No longer consigned just to casinos and private clubs, poker is flooding the airways and filling television screens across the globe. A key reason for poker’s media success rests on the efforts of a remarkable woman. If you have been playing poker for less than five years, you most likely have Steve Lipscomb and Robyn Moder (left) to thank for your introduction to the game.

Robyn is one of the forces behind poker’s media boom. Until I was asked to write this article I didn’t know her name, but I was very familiar with her work. Robyn is the Executive Vice President of WPT Studios for the World Poker Tour. Steve Lipscomb tapped her as his choice to turn the game of poker into a mainstream sports phenomenon.

Although a Hollywood success story, Robyn didn’t move to Los Angeles expecting to “make it big” in show business. She was headed in a slightly different direction when she left her home town of Minneapolis, Minnesota, to attend college in sunny Southern California. After graduating from San Diego State University with a degree in communications, she launched a career in visual merchandising and marketing for a chain of retail sportswear stores. She kept her eyes open for new opportunities and one presented itself in the form of an interview with Fox’s 20th Television executive Joey Carson for an assistant position. Robyn, however, was not particularly thrilled with the prospect, initially. She firmly declared, “I’m nobody’s assistant!”

Fortunately, her friends saw advantages in the opportunity and encouraged her to meet Mr. Carson before making any quick decisions. All it took was that first interview for Joey Carson to agree that Robyn was not an assistant. He saw her tremendous potential and made her an offer too good to refuse: “Give me a year of your life and I’ll mentor you in any direction in television that you want to go!” he said.

She agreed. And now she sits upon the proverbial throne as the Queen of Televised Poker. How she got there is a story in itself. During her internship with Carson, she met Steve Lipscomb, a client who regularly pitched ideas to her team at Fox. Comically, she unintentionally butchered his last name over the phone on several occasions. When they finally met and began working together, they “clicked.”

“He has one of those personalities that takes you in after the first ten seconds you’re with him,” says Robyn.

Robyn’s perfect fit in television pushed her up the corporate ladder quickly. It wasn’t long before she was promoted to coordinator of production operations and finance at 20th Television. In that position she worked on hit shows such as America’s Most Wanted, Cops, Divorce Court, and Power Of Attorney. She later went on to produce projects for Warner Brothers, Paramount, CBS and Fox, including the show Rendez-View and the acclaimed CBS series American Fighter Pilot.

She crossed paths with Steve again when she was freelancing on two projects—one that he had originally pitched to Fox and the other a project with Alvin Toffler, which started as a low-budget, short-term effort and turned into a big-budget, eight-month endeavor. Robyn and Steve worked together in the trenches through many months of production. As the final project came to an end, Steve celebrated their accomplishment. He looked at Robyn and said, “I have an idea to build an empire and, when I do, I want you with me.”

Though she pressed for more information, Steve held fast. He told her that he would tell her when the time was right. Some time later, Steve opened a conversation with two questions: “Remember that idea I mentioned to you? What do you think about poker on television?”

He showed her a documentary that he had recently completed called Inside the World Series of Poker. Within minutes of seeing the film, she grasped his vision and was on board! The World Poker Tour (WPT) was launched! Together with a third partner, they wrote a divide-and-conquer strategic plan and began working from Steve’s garage. Among the obstacles to conquer were finding financial backing, getting the casinos to participate and securing air space on television.

Here’s what Robyn had to say about this process:

KG: So, was it smooth sailing or were there obstacles or road blocks for the start up?

RM: We’ve definitely had some obstacles and challenges to overcome. The first was getting the casinos on board. As Kelly O’Hara from The Bike (The Bicycle Casino) can tell you, the business of poker was dying. There was a joke in the business that the average age of a poker player was 60-to-dead. So imagine us walking in saying we’re going to transform poker into the next televised sports sensation. Jump on board our tour and be a part of it! We believed in the incredible potential of the project and, while we had our work cut out for us, we were confident we’d sign up a full tour. We pitched the idea to Foxwoods and before we hit the airport they had called to let us know they were on board. Shortly thereafter, the momentum took hold and Bellagio was signed, then Commerce, and so on.

Our biggest obstacle, however, was finding a home on television. If we had attempted this project just five years earlier I don’t know that we would have found air for it. Our vision was to transform the image of poker from a smoky, backroom card game to a widely accepted televised sport with a classy lifestyle. Because of the tour aspect of the show at prestigious casinos and locations across the globe, we were fortunate to have the Travel Channel embrace the idea and get on board with it. We actually had shot half of our first season before we had found a home for it!

KG: What about the finances?

RM: For financial backing we turned to Lyle Berman. He is a great business man and entrepreneur and while he had thought about television in the past, the right opportunity had not presented itself until Steve met with him with the WPT business plan in hand. The rest is history.

KG: What was the poker players’ initial response to the tour? Did you have to sell the idea to them or did they immediately embrace it?

RM: We held a press conference at Bellagio before we launched the tour and gathered all the players together. At the time, the big players were Doyle Brunson, Chip Reese, Amarillo Slim and the like. Numerous players were playing poker for a living, but not one of them was a household name like they are today. Because we had signed most of the major poker events at prestigious casinos, the players were intrigued, excited, and supportive.

KG: What was the event turnout in the first year?

RM: Many of the tournaments already existed, but the turnout had been between 50 to 80 players. The World Poker Tour immediately saw an increase in participants of 100 to 200 players with our first season’s prize pool totaling nearly $12 million. It just kept gaining momentum and after it hit the air the numbers went threw the roof. Today, we have 300 to 800 players per event and have given away $300 million in prize pools.

