Mike Matusow Faces 'Mission Impossible' on Poker After Dark

Season 4 of Poker After Dark premiered with the promise of a new direction with young players like Tom Dwan and Andrew Robl featured in episodes “Tom Dwan’s Cash Game” and “Nets vs Vets.” The “Heads Up Challenge” changed formats all together, but Poker After Dark returned to form with the “Mission Impossible” lineup released Thursday exclusively on PokerGO.

Clonie Gowen was the lone female to take on David Williams and then a Murderer’s Row of table talkers in Gavin Smith, Mike Matusow, Phil Hellmuth and Phil Laak. For anyone to survive the chaos of that table truly took on “Mission Impossible.”

The familiar $20,000 freezeout winner-take-all Sit & GO format returned and the theme was based on Matusow going for his first PAD win in eight tries against players that had all won at least one PAD title.

“I’ve gone into many of those shows with tremendous confidence and come in make bonehead mistakes,” Matusow said.

Matusow had finished as high as second place in his previous PAD appearances. He followed that up with a third place finish, but before this taping Matusow had finished in sixth or fifth place in four consecutive appearances.

Before the first hand was dealt, Matusow set the tone for the session. “People here have won to Poker After Darks and I’m here just trying to win two hands,” he said.

“Mike, I will say this,” Hellmuth interjected. “I was 0 for six on Poker After Dark my first six times.”

“Yeah, well you if your ace four didn’t chase down two kings then you would have been 0 for seven,” Matusow snapped back.

Hellmuth couldn’t help himself and said, “If you want to open that door, now I have two firsts, two seconds and third, sucka.” All before the first flop.

The five-episode lineup is a raw look at Matusow’s game during a swingy period in his life. Watch all of the “Mission Impossible” episodes and the rest of the Poker After Dark archive only on PokerGO.