New From the World Poker Tour: DVDs and More TV

Editor's note: The exclusive interview with WPT commentator Mike Sexton, which was scheduled for this issue, will appear in the next issue.

You've watched the World Poker Tour on the Travel Channel, and now you can own it on DVD. The official World Poker Tour Season One DVD Collection is available for purchase only at www.worldpokertour.com.

In its inaugural season, the World Poker Tour – with $10 million of cold, hard cash and the best poker in the world – produced a 13-episode television series that transformed the great American card game into a televised sports sensation. Step into the World Poker Tour arena, where revolutionary technology revealing players' holecards and expert commentary from poker personalities Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten make you feel like you are in the seat making million dollar decisions on every hand. Additionally, host Shana Hiatt explains the game and explores the luxurious locations that make up the World Poker Tour. Learn from the tips, tricks, and tells that make the WPT tournaments so exciting, and prepare to join the Tour in season two.

The DVD collection includes 13 episodes featuring WPT tournaments filmed at casinos and cardrooms around the world during the 2002-2003 season. Plus, as an added bonus, the set includes two special episodes, WPT: Road to the Championship and WPT: Poker Primer. While Road to the Championship features the who's who of the poker world and the highlights from each tournament, Poker Primer, hosted by Lou Diamond Phillips, provides players with a step-by-step guide through the world of poker. The official WPT Season One DVD Collection is priced at $199.99 for a handsomely boxed set with all 15 shows on eight DVDs and more than 1,200 minutes of poker programming.

The DVD collection is currently available only from the World Poker Tour website. To purchase the official World Poker Tour Season One DVD Collection, go to www.worldpokertour.com and click on the "WPT Store" to order your copy.

The World Poker Tour has firmly established a new form of "poker night" that has poker fans and novices alike tuning in to watch every Wednesday night on the Travel Channel. "I'm addicted to the show." "I'm obsessed with the show." "I plan my week around watching the WPT." Those are frequent comments that the WPT hears – from people who never played poker before, but are now trying their newly developed skills online and in casinos across the country.

In light of its success and the increased interest in poker, the World Poker Tour has signed a long-term agreement with the Travel Channel, providing it the rights to broadcast the second season of the popular series, and consecutive exclusive options to broadcast five additional seasons of the program.

"The World Poker Tour is a real hit with viewers, and we are very excited to bring the series back for the foreseeable future," said Travel Channel's Executive Vice President and General Manager Rick Rodriguez. "Poker has definitely gone mainstream, and the buzz this show has created about the game and our network is only getting louder. We hope that in moving forward with the series, we can continue to illuminate the exciting world of competitive poker, and further appeal to the burgeoning segment of gaming travelers all across the country. This long-term deal allows us to make the World Poker Tour a popular weekly fixture on the network, and provides a great promotional platform for the network's wide array of programs and series."

"The Travel Channel has given us the support necessary to help launch and build the World Poker Tour into a mainstream sports sensation," stated Steve Lipscomb, founder and CEO of the World Poker Tour. "Our long-term deal with the network is a monumental step in establishing the World Poker Tour as the pre-eminent televised poker series in prime time television."

The Travel Channel is currently re-airing the first season of the World Poker Tour on Wednesdays from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. (ET/PT). The second season is currently in production and will begin airing in the first quarter of 2004. There is still plenty of time to get involved with the World Poker Tour in the second season. For the tournament schedule or more information on the World Poker Tour, go to www.worldpokertour.com.