 16, 2006, at 9:00 p.m., and consisted of 13 episodes until April 10, 2006, hosted byA. J. Benza and comedian/actor-turned-poker proGabe Kaplan.
The second season, taped atThe Palms and consisting of 16 episodes, premiered on June 5, 2006 at 9:00 p.m., and ended on September 18, 2006.
The third season, consisting of 13 episodes, was taped at theSouth Point Casino at 9:00 p.m. and premiered on January 15, 2007, and ended on April 9, 2007. New players for the third season includedJamie Gold,Phil Ivey,Chris Ferguson,Patrik Antonius,Paul Wasicka,David Benyamine,Brian Townsend, and others. Returning players from previous seasons includedDoyle Brunson,Daniel Negreanu,Sammy Farha,Phil Laak,Jennifer Harman,Barry Greenstein,Erick Lindgren,Mike Matusow,Brad Booth, and others.[4]
On April 2, 2007, GSN announced thatHigh Stakes Poker would return for a fourth season, again taped at South Point. Taping was completed in May, with the season premiering on August 27, 2007 at 9:00 p.m. Returning players includedPatrik Antonius,David Benyamine,Doyle Brunson,Eli Elezra,Sam Farha,Jamie Gold,Barry Greenstein,Phil Hellmuth Jr.,Jennifer Harman, andDaniel Negreanu. Newcomers for the fourth season includeBrandon Adams, Mike Baxter, Brian Brandon,Phil Galfond,Guy Laliberté, Bob Safai, Antonio Salorio, andHaralabos Voulgaris. The later episodes of this season featured a $500,000 minimum buy-in (compared to the regular $100,000 minimum) and these games saw more than $5 million in play on the table at one time. Season four finished airing on December 17, 2007, and featured 17 episodes. The network cited the show's strongratings performance in younger demographics.[5]
Season five, consisting of 13 episodes, ran from March 1, 2009 to May 24, 2009 at 9:00 p.m., was taped at the Golden Nugget on December 19, 2008 to December 21, 2008, and featured a minimum cash buy-in of $200,000. The format for season five differed slightly from its predecessors by having Kaplan and Benza not appear on camera until after the first commercial break in the show rather than at the outset.[6]
Season six premiered at 8:00 p.m. on February 14, 2010, and ended on May 9, 2010, with Kaplan andKara Scott.[7] It was taped for a second straight season at the Golden Nugget. The sixth season aired with three different groups of players throughout 13 episodes.Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey bought in for $500,000. Other rotating players, including newcomersJason Mercier,Dennis Phillips,Andrew Robl, andLex Veldhuis, bought in for $200,000.
Season seven debuted on its new GSN Saturday night time slot at 8:00 p.m. from February 26, 2011 to May 21, 2011.[8]Norm Macdonald replaced Kaplan as the host and Kara Scott conducted interviews from the poker room floor.[9] The season, consisting of 13 episodes, was filmed in December 2010 at theBellagio in Las Vegas. SponsoredFull Tilt Poker pros were required to boycott the show this time around, as rival sitePokerStars became its official sponsors. Thus, "High Stakes Poker" Season 7 is devoid of such Full Tilt pros asPhil Ivey,Jennifer Harman,Tom Dwan,Patrik Antonius,David Benyamine,Mike Matusow, andEli Elezra. GSN later announced it would be scaling back its airings ofHigh Stakes Poker after PokerStars pulled out of the U.S. market following the indictments inUnited States v. Scheinberg et al. crackdown on online gambling.[10]
Season eight ran for 14 episodes from December 16, 2020 to March 17, 2021 on the streaming service PokerGO. It was taped at theAria Resort and Casino.[11] In October 2021,Vice TV began airing episodes from the PokerGO run.[12] Season nine ran from February 21, 2022 to May 23, 2022 for 14 episodes.[13] Season ten ran from January 24, 2023 to May 30, 2023 for 17 episodes.[14][15] The show aired a special live episode on April 27, 2023.[16] Season eleven ran from August 7, 2023 to November 20, 2023 for 14 episodes.[17] Season twelve ran from February 19, 2024 to May 13, 2024 for 12 episodes.[18]
