Cisco Systems invited 50 of its top cable clients to a charity poker event Tuesday, luring them with the presence of two-time world poker champion and Phil Gordon.

Gordon - a former Cisco employee - joked that he wasn’t cut out for the corporate life. After Cisco bought his employer in the 1990s, he worked six months and took a buyout. He used that buyout to start his seven-year poker career.

“It’s good to be working for Cisco again,” he joked.

Clients donated $100 to the U.S. Disabled Ski Team for the chance to walk in the room. An opening reception was held in Cisco’s luxury high-roller suite at the Venetian where clients were given one of Gordon’s books and had a chance to mingle with executives before competing with tips from the poker star.

“We’re not looking for any press out of this… it was just a nice thing to do,” said Cisco’s Andy Hettinger, manager of global cable programs after the Mercury News crashed the private, invite-only party.

Time Warner executive Mike Hayashi said Cisco wasn’t taking enough credit. The company already sponsors three of the ski team’s athletes and ponied up another $10,000 for the charity event.

Still, one Cisco executive explained: “Tonight is just about fun.”

Then, just as the executives began to blush another Cisco colleague began pounding on the suites baby grand piano to call attention to the star in the room.

Gordon mesmerized the all-male audience and provided tips on what qualities it takes to win in Vegas.

“What I do at the poker table is not gambling,” Gordon explained. “What I do at the poker table is strategic.”

Here’s his list:
1. Be aggressive
2. Patient
3. Observant
4. Courageous
5. Resilient
6. Have a desire to improve.