ESPN, FSN, Travel, or Bravo?
I have been watching poker on television since the 2003 World Series of Poker - Chris Moneymaker, what a great player (not). Either way, it was probably the best coverage at that point of poker - the pocket cam was a brilliant addition to the broadcast and allowed average players a chance to get inside a professional player’s head. Since then, Fox Sports Network, The Travel Channel, and Bravo have all carried poker - who has the most exciting poker coverage?
In my opinion, Fox Sports Network has, hands down, the best coverage out there. I will say that Poker Superstars and Ultimate Bet Challenges are downright idiotic, but their coverage of the Turning Stone event that was live - absolutely wonderful. Watching Phil Ivey play every hand at the final table was very exciting for people that enjoy good poker. Why don’t all the networks do this? Because watching the best players in the world fold 75-80% of the time hardly makes for a great story of how aggressive they are. When they get Howard Lederer commentating the coverage is absolutely unbeatable.
Second place goes to the Travel Channel. They have the best consistent televised poker with the World Poker Tour. A two hour television show with a 6 player final table allows for lots of actual poker to be displayed on television. The blinds compared to the average chip stack are always set up nicely and the players are usually above average. It’s a fun show to watch and it’s on weekly with huge prize pools. Mike Sexton is a respectable poker player but a terrible commentator. And Vince Van Patten…get him out of there. Shana Hiatt is entertaining and would be even if she didn’t talk much.
Third place, goes to ESPN. They are the originators so to speak of the pocket cam, however FSN and the Travel Channel have out paced them in the realm of entertainment. ESPN has 9 player final tables and a 1 hour show - what’s that mean? They have to knock out 9 players in 45 minutes (if you count commercial time). Ouch. That means every 5 minutes we need to drop a player, that boils down to every third hand! While their poker coverage can be exciting and they have the rights to the most exciting tournament in poker, their television broadcasts are well below the standards set by FSN and Travel. Norman Chad and McEachern do not compliment each other, I am not sure why they have jobs at ESPN - how many times can you comment on your divorce, Norm?
And then there’s Bravo. I don’t think they should really even be mentioned as a poker broadcast. The celebrities are there for entertainment, if average guys played as bad as they did it would hardly be worth watching. There are a few celebs who know what they’re doing, but they certainly don’t play on Celebrity Poker Showdown, and neither would I. Phil Gordon is a good commentator, but his sidekick, the name escapes me at the moment, is obnoxious.
Related Posts
- Hellmuth criticizes ESPN in CardPlayer
- Greg Raymer
- Matusow wins Tournament of Champions
- Promoting Poker In A Positive Light
- 2005 WSOP: Pot Limit Omaha
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Sponsors
