UltimateBet.net announced Wednesday it had signed on as a long term sponsor of the “widely popular HPT (Heartland Poker Tour), a nationally-televised poker tour in its seventh successful season”.
While still mostly enjoyed by players through-out the USA, our Canadian players have been known to play in the events, which while are televised, are much more accessible to the vast majority since Main Event buy-ins are typically around the $1500 mark, with qualifiers to the main priced even lower. For 2011, the HPT already has confirmed stops in Colorado, Oklahoma, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Florida and Nevada; typically the top prize at the six handed final tables is in excess of $100,000.
“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 out. For us, to come in and back their product, we know we’ll help to shine a spotlight on HPT like never before. So, expect more players having some fun at the HPT tables and overall richer prize pools across the tour,” said Team UB Pro Joe Sebok.
As a sponsor, UB will be providing avenues to get players playing the live tour, including freeroll promotions that make it accessible to any size bankroll. Support will also be offered by way of star presence; “Members of Team UB including Sebok, Eric “Basebaldy” Baldwin, Brandon Cantu, and Adam “Roothlus” Levy will rep the brand at select HPT events across the country; they will also provide guest commentary for some of the hour-long episodes set to rock the world of television poker,” said UB in their announcement.
“Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho are fan favorites after playing a few HPT events. We’re looking forward to seeing them more often, as well as other members of Team UB,” said HPT Executive Producer and Co- founder Greg Lang.
The Heartland Poker Tour also announced in March that it had signed the “un-signable” Darvin Moon. The 2009 runner up of the World Series Main Event became popular with many poker fans because he was one of the only players in recent years to refuse sponsorship at the WSOP final table, choosing to go “patchless”. This new arrangement will see him sporting a HPT patch at events, as he finally inked a deal he can live with, now their official ambassador. Sticking to his “grassroots” or “average-Joe” image has remained a priority for Moon since taking home his 5.2 million dollar payday and this new role allows him to promote the game and stick to those values. It is also the first time the HPT has looked to have a player represent them in an official capacity, so clearly it is a good fit for both.
If you are a player interested in playing on Ultimate Bet for a chance to be on the Heartland Poker Tour and don’t have an account there yet, you can sign up through our site here