When it first aired,High Stakes Poker was unique among televised poker series because it did not take place in atournament setting. Instead, the program showed a high-stakescash game. The minimum buy-in to the game is $100,000, but players have bought in for as much as $1,000,000, such as Daniel Negreanu in Season 1 and Brad Booth in Season 3. For part of the fourth season, the minimum buy-in was $500,000.[19][20] The first episode with the minimum $500,000 buy-in was broadcast on November 5, 2007. The minimum cash buy-in for the fifth season increased to $200,000 – the largest buy-in for an entire run of a television series. Unlike inpoker tournaments, the chips involved represent real money. If a player loses his or her initial buy-in, that player may rebuy a minimum of $50,000. In addition, players may use cash instead of casino chips. Cash plays and stays as cash in the pot, it does not have to be converted into casino chips. Unlike tournament poker,blinds andantes are constant, instead of increasing as time goes on.High Stakes Poker has $300/$600 blinds with a $100 ante. The fourth season features three forced blinds of $300, $600, and $1,200, with a "straddle" or optional fourth blind of $2,400.[19][20]
The players include poker professionals along with amateurs such asJerry Buss and Fred Chamanara. The show was created by executive producerHenry Orenstein. In season one,Daniel Negreanu confirmed in a post on his website's forums that all players were paid $1,250 per hour for taking part and that 13 episodes were edited down from 24 hours of actual play.[21] 2006 WSOP Main Event ChampionJamie Gold commented that players were paid for participating, though they had to put much more money at risk to get to play the game. Gold also spoke about his interactions with other players, particularly Mike Matusow.[22] The theme song for the show is titled "I'm All In", written and performed by John Pratt.[citation needed]
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In Season 2,Gus Hansen won$575,700 with four fives, beating Daniel Negreanu's full house. Hansen raised to $2,100 with5♦ 5♣, and Negreanu re-raised to $5,000 with6♠ 6♥, which Hansen called. The pot was $11,700, and the flop came9♣ 6♦ 5♥. Hansen checked his set of fives with a 4% chance of winning the hand, and Negreanu bet $8,000 with his set of sixes and a 94% chance of winning. Hansen raised to $26,000 and Negreanu called, bringing the pot to $63,700. The turn came5♠, making Hansen quad fives, leaving Negreanu a 2% underdog with his full house. Hansen bet $24,000, and Negreanu called, slow playing his full house. The pot was now $111,700. The river came8♠. Hansen checked, and Negreanu bet $65,000. Hansen then went all in for his remaining $232,000, bringing the pot to $408,700. Negreanu called, and Hansen won the pot of $575,700. This was the largest pot before the $500,000 minimum buy-in game played during Season 4.
In the November 12, 2007, episode of Season 4,Jamie Gold won $495,867 of a$743,800 pot that developed between Gold with three Kings on the turn card, andPatrik Antonius with a straight on the turn card. Antonius heldA♠ J♦ and Gold had pocket K. After the3♠ Q♦ 10♥ flop andK♥ turn, Antonius was a 4-to-1 favorite with his straight vs. Gold's three kings. Gold moved all-in and Antonius called. With such a large amount at stake, the players agreed to run the river (deal the river card) three times. The first river card,Q♥, and the second river run,3♦, both paired the board to give two wins to Gold with a full house. The third river run,8♠, kept Antonius' straight in front. As a result, Gold won $495,867 from the pot and Antonius won $247,933. Antonius' calm demeanor after the hand prompted host A.J. Benza to comment, "I'll tell you one thing: Patrik can take a punch. Imagine if that was Phil Hellmuth."[23]
In the November 26, 2007 episode of Season 4,Doyle Brunson won a$818,100 pot againstGuy Laliberté. Brunson heldA♦ 10♦ and LalibertéA♥ 5♥. The flop cameA♣ J♠ 4♦ and the turn was2♦. Brunson bet the turn, and Laliberte raised and Brunson moved all-in and was called. The players agreed to run the river twice. Brunson was a 75% favorite with his better kicker and flush draw, and he won both times to take the entire pot. After the hand, Brunson said, "When you don't make a pair for eight hours, you go crazy."[24]
Later in that same November 26, 2007, episode of Season 4,Patrik Antonius won $749,100 from a$998,800 pot that developed between Antonius with a pair of nines on the flop, andSammy Farha with a king-high flush draw. Antonius went all-in after the flop and Farha called. The odds were roughly even, and the players agreed to run the turn and river four times. Antonius won three times to take three-quarters of the pot, $749,100, while Farha won $249,700.
