It is getting late and I dont feel like explaining my views on this right now BUT....

Does anyone else out there think that the increased popularity of Poker has actually made the televised events(ESPN WSOP coverage) not as entertaining?

1. Too many participants make it not likely to see a field of your favorite pros playing at the final table

2. The WPT did such a great job of building certain pros into "stars", now we see 8-9 players we have never heard of competing for some of the most prestigeous titles in Poker

3. Professionals are making so much of other things(books, merchandise, online poker sites) that they dont need to focus on actually playing poker as much anymore.

These are just 3 of my ideas on why I feel I dont enjoy poker televised events anymore. I wanna see DN, Phil Ivey, Hellmuth at the final tables not 9 joes Ive never heard of in my life.

While you may think it's hurting poker TV shows I don't think it is. I too like to watch the people who were coined "pros" early on because I know what they're about. However, I think a lot of the people who watch poker on TV nowadays aren't into poker as much as we are and would much rather see the random Joe win $12 million at the WSOP than a professional.

I think the idea that they too could win the $12 million does a lot to help poker and I like that. So while it may ruin the more die hard watchers/players entertainment I don't think this is how the majority of viewers feels.

I actually enjoy the WSOP more than the WPT at this point. Those damn globes on the table really annoy me.

Totally agree with the globes on the tables. They dont serve any purpose, i dont need to the player from eleven different angles.

I also find the WSOP more entertaining than the WPT. What the WSOP needs to do is get rid of Lon McEaren or w/e the hell his name is, he annoys the crap out of me.

I am currently working on a plan that will guarantee the best top pros make it to every final table. Just give me a couple more weeks and poker will be much more enjoyable to watch.

i might be nuts, but responding to this in the "daniel's poker blog" section seems weird.

i agree that most of the poker on tv now is rubbish. either it is a table of no name average joes (wpt) or it is a series of all in coin flips in which a top pro gets eliminated from a big tournament (wsop).

however, as far as tournaments go, the poker superstars show on fsn is very entertaining. it's all pros you have heard of, and they do a round robin point system. the only problem is it seems the levels move up so fast that there is not a lot of room for post flop play.

professional poker tour is good as well, but the commentary is really bad. i try not to pay attention to it. at least it is mostly really good players, and you get to see the whole tournament.

the best poker show i have ever seen, however, is high stakes poker on gsn. first of all, i hate watching tournament poker because of all the all-ins that teach you nothing about the game, other than what percentage AK is against two queens, etc. a few years ago i had the idea that they should show doyle's big cash game on tv, but i thought nobody would find that interesting besides myself. the show is a godsend. even gabe kaplan's insightful and not completely over the top announcing is great.

i realize everyone has seen these shows. i am not pretending that i am introducing these to the board, but i just want to illustrate that the poker boom has at least been responsible for these quality programs.

I love high stake poker as well, my fav after the WSOP episodes.

but for some reason, i cannot stand kaplan, although his commentary partner is even worse

i really enjoy when they show the different wsop events, such as omaha and razz. it really breaks up the monotony (sp?).

exactly, thats why it would be awesome if they aired the entire H.O.R.S.E. tournament, not just the NLHE final table

unfortunately, i'd be willing to bet that the ratings for those lesser events garner much lower ratings. the average channel surfer sees four hole cards, wonders why the dealt the player an extra two, gets all confused, and changes the channel.

The only true great poker left on TV is the High Stakes Cash Game on GSN. It is so nice to see hands that are not just two people all in on a coin flip. I also got sick and tired of watching Jesus slicing bread, fruit, vegetables, hockey goalies, and whatever else he can find to throw at on Fox Sports and ESPN. I would rather see Daniel raise Doyle with the 10 8 of clubs and Doyle reraise with 2 5 offsuit. It would be nice to see some more Omaha HL, Razz, and other low ball games too.

Poker superstars is alright (watching ity now), but as someone said the levels raise so fast, and the round robin structure, promotes going all in over half of the hands (the super 16 is alot better than the elimination matches though, on the elimination matches there where some shows where it was nothing but all in before the flop the entire show (and not just the one where Gus Hanson was doing it because he had to get 1st or he was out)).

I find the anouncers on the WPT and PPT so boring, granted the wosp is anoying becuase of all the "jokes", but it's much better in my opionion then just telling every obvious thing, in a very monotoneus voice. The "I'm bad at poker jokes" by the anouncers on WOSP also gets anoying though. Also I wish they showed the raise amounts, and total pot amount on all these shows.

I haven't seen the high stakes one on GSN, it sounds good though (right now I'm trying to figure out what channel GSN is on =P).

They should make a poker channel, not sure how good the ratings would be, don't know how the ratings would be, but I would be watching it 24/7

yeah them globes piss me off, must do to the dealer aswell....

I agree with a few of you in your opinion that GSN high stakes poker is very fun to watch.

I miss the 03 WSOP when a star made the Final table pretty much every tourny. I also miss the WPT when it seemed 4 out of the 6 players were great players. IMO the old WPT format far exceeded anything that ESPN has played on TV.

As for as Poker Superstars I find that horrendous poker at best. It is a card catching festival with more ALL IN's that should be allowed on TV.

How many times will we see Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, or Phil Hellmuth on the WPT or WSOP anymore? Not very often.

IMO what lead to the rise of poker 3-4 years ago was the stars and becoming a fan of a certain star and how they can dominate a game like poker. The way poker is now and all of the people, a superstar poker player may win 1 tourny a year.

I would say that poker superstars is one of the best and worst tournaments to watch. Good because you get to see players you actually know and not some crappy internet player. Bad b/c most of the time it is just all in and you dont get to see the players actually showcase their skills.

High Stakes is by far the best of the poker shows. You get to see the best players in the world playing at their best and in a cash game format.

GSN's high stakes poker is by far the best poker show on tv, including the WSOP.

You get to see how these guys make a living. Their reactions are totally different when they lose $100,000+ of their own money, than when they get busted out of a tournament they bought in for 1,000-10,000.

I just find cash games so much more interesting to watch. And i just like to see all that cash on the table.

Also, I hope to God that ESPN shows the HORSE final table.

come on, Chip Reese, Andy Block, Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson, David Singer, Dewey Tomko and T.J. cloutier at the final table?!?!?!? that would be awesome to watch.

I DEFY you, DEFY, to find another soul on this planet who has so deeply mastered the art of pretending Norman Chad is funny.

No one ackowedged this, so I want to just say;

Thank you man, we all appreciate your efforts.




Norman Chad is funny, no need to pretend.