Televised Poker in Las Vegas

Play Poker and Get on TV!

Las Vegas is where it's at when it comes to poker, we all know that already. But TV and movies, that's Hollywood stuff, right? Wrong, not when it comes to poker on TV. The following events are what's happening in the poker world now, and what's happened already on TV in Las Vegas.

Binion's 52-week Ultimate Poker Challenge TV Series on WGN

Paul Svelmoe

DECEMBER 18, 2006 -

You can start with a single-table satellite for $45 or so, or perhaps a Friday super-satellite for $125, maybe with some cheap rebuys, or buy right into the main events, held usually on Saturday and Sunday, and sometimes even 3 days a week or more. Go down to Binion's downtown and check out their latest schedule. There's always a buzz in the air on weekends as players ranging from beginner to rising superstars compete in the main events for buy-ins of $330 or $660. Make it to the final table and the next day, you'll find yourself on the set of an actual production studio, built just for this event, which sits adjacent to their main poker room. Our friend Andrea Li made it, as well as a lot of players with less than average skills. And then there's players like Brandon Lilly, a 21-year-old, whom some of his professional poker friends now living in Vegas keep urging him to move there because they all readily admit he's better than all of them.

FSN to Air Pokerdome Series

John Consoli

DECEMBER 12, 2005 -
FSN and Mansionpoker.net have agreed on a three-year deal for the telecast of a high-stakes poker series that will begin airing in May 2006, on a weekly basis, and that will also include an annual “buy-in” mega-tournament in which players will vie for a $60 million prize pot the first year, $75 million the second year and $100 million the third year.

The Mansionpoker.net Pokerdome Series will premiere on Sunday, May 15 at 11 p.m. on FSN owned-and-affiliated regional sports networks. It will air for 43 consecutive weeks each cycle, which will be made up of seven- and eight-week mini tournaments playing for a $5,000 prize. The mini tournament winners will then meet for a $1 million prize. They will play in a specially-built, high-tech studio overlooking the Las Vegas strip called the Pokerdome.

The mega tournaments will be held at Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia, and six players will be allowed to buy-in for $10 million, then playing with $1 million and $5 million chips. The first one will air July 12, 2006.

(My Vegas Pokerdome experience).

2006 Five Star Bellagio World Poker Classic
Dec. 2006, Bellagio, Las Vegas

2006 World Series of Poker Circuit
May 2006, Caesars Palace, Las Vegas

2006 Mandalay Bay
Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas

2005 Five Diamonds World Poker Classic
Dec 12-16th, Bellagio, Las Vegas

A world poker tour event, the final day televised. Bellagio's Fontana Room is the venue.

Ultimate Poker Challenge
Nov. 16th-29th, 2005

In its second season, the Ultimate Poker Challenge has teamed up with the Plaza in downtown Las Vegas to bring you televised poker that you can participate in for as little as $65. The TV schedule is mainly set for summer/fall 2006 at midnight or 1 AM on Chicago's superstation WGN TV.