In Season 4,Guy Laliberté andDavid Benyamine created a pot of$1,227,900 — the largest inHigh Stakes Poker history — before negotiating a reduction of the pot to "only" $238,900. David hadA♣ 8♣ and Laliberté hadK♦ 5♦ and the flop cameK♣ 3♦ 5♣ giving Laliberté top two pair and Benyamine the nut flush draw. Acting after Farha, Benyamine raised to $43,000 and Laliberté reraised to $168,000. Farha folded hisA♥ 3♠, Benyamine went all-in, and Laliberté called, bringing the pot to $1,227,900. After turning the respective cards over, Laliberté, knowing he was the favorite, offered to run it once or twice. After further negotiation, Laliberté offered to take the pot previous to the raises of $238,900. Benyamine agreed.Antonio Esfandiari and a couple of other players wanted to see the turn and river, but Laliberté and Benyamine refused.
In Season 5,Tom Dwan won the biggest pot —$919,600 — to be played straight up (with no side-deals or multiple runs). Dwan won with three Queens, beatingBarry Greenstein's two pair – Aces and Queens.Peter Eastgate was the original raiser withA♠ K♥, with Greenstein re-raising to $15,000 withA♦ A♣, Dwan calling withK♠ Q♠ and Eastgate calling behind him. The flop came4♠ 2♠ Q♥, causing Dwan to bet on his pair of Queens and a King high flush draw, Eastgate to fold, Greenstein to raise with his pair of Aces and backdoor straight draw, Dwan to reraise, and finally Greenstein to push all-in, which Dwan quickly called. Greenstein had turned down Dwan's offer to run it twice on an earlier hand (in which Dwan had the best hand when they went all-in, though Greenstein ultimately won), and this time Greenstein again wanted to run it only once, but offered to take some of their money back, which Dwan turned down stating "sorry...no" Commentator Gabe Kaplan noted the comparison with the earlier hand when Greenstein would not run it twice. At this point, it was almost an exactly even race. The turn was theQ♣, and the river the7♦, so Dwan won the pot of $919,600.
In Season 3,Brad Booth with4♠ 2♠ executed a successful bluff againstPhil Ivey, (then) leading withK♥ K♦, in a pot that stood at$31,100 pre-flop. The flop came3♦ 7♠ 6♦, Ivey's overpair was a 79% favorite to Booth's inside straight draw and backdoor flush draw. After Ivey bet $23,000 on the flop to make the pot $54,100, Booth raised to $300,000. Ivey folded.
At the beginning of Season 4, the players agreed that anyone who won a pot while holding the weakest possible hold 'em hand (2–7) would be paid $500 by every other player at the table. This led to several five-figure bluffs that were calculated to pick up the $3,500 bonus (and the respect of the table).Phil Hellmuth won the 7-2 bonus in the second televised hand of the season, making a $40,000 bet on the river that causedMike Matusow to lay down pocket Kings.[25]
The biggest unsuccessful bluff occurred as a result of this $500 for 2–7 rule. Amateurs Antonio Salorio and Brian Brandon went to a raised flop with 2–7 and K-K respectively. When Brandon flopped the best possible hand with K-4-K, Salorio continued to bet hard on his 2–7 bluff, eventually losing more than$100,000 of his own bets before giving up when Brandon raised on the turn.
