Caitlyn Jenner is heading to the poker table in Las Vegas, joining a fascinating mix of reality television stars, athletes, musicians and social media personalities for Celebrity Poker Tour Invitational XIII.
The Olympic gold medalist will make her Celebrity Poker Tour debut at the PokerGO Studio on Friday, September 4, with son Brandon Jenner also confirmed for the tournament.
But this is no longer Caitlyn Jenner’s only family connection to poker.
Daughter Kylie Jenner has developed a genuine fascination with the game, hosts poker nights with boyfriend Timothée Chalamet and friends, watches tournaments and earlier this year delivered her own viral Texas Hold’em lesson.
Now another two members of the Jenner family are getting involved.
And Caitlyn will not be entering an entirely inexperienced celebrity field. Previous CPT champion Aljamain Sterling, Bryce Hall, Ray J, Jose Canseco and two-time finalist Telli Swift are among those expected to play.
Caitlyn and Brandon Jenner Head to the PokerGO Studio
Caitlyn Jenner is easily one of the most recognizable names yet to appear on the Celebrity Poker Tour.
Long before becoming a reality television personality, Jenner was one of the world’s leading athletes, winning gold in the decathlon at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal.
Half a century later, the competition will be considerably different.
CPT Invitational XIII brings Jenner to a poker table alongside Brandon Jenner, R&B singer Ray J, TikTok star Bryce Hall, former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling and former Major League Baseball star Jose Canseco.
Influencers Zach Justice and Camilla Araujo are also scheduled to appear, while Swift returns in search of the CPT victory that has so far eluded her.
The tournament will be played inside the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas and streamed live.
Kylie Jenner Has Already Become ‘Obsessed’ With Poker
There is an obvious person Caitlyn and Brandon could approach for some last-minute family poker coaching.
Kylie Jenner revealed earlier this year that what started as a game among friends had turned into a genuine passion.
Explaining how she discovered poker, Kylie said:
“Two years ago, on a friend trip, all the boys were playing poker, and I didn’t really understand it.”
They taught her the game and her interest quickly developed.
“I started watching tournaments, and that’s when I became obsessed.”
Her competitive personality appears to be a large part of the attraction.
“I think I’m very competitive, and I like to win.”
Kylie has since become a regular home-game host, with Timothée Chalamet among those joining her at the table.
Her poker circle has reportedly included artist Jonas Wood, while Vanity Fair described games involving an assortment of well-known Hollywood and entertainment figures.
Kylie also has a particularly colorful description of what winning at poker feels like.
“The thrill of winning is the best. It’s like Christmas morning.”
For somebody who only learned the game relatively recently, she has also picked up one of poker’s most important concepts: thinking about what an opponent might be holding.
“You always want to think about, ‘What does everyone else have?’”
Perhaps Caitlyn has already received the crash course.
The Jenners Are Part of a Much Bigger Celebrity Poker Trend
Celebrity poker is hardly new.
Famous actors, musicians and athletes were appearing in televised poker tournaments during the original poker boom more than 20 years ago.
What has changed is the size of the audiences individual celebrities can bring with them.
Kylie Jenner has hundreds of millions of followers across social media. Bryce Hall has built an enormous online audience. Other CPT participants bring followers from the UFC, NFL, MLB, reality television, music and influencer culture.
The result is a poker tournament capable of reaching people who might never deliberately seek out a conventional tournament broadcast.
Poker has seen the value of celebrity crossover before. Jennifer Tilly became one of the most successful examples, transforming an initial interest in the game into a serious poker career that included a WSOP bracelet and more than $1 million in recorded live tournament winnings.
The Celebrity Poker Tour is attempting something slightly different.
Rather than waiting for celebrities to discover poker, it puts them directly at the center of the product.
Aljamain Sterling Is Already a Celebrity Poker Champion
Caitlyn Jenner will also discover that the word “celebrity” does not necessarily mean everybody at the table is a complete beginner.
Aljamain Sterling has already proved that.
The former UFC bantamweight champion won the Celebrity Poker Tour event held during WSOP Paradise in the Bahamas, earning $10,000 and a $25,000 WSOP Super Main Event seat.
Sterling was delighted with his performance.
“That was probably the best I’ve ever played, I’m not going to lie.”
His approach to poker also has some similarities with the psychological battle involved in combat sports.
Sterling has spoken about disguising intentions, setting opponents up and occasionally accepting the uncertainty that comes with tournament poker.
“Sometimes you have to trust the hand and hope the hand you’re dealt is good enough.”
Caitlyn therefore potentially faces a former UFC world champion who already knows how to win a CPT tournament.
