The World Poker Tour
WPT Enterprises represented by CEO Steven Lipscomb, is credited by most experts with the explosion of popularity poker and online poker have seen in 2003-2004.
While some may argue that the WSOP had its fair share of “guilt” in it, it is doubtless that the Televised WPT events which brought along innovations like the hole-card camera, made sure poker was heard-of, watched, and understood in every corner of the globe. In that respect, the WPT is certainly a trailblazer, a status further stressed by the numerous spin-offs that followed it, taking advantage of innovations first introduced by the WPT.
Observing the ever growing popularity of the WSOP, the idea that a televised event featuring some of the world’s best players and spanning over several events would be a resounding success was a pretty straightforward one.
Hiring a couple of celebrities (a poker player and an actor, Mike Sexton and Vince van Patten respectively), made perfect sense too, and proved to be one of the main ingredients of the explosive concoction. The way the commentary was done, was another first in online poker television. Even though the two hosts did most of the commentary live, they were not allowed to see and discuss player’s hole cards on the spot. The possibility that the live audio could be streamed back to participants one way or another, prevented organizers from allowing unrestricted live commentary.
One of the main attractions of the taped shows was though, that viewers could see the hole cards and hear the commentary about them, so the whole commentary-track was redone in post-production, and what they came up with was a mix of live and later-added commentary which proved to be the perfect solution. Other celebrities, like Shana Hiatt, Courtney Friel and Sabina Gadecki have also acted as hosts (reporters) during different seasons of the WPT. The side-reporter for the 2008 season is rumored to be Layla Kayleigh.
The show first went on the air in the spring of 2003 on cable, but it took almost another year till it invaded network television too. Once there though, the mission was complete. Different television networks all over the world bought the shows, and soon names like Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth and Doyle Brunson became household, even for people who never had any tangencies with poker before.
The hole-card cam not only enhanced the viewing experience, it also made it easier to learn about the game and its intricacies, and the fact that anybody who could afford the buy-in could take part in it, was a potent fuel for the imagination of thousands upon thousands of viewers.
The intricate yet easy to understand point structure used for qualifications made events even more interesting. At the end of every season, a player would receive the coveted “Player of the Year” award, which was kind of like a season MVP title. Such MVPs were: Howard Lederer for season one, Erick Lindgren for season 2, Daniel Negreanu for season 3, Gavin Smith and J.C. Tran for seasons 4 and 5 respectively.
In 2006, several poker professionals (Annie Duke, Howard Lederer, Phil Gordon, Greg Raymer and others) sued the WPTE for alleged contract violations and for the inclusion of abusive terms in the contracts that bound the above mentioned professionals to the WPTE. All lawsuits have been sorted out though, and the WPT looks set to have a smooth 2008 season.
Its resounding success naturally gave birth to a series of spin-offs, all trying to cash in on the success and innovations of the WPT. Such a spin-off was the PPT (Professional Poker Tour) also owned by WPTE. The WPT was the inspiration for High Stakes Poker, the first widely-broadcast poker series featuring a cash game format. Successful poker play is all about the positive expected value. Nothing boosts your EV+ more than a good rakeback deal. Increase your hourly rate through rakeback and make the time spent at the table really count.