In Season 5,Tom Dwan executed a successful bluff againstBarry Greenstein andPeter Eastgate in a pot that stood at$133,500 pre-bluff. Dwan won with a pair of tens againstBarry Greenstein's higher pair of Aces andPeter Eastgate's (then) leading trip deuces. Greenstein, withA♥ A♣, opened the playunder the gun to $2,500 and was quickly called by all players. Before the flop came out there was $21,400 in the pot and at this point, Dwan jokingly offered to chop the pot. The flop was2♣ 10♦ 2♠. Eastgate, with trip deuces on his2♦ 4♥, andDoyle Brunson withA♠ 9♣, both checked. Greenstein led out with $10,000 after some thought, and with seven people behind him, Dwan raised the pot to $37,300.David Benyamine (3♦ 3♣),Eli Elezra (J♦ 9♠),Ilari Sahamies (7♥ 6♠) andDaniel Negreanu (K♦ 4♦) all quickly folded. The action came back to Eastgate, who called, as did Greenstein. With the pot already at $133,500, the turn came a7♦, and Eastgate and Greenstein quickly checked. After some thought, Dwan (a 95% underdog at this point) bet $104,200, causing Eastgate and Greenstein to reluctantly fold. Following the hand, Dwan was quick to announce he was bluffing by stating, "Peter had the best hand, I'll make a sidebet that Peter had the best hand." Doyle Brunson accepted, and eventually lost $9,000 when Peter, after a $1,000 bribe from Dwan, announced he had a trip deuces a few episodes later. After the hand was done, commentatorGabe Kaplan said that the only other person he knew who would have made a similar move was "maybe the lateStu Ungar.”
In Season 6, Tom Dwan executed a successful bluff against Phil Ivey in a pot that stood at$408,700 pre-bluff. Tom Dwan (8♠ 9♠) raised $25,000 preflop and got called by Phil Ivey with (A♦ 6♦). After a flop of (10♦ Q♣ K♦), Dwan fired another $45,800 and Ivey called, making the pot $162,300. The turn came (3♠), and Dwan fired again, this time $123,200. Ivey again called with his flush and inside straight draws, creating a pot of $408,700. The river came (6♣), leaving Ivey with a small pair and Dwan with 9 high. Dwan bet another $268,200. Ivey considered calling for over 3 minutes (according to the TV show), but ultimately folded.
In Season 7, amateur playerBill Klein opted to see the river in a$192,800 pot, by calling the re-raise to $67,000 by professional Phil Galfond of his $28,000 bet. Klein held10♠ 6♠ for a flush draw, and Galfond, holdingQ♠ 10♥, had a straight on a board that readJ♠ 9♥ 2♠ K♣. The river card was theJ♥, which prompted Klein to take a glance at Galfond from under his hat. "Looks like Klein's creative juices may be flowing", quipped commentator Norm Macdonald, as Klein slid a tower of 30 $5,000 chips forward equalling $150,000. After Galfond folded, Bill Klein showed the bluff and received a standing ovation and fist-bumps from around the table.
In a single episode of Season 6,Daniel Negreanu lost a total of$380,000 in two hands, both toMike Matusow. In the first hand, Negreanu went all-in on trip nines, holding9♣ 8♣ on a9♦ K♠ 9♥ board. Matusow, however, had flopped a full house since he heldK♦ K♣. In the second hand, Matusow went all-in as the favorite on a flop of6♥ 4♣ 7♣ holdingA♣ Q♣ for a flush draw and two overcards. Negreanu called with10♥ 10♣. The players agreed to run the turn and river twice; Matusow completed the flush both times.
