Kevin Pollak: Poker Career, Results and Biography

October 16, 2023
Updated October 23, 2026

Table of Contents

Kevin Pollak is an American actor and comedian who has appeared in more than 80 films, among them A Few Good Men, The Usual Suspects and Martin Scorsese’s Casino. ^[1][5] He is also a lifelong poker player and a former host of Celebrity Poker Showdown. ^[4][5] His best result came in his first World Series of Poker Main Event in 2012, when he finished 134th of 6,598 players for $52,718. ^[2][4]

Kevin Pollak at a World Poker Tour table — Photo: World Poker Tour, licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.

Kevin Pollak: key facts

Name	Kevin Pollak
Born	October 30, 1957 (age 69), San Francisco, California ^[12]
Country	United States ^[1]
Known for	Actor and comedian; A Few Good Men, The Usual Suspects, Casino ^[5]
Best result	134th of 6,598, 2012 WSOP Main Event, $52,718 ^[2]
WSOP bracelets	0 ^[2]
WSOP Main Event cashes	2012, 2019 and 2024 ^[2][1]
Live tournament earnings	$111,188 as of October 10, 2026 ^[1][3]
Poker TV	Former host of Celebrity Poker Showdown ^[5]

From stand-up comedy to Hollywood

Pollak was born in San Francisco on October 30, 1957, and started out as a stand-up comedian before moving into acting. ^[12] He became a familiar character actor, often cast as the dry, cynical sidekick in films such as End of Days (1999) and the Grumpy Old Men films, and took on dramatic roles in A Few Good Men (1992) and The Usual Suspects (1995). ^[12] He is also known for The Whole Nine Yards and for his impressions of William Shatner and Christopher Walken. ^[5] During the 2019 World Series of Poker he was also busy shooting Season 3 of the Amazon Prime series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. ^[4]

How Kevin Pollak got into poker

Pollak has played poker his whole life. ^[4] In a 2012 interview with Card Player he said: “My cousin turned me on to playing poker probably when I was about 10 or 11 years old.” He added that “it wasn’t really until I was in Las Vegas in 1994, shooting the movie Casino, that I really got into it.” ^[5] The cast stayed at the Riviera during filming, and a pit boss there took him aside and told him that the way he played with friends would not work in a casino, which pushed him to learn the casino game. ^[5]

In the same interview he described his view of the poker face: “the number one objective is to not intimidate your opponent,” he said. “You don’t have to look scary, you just need to be unreadable.” ^[5] By then he had already hosted the television series Celebrity Poker Showdown. ^[5]

Poker results

Pollak has no tournament wins on record. Card Player lists four live cashes and $111,188 in earnings, the same total PokerNews shows from Hendon Mob data. ^[3][1] His WSOP.com profile shows no bracelets and two cashes worth $68,688; his 2024 Main Event cash appears on PokerNews and Card Player but not on that profile. ^[2][1][3]

Year	Event	Result	Prize	Source
2012	WSOP $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event (6,598 entries)	134th	$52,718	[2]
2025	National Heads-Up Poker Championship, $25,000 Heads-Up Invitational	10th	$25,000	[3]
2024	WSOP $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event	1212th	$17,500	[1][3]
2019	WSOP $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event (8,569 entries)	986th	$15,970	[2]

The 2012 WSOP Main Event

Pollak’s first trip to the World Series of Poker came in 2012, when he played the Main Event while representing Hollywood Poker. ^[5] ESPN made him the focus of one of its Day 3 broadcasts: he began the episode as chip leader of the feature table with 170,200 chips and stayed on camera for the full two hours. In one hand he tried to call a raise to 17,000 but put out only 15,000, and the floor ruled that he had to make it a minimum reraise to 27,000. He later won the pot with a 40,000 bet on the river, and Phil Laak and Antonio Esfandiari analysed the hand in the broadcast. ^[7]

He was one of 282 players from the field of 6,598 to reach Day 5. ^[4] Shortly before his exit he eliminated Daniel Negreanu, when his ace-queen suited held against Negreanu’s king-queen suited. “[Negreanu] was and is my favorite player, so actually, felting him kind of messed me up,” Pollak told PokerNews in 2019. ^[4]

