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Steve Schirripa, an actor on the popular “Sopranos” television series on HBO, will host “Face the Ace” on NBC. The grand prize on the poker meets reality television program is $1 million and airing begins on August 1st. The show represents NBC’s first venture into prime time poker programming.
Qualifiers for “Face the Ace” are currently running on Full Tilt Poker for one of seven episodes that will hit the airwaves on August 1st and occupy the 9:00pm ET time slot. The following Saturday, “Face the Ace” will air during the same time period; follow up shows will be beamed into households around the country on a schedule to be determined. The show’s concept is simple: A player will choose from among four doors. Behind each of them is a different professional poker player, appropriately dubbed an “ace.” They will then battle “mano a mano” on the green felts. If the contestant can beat the pro, according to a press release distributed by NBC officials this week, “They will have the opportunity to take the money they have won and leave or risk it all and choose another door and battle a different pro for a significantly larger sum of money.”
Successfully besting three of the game’s top pros in a row will earn a contestant the top prize of $1 million. Losing a match along the way means they’ll leave empty-handed. As the show is primarily sponsored by Full Tilt, the site’s pros make up the “aces.” They include Phil Ivey, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, Erick Lindgren, Erik Seidel, Allen Cunningham, John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, Phil Gordon, Andy Bloch, Mike Matusow, Gus Hansen, and Patrik Antonius. The show’s official website states that winners will be put up at the Golden Nugget, which was also home to the first and fifth seasons of GSN’s “High Stakes Poker.”
Qualifying for the show involves winning a series of freerolls. The winner of each Round 1 freeroll (which take place constantly on Full Tilt Poker) moves onto Round 2. The second installment of freerolls occurs every Wednesday and Sunday at 9:15pm ET. Each winner earns entry into one of three “Face the Ace” Final Qualifiers. These take place at 9:15pm ET on May 25th, 9:15pm ET on June 8th, and 9:15pm ET on June 22nd. The top 10 in each of these tournaments takes home a prize package to head to Las Vegas to potentially compete “Face the Ace.” Each “Face the Ace” tournament is color-coded tan in the Full Tilt lobby. The prize package includes round trip airfare for two to Sin City, $500 in cash, accommodations for two at the Golden Nugget, and a chance to audition for “Face the Ace.”
Jon Miller, Executive Vice-President of NBC Sports, told Poker News Daily, “’Face the Ace’ gives us a chance to continue our great relationship with Poker Productions and provide people at home with an exciting opportunity to get in the game. We are thrilled to have Steve Schirripa on board as the host - with his fun personality we knew he was the perfect guy for the job.” The first Las Vegas filming is scheduled to take place on July 9th and contestants must be at least 21 years old to play.
Full Tilt Poker also serves as the official sponsor for the seventh season of the World Poker Tour (WPT), which is in the midst of airing on Fox Sports Net. Full Tilt received an on-felt presence as part of its package with the WPT. The World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas is fronted by Everest Poker, whereas its London version is sponsored by Betfair. Visit Full Tilt Poker for more information on qualifying for “Face the Ace.”
(PRWEB) January 4, 2008 — This week’s match on NBC’s Poker After Dark is sure to capture the attention of poker fans everywhere, but maybe even more so to those who also enjoy a day on the links whether they are a scratch golfer or a perennial hacker. For anyone who has ever imbibed in a few of their favorite beverages with friends at their local 19th hole after a round of golf, they’ll see a lot of similarities between the camaraderie that exists among their golfing buddies and how this match plays out. The banter at the table is largely golf-oriented, and the stories the players relate are amusing and entertaining.
In a quest for this week’s $120,000 first place winner-take-all prize, two newcomers will make their debut on PAD in the persons of David Oppenheim and Gavin Smith. David has been playing professionally for about 15 years, and is known as one of the best limit high-stakes cash game players in the world. Gavin, a self-proclaimed “wild card” at the tables due to his aggressive nature, is anything but quiet when he plays and will undoubtedly provide some interesting table talk.
These two will swap stories and butt heads with four pros that have also been known to engage in a friendly wager or two on the golf course in fan favorites Doyle Brunson, Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu and Erick Lindgren. Ivey has won two PAD titles, and will be looking to become the first player to win three. Brunson and Negreanu have each won one, and Lindgren will be looking for his first in three tries.
Brief profiles of all six players follow. The match will begin airing on NBC late night Monday at 2:05 a.m., January 7, and will continue for five consecutive nights in the same time slot. A special program called the “Director’s Cut” will air late night Saturday, January 12, at 1:00 a.m., right after Saturday Night Live. This show will feature Poker After Dark’s new host, Marianela, with a behind-the-scenes look at the week including highlights and insightful player interviews.
Each of the match’s six segments can also be viewed daily at www.nbcsports.com/poker. Be sure to check out the new player profile section, which now includes the players from all of PAD’s three seasons, as well as their past performance records on PAD and NBC’s National Heads-Up Poker Championship. These profiles are updated on a weekly basis. A detailed profile of Marianela can be found there also. Additional information on the players is also available at www.pokerafterdark.com.
