World Poker Tour Adds Two New Episodes to Its Season on the Travel Channel

We at the World Poker Tour know we are preaching to the choir when we write an article for our friends at Card Player magazine: Poker is simply one of the most fascinating games in the world! But not everyone understands the ins and outs of poker. Now, due to the great success the World Poker Tour has had in bringing poker to national television, the Travel Channel has asked the WPT to develop two new shows designed to explain the game in greater detail to those who have been watching avidly but want to learn more.

We are happy to oblige. The WPT has created World Poker Tour: Road to the Championship and WPT Poker Primer: An Everyman's Guide to Hitting it Big, which will air on the Travel Channel before the WPT Championship is aired at the end of June (check www.worldpokertour.com for dates and times). World Poker Tour: Road to the Championship will bring more viewers into the excitement of the World Poker Tour – just in time to catch the WPT Championship. WPT Poker Primer: An Everyman's Guide to Hitting it Big will help viewers learn more about how to improve their game and get involved in the poker community.

Of course, these shows are not just for beginners – there is also plenty of new fun for the avid poker player. Here's a sneak preview of what to expect.

World Poker Tour: Road to the Championship

Highlights From the WPT 2003 Season

This special episode is the ultimate insider's peek into the highlights of the World Poker Tour's inaugural season – all the poker action from the incomparable rush of victory to the agonizing heartbreak of defeat. And it's all wrapped in $10 million of cash won on the tour in the most dazzling locations around the world.

Viewers will get a sneak preview of who to watch in the upcoming WPT Championship … and why they are favorites to win the $1 million prize. Who are these players? Where do they come from? What makes them tick? We'll see the best plays, the worst beats, and all the glamour as we build to the most prestigious televised poker event in history – the WPT Championship.

But that's not all. Catch more of the fun stuff on the World Poker Tour: Road to the Championship:

• Watch replays of action from some of the WPT winners: Gus Hansen, Chris Karagulleyan, Juha Helppi, Jose Rosenkrantz, Paul Darden Jr., Howard Lederer.
• Hear Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten discuss the celebrity-driven piece from the WPT Invitational, which features Lou Diamond Phillips, Mickey Rooney, Meat Loaf, Dick van Patten, Lenny Dykstra, Don Cheadle, Connie Stevens, Dom Deloise, Brande Roderick, Norm McDonald, Gabe Kaplan, and others.
• Everyone had a blast this season, but nobody had more fun than Shana Hiatt. Take a whirlwind tour with Shana to all the exotic locations from the 12 tournaments, starting at Bellagio in Las Vegas and coming full circle back to where it all began.
• Last but not least, catch the biggest busts of the season. Who made the biggest bust of the year? Find out.

WPT Poker Primer:

An Everyman's Guide to Hitting it Big

The WPT is the pinnacle of tournament poker – bringing viewers top professionals at the height of their game, competing in the most state-of-the-art format in card-playing history. But how did these players get to be on the TV to play for mounds of cash? How could they be so lucky? They obviously had to start somewhere, but where? How? And how can you get in the game?

Poker 101; it's time to get back to basics with the World Poker Tour. This one-hour special will give everyone a chance to learn how to play like a pro. And it'll provide the ultimate lowdown on everything you want to know about poker, no-limit Texas hold'em, poker tournaments, and the World Poker Tour itself.

The WPT takes an in-depth look at the phenomenon of poker, something more than 50 million Americans enjoy – more than golf, tennis, and baseball. We'll examine the evolution of poker – from home games with pals to the biggest pro tournaments. We'll give you an education on the nuts and bolts of poker. And, we'll bring you inside the exciting world of tournament poker – how the players get in, and how the competition thins to one.

WPT Poker Primer: An Everyman's Guide to Poker will answer the question, just what is this thing we know and love called poker? And, more importantly, how can I improve my game so that I can be up there on the TV playing for mountains of cash? Well, you may be closer than you think. Everything you wanted to know about poker is coming on WPT Poker Primer: An Everyman's Guide to Poker.