UB.net, the educational online poker arm of UB.com, is sponsoring Season 7 of the Heartland Poker Tour (HPT). A press release distributed by UB officials this week charges that the new partnership will bring the UB brand into “over 100 million U.S. homes throughout 52 straight weeks of HPT TV programming.”
UB.com front man Joe Sebok, who has not yet cashed in an HPT event according to the Hendon Mob, was looking forward to getting a crack at the U.S. poker league. Sebok commented in a press release, “What HPT has been able to do is fantastic. The best kept secret in poker with their homegrown events and national television exposure, they simply get bigger and better every year. For us to come in and back their product, we know we’ll help to shine a spotlight on the HPT like never before. So, expect more players having some fun at the HPT tables and overall richer prize pools across the tour.”
Qualifiers for Season 7 HPT events will take place on UB and, in addition to tournament entries, dole out money to for travel expenses and hotel. When players finally make it out to an HPT event, they might even play alongside several of UB.com’s top pros, including Sebok, Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin, and Adam “Roothlus” Levy.
According to the same press release, the UB.com crew “will also provide guest commentary for some of the hour-long episodes set to rock the world of television poker.” The HPT has a full television broadcast schedule available on its website and its programming can be seen in markets like Atlanta, Toledo, Chattanooga, and Chicago. Chris Hanson and Fred Bevill serve as its primary on-screen talent.
The next HPT stop is scheduled for March 27th to April 3rd at the Meskwaki Bingo Casino Hotel in Tama, Iowa, where players only need to be 18 years of age to participate. Following the stop in Iowa, look for others in Black Hawk, Colorado; Gary, Indiana; Mount Pleasant, Michigan; Reno, Nevada; and Quapaw, Oklahoma, among other cities.
PokerVT is also a sponsor of HPT Season 7, which will be the first to air in high-definition. HPT Executive Producer Greg Lang commented in a separate press release, “We continue to strive to deliver the best possible TV product. Viewers will notice an improvement in the sound and image quality, emphasizing the drama at each final table. The audience at home will feel more like they are right there sweating the tough calls at the table.”
Did we mention that Darvin Moon is also involved? The 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event runner-up, Moon serves as the Ambassador for the HPT. This is the same man who did not sign with any online poker site or land-based casino in the weeks leading up to the conclusion of the Main Event two years ago. Moon finished 37th in the HPT’s Las Vegas Main Event in January for $1,500.
Lang and Todd Anderson founded the HPT in 2005. Since then, its events have been so successful that it is currently entering its seventh season. On what makes the tour unique, Anderson commented, “We get [players] out of the garage game, into the casino, and on TV.” In its last tour stop, the HPT crowned Jeremy Dresch the champ in Mahnomen, Minnesota. Dresch banked $47,000 for the win in a $1,500 buy-in Main Event after out-dueling a field of 170 players.
In November, UB.com pro Maria Ho finished 29th in the HPT Mount Pleasant Main Event for $2,500. Visit the official website of the HPT or UB.net for more information.
