Actress Julianne Hough added her name to the list

Celebrities jumping in the action is nothing new in the world of poker. Actors, musicians, and athletes are regulars at events like the World Series of Poker and in live-streamed games.

Actress Julianne Hough added her name to the list and won a recent tournament involving several high-powered women that was meant to encourage ladies and add to their self-confidence.

The home game was held in partnership with women’s card-playing group Poker Power at the home of New York University professor and business adviser Suzy Welch and also included businesswoman and Poker Power founder Jenny Just, actress America Ferrera, designer Rebecca Minkoff, producer Desiree Gruber, and others.

Poker Power’s goal is to teach one million women how to play the game and use some of those skills in other parts of life. The recent tournament was a way to promote that effort.

“By creating a safe space for female-identifying and non-binary individuals to learn the essential skills endemic to poker and business – skills like negotiation, risk-taking, and capital allocation – poker power is taking a unique and scalable approach to closing the gender wealth and equity gaps,” Just told People magazine.

Learning Lessons at the Poker Table

Poker Power organizers believe traits like taking risks, calculating outcomes, assessing risk, negotiating, and reading people can be developed for the business world by hitting the poker table.

“Poker is used to enhance confidence, emotional intelligence, and assertiveness while sharpening strategic-thinking and decision-making skills that translate to all areas of life, from classrooms to boardrooms,” the Poker Power website notes. “Our poker lessons give you real-world examples of how poker skills apply to everyday situations and give you plenty of opportunity to practice.”

Women go through an application to be part of the group and to use its training resources. Photos from the table show women enjoying the competition, with plenty of smiles all around. That seems fitting at a time when poker operators have worked in recent years to get more women into the game as well as bring the fun back to the felt.

Hough must have proven a tough customer after ending the tournament with all the chips. There’s no word on what she won, however, as the event didn’t feature real money.

However, she must be quite the competitor. The actress and dancer has been crowned winner of Dancing With The Stars on two different occasions.