Poker Took Him From a Dog Track to J.Lo’s House & Getting FaceTime Calls From Kevin Hart!

Sean McCormack started dealing poker at a dog track. Somehow, he ended up dancing with J.Lo at her house.

We may have picked the wrong side of the table.

This week, “The Poker Boss” joins Art and Justin for the story of a guy who wanted to play poker for a living—and found a different way to make it in Vegas.

He leaves Florida with about $1,000 and two suitcases. His first table dealing at Bellagio? Bobby’s Room. $4,000/$8,000. Doyle Brunson. Chip Reese. Pretty much everybody whose picture is on the wall.

No pressure, kid.

Doyle has to put a hand on his arm and tell him to slow down. Years later, Bobby Baldwin is asking him to run ARIA’s poker room.

We get into how that happened, why the reserved-game arguments got so ugly, and what Alan Keating understood about people that a lot of poker pros missed. There’s also a Devilfish story involving a suspicious “$10,000” cash bundle, a car coming through the casino lobby, and Kevin Hart taking over a call to Sean’s wife.

And before we let him go, we get into hidden cameras, game integrity, and why Sean says the way dealers pitch cards needs to change.

Turns out, the guy dealing the cards sometimes leaves with the best stories.

Tell us in the comments: What’s the most ridiculous place poker has taken you?

Like the episode? Follow Table 1 on Spotify. We’ve got more people with questionable career plans and excellent stories coming your way.

SHOW NOTES

0:00 Intro
0:34 Meet The Poker Boss
1:32 Growing Up in Massachusetts
13:34 Computers, Basketball & the Move to Florida
18:33 Catching the Poker Bug
23:26 Casino Boats & the Dog-Track Audition
28:37 Taking the Show on the Road: The WPT
33:19 A Car Comes Through the Casino Lobby
38:40 Devilfish’s “$10,000” Surprise
41:32 $1,000, Two Suitcases & a Midnight Departure
47:41 First Table at Bellagio: Bobby’s Room
50:24 From Dealer to the Rules Guy
57:50 The Call From Bobby Baldwin
59:53 Reserved Games & the Backlash
1:09:07 What Alan Keating Figured Out
1:13:23 Behind the PokerGO Deal
1:17:37 Kevin Hart Hijacks a Phone Call
1:20:50 Poker at Ben & J.Lo’s House
1:27:32 Hidden Cameras & Changing the Deal
1:33:27 Bellagio’s Slide-Pitch Plan
1:38:08 Shufflers, Home Games & Game Integrity
1:42:36 Where to Find The Poker Boss

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