Xuan Liu And Jennifer Tilly Dominate Hellmuth’s Home Game

Published on September 11th, 2026

Poker table with stacks of chips and playing cards representing Hellmuth’s Home Game Episode 33.

Phil Hellmuth’s cash-game table on the latest episode of Hellmuth’s Home Game, filmed at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada.

Xuan Liu and Jennifer Tilly ran the table in Episode 33 of Hellmuth’s Home Game, the BetRivers-sponsored show on CBS Sports.
Liu finished the night up $35,900 after stacking Dan “Jungleman” Cates with pocket aces and calling down a Shaun Deeb bluff.
Cates and Deeb were the big losers, dropping $30,875 and $31,925 respectively.
The game played $25/$50 with a $50 big blind ante and no commentary, just table talk.

What Happened

The women took over on the latest episode of Hellmuth’s Home Game. Xuan Liu and Jennifer Tilly did the damage, while Dan “Jungleman” Cates and Shaun Deeb walked away as the night’s biggest losers. Liu booked a $35,900 profit and Tilly added $26,650, with both getting the better of Cates and Deeb in some of the night’s biggest pots.

Hellmuth’s Home Game is presented by Poker Night in America and sponsored by BetRivers, the US online poker room built on Run It Once software. It airs Monday nights on CBS Sports and is filmed at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada. The show has no commentary. Instead, the action is carried by table talk from Phil Hellmuth and a rotating cast of pros and friends in a relaxed cash game played at $25/$50 blinds with a $50 big blind ante.

Tilly Sets The Tone

Tilly fired the first shot. Cates raised to $500 with A-K, and Tilly called from the small blind with K-Q. The flop came Q-7-4, and Tilly led for $600 with top pair. The turn checked through, and the river brought a king, giving Tilly two pair and Cates top pair with top kicker.

Tilly bet $1,300, Cates raised to $6,000, and Tilly came right back with a three-bet to $16,000. Cates snap-folded. It was a preview of a rough night for the pro, and a strong sign that Tilly, an Oscar-nominated actress and Women in Poker Hall of Fame inductee, was not there to be a name in the seat.

Liu Stacks Cates With Aces

Liu’s biggest moment came against Cates. He raised to $600 with Q-10, and Liu, who had straddled to $100, looked down at pocket aces and three-bet to $1,800. Cates four-bet to $4,000, Liu five-bet to $6,500, and Cates called.

The flop fell 3-8-Q, pairing Cates with top pair. He checked, Liu bet $3,500, and Cates called. The turn was a jack, Liu bet $4,000, and Cates called again. When the board paired with an eight on the river, Liu moved all in, leaving Cates with $8,375 behind. “I just don’t buy that you’re bluffing here,” Cates said before folding. Liu scooped a $36,650 pot without showing her aces.

A Hero Call On Deeb

Liu was not done. Erick Lindgren raised with Q-7, Cates called with K-J, Liu called with K-10, and Deeb three-bet to $3,000 out of the straddle with A-9. Lindgren and Cates folded, but Liu called and flopped top pair on a 2-10-3 board. She check-called $1,600, and the turn jack gave both players a flush draw.

Deeb held the better draw and bet $5,000, and Liu called. The river was a queen. Liu checked her pair of tens, and Deeb, who missed everything, bluffed $12,500. Liu thought it over and called, dragging a $45,650 pot that helped make her the biggest winner of the night.

Hellmuth And The Last Hand

Hellmuth had his own swing against Cates. He raised to $600 with Q-10 of spades, Cates reraised to $2,100 with pocket threes, and Hellmuth called. The 5-4-5 flop, with two spades, gave Hellmuth a flush draw. Cates jammed, Hellmuth called off his $4,075 stack, and the two ran it twice for a $12,750 pot. Cates took the first runout, but Hellmuth caught the ace of spades on the second to make his flush and split the pot. For a player whose reputation was built on results like his High Stakes Duel run, it was a quiet night.

The final hand was smaller. Cates raised to $1,300 with 9-5 from the first of three straddles, Liu called with pocket sixes from the second, and Deeb folded the third. On a 5-7-2 flop, Cates checked middle pair, Liu bet $800, and Cates called. He led $1,500 on the ace turn and Liu called, then both checked the jack river, sending the $7,725 pot to Liu.

By the end, Liu sat on $70,900 and Tilly held $41,650, putting both comfortably in the black for the episode.

Liu And Tilly Finish On Top

By the time the final hand was dealt, two of poker’s biggest names had taken a costly hit. Liu finished as the biggest winner at +$35,900, with Tilly close behind at +$26,650. Cates dropped $30,875, while Deeb finished down $31,925.

With no commentary between viewers and the table talk, Episode 33 let the hands and personalities carry the show. This time, it was Liu and Tilly who walked away with the biggest wins.

Sandra is a content writer and editor specializing in online poker and iGaming. She covers poker sites, game formats, industry news, and US online poker laws for Legal US Poker Sites.