Bryce Hall Went From Struggling to Winning
Bryce Hall provides another example of what can happen when celebrities keep returning to the poker table.
Hall was hardly a dominant force when he first started playing CPT events.
He improved.
Celebrity Poker Tour founder Blake Wynn has specifically identified Hall as one of the tour’s breakout players, noting his progression from finishing near the bottom of early tournaments to becoming a CPT champion.
Hall won Game Night III in 2024 for $15,000.
That progression is important to what the Celebrity Poker Tour is becoming.
It would be easy to create a novelty tournament, invite a different group of famous people every few months and never develop anything beyond the names involved.
Instead, recurring players have started creating their own poker stories.
Some improve.
Some become regular finalists.
Some win.
And audiences can follow that progression.
Telli Swift Wants Her First CPT Victory
Telli Swift is another player who has progressed beyond simply making a celebrity appearance.
Poker Type recently looked at Swift’s pursuit of her first Celebrity Poker Tour title after she reached two CPT final tables.
She has also gained experience at the World Series of Poker.
Swift has made her intentions for these tournaments clear:
“My ambition is always to win.”
She has also described poker in terms that would sound perfectly natural coming from a more experienced tournament regular.
“Every time I sit down at the felt, I’m looking at it as a strategic investment.”
For Caitlyn Jenner and some of the other newcomers, opponents such as Swift represent the other side of celebrity poker.
They may have originally arrived because of their public profiles, but they have now accumulated genuine tournament experience.
Jose Canseco Is No Poker Newcomer Either
Jose Canseco has been appearing around poker tables for years.
The former Oakland Athletics superstar and American League MVP has played WSOP tournaments as well as celebrity events.
Canseco once offered a suitably simple description of his own poker ambitions:
“I’m just an ex-athlete trying to get lucky and chip up.”
He also identified one of the reasons poker has traditionally appealed to retired professional athletes.
“Anyone can win this; just a little bit of luck and some skill.”
That combination can be irresistible to people who have spent much of their lives competing.
An elite athlete cannot simply walk onto an NFL field or into a UFC cage and compete with professionals from another sport.
They can sit at a poker table.
And sometimes they can beat everybody.
Blake Wynn Wants Celebrity Poker to Reach Beyond Poker
The Celebrity Poker Tour grew from poker games held at founder Blake Wynn’s home.
Wynn has explained that celebrities including Alexandra Botez, Austin Ekeler, Joey Hamilton, Princess Love and Bryce Hall would come over for low-stakes games.
The personalities around those tables convinced him there was something worth putting in front of an audience.
The concept eventually developed into the Celebrity Poker Tour.
Wynn has described his philosophy succinctly:
“Poker is a canvas for entertainment for us.”
His wider argument is that poker naturally contains many of the ingredients required to build entertainment: personalities, conflict, repeated competition and the uncertainty produced by the cards.
The audience CPT has attracted is particularly interesting.
Wynn has said women account for almost half of its audience, while female players won six of the tour’s first nine events.
That is a very different demographic proposition from much traditional poker coverage.
Celebrity Poker Can Bring New People Into the Game
There is a reason the Caitlyn Jenner announcement matters beyond the result of one invitational tournament.
Someone who follows Caitlyn Jenner may watch.
Someone who follows Bryce Hall may watch.
UFC fans have Sterling.
Baseball fans have Canseco.
Reality television viewers have Telli Swift.
Ray J brings another completely different audience.
Some viewers will arrive for the celebrity and find themselves watching the poker.
That crossover is becoming increasingly important for a game constantly looking for ways to introduce itself to new audiences.
Poker Type has recently examined another side of the phenomenon through celebrity and community poker events raising money for charitable causes. The purpose may be different, but the underlying advantage is similar: poker gets placed in front of people who do not necessarily consider themselves poker fans.
Celebrity Poker Tour takes that idea and builds an entire entertainment product around it.
Can Caitlyn Jenner Make It Three Poker Players in the Family?
That leaves one particularly intriguing subplot heading into Friday.
Kylie Jenner learned poker on a trip with friends and became obsessed enough to start watching tournaments and hosting games.
Now Caitlyn Jenner is entering the Celebrity Poker Tour.
So is Brandon.
Three members of one of America’s most famous families now have a direct connection to the game.
Caitlyn has spent much of her life competing, first at the highest level of athletics and later in an entirely different kind of public arena.
Poker offers another test.
Unfortunately for her, some of Friday’s supposed celebrity amateurs have been doing this for a while.
If Caitlyn wants the family bragging rights, she might want to call Kylie before heading to the PokerGO Studios.
