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.
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.
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.
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.”
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. Barry Greenstein, poker professional and member of WSOP Players Advisory Council, added: “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.”