Season 1 was taped at theGolden Nugget inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-5 | Jerry Buss | Daniel Negreanu | Barry Greenstein | Doyle Brunson /Todd Brunson | Jennifer Harman | Ted Forrest /Eli Elezra | Daniel Alaei /Sammy Farha | Amir Nasseri /Shawn Sheikhan |
| 6-9 | Johnny Chan | Eli Elezra /Mimi Tran | Sammy Farha | Fred Chamanara /Bob Stupak | Freddy Deeb | |||
| 10-13 | Doyle Brunson /Todd Brunson | Eli Elezra /Jennifer Harman | Barry Greenstein | Phil Hellmuth | Shawn Sheikhan /Johnny Chan | Daniel Negreanu | Antonio Esfandiari | Freddy Deeb /Jerry Buss |
Season 2 was taped atThe Palms inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-8 | Daniel Negreanu | Michael Mizrachi /Jennifer Harman | Fred Chamanara /Antonio Esfandiari | Mike Matusow | Phil Laak /Todd Brunson | Antonio Esfandiari /Brad Booth | Daniel Alaei /Minh Ly | Sammy Farha /Phil Laak |
| 9-16 | Doyle Brunson /Phil Laak | Eli Elezra /Brad Booth | Antonio Esfandiari /David Grey | Shawn Sheikhan /Gus Hansen /Ted Forrest | Daniel Negreanu | Cory Zeidman /Erick Lindgren | Barry Greenstein | Amnon Filippi /John Juanda |
Season 3 was taped atSouth Point inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-8 | Mike Matusow /Brian Townsend | Jamie Gold /Sammy Farha /Phil Laak | Daniel Alaei /Todd Brunson | Shawn Sheikhan /Paul Wasicka | Victor Ramdin /Barry Greenstein | Daniel Negreanu /Gabe Kaplan /Eli Elezra | Bill Chen /Jennifer Harman | Doyle Brunson /Erick Lindgren |
| 9-13 | Daniel Negreanu | Dan Harmetz /David Williams /Patrik Antonius | Illya Trincher /Brad Booth | Phil Laak /David Benyamine | Antonio Esfandiari | Chris Ferguson /Phil Ivey | Mike Matusow /John D'Agostino | Dan Shak /Brian Townsend |
Season 4 was taped atSouth Point inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Haralabos Voulgaris | Antonio Esfandiari / Mike Baxter | Tony Salorio | Phil Hellmuth | Mike Matusow | Phil Laak | Brian Brandon / Bob Safai | Todd Brunson |
| 4-10 | Eli Elezra | Daniel Negreanu | Phil Hellmuth | Jennifer Harman | Sammy Farha /Brandon Adams | Mike Baxter /Sammy Farha | Jamie Gold | Bob Safai /Phil Galfond |
| 11-17 | Antonio Esfandiari | Sammy Farha | David Benyamine | Patrik Antonius | Guy Laliberte | Jamie Gold /Daniel Negreanu | Doyle Brunson | Barry Greenstein |
Season 5 was taped at theGolden Nugget inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | Daniel Negreanu | Peter Eastgate | Doyle Brunson | Barry Greenstein | Tom Dwan | David Benyamine | Eli Elezra | Ilari Sahamies |
| 7-10 | Sam Simon /Tom Dwan | Joe Hachem | Nick Cassavetes | Daniel Negreanu | Antonio Esfandiari | Patrik Antonius | Phil Laak | Howard Lederer |
| 11-13 | Mike Baxter | Eli Elezra | Doyle Brunson | Dario Minieri | Phil Laak | David Peat | Tom Dwan | Alan Meltzer |
Season 6 was taped at theGolden Nugget inLas Vegas, Nevada.
