Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. (Harrah's) announced today that it has established a new subsidiary, Harrah's Interactive Entertainment, Inc. (HIE) to manage the global growth of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and explore a European interactive strategy.

"As the world's largest gaming company, Harrah's is taking a proactive approach toward international and interactive expansion," said Harrah's Entertainment Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Gary Loveman. "It is important we position ourselves to explore new markets as well as new technologies with our best in class brands."

Mitch Garber, a longtime gaming lawyer and public company senior executive, joins HIE as CEO. Jeffrey Pollack, Commissioner of the WSOP, remains in that role and will become President of HIE.

In addition to growing the World Series of Poker, HIE will explore the use of interactive gaming technologies to expand the reach of Harrah's brands globally, starting in Europe. With its renowned Total Rewards customer-loyalty program, HIE will be utilized to develop new opportunities to strengthen and grow Harrah's customer base.

The World Series of Poker, in its 40th year, has experienced record growth in the last five years. Participants from 124 nations competed in last year's tournament, up from 24 just five years ago and entrants have gone from 13,036 to 58,720 during the same span. The WSOP expanded into Europe in 2007 with the creation of the World Series of Poker Europe held each fall in London.

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by Seth G. Palansky

They'll shuffle up and deal opening hands this week in the 2009 World Series of Poker and ESPN.com will provide complete coverage of the record-setting 57 events.

For the first time, poker fans will have the opportunity to talk daily with their favorite professional players as well as ESPN.com columnists Andrew Feldman, Gary Wise and Bernard Lee.

Each day throughout the WSOP, ESPN.com's SportsNation will host a poker chat focusing on the action. Wednesday's debut will feature 10-time bracelet winner and poker legend, Doyle Brunson, who will also make an appearance on ESPN's Poker Edge podcast on May 26.

Fans can follow all the action with the Poker Edge podcast every week from the Rio All Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas during the preliminary events and each day during the WSOP main event. Professional Poker Player Phil Gordon and Feldman will provide exclusive interviews from bracelet-winners and the biggest names in the game.

Daily recaps, exclusive features and the return of ESPN's Fantasy Poker League (featuring Daniel Negreanu, Howard Lederer, Gavin Smith, Mark Seif and Dennis Phillips) are all part of the plan. And as previously announced, fans around the world will be able to watch the final table action of two dozen bracelet events, including the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship LIVE on the internet. ESPN360.com and BluffMagazine.com will stream a combined total of 24 final tables live online beginning June 2.

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Contact George McNeilly at ESPN.com

Dream Team Poker has taken the industry by storm in the few short months since their inaugural event. Giving team-based poker validation with their successful structure, Dream Team Poker will host a tournament at the 2009 World Series of Poker. The event will be held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino from July 12-13, 2009 with the buy-in of $500 + $60 per player ($1,680 per team). The first 300 teams that pre-register on www.dreamteampoker.com will receive personalized jerseys for the tournament.

"After seeing the terrific response to the recent Dream Team Poker tournaments in Las Vegas, we thought a team-based event would be a fun addition to the end of the WSOP," said Jeffrey Pollack, WSOP Commissioner. "The Dream Team Poker event is one of the many new elements added in 2009 that will help make this summer a memorable one for all WSOP players and fans."

Dream Team Poker has quickly gained traction and saw significant growth in the past six months alone. The speed of progression that Dream Team Poker experienced can be attributed to the two successful events held in November 2008 and March 2009. The invitation-only opening event was sold-out within weeks and was attended by top pros and celebrities. The most recent event at Caesars Palace garnered record attention from the media, professionals and average players, who turned out by the dozens to play. The tournament sold out the Caesars poker room with 148 teams and 444 players.

"The WSOP and the Rio have really shown their commitment to the players in continuing to innovate and try new concepts," said Daniel Delshad, CEO of Dream Team Gaming. "Bringing our brand to the Rio during the WSOP and onto the most hollowed ground in the sport is a powerful way to introduce Dream Team Poker to the world."

Dream Team Poker has added a new dimension to the poker industry with their patent-pending team-based tournament structure. It brings a new layer of competition and strategy to the game of poker while providing team-based and individual prize pools for the players.