His run ended at a televised feature table. Short on chips, he moved all in from the big blind with pocket queens, and Kirill Rabtsov moved all in over the top with the other two queens. The king-high flop gave Rabtsov a backdoor flush draw, and hearts on the turn and river completed it. “When three hearts came, my heart sank to my shoes,” Pollak recalled. He finished 134th for $52,718. ^[4] Looking back, he said: “Honestly, no one can say I was a jackass, and that’s ultimately all you want.” ^[4]

WSOP.com noted that he had outlasted more than 6,400 players. “I had no business finishing as high as I did,” Pollak said when he returned to watch the final table, adding: “I hope to play in the Main Event every year I can.” ^[6]

Later Main Events and the National Heads-Up Championship

By 2014 his Hollywood Poker deal had expired, and Pollak looked for a new backer in exchange for publicity. Chuck Fried, president of TxMQ, a company from Buffalo, New York, took up the offer. Pollak reached Day 3 that year, when his king-queen lost to Patrick Coughlin’s aces. ^[8]

The 2019 Main Event was his fifth, played with sponsorship from the CHIVE. He cashed for the second time, finishing 986th of 8,569 for $15,970. ^[4][2] During that series he also promoted the Cover Now Fund, a police officers’ emergency fund on whose Board of Directors he sits. ^[4] In 2024 he cashed in the Main Event again, in 1212th place for $17,500. ^[1][3]

In 2025 Pollak played the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, a 64-player bracket with a $25,000 buy-in filmed in the PokerGO Studio, which Sam Soverel won for $500,000. ^[11] Pollak finished 10th and collected $25,000, his second-largest live cash. ^[3]

Charity poker

Charity events have been a regular part of Pollak’s poker. In May 2012 he finished second of 200 players in a celebrity charity tournament. ^[5] In April 2020 he was runner-up to Ebony Kenney in All in for America, an online tournament with 65 players and a $10,000 entry that raised over $1.2 million for Feeding America. ^[10]

A month later the World Poker Tour and Budweiser staged The King’s Celebrity Poker Challenge on ClubWPT, with Pollak, Jason Alexander, Jon Hamm, Pau Gasol, Kelly Slater and José Andrés. The event raised $125,000 for World Central Kitchen. Pollak reached heads-up play against Alexander and finished second, earning a $15,000 donation, after Alexander’s queen-nine made a flush on the river against his queen-ten. “It was a blast and it’s an amazing cause. I couldn’t be more proud of my friend Jason Alexander for taking the trophy,” Pollak said. ^[9]

FAQ about Kevin Pollak

Does Kevin Pollak play poker?

Yes. He has played poker his whole life, got serious about it while filming Casino in Las Vegas in 1994, and has cashed in the WSOP Main Event three times. ^[4][5][1]

How did Kevin Pollak do in the WSOP Main Event?

His best finish was 134th of 6,598 in 2012, for $52,718. He also cashed in 2019 (986th, $15,970) and 2024 (1212th, $17,500). ^[2][1]

What is Kevin Pollak’s net worth?

There is no reliable public figure for his net worth. What can be verified is his live tournament record: $111,188 in earnings as of October 10, 2026, according to PokerNews, which uses Hendon Mob data. Cash game results are not published. ^[1]

How old is Kevin Pollak?

He was born on October 30, 1957, so he is 68 as of October 10, 2026. ^[12]

Did Kevin Pollak host Celebrity Poker Showdown?

Yes. Card Player described him in 2012 as the former host of Celebrity Poker Showdown. ^[5]

Does Kevin Pollak have a WSOP bracelet?

No. His WSOP.com profile shows no bracelets and no final tables. ^[2]

Who knocked Kevin Pollak out of the 2012 Main Event?

Kirill Rabtsov. Both players had pocket queens, and Rabtsov made a flush with hearts on the turn and river. ^[4]

Read more about Daniel Negreanu, whom Pollak eliminated on his way to 134th place in 2012, and about Jason Alexander, who beat him heads-up in the 2020 WPT charity event.