KG: Were you amazed? Were you surprised that your hard work was paying off?

RM: I’ll never forget our second year at The Bike. It was August and we had been on the air for a season. The line for registration was literally wrapped around the building. Ben Affleck showed up to play. We had news trucks everywhere and a lot of media hype. That’s when it really hit me that we had accomplished what we had set out to do. I get goose bumps just thinking about it.

KG: I get goose bumps thinking about it, too! Is it still exciting?

RM: Yes! Every time the set goes up, I am reminded of that first vision in Steve’s garage. It’s still very, very exciting for me.

KG: The World Poker Tour has changed the view of poker world wide – care to comment?

RM: Mike Sexton wrote an article in Card Player Magazine before we launched the first season and he said, “Take a moment and look at the way poker is today. It’s about to change forever.” He was right. Within five short years, we have turned the all-American card game of poker into a stylish and riveting sport capturing millions of fans by way of players, spectators and viewers around the globe.

KG: It’s been a whirlwind. Where does the WPT go from here?

RM: We’re not done yet! We are still growing the business and continue to strengthen our brand awareness globally. We care a great deal about what we do and about doing it well. Even though I’ve been doing this for six years, I still feel challenged every day.. There is never a dull moment and always something new to tackle.

KG: Obviously, when you become a trend-setter, there is competition. Has the competition diminished what you set out to do?

RM: Imitation is the ultimate form of flattery, isn’t it? In our eyes, the competition helped build the category. While there were dozens of copy-cat shows, none could compare to our production value and story telling. Other shows have come and gone, but we are here for the long haul.

KG: Have you seen an increase in the number of female players playing the tour?

RM: The first couple years of the World Poker Tour you would have been hard pressed to find a woman playing when you walked into a poker room. You would really have to look. There were only a handful of women playing the tour: Kathy Liebert, Annie Duke, Jennifer Harmon among them. Now you can walk into a poker room anywhere and there is a nice representation of women. Thanks to our great casino partners, ambassadors such as Linda Johnson and ladies organizations such as the Ladies Poker Association (LPA) and LIPS, women are becoming increasingly more confident and skilled in the game. This is the fastest growing demographic in poker. It’s great to see!

KG: You recently outlasted our own LPA founder, Crystal Osgood, in the WPT Celebrity Invitational. Was it tough to bubble out before the televised final table?

RM: YES! It’s always painful to go out on the bubble. I was knocked out by Alan Weinraub who went on to win the entire event and donate $20K from his winnings to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure. For this, I wouldn’t trade going out on the bubble for anything. I’m a fairly conservative player. I go with my gut and intuition but on occasion, I get too aggressive too soon. During that event, I focused on sitting back and taking it easy to let things develop. Everything came together for me and I happened to get some good cards too. It’s such a great event and I had a great time but I think I’ll be talking about that last hand for a long time.

KG: Whose idea was it to partner with the Komen Foundation for the Cure?

RM: As a company, we love to get involved with charity work and nonprofit organizations. The Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure was a perfect fit. It is the largest nonprofit working for breast cancer awareness having raised more than a billion dollars for cancer research and awareness. This is our second year partnering with them. The WPT Ladies’ Night event is very special to me. I love that we reach out and unite women but the fact that we are raising money for breast cancer research makes it just that much sweeter for me.

KG: Okay, personal question time: Are you married?

RM: I’m not married, but I am in a committed relationship with my boyfriend, Kurtis Van Horn. We were made for each other. I am very blessed and grateful to have him in my life. He’s a phenomenal person—a great partner and my best friend. He is growing two businesses right now so our lives are a bit nuts. We always joke that we run at mach five with our hair on fire. Despite our busy schedules, we value our time together and enjoy life to the fullest.

KG: How does your family feel about your career?

RM: My family is thrilled! In fact, one of our first employees was my sister Kristin Cranford. My brother is a poker nut and has nearly branded everything in his home WPT. It’s been a tough year for my family; we lost my father, Ronald Cranford, MD, to cancer last year. My father was a nuerologist who dedicated more than 30 years of his life to right-to-die issues, often in the face of opposition. He and my mom taught me a lot about courage, passion, determination and the need for a good sense of humor. I am honored and blessed to have had the time with him that I did. I know he is incredibly proud of my success at WPT. My mom? She’s just a Super Hero … an amazing woman of strength and an incredible support for me. I am really blessed to have such a wonderful family.

Final thoughts:

What an honor and privilege it was for the Ladies Poker Association to sit down and peek into the mind of greatness. Most of us were drawn to poker through the highly acclaimed World Poker Tour television series. We are grateful that the World Poker Tour is continually seeking new ways to grow the industry as well as bring awareness to worthy causes by partnering with charitable nonprofits like the Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure.

Robyn’s story of hard work, vision, and commitment to quality television is an inspiration to women everywhere. As women strive to make their mark in the business of poker, it’s nice to know that one woman succeeded impressively! We all knew that the launching of the World Poker Tour was a stroke of genius (well done, Steve!), and it’s nice to know that a strong and inspirational woman was part of the process.

Congratulations on all your successes, Robyn! We salute you and admire your accomplishments!

Robyn Moder
The Power behind the Poker Boom

by Kelli Griggs

Photos courtesty of World Poker Tour