NFL Star Josh Norman Wins Celebrity Poker Tour Invitational VIII in Las Vegas

The American Football cornerback Josh Norman, who played in the NFL for the Carolina Panthers among others, and also appeared on Dancing with the Stars is the Celebrity Poker Tour Invitational VIII champion. At an enthralling final table, Norman reigned supreme, outlasting all his opponents and winning the final hand with a flopped full house in front of a throng of onlookers featuring some of the biggest celebrities around.

The Best CPT Line-Up Yet?

With some of the biggest stars ever to play poker at the felt, the world of celebrity was served superbly by the CPT on Saturday night. Earlier in the week, we spoke to Pawn Stars legend Chumlee about his chances, as NFL football stars, Dancing with the Stars names, reality TV’s finest and social media influencers were all over the Celebrity Poker Tour Invitational VIII and in the end, eight players cashed at the final table.

That meant that with nine making the last table in the event, someone was going to miss out on profit. All-in with pocket tens, the former Celebrity Poker Tour winner John Johnson III was that guy.

“If someone’s gotta be the odd man out, I’ll take it!” he laughed, committing his stack and seeing it lose to Chris D’Elia’s pocket queens. Johnson III was on the outside looking in and everyone else was guaranteed a return of $2,000 at least.

Into the last eight and after Terrell Edmunds saw his ace-nine rivered by Josh Norman’s king-ten of spades, he min-cashed for $2,000. Next, the popular businesswoman and reality TV star Tellis Swift banked $2,500 in seventh place.

“Telli has earned that final table,” said Jeff Platt on comms, proving he can curse people with mere words a studio booth away, as Swift’s pocket tens were beaten by Norman’s ace-jack. The former cornerback had been backed into a corner but two hands where he was no kind of favorite saw him vault into the lead at a pivotal time.

Weather Beaten as Norman Conquers

“I have a teenager, and he said ‘Dad, I love the Celebrity Poker Tour!”

Steve Weatherford admitted in his post-match interview that he was ‘doing it for the kids’, or rather his kids. All-in with ace-queen, he got no help on the J-9-5-5-4 board to lose his chips to Josh Norman as the latter’s snowmen (8-8) held through 5^th street for another pot to the runaway leader. Weatherford cashed for $3,000, not bad for a night’s work.

“I have a teenager, and he said ‘Dad, I love the Celebrity Poker Tour!” said Weatheford. “A bunch of my friends have already played, so I texted Frazier Kay and said ‘You need to bring me! Two hours later, one of the organisers rung me!”

After Weatherford cashed for $3,000, AJ Smith-Shawver busted just minutes later, also falling to Norman. The massive chip leader’s king-queen was more than good enough against Smith-Shawver’s jack-deuce as a board of K-7-2-Q-T saw the at-risk player drawing to two outs from the turn, both of which didn’t hit.

The Brazilian player Paulo Costa was next to bust. All-in with jack-eight on a board showing K-7-6-7 with two hearts, Josh Norman’s tens with the ten of hearts were well ahead, with Costa only having the eight in that suit. With the knowledge that one of the two remaining jacks had been folded, only the jack of diamonds would save Costa, and it never came, a four reduced the field to three, sending the UFC star home with $4,000.

“I hope next time I’ll get third place and up. I love the place and everyone here.” he said.

Hand of the Year Does for D’Elia

“The Brent Hanks curse!” ~ Jeff Platt.

With three players left, the hand of the year might have been dealt to get rid of Chris D’Elia in third place for $5,000. It was the very next hand played, as a board of A-5-5-8 fell and D’Elia moved all-in with ace-eight. Josh Norman – Brent Hanks’ pick to win – held ace-queen and called him.

“The Brent Hanks curse!” laughed Jeff Platt, seemingly unaware of his ability to reverse the polarity of the Poker Gods’ deadly stare simply by uttering those words.

Of course, a queen landed on the river to give it all to Josh Norman and scupper D’Elia’s chances. Was the Jeff Platt curse alive? Was it ever!

“You have to win now,” D’Elia told Norman as he left to collect $5,000, as if that information would shape anything at all. We all say the strangest things when adrenaline is running through our veins like wildfire.

Heads-up, Norman had a massive lead, with 9.1 million chips, the equivalent of 18 big blinds to Frazier Kay’s 1.1 big blind stack, almost all of which was already committed to the next pot. Kay was all-in with king-seven and dominated the eight-seven of Josh Norman, but all the board were diamonds, leading to a chop.

Soon, though, Kay was out in second place. All-in with four-deuce, Kay was well behind Norman’s ten-nine offsuit and a flop of T-9-9 ended it right there and then! It was a ludicrous end to a gloriously dramatic C

“He just made it look so easy to there.” Brent Hanks said in celebration of his pick winning the $20,000 top prize, as Frazier Kay won $10,000 as runner-up.

Watch all the action here as it happened with Jeff Platt and Brent Hanks on comms in the PokerGO Studio at ARIA on the Las Vegas Strip: