Deal or No Deal

Borgata Poker

 Mary Beth Dealing at Borgata

One suitcase contained $1,000,000, the other $25 when Mary Beth Salmieri got one final offer from the banker on the hit game show Deal or No Deal.

"I truly believed I had the million," says the 28 year-old, "but I had to take it," she says when offered $341,000.

Salmieri knew it didn't matter what was in case #13, because a guaranteed 6-figure payday would be life changing. Her poker sense was to lock in the guarantee instead of rolling the dice and ending up with only $25.

In the end Salmieri's instincts were right, as her lucky number held the $1,000,000 which she sold to the banker for one-third of the amount. "I was heartbroken," she said when they opened the case and it revealed the show's top prize.

Salmieri's, thrill of a lifetime happened in 2008 and money was just part of it.

 Mary Beth & Annie Duke
Photo Courtesy: NBC

During the show's three hour taping, pro player Annie Duke made a guest appearance to help sweeten the pot and experience, "I had no clue," says Salmieri, who listed Duke as one of her poker idols during auditions.  "My mouth dropped when she walked out, it was completely surreal."

Salmieri, who was named Holtzheimer at the time, says she was the only person picked out of 10,000 hopefuls who tried to impress the show's producers in Center City Philadelphia. Her spunky personality and goal of taking the show's winnings to start a poker bankroll were enough to land Salmieri on the show three months later.

Salmieri was picking off cases one-by-one when Duke appeared and tempted the Deptford, New Jersey girl, who now calls Los Angeles home. The banker's offer was a total of $158,000, which included a $25,000 poker package featuring private lessons from Duke.

But Salmieri yelled, "no deal," as she slammed closed the Plexiglas flip-top box. She stayed the course until Salmieri was down to three fateful cases, which you can watch in the clip below.

In the end, Salmieri didn't take home the $1,000,000, but she did become friends with Duke who gave Salmieri lessons and helped launch her poker career.  "She taught me a lot about the math and odds and bet sizes," says Salmieri, who is competing in the Borgata Poker Open.

"I don't regret it," Salmieri says about taking the banker's deal, "but I wouldn't go as far as saying I would make the same decision if I had to do it all over again." Adding that Duke compared it to poker where, "it was the right decision at the wrong time."

Since winning big on the show, Salmieri gave up her job as a retail manager and is now a part time wedding planner and a "professional amateur" when it comes to poker.

Which all sounds like a great deal.



Deal or No Deal March, 2008