'I played poker against Ronaldo – this is what celebrities are like when they play'

In a sport where a mere blink can give your position away, the sight of a celebrity strolling up to your poker table can be rather unsettling. Yet, peering over the top of your cards and seeing a Hollywood A-Lister or a World Cup winner is an occupational hazard for all poker players.

With the opportunity to test your mind and mental bottle, without mentioning the potential to win millions, sports stars and celebrities are often drawn to the sport of poker. While sports stars and entertainment royalty are all better known for their work in their respective fields, many prove to be top poker players.

Professionals cannot afford to allow themselves to escape their mental zone to pose for a selfie or ask for an autograph. This is how many of PokerStars' best players competed against other famous faces.

As the fifth highest-earning poker player in English history with winnings amounting to a jaw-dropping £12.1 million, Grafton is always as cool as a cucumber.

Yet, the passionate Arsenal fan may have came close to allowing his poker face to slip when he saw Real Madrid icon and Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldo sit opposite him on a poker table in the Bahamas. While there were no step-overs or shimmies from Ronaldo, he was able to channel the same calculated instincts used in goal-scoring into his decision making in the table.

Looking back on the game, Grafton said: "As a huge football fan some of the most memorable hands I ever played came against football stars I grew up watching. In the Bahamas I played with Ronaldo, the great R9. I flopped four-of-a-kind against him and got paid off one hand.

"However, he had the last laugh making three aces against my three threes and taking all my chips. He was a gentleman away from the table and we spent a night drinking ‘Godfathers’ together at one of the resort bars. I also played with Gerard Pique recently in Las Vegas.

"I support Arsenal so I was eager to get one over on a Manchester United player. The characteristics, like determination and stubbornness, that made him a top defender, also shine through in his poker game.

"We traded some blows at the table and finished the session with a hand shake and a hug. As you’d expect from sportsmen!”

He is one of the most iconic poker players in the game's history, but there was a game when few were paying attention to Barny Boatman. An original member of the Hendon Mob poker group, Boatman became the oldest player to win an event on the European Poker Tour when he won £930,000 at the EPT Paris Main Event last year.

Yet, one of the 69-year-old's most unforgettable memories came when he shared the table with the late and great Shane Warne. Little did he know that a wager he made with the Australian cricket legend would go on to inspire another poker competition.

Looking back on that game, he said: "The late Aussie cricketer Shane Warne loved poker and was hugely competitive. Following a friendly disagreement about whether the Aussies could give the Brits a good game we agreed on a heads-up challenge between four of us (the original Hendon Mob) and four of them.

"We won, and as a forfeit Shane had to publicly barbecue his team captain’s hat. That’s how the 'Poker Ashes' came about.”

As a chess grand master, Jennifer Shahade is always thinking five steps ahead. While contemplating her next move on the poker table, Shahade looked a few tables ahead and saw a mysterious, but yet, ostentatious figure.

The first ever female winner of the Chess Junior Open said: "Playing the European Poker Tour in Monte Carlo a few years ago, I saw a guy from afar wearing the brightest neon green pant suit I’d ever seen.

"Normally poker guys wear grey, blue and black hoodies, so I chuckled to myself and thought how I’d love a version in my own size. Then he turned around, and I noticed he was also decked out in gold jewellery.

"He walked to my table and started playing good poker, almost immediately winning a huge pot with jacks: it was Neymar. It was a pretty moderate stakes tournament.

"It doesn’t matter. Poker isn’t always about money. It’s about winning and champion athletes really get this spirit. I’ve also played with Steve Martin and NBA players like Joel Embiid.

"I think one thing that attracts celebs to poker is that they get treated pretty normally at the table. Someone may ask for a selfie but after that we are all after the same thing: each others chips.”

As one of the leading and most recognisable voices in poker, there is little Nick Walsh has not seen in his time in the game. While the pro poker player, streamer and commentator knows to always expect the unexpected, he did not anticipate being at the same virtual table as some of Hollywood's biggest celebrities.

Looking back on a rather surprising day to say the least, he said: “Early in my role as a Poker Stars ambassador we had the unique opportunity to take part in PokerStars' online celebrity poker event called 'Stars CALL for Action'.

"We had the chance to play alongside the likes of Hank Azaria, Amy Schumer, Don Cheadle, Brian Koppelman, Michael Cera, Ed Norton, David Schwimmer, Jason Alexander, Brad Garret, and Bryan Cranston.

"Being eliminated from the poker tournament by Bryan Cranston (Walter White from Breaking Bad) was something I never thought I could lay claim to!”

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