Heartland Poker Tour Expands to West Coast
Lincoln, CA – Heartland Poker Tour (HPT) announced a West Coast expansion of their popular tour with a nationally-televised event at Thunder Valley Casino Resort near Sacramento, California. The series, September 20th-29th, will include a deepstack event, nationally-televised Main Event with three starting flights, and a full schedule of cash tournaments and qualifying events.
Located just 30 miles east of Sacramento, California, Thunder Valley features a 300-room luxury hotel, several upscale restaurants and a tropical outdoor pool area. The full-service casino offers some of the most-popular slots and table games in the industry.
“Thunder Valley will become one of our players’ favorite destinations,” predicts HPT Director of Operations Jen Mastrud. “The experience will be top notch.”
Dawn Clayton, Acting General Manager of Thunder Valley Casino Resort said the team is “thrilled to serve as a host of the nationally-televised HPT.” Clayton said, “We are looking forward to providing poker enthusiasts with a very memorable experience at our AAA Four Diamond accredited resort and welcome players to enjoy our luxury hotel, exquisite dining selection, world-class Spa and much more.”
Founded in Minnesota, HPT first broke out of the Midwest in 2007 with an event in Las Vegas and has since executed televised tournaments in New York, Arizona, Florida, and the Caribbean. Californians have been successful at HPT events across the country for years, traveling most often to major HPT tournaments in Las Vegas, Albuquerque, and Black Hawk, Colorado. In January, retiree Richard Enriquez of Los Angeles, California took down an HPT event aboard a luxury cruise in the Caribbean.
Now in the midst of their ninth season, HPT has gained widespread popularity in part due to a new tournament structure designed by pro Daniel Negreanu. “The new structure is deep throughout,” said pro Allen Kessler, an HPT regular. “It provides more play than competing series and gives players fifty percent more starting chips. HPT got it right.”
HPT brings a full production set to each of their stops to capture the action while poker enthusiasts grind their way to life-changing money. The Main Event champion is expected to earn a six-figure cash prize at Thunder Valley, with more prize money up for grabs in side events throughout the series. The full tournament schedule will be available at HPTpoker.com
The top nine in the Main Event will move to the Final Table to play in front of 16 cameras for a pair of hour-long episodes set to air nationwide. Pro Maria Ho will join longtime HPT commentator Fred Bevill at the broadcast desk to offer her critical analysis. Ho became the world’s first female commentator in poker when she joined the show earlier this year. HPT broadcasts on a syndicated network covering over 100 million U.S. households and reaching into Europe, the Caribbean, and Asia. The busy tour will produce about 40 original episodes this year.
