Friday, Oct. 21, 2005

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National Heads-Up Poker Championship moved to Caesars Palace

By Lianne Elias

The National Heads-Up Poker Championship will relocate to Caesars Palace starting in 2006, Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. announced this week.

The championship event will pit sixty-four of the pro circuit's top players heads-up to compete for a $1.5 million prize pool. First place prize will be $500,000. The tournament will take place between March 3-5, with ten hours of tournament play slated for broadcast on NBC in a six-episode special in April and May.

The first edition of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship was held last March at The Golden Nugget in Las Vegas, and was viewed by over four million homes when it was broadcast on NBC later that spring. It is estimated that six million viewers tuned in for the final episode - a two-hour heads-up battle between Phil Hellmuth and Chris Ferguson.

Pros expected to compete heads-up in the tournament this year include returning champion Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan, Howard Lederer, Erick Lindgren, Gus Hansen, Chris Moneymaker, Daniel Negreanu, Greg Raymer, Antonio Esfandiari, and T.J. Cloutier. Heads-up play will be determined by draw, with the winner from each battle advancing to the next heads-up competition. Initial draws will be conducted during a media event on the evening of March 2 at Caesars Palace. All sixty-four participating pros will be in attendance.

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