Kara Scott Leaves 888poker After Almost Eight Years as an Ambassador
Kara Scott and 888poker have officially parted company, concluding a nearly eight-year partnership. Scott has flown the 888poker flag since February 2016, representing them in live events, in the online poker world, and help create long-lasting content for the poker room's social media channels.
Multi-talented Scott was announced as an 888poker ambassador on February 23, 2016, to much fanfare. Scott had previously featured on Sky Poker, Sky Television, the European Poker Tour (EPT), High Stakes Poker, GSN, Poker Central, and the WSOP on ESPN.
In addition to her unrivalled presenting skills, Scott joined the 888poker stable with some impressive live poker tournament results to her name. In April 2009, Scott finished as the runner-up to Sweden's Christer Johannson in the 3,500 Irish Open Main Event, winning 312,600.
Scott can also point to a brace of deep runs in the 2008 and 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event.
Although Scott has found playing time limited of late, the downside of juggling being a mother with content creation, she did take down the 220 Ladies Event at the 888poker LIVE Barcelona festival in June 2019.
During her time with 888poker, Scott wore many hats, and featured heavily as the host of the monthly 888poker News show, the 888poker Brief, and launched the unique Heart of Poker podcast.
PokerNews caught up with Scott recently and talked about her time with one of poker's most prominent brands, her most memorable moments, and her plans for the future.
"My time with 888poker has been a real pleasure. When they first approached me all those years ago, it seemed like such a natural choice to work with them, and I was so happy to jump in, Scott said. "Theyve always been supportive of me personally and my work and I have so much good to say about all the people Ive worked with."
"Ive traveled to fantastic places with them, made a lot of friends, and had great fun doing it. Theyve always made me feel part of a close-knit group. Working with a team that ensures their ambassadors feel heard, involved, and valued has been really fulfilling, and I have a lot of respect for the work they do, having seen it close up."
Representing 888poker allowed Scott to combine playing poker, honing her presenting skills, and creating content, three areas of her life in which she excels. There have been so many memorable moments during Scott's eight years with 888poker, but do any stand out from the crowd?
"I particularly enjoyed when 888poker was also sponsoring the WSOP, as the two sides of my job dovetailed beautifully."
"Id have to say my favorite stop on the 888poker LIVE tour was usually London because it always felt like coming back and playing a home game, even among hundreds of runners. The food there is great as well. Speaking of food, there was an incredible and spontaneous dinner one night in Barcelona at the restaurant Tickets (which is usually booked for months) that Ill always remember. Ambassadors, commentators, and partners all stuffed ourselves with incredible food, and it was one of those random evenings which really show off how much fun traveling for live poker can be."
"I dont think many people knew I was involved as a writer and producer for 888poker content over the past few years as well. It was nice to get back to my producing roots and flex my creativity in a new way."
"Starting the Heart of Poker podcast was a really fun time. They wanted me to come up with a podcast but gave me all the freedom to decide the format myself. Im not sure such a personal series of interviews was what they had in mind, but I give them so much credit for letting me run with my wild idea of having a poker podcast without talking about actual poker!"
It may be a slightly tongue-in-cheek phrase, but they say you do not quit poker, but poker quits you, so what lies in store for Scott now she is no longer sporting the famous 888poker patch?
"More poker! Although, Im going to take a little break from looking for new poker projects next year so I can finish up some non-poker ones that Ive had on the back burner for far too long, including a book. Ive turned down some interesting proposals, both in poker and out over the years because of time constraints, so Im curious to see what comes up but not for a little while. Plus, Im excited for the WSOP in the summer, as usual!"
Before Scott called time on her 888poker career, she gave her predictions for what the future may hold for her former employers.
"Whatever they do, I know its going to be a direction that shows theyre thinking about their players. Ive seen first-hand how much care and thought goes into their decisions and I continue to be a fan of what theyre accomplishing. I think their focus on content creation, twitch streams and all of that is really smart and I suspect well be seeing them keep on it that direction."
888poker's Ambassador Stable is Still Strong
Scott's departure will be felt by the 888poker team, but they still have a strong squad of ambassadors and streamers on their books. YouTube sensation Jack Maate continues acting as the site's Cultural Ambassador, while Ian Simpson, Brazilian duo Vivian Saliba and Alexandre Mantovani, and Spain's Lucia Navarro are still 888poker ambassadors.
Ricardo Mateus, Josh Manley, Jordan Banfield, Nick Eastwood, Andrei Cosmin, Aaron Barone, and Leo Jokura, make up the seven-strong Stream Team.
Catch them in action at the 888poker tables, on the 888poker LIVE tour, and on 888poker's busy five-day per week streaming schedule.