Dream Team Poker will have a booth outside of the Amazon Room throughout the World Series of Poker. Staff will also be on hand to answer questions about the tournament and to explain the rules and structure.

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by Seth Palansky

Through 17 events this year at Harrah's New Orleans, the World Series of Poker Circuit has attracted more than 4,000 participants. With an average of 243 players per event, attendance has actually increased over last year despite a so-called gloomy economy, more gold ring events on the schedule, and a greater number of games offered other than No-Limit Hold'em. This is an enlightening statistic, given that many tournaments held elsewhere are either stagnant or have experienced a decrease in attendance recently.

The big question is why? Why has Harrah's New Orleans done so well this year? It would be easy to explain New Orleans' unique appeal as a fun and exciting city to visit. That certainly accounts for some added interest. But an informal poll of the tournament room and its players reveals near-unanimous enthusiasm for more chips and better structures at this year's event. In short, players are convinced they are getting a lot more play for their money, and a lot more bang for the buck.

This year, players in New Orleans are starting with an average of 40 percent more in chips, over the previous year. Furthermore, blind and ante levels increase incrementally. So, players get more play. The tournament is far from a crapshoot. The competition is a test of skill, as it should be. The events and final tables tend to take longer to finish. But given thousands of dollars in prize money is at stake, these are widely-popular changes favored by every poker player. Credit should go to Supervisor Larry Barrett and Tournament Director Steve Frezer and the rest of the tournament staff for listening to the players and creating a competitive structure that should be copied elsewhere. Indeed, imitation is the best form of flattery.

Other WSOP Circuit events have been just as innovative. Last month, Caesars Palace Las Vegas ran "double-stack" tournaments, which gives players twice as many starting chips over normal events. These tournaments, which are an extension of the mega-stack concept introduced by Caesars Palace Las Vegas, are expected to become more popular in months and years ahead. Coming up soon, Caesars will be hosting the "2009 Summer Mega Stack Series." Forty mega satellites with lots of play will be held between May 28th and July 10th which will award seats into the $10,000 buy-in WSOP Main Event, which takes place at the Rio Las Vegas in July.

Across the country at Caesars Atlantic City, the WSOP Circuit in March also did something completely different. In addition to its regular slate of events, Caesars ran two Turbo No-Limit Hold'em tournaments. This was a completely opposite approach to the slower, more chip-heavy structures introduced elsewhere. Aware that many players prefer to wrap up a tournament within a single day, Caesars Atlantic City introduced gold ring events which award big prize money, but also are suited to players who have limited time and seek to finish the tournament within one day.

It is clear that WSOP Circuit events continue to be not only rich and prestigious, but ground-breaking, as well. Next year's WSOP Circuit schedule should be announced in the coming months. Poker players everywhere would be wise to check out the 2009-2010 schedule and make plans to attend.

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by Nolan Dalla

The World Series of Poker first offered a women's only event in 1977. And every year since, the WSOP has been proud to offer an event exclusively for the ladies and with a prestigious gold bracelet on the line.

At the 40th Annual event this year, the ladies-only event is slated for Sunday, June 7 at 12 noon with a $1,000 buy-in for the No Limit Hold'em Ladies World Championship.

Since 2005, the event has been and remains a $1,000 buy-in No Limit Hold'em tournament.

However, the event originally started out as a Seven Card Stud tournament, with the buy-in $100.

While the game of choice offered was Seven Card Stud from 1977 through 1999, the buy-in has only been at $1,000 since 1992. From 1982 through 1991, the ladies event had a $500 buy-in. From 1979-1981 it was $400 and in 1978 the buy-in was $200.

In 2000, the game variation changed for the first time in the event's history, offering a half Limit Hold'em, half Seven Card Stud event. This event format stayed constant through 2003.

In 2004, the ladies event was just a Limit Hold'em tournament. In 2005, it switched to No Limit Hold'em, where it has stayed.

Here's a look at the last decade of the ladies event. As the WSOP goes, so does the ladies event.

