In addition to playing poker professionally, you are involved in a number of side projects. I know you work with UltimateBet.com, you have written several poker books, you have multiple endorsement deals and there is even a movie about your life in the works. Do you feel like you are "selling out" at all? How do you respond to purist who think it should just be about the poker?
I've got to be honest with you - I've never ever heard anyone say that I'm selling out. I promote the sport of poker. I tell the other top players, "You damn well better be rooting for me to get a deal with Nike because Reebok is coming to you." So the top players are rooting for each other and I'm out there promoting poker. I'm making poker a bigger sport. I recognize that I have a direct interest in how poker does and I have a direct interest in promoting myself. I'm not out there promoting poker just to promote it. There are a few people out there that say, "I'm promoting poker just because it's poker" and meanwhile they are lining their pockets and I think that's very hypocritical. I'm out there, I'm promoting myself and poker and I'm making a fortune, but I'm also really good for the game. Selling out? I'm not like a rock star or something. I'm a poker player.

What exactly is "Camp Hellmuth"? What is it and how did it start?
Camp Hellmuth is a vision I had way back in 1998. What I was going to do was charge $10,000 a head and bring in 20 to 30 people and do it up at the Sonoma Mission Inn. That was the original concept I had. But I go so busy with so many projects and so bogged down I never did it. So finally a smart group of guys approached me and said, "Phil, let's have a camp at $3,000 entry fee and we'll let as many people come as come." The first camp went amazingly well and there was all this amazing energy. The energy there was palpable. It's weird, I can't really explain it. The energy was huge – everyone had a great time. We're going to do it again in February. This time, it's a $1,999 buy in and I think they have to pay for their own hotel. We think this thing is going to be huger and huger.

I have to ask you about the 2004 Tournament of Champions. It seemed like Annie Duke was able to get you off your game when you two were playing head to head. By the end of the tournament, you seemed quite flustered. Talk to me about how everything played out and what was going on in your head.
I wasn't flustered. I thought she had two pair in that hand, I said it. It's one thing to talk and carry on a conversation, it's another thing to go on tilt. I mean, there was not much I could do. She had top pair against me. Most people would have gone broke that hand where she showed me the nine, where I had king-seven. I not only told her what she had, I said two pair and then I made the great lay down. I'm really proud of that. I had to throw away a bunch of strong hands against her and I think if it came reverse, maybe I would have busted her. I think she was really lucky. She was all in so many times that if you do the math towards her winning every one of those pots, it's crazy. The one against Howard, she was four and a half to one. There were a bunch of pots where she had narrowly the best hand, like ace-eight against nine-ten. The math against her winning every one of those hands was like 120 to one. Afterwards, when I said, "She must have been at least 30 to one underdog," I wasn't saying she was a 30 to one underdog to win a ten person tournament. I was saying rather the way she had put her money in, she was a big underdog.

When she showed you the nine, at the time did you think you were wrong to lay down those cards? Was it something where you watched the broadcast later and realized you were right?
In general, if you watch television and I call somebody's hand, you're going to find out I'm right. It's what I do. If you want to be the best poker player in the world, you read people well. Yeah, she tried to put me off my game, but I made the right move. I even called her hand. When I looked at the broadcast later, I was pretty impressed. I'm like, "Wow, I called her hand." I was pretty proud. Looking back, I was supposed to go broke on that hand. Something that I have in me told me that she's super strong piped up. I was proud of that. There was a straight draw and a flush draw on the board there. She could easily have a straight or a flush or a nine.

I don't think that I tilted and I don't think anyone's accused me of tilting. That's the second thing you've kind of accused me of that I've never heard before. I've never heard anyone say sell out before.

Are there certain players you prefer to play against? Likewise, are there particular players you'd rather not play against? Does it matter to you who is at the table with you?
Sometimes I like having certain players. I like having Layne Flack at the table. Not because I can beat him, but because he makes me laugh. I like Daniel Negreanu at the table. Not because I can beat him, but because he's going to put a smile on my face. Some of these guys I like to play with just because they're friendly. I like it when I'm at a table of people who know me because when I start to whine and get a little crazy, they just laugh at me because they know that that's just part of me coming out that I can't control.

I've got one last thing for you here. I'm going to do a word association. I'll just throw out a name and tell me the first thing that comes to your mind.

Annie Duke.
Great player.

Las Vegas.
Love it.

Phil Ivey.
Great guy.

The World Series of Poker.
The best.

Phil Hellmuth.
Brat.

The future.
Bright. Blindingly bright.

Interviewed by Joel Murphy, January 2006. You can find out more about Phil Hellmuth on his website.