There are a myriad of personalities represented at this table, along with some conduct that may raise the eyebrows of more than one watching, but it all contributes to making this match one that should have viewers riveted to their seats. The heads-up clash for the title is a beauty, lasting until the wee morning hours, and is one that viewers definitely won’t want to miss.
Smith, Gavin: (Seat 1)
* Holder of 1 WPT title, and was the WPT’s Player of the Year for season IV
* Career tournament winnings in excess of $3.76 million, and ranks 46th on the all-time money list
Oppenheim, David: (Seat 2)
* Recently teamed up with Phil Ivey for ESPN’s Inaugural High Stakes Entertainment Golf Tour, an event that they won good for $1 million
* Primarily a cash game player, he has career tournament winnings in excess of $496,000
Lindgren, Erick: (Seat 3)
* Very successful player in WPT events, winning their Player of the Year award for season II, and ranks 15th on their all-time money list,
* Lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $5.80 million, and ranks 23rd on the all-time money list
Ivey, Phil: (Seat 4)
* Thought of by many as the best player in the game today, and the winner of five WSOP bracelets
* Career tournament winnings in excess of $8.00 million, and ranks 9th on the all-time money list
Brunson, Doyle: (Seat 5)
* Back-to-back World Series of Poker Champion in 1976 and 1977, and the owner of 10 WSOP bracelets, tied for 2nd with Johnny Chan behind Phil Hellmuth who has 11
* Lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $5.27 million, and ranks 29th on the all-time money list
Negreanu, Daniel: (Seat 6)
* One of poker’s most likeable personalities, and owns three WSOP bracelets along with two WPT titles
* Lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $9.88 million, and ranks 3rd on the all-time money list, 1st on the WPT all-time money list
(PRWEB) November 9, 2007 — Many have probably wondered how the six players seen over the course of the past year on NBC’s Poker After Dark’s show open would fare against one another if involved in a match between them. Well, it’s time to find out, as Chris Ferguson, Phil Hellmuth, Jennifer Harman, Phil Ivey, Gus Hansen, and Howard Lederer each put up $20,000 and battle for this week’s $120,000 winner-take-all prize and the coveted PAD title that accompanies it.
These players are among the biggest names in the game today, with all being virtually household names. Bringing together players of this caliber in an exclusive 6-handed match is something that viewers of Poker After Dark have come to expect, and the show should make for must viewing among poker fans the world over.
Before the match even started, Gus Hansen laid Phil Hellmuth 4.5:1 for $20,000 that Hellmuth would not win, so an additional $90,000 incentive was on the line for Hellmuth to conquer five of the world’s top players. Hellmuth stated in his blog that he readily accepted the bet, saying that he didn’t care who was playing, he was never even a four-to-one dog in any 6-handed match, ever! And the stage was set for an action-packed match that is sure to delight audiences.
In fact, of all the players participating in this match, Hellmuth is the only player without a victory on PAD. Howard Lederer has two, and the rest of the players have one apiece, putting additional pressure on Hellmuth to win. Should he lose, he would become the first player on Poker After Dark to have a record of 0-6 after two seasons.
This match has a little of everything, from intense poker marked by long and difficult decisions to more smiles from Phil Ivey than anyone has ever seen. It also includes some eyebrow raising behavior from Phil Hellmuth that most viewers never been witnessed, and some other behavior that most viewers have.
Brief profiles of all six players follow. The match will begin airing on NBC late night Monday at 2:05 AM, November 12, and will continue for five consecutive nights in the same time slot. A special program called the “Director’s Cut” will air late night Saturday, November 17, at 1:00 AM, right after Saturday Night Live. This show will feature a behind-the-scenes look at the week with highlights and insightful player interviews.
Each of the match’s six segments can also be viewed daily at www.nbcsports.com/poker. More detailed information on the players is also available there and at www.pokerafterdark.com.
Viewers can be assured that each of the players want this one very much, and if anyone believes that the players don’t take the matches on Poker After Dark seriously, they’ll change their mind after watching this week’s show.
Lederer, Howard: (Seat 1)
* Has won two WSOP bracelets and two WPT titles
* Lifetime tournament winning in excess of $3.52 million, and ranks 50th on the all-time money list
Ivey, Phil: (Seat 2)
* Winner of five WSOP bracelets
* Career tournament winnings in excess of $7.88 million, and ranks 10th on the all-time money list
Ferguson, Chris: (Seat 3)
* World Series of Poker Champion in 2000 and owner of five WSOP bracelets
* Career tournament winnings in excess of $5.95 million, and ranks 19th on the all-time money list
Hellmuth, Phil: (Seat 4)
* 1989 World Champion, and won his 11th World Series bracelet in 2007, making him the first person in history to do so
* Career tournament winnings in excess of $9.58 million, and ranks 4th on the all-time money list
Harman, Jennifer: (Seat 5)
* Owns two WSOP bracelets, and finished 2nd in the 2007 World Series of Poker Europe H.O.R.S.E. event
* Career tournament winnings in excess of $1.85 million
Hansen, Gus: (Seat 6)
* Has won three WPT open titles and was inducted into the inaugural WPT Hall of Fame in 2004
* Lifetime tournament winnings in excess of $5.27 million, and ranks 26th on the all-time money list
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