Season 7 was taped at theBellagio inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-5 | Doyle Brunson | Vanessa Selbst | Barry Greenstein | Antonio Esfandiari | Robert Croak /Andrew Robl | Phil Ruffin /Johnny Chan | Bill Klein | David Peat |
| 6-9 | Haralabos Voulgaris | Phil Laak | Mike Baxter | Jonathan Duhamel | Jason Mercier | Julian Movsesian | Bill Perkins | Barry Greenstein |
| 10-13 | Johnny Chan | Phil Galfond | Antonio Esfandiari /Daniel Negreanu | Erik Boneta | Robert Croak /Barry Greenstein | Bill Klein | Doyle Brunson | Phil Laak |
Season 8 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-5 | Michael Schwimer / Lynne Ji | Jean-Robert Bellande | Bryn Kenney | Rick Salomon | Brandon Steven | Tom Dwan | Nick Petrangelo | |
| 6-8 | Tom Dwan | Sean Perry | Damien LeForbes | Jean-Robert Bellande | Michael Schwimer | Rick Salomon /Bryn Kenney | John Andress | |
| 9-11 | Phil Hellmuth | James Bord | Lazaro Hernandez | Jake Daniels | Phil Ivey /Jason Koon | Chamath Palihapitiya | Tom Dwan | Brandon Steven |
| 12-14 | Brandon Steven | Jake Daniels | Tom Dwan | Doug Polk /Rick Salomon | Phil Ivey / John Andress | Bryn Kenney | Phil Hellmuth |
Season 9 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Phil Ivey | Kim Hultman / Jonathan Gibbs | Koray Aldemir | Doyle Brunson | James Bord /Jean-Robert Bellande | Tom Dwan | Patrik Antonius | Daniel Negreanu |
| 4-6 | Kim Hultman | Garrett Adelstein | Xuan Liu | Tom Dwan | Doyle Brunson | Jennifer Tilly | Krish Menon | |
| 7-9 | Tom Dwan | Jean-Robert Bellande | Phil Ivey | Bryn Kenney | Krish Menon | Garrett Adelstein | Daniel Negreanu | |
| 10-12 | Patrik Antonius | Bryn Kenney | Tom Dwan | Phil Ivey / John Andress | Garrett Adelstein | Stanley Tang | Krish Menon | Eric Persson |
| 13-14 | Jason Koon | Daniel Negreanu | Stanley Tang | Phil Ivey | Doyle Brunson | Tom Dwan | Patrik Antonius | Jonathan Gibbs |
Season 10 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-4 | Matt Hanks | Chino Rheem | Bobby Baldwin | Eric Persson | Jennifer Tilly | Jean-Robert Bellande | Ema Zajmovic |
| 5-8 | Roger Sippl | Antonio Esfandiari | Bobby Baldwin | Jennifer Tilly | Robert Sanchez | Bill Perkins | |
| 9-12 | Stanley Tang | Eric Persson | Stanley Choi | Daniel Negreanu | Andrew Robl | Jean-Robert Bellande | |
| 13-14 | Jean-Robert Bellande | Jeremy Stein | Stanley Tang | Eric Hicks | Alan Keating | Stanley Choi | |
| 15-17 | Stanley Choi | Eric Hicks | Bill Klein | Eric Persson | Charles Yu | Daniel Negreanu | Ben Lamb |
Season 11 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Eric Persson | Jean-Robert Bellande | Charles Yu | Andrew Robl | Rob Yong | Ferdinand Putra | Rick Salomon | |
| 4-6 | Jean-Robert Bellande | Andrew Robl | Ferdinand Putra | Rob Yong | Rick Salomon | Charles Yu | ||
| 7-8 | Stanley Tang | William Tjokro | Bob Bright | Jean-Robert Bellande /Rick Salomon | Jennifer Tilly | Rob Yong | Andrew Robl | |
| 9 | Farah Galfond | Rob Yong | Stanley Tang | Ferdinand Putra | Matt Berkey | Jason Koon | ||
| 10-12 | Rob Yong | Brandon Steven | Bobo Chann | Rick Salomon | Jean-Robert Bellande | Justin Gavri | ||
| 13-14 | Jean-Robert Bellande | Doug Polk | Matt Berkey | Nik Airball | Lynne Ji | Jennifer Tilly | Eric Persson | Rob Yong |
