World Poker Tour Debuts on Travel Channel

Cool down the six-pack, order up the pizza, and tune your TV to the Travel Channel for a wild ride into the world of high-stakes poker! On March 30, the World Poker Tour redefined "poker night" with its new weekly television show. Now, millions of poker fans nationwide can gather their friends in front of the television and argue over poker strategy, pick up tips for their home games, and dream of making the final table.

So, what do you think? Is Gus Hansen a great player or just lucky? How would you have played the hand in which John Hennigan trapped Scotty Nguyen? Is Shana available? Tell the WPT what you think at www.worldpokertour.com.

Continuing every Wednesday night through June 25 on the Travel Channel, the WPT series will take millions of viewers to some of the most famous casinos and cardrooms in the world.

Twelve episodes and as many exotic locales later, the series will conclude at Bellagio in Las Vegas for the nail-biting grand finale - the World Poker Tour Championship, featuring winners from each tournament and anyone else willing to buy in at $25,000 for a shot at the multimillion dollar prize pool.

Players still have a chance to register for the WPT Championship held at Bellagio, April 14-18. With more than 50 players already registered as of press time, the prize pool is estimated to reach more than $3 million.

But the World Poker Tour also promises its share of Cinderella stories, since anyone, not just pros, can enter. "Part of the allure of poker is that as long as you have the guts to ante up the tournament buy-in, you can get the glory, and the experience of competing with the best," said WPT CEO Lipscomb. And the WPT has plans to reach out to more players across the country and give them the chance to enter.

As part of those plans, two of the media entities in the poker world recently announced they have formed an alliance to bring poker out of the back rooms and into the living rooms of mainstream America. They are the World Poker Tour (WPT), the new and only televised poker tour, and Card Player magazine, the premier publication dedicated to the poker world.

With the World Poker Tour, poker fans across America will now have access to a regularly scheduled televised series of poker tournaments, whereby home-game players can enhance their skills by watching players' strategies unfold. For fans who want to further develop their skills, Card Player magazine provides in-depth coverage of major poker events and expert analysis to help poker players improve their game. Together, the WPT and Card Player offer comprehensive media coverage and expand poker's presence in the entertainment world.

"We're aligning two media forces in the poker world to bring comprehensive and superior poker programming to the 50 million Americans who play poker," stated Lipscomb. "Card Player magazine and Barry Shulman helped define the world of poker, and together we plan to take poker to the next level by broadening the audience across America and turning poker into the next major mainstream sensation!"

The first steps in aligning forces will include expanded coverage of World Poker Tour events in Card Player magazine, and a joint effort to develop the ultimate poker destination on the web. In the coming weeks, www.worldpokertour.com will expand its content to supplement the television show, and will provide the home viewing audience insight into the poker world. The site will include poker tips from the pros and a discussion board, as well as offer exclusive access to special promotions and prizes.

In mid-April, the WPT will begin the sale of WPT logo merchandise and home video versions of the WPT show. Plans are in the works for a DVD version and other poker-related merchandise. Poker enthusiasts are encouraged to check in weekly for updates and additions.

The WPT has taken the first steps to broaden the reach of poker, making it accessible to casual home players who, before, only dreamed of playing high-stakes poker. They'll watch, and they'll learn. Someday, they might even put down their pizza, get out of their recliners, and go to a casino to play.