PokerStars recently announced the return of The Big Game on Tour for another season, with new episodes set to be filmed during the NAPT Las Vegas festival. As the show prepares to wrap up its first season, one player remains in the spotlight: Lily Newhouse, the latest Loose Cannon chasing a life-changing payday.
However, Newhouse’s journey is about more than just poker. In the latest episode, she opened up about her battle with breast cancer, revealing how her experience shaped her outlook on life.
“I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018. My son was eight years old at the time, and I was 32. I did 12 rounds of chemotherapy. It took about five months. That was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”
“In the timeframe of going through cancer treatment, your only goal is to survive. Everything else is on the back burner.”
Reflecting on her experience, Newhouse shared the profound impact it had on her: “I’ve really felt and still feel that I was lucky to get cancer so young because I learned things that most people don’t learn till they’re older. I learned that life is now, that you don’t know how long you have and that anything can happen to anyone at any time, and that really taught me to go for it. To follow my passions, to follow my dreams, to be myself unapologetically, and that is something that I think is priceless.”
Loose Cannon Heads in the Right Direction
The third session kicked off with last week’s star of the show Dave Krosky limping in from under the gun with K♥J♣. Newhouse woke up with A♥9♦ from the cutoff and made it $800. Phil Laak defended his big blind with A♣7♣, and the three players saw the A♦10♠8♠ flop. Newhouse continued for $1,300 and was called in both spots.
The 5♠ turn put a third spade on the board, and after Laak checked, Krosly led out for $3,000. Newhouse called with the best hand, prompting Laak to get rid of his inferior pair of aces.
The J♥ river checked through to showdown, and the Loose Cannon dragged in the $12,600 and aided her quest to get back to even.
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Krosky’s Sun Run Over?
While Krosky took a small hit in the opening hand, he still had a profit of around $40,000. However, he would soon find out that poker is no easy game.
He dropped pots to Laak, Maria Ho and Sam Grafton after making an ambitious hero call and some speculative bluffs.
With only $3,700 in the middle on the 9♣7♦4♥5♠8♠ board, Laak had the stone-cold nuts with J♦10♥. Krosky had J♠8♠ for a pair of eights. Laak fired out an overbet of $12,000 and even told Krosky that he’d show his hand regardless of whether he was called. The businessman was a non-believer and paid off the huge bet to continue his descent.
Krosky then tried bluffing Ho with 4♥2♦ on the river with the J♣5♣3♥8♥Q♥ board on show. Ho, with 10♠10♣, checked after betting the flop and turn. Krosky fired out $6,000 and was looked up to see another pot pushed in the wrong direction.
After getting the better of Grafton throughout much of last week’s episode, the poker pro turned the tables this time around. Grafton made it Q♥9♦ from the cutoff, and Krosky called from the big blind with K♦8♠.
Grafton flopped best as the dealer put out the Q♦7♣7♥. Krosky check-called for $300 before the A♥ turn checked through to the J♠ river. Krosky, sporting the accent of an English aristocrat, tried to steal the pot with a bet of $3,000. But once again, his bluff was called, and his stack continued to shrink.
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Did Grafton Nitroll Newhouse?
So far, it had been smooth sailing for Newhouse, but the loose cannon would find herself on the wrong end of another cooler. She looked down at A♣Q♣ in early position and made it $700 and then called after Grafton three-bet to $2,100 with A♠A♦.
Newhouse check-called for $1,700 after pairing up on the K♦Q♠2♠ flop, only for the A♥ to peel off on the turn. Newhouse improved to two pair but was drawing dead to Grafton’s top set of aces. She check-called once again, this time for $2,500. The 8♠ completed the board and Newhouse made a value bet of $5,500.
Grafton then went deep into the tank, giving a speech while he thought over his options. The Brit ended up flicking in a call. Newhouse turned over her hand, fully expecting to take the pot. She then had a stunned look on her face when Grafton told her it was no good.
Behind the scenes, Grafton told the cameras: “I felt like she wasn’t bluffing. That was just my intuition. She just happened to have one of the few hands that I beat…I mean nit roll — guilty as charged.
Despite the setback, Newhouse remained composed and received a small rebate from Grafton soon after. She then caught Krosky running another bluff and then made a correct king-hero call against Laak on a doubled paired board to keep her hopes of a big win alive.
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Can Newhouse’s Big Slick Hold?
Near the end of the episode, Newhouse picked up another premium, this time finding A♣K♠. She opened to $700 from the cutoff and was called by Grafton and Laak from the button and big blind, who held K♠10♣ and A♦6♦, respectively.
The trio all found a piece of the K♣Q♦3♦ flop, with Newhouse and Grafting making top pair while Laak had the nut-flush draw. Newhouse fired out $1,300 and was called by both opponents. The 2♠ turn kept Newhouse ahead, and she sized up to $4,500, and again, Grafton and Laak stuck around. The 7♣ river gave the cannon the checkmark, and a third barrel of $8,800 got the job done as Grafton and Laak released their hands.
That hand took Newhouse to $49,300, and she was all smiles as she added to her stack.
Standings After Episode 8
After episode 8, Ho remained the biggest winner, adding $6,000 to her stack. Black moved up to second place thanks to Krosky’s downfall. Black booked a small loss in the latest session but is still up by more than $30,000.
Newhouse has put in her best performance so far, cutting the deficit she faced and is a few big blinds away from making a profit.
Krosky lost more than $50,000 and is now in the hole for $4,900. Sparks failed to ignite for Laak, who continues to prop up the table.
| Rank | Player | Profit/Loss | Stack |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maria Ho | +$56,800 | $156,800 |
| 2 | Michael Ian Black | +$34,200 | $84,200 |
| 3 | Lily Newhouse | -$1,400 | $48,600 |
| 4 | Sam Grafton | -$3,200 | $96,800 |
| 5 | Dave Krosky | -$4,900 | $45,100 |
| 6 | Phil Laak | -$81,500 | $218,500 |
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