Season 12 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Vivian Yang | Justin Gavri | Andrew Pacheco | Andrew Sasson | Jennifer Tilly | Jean-Robert Bellande | Andrew Robl | Santhosh Suvarna |
| 3-5 | Jean-Robert Bellande / Chino Rheem | Santhosh Suvarna | Nik Airball | Andrew Robl | Phil Laak | Vivian Yang | Justin Gavri /Jean-Robert Bellande | Brandon Adams |
| 6-8 | Brandon Adams | Stanley Tang | Santhosh Suvarna | Justin Gavri | Andrew Robl | Nik Airball | Charles Yu | |
| 9-12 | Santhosh Suvarna | Charles Yu | Nik Airball | Brandon Adams | Andrew Robl | Stanley Tang |
Season 13 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 | Seat 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Andrew Robl | Bo Brownstein | Masato Yokosawa | Sameh Elamawy | Jennifer Tilly | Sean Dempsey | Justin Gavri | |
| 3-5 | Andrew Robl | Brandon Steven | Sameh Elamawy | Bo Brownstein | Jennifer Tilly | Masato Yokosawa | Justin Gavri | Andrew Pacheco |
| 6-10 | Stanley Tang | Andrew Robl | Sameh Elamawy | Humboldt Mike | Jennifer Tilly | Nik Airball | Justin Gavri | Brandon Steven |
| 11-12 | Chamath Palihapitiya | Nik Airball | Sameh Elamawy | Stanley Tang | Jennifer Tilly | Jeff Housenbold | Andrew Robl | Phil Hellmuth |
Season 14 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Markus Gonsalves | Andrew Robl | Brandon Steven | Seth Gottlieb | Marc Kulick | Jared Bleznick | Justin Gavri |
| 3-6 | Ryan Feldman | Marc Kulick | David Phan | Steve Swedlow | Peter Wang | Britney Wang | Alan Keating |
| 7-8 | Phil Hellmuth | Scott Seiver | Markus Gonsalves | Justin Gavri | Jared Bleznick | Seth Gottlieb | Kento Mori |
| 9-11 | Rick Salomon | Alan Keating | Justin Gavri | Peter Wang | Nik Airball | Vinny Lingham | |
| 12-14 | Rick Salomon | Justin Gavri | Peter Wang | Sam Kiki | Nik Airball | Alan Keating |
Season 14 was taped at theARIA Resort & Casino inLas Vegas, Nevada.
| Episodes | Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Seat 3 | Seat 4 | Seat 5 | Seat 6 | Seat 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-5 | Stanley Tang | Andrew Robl | Kevin Hart | Sameh Elamawy | Sam Kiki /Andrew Sasson | Darin Feinstein / Justin Gavri | Kirk Brown |
| 6-8 | Justin Gavri | Andrew Robl | Sameh Elamawy | Sean Dempsey | Antonio Esfandiari | Stanley Tang | Darin Feinstein |
| 9-11 | Justin Gavri | Steve Swedlow | Jeremy Stein | Sameh Elamawy | Professor | Eric Hicks | Andrew Robl |
| 12-14 | Andrew Robl | Justin Gavri | Sameh Elamawy | Jon Isaac | Jennifer Tilly / Tim Robl | Steve Swedlow | Sean Dempsey |
| 15-17 | Steve Swedlow | Andrew Pacheco | Nik Airball | Justin Gavri | Andrew Robl | Jon Isaac | Professor |
These players appeared in the first seven seasons:Doyle Brunson,Antonio Esfandiari,Barry Greenstein, andDaniel Negreanu.[26] None of them returned for the eighth season, while onlyPhil Hellmuth,Tom Dwan,Phil Ivey, andBrandon Adams appeared in both the originalHigh Stakes Poker, and season 8.[27]
Most seasons included a key sponsor. Over the years, they included notable companies likePokerStars,Full Tilt Poker, andBellagio. The eighth and ninth seasons were sponsored by Poker King, an online poker app focused on the Asian market. Season 10 was sponsored byPokerGO Hold'em, while Season 11 sponsors included StormX, True Classic, and Solve for Why. Season 12 sponsors included StormX and GTO Wizard, while Season 13, 14, and 15 sponsors included StormX, GTO Wizard, and Monkey Tilt.