News

ESPN PLANS TO MORE THAN DOUBLE TV COVERAGE OF 2011 WSOP

World Series of Poker To Air "Live" Coverage July 14-19 on ESPN2 & ESPN.

May 04 2011 11:00 AM EST

ESPN PLANS TO MORE THAN DOUBLE TV COVERAGE OF 2011 WSOP

ESPN to Present New and Extended Coverage of 2011 WSOP Main Event
Unedited Action, Hole Cards on Limited Delay and 34 Additional Hours of Main Event

For six consecutive days, July 14-19, ESPN will offer unprecedented access to the 2011 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, including ‘live’ unedited hole cards on a 30-minute delay and more than 32 additional hours of coverage in high definition on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN3.com from the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

For the first time, ESPN will offer daily coverage of the WSOP Main Event, where every hand will be shown unedited and hole cards will be available post-flop (for all players still in the hand). The coverage will shift between two feature tables approximately every 30 minutes, and will show all “all-in” and “call” situations at both tables.

Barry Greenstein, poker professional and member of WSOP Players Advisory Council, said: “This is a long-awaited step to get live poker on television, and it represents another good collaboration between Caesars, the WSOP Players Advisory Council and ESPN to create a production format that maintains the integrity of the tournament while giving fans what they want to see.”

Lon McEachern and David Tuchman will handle the play-by-play during the six-day event, while a rotation of professional poker players (to be named later) will provide analysis.

WSOP “Grudge Matches” will also be streamed live (on a five-minute delay, no hole cards) on ESPN3.com beginning Thursday, June 2, followed by the $25,000 Heads-Up No Limit Hold’em Championship on Friday, June 3, and the $50,000 Poker Players Championship on Wednesday, July 6, all leading up to the Main Event.

The 2011 World Series of Poker Presented by Jack Link’s Beef Jerky Tuesday night telecasts with McEachern and Norman Chad will begin July 26 on ESPN for 16 consecutive weeks leading up to the November Nine final table on Nov. 8.

“For the first time viewers at home will have the best seats in the house for the World Series of Poker, poker’s premier event. Fans will see hole cards post-flop and get an inside look at all of the strategy, angst and competition of the world’s best players vying for a seat at the most prestigious final table in the sport,” said Matthew Volk, ESPN manager of programming and acquisitions.

WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart said: “This is a historic milestone for ESPN and the WSOP. The addition of live event-style coverage with hole cards in July, and primetime shows leading up to the crowning of a champion in November, provide our fans more access than ever before, and we are extremely proud to be with a company dedicated to realizing the potential of the game.”

To get answers to frequently asked questions on ESPN's WSOP TV plans, please click here.

ESPN.com will provide complete coverage on location with blogs, podcasts, videos, interviews with the games’ top players and more. Fans can also follow WSOP.com, PokerNews.com and @WSOP on Twitter for instant updates and tournament coverage.

About ESPN
ESPN, Inc., the leading multinational, multimedia sports entertainment company featuring the broadest portfolio of multimedia sports assets with over 50 business entities, launched its first network on September 7, 1979 in 1.4 million homes. Today, both ESPN and ESPN2 are available in more than 100 million homes respectively, and ESPN’s media platforms are America's top source for sports programming, news and information. ESPN3.com is ESPN's live sports broadband network, a 24/7 online destination that delivers thousands of live, global sports events annually. ESPN3.com is currently available in approximately 70 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or cable TV video subscription from an affiliated service provider. It is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers connected to on-campus educational networks and on-base military networks.

WSOP Live Main Event Telecast Schedule:

ESPN2 air times are slated as follows: (32 hours)

Thursday, July 14: 3.5 hours: 8-11:30 pm PT (Footage gathered from 7:30-11 pm)
Friday, July 15: 3.5 hours: 8-11:30 pm PT (Footage gathered from 7:30-11 pm)
Saturday, July 16: 9 hours: 12:30-7 pm PT; 9-11:30 pm PT (Footage gathered 12-6:30 and 8:30-11 pm)
Sunday, July 17: 4.5 hours: 7-11:30 pm PT (Footage gathered from 6:30-11 pm)
Monday, July 18: 5.5 hours: 4-7 pm PT; 9-11:30 pm PT (Footage gathered from 3:30-6:30 pm & 8:30-11 pm)
Tuesday, July 19: 6 hours: 9 pm to conclusion [3 am PT max] (Footage gathered from 8:30 pm until reaching November Nine)

ESPN air times are slated as follows: (2 hours)

Tuesday, July 19: 2 hours: 5-7 pm PT (Footage gathered from 4:30-6:30 pm)

WSOP Taped Broadcast Schedule: ALL TIMES ARE EASTERN

July 26 8:00 PM: Rematches: Chan vs. Hellmuth + Match TBD 1

July 26 9:00 PM: Rematches: Moneymaker vs. Farha 2

August 2 8:00 PM: $25,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold’em 3

August 2 9:00 PM: $25,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold’em 4

August 9 8:00 PM: $50,000 Poker Players Championship 5

August 9 9:00 PM: $50,000 Poker Players Championship Final 6

August 16 8:00 PM: Main Event 7

August 16 9:00 PM: Main Event 8

August 23 8:00 PM: Main Event 9

August 23 9:00 PM: Main Event 10

August 30 8:00 PM: Main Event 11

August 30 9:00 PM: Main Event 12

Sept. 6 8:00 PM: Main Event 13

Sept. 6 9:00 PM: Main Event 14

Sept. 13 8:00 PM: Main Event 15

Sept. 13 9:00 PM: Main Event 16

Sept. 20 8:00 PM: Main Event 17

Sept. 20 9:00 PM: Main Event 18

Sept. 27 8:00 PM: Main Event 19

Sept. 27 9:00 PM: Main Event 20

October 4 9:00 PM: Main Event 21

October 4 10:00 PM: Main Event 22

October 11 9:00 PM: Main Event 23

October 11 10:00 PM: Main Event 24

October 18 9:00 PM: Main Event 25

October 18 10:00 PM: Main Event 26

October 25 9:00 PM: Main Event 27

October 25 10:00 PM: Main Event 28

November 1 9:00 PM: Main Event 29

November 1 10:00 PM: Main Event 30

November 8 9-11:00 PM: Main Event Final Table 31/32

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