June 11, 2006 ( Las Vegas, NV) - The National Poker League (NPL) kicked off its inaugural season of The Vegas Open last Saturday. Even though its schedule conflicted with the World Poker Tour's Mandalay Bay event, it picked up steam over the weekend. Attendance has doubled since day one with hundreds of players entering the $1,000 events.
The NPL Vegas Open is still running in the tournament area of the poker room at Caesars Palace, but there are only two qualifying events remaining. Event #9 starts on Tuesday, June 13, and Event #10 will follow on Wednesday, June 14. These will be the last chance events for players to make it to the semi-finals. The winners from Events 1-10 will return for five heads-up matches on Friday, June 16, for the $25,000 freeroll. The final event will cap-off the tournament on Saturday, June 17, with a $100,000 freeroll, winner-takes-all competition.
The NPL Vegas Open will be broadcast this summer in high definition on the INHD Network, one of the most widely distributed HD networks on cable today.
Unlike other televised poker events, NPL plans a fast turn around in program editing time, so that it may be aired as soon as July.
With smaller buy-ins, tournament executives expect a whole new generation of poker players to ante up for a chanceto be on national television. "Televised tournaments generally require huge bankrolls," said Nene Gonzalez," presidentof the National Poker League, "what we're striving for is to be the poker tournament for players with smaller bankrolls and lots of game. They may even become TV stars in the process."
The NPL is aiming at the younger generation of poker players and fans. Ali Nejad has come aboard the Vegas Open to deliver fresh commentary and offer a new generation of solid poker advice. Additionally, World Series of Poker winner Scott Fischman, will deliver his "Into The Tank" poker tip and analysis segment on each episode.
For further information contact Caesars Palace at 702 785-6566 or visit the National Poker League website at http://www.nplvegasopen.com.