2008 - Svetlana Gromenkova ... $224,702
2007 - Sally Anne Boyer ... $262,077
2006 - Mary Jones ... $236,094
2005 - Jennifer Tilly ... $158,335
2004 - Hung Doan ... $58,530
2003 - Barbara Rugolo ... $40,700
2002 - Catherine Brown ... $39,880
2001 - Nani Dollison ... $41,130
2000 - Nani Dollison ... $53,200
1999 - Christina Pie ... $34,000

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by Seth G. Palansky
Sports & Entertainment Director
Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.
One Caesars Palace Drive
Las Vegas, NV. 89109-8969

Some cities bring out the best and worst in people. I would say New Orleans brings out who we really are. Whatever your passion – be it music, food, culture, nature, sports, gambling, poker, voodoo, or whatever – New Orleans is a year-around carnival of self-expression.

It’s also been said that we reveal ourselves at the poker table. Accordingly, New Orleans’ colorful cast of characters and court jesters has made for plenty of exciting poker action. The World Series of Poker Circuit initially came to New Orleans four years ago, in May 2005. Since then, millions of dollars has been won and lost, hundreds of thousands of poker hands have been played, and 57 gold rings have been awarded to the winners (through this year’s Event #5).

Here are a few of the most memorable highlights from WSOP Circuit action at Harrah’s New Orleans, from 2005-2008 (Note: This is the first in a series of reports to come):

Don “Final Table” Mullis’ Amazing Run in 2005 – If the first season of the WSOP Circuit gave out an MVP award, it would have gone to Don “Final Table” Mullis, from North Carolina. Mullis had just begun playing tournament poker. He earned his nickname because he made eight final tables at WSOP Circuit event that first season, which included just four stops on the schedule. At Harrah’s New Orleans, Mullis took 2nd, 3rd, 7th, and 10th in his four cashes. Since the tournaments were two day events, Mullis could only enter a total of six tournaments that year. He may not have won first place, but his run was as impressive as anything seen at tournaments in recent years.

The Inspiring Story of Jose Jimenez – A sentimental story, since forgotten, is the incredible tale of Jose Jimenez, a 28-year-old Mexican immigrant, who won Event #2 at the 2005 WSOP Circuit in New Orleans. The story of how Jimenez topped a then-record field of 847 players and claimed $66,527 in prize money would in interesting enough. But add the implications of what winning a poker tournament meant to the man personally, and the victory extends far beyond the symbolism of a gold ring and poker glory. Jimenez was born in the bronze desert of northern Mexico. He arrived in the United States a few years earlier and worked as a waiter, hoping to get by, save his money, and eventually bring is family to the U.S. Meanwhile, his wife remained back in Mexico. Jimenez said after his victory that he hoped to bring his wife to America legally, where the family could settle down and be together. Incredibly, winning a poker tournament helped him to achieve that goal.

After Car Trouble, Tim Whaley Drives 700 Miles and Wins $67,230 – Tim Whaley had the perfect plan. He would meet up with his friends who all planned to pile into Whaley's car and drive 700 miles from home in Atlanta to New Orleans. The final destination was the WSOP Circuit at Harrah's New Orleans. Then, the unexpected happened. The car broke down. Whaley and his friends were forced to camp at an auto repair shop, desperately waiting for a spare part to arrive. It was not a good way to start a poker trip. Whaley was just about to give up on the idea of driving across four states to play in a poker tournament. Then, he decided to rent a car and just a short time later he was barreling down I-20 on his way to New Orleans. It was an all-night road trip that left the three young men mentally and physically exhausted. Somehow, Whaley and his friends made it to New Orleans and started playing poker the next day. Whaley entered the $500 buy-in no-limit hold'em tournament and a day later later, he had a gold ring and $67,230. There was no word on whether Whaley took some of the prize monbey to buy a new car.

Walter Chambers Comeback at the 2005 Main Event – It was an all-LSU heads-up finale the very first year the Circuit championship was played in New Orleans. The top two finishers were graduates of Louisiana State University. Walter Chambers (Class of 2000) defeated Corey A. Bierria (Class of 1998). Most impressive was that Chambers was dead last in chips when play was seven-handed. But he made an astounding comeback and ended up outlasting a tough field of 259 players. Chambers earned $787,340 – the highest poker prize ever awarded in the state of Louisiana.

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by Nolan Dalla