The BCS of Poker?

The Federated Pro Poker League had taken a decidedly neutral stance on online poker. They weren\’t gonna let online powerhouses Tilt and Stars muck up their game, it seemed, but at the same time they weren\’t ready — at least prior to April 15 — to kick the online sites to the curb. Now it seems clear the FPPL will be moving forward with the indicted online poker operations — whatever that may or may not mean. Regardless, @JeffreyPollack is apparently committed, as he confirmed his recent resignation as Executive Chairman of PBR to focus on Federated Sports+Gaming, which has its first pro poker event in just barely 90 days.

The plan for seating players involves a complex algorithm awarding 2-, 3-, and 5-year cards based on some sorta formula that takes into account tournament wins and possibly shoe size? 218 mad the cut for 2011. Click here to see who gets to play in their non-open overlay events at the Palms … which, btw, now happens to be home of the Pokerati Game. The pro league\’s schedule of exclusive, not-yet-televised events is below, along with the details on what it takes to get your card.

(Pokerati\’s version of 1/2 NLH/PLO, of course, is open to all players seeking a good time for a $100-min $400 max, and will be playing again this Thursday, starting at 7p. No card necessary — though you do need a players card to qualify for comps or collect any bonuses.)

FEDERATED SPORTS + GAMING UNVEILS QUALIFYING CRITERIA FOR
INAUGURAL SEASON OF NEW PROFESSIONAL POKER LEAGUE 

More than 200 Poker Professionals Eligible to Compete at the Palms Casino Resort

$2,600,000 in Added Prize Money Guaranteed for Rake-Free Events in First Year

 

Los Angeles, CA (May 3, 2011) – Federated Sports and Gaming (FS+G) announced today the criteria for membership in its new professional poker league, along with the roster of 218 players eligible for the 2011-12 inaugural season.

“We are committed to celebrating the world’s best live tournament players in an entirely new way,” said Jeffrey Pollack, Chairman of FS+G. “As we start to fulfill this mission, the first question we had to answer was who made the cut and why. For what could have been a very subjective discussion and debate, we elected to embrace objective data.”

Qualification for membership in the Federated poker league is based on an individual player\’s adjusted lifetime earnings in qualifying tournaments; the number of major poker titles he or she has won; and the number of cashes and amount earned since 2008.

These criteria combine to determine eligibility and a player\’s card level for league membership. FS+G generally considers qualifying tournaments to be live open events that have a minimum buy-in of $1,500 U.S. (or converted equivalent). Adjusted lifetime earnings are the accumulation of earnings in FS+G qualifying tournaments.

Based on the qualification criteria, players qualify for a Five-Year, Three-Year or Two-Year card. The length of each “card” term – otherwise known as the “exemption period” – is based on the player’s achievement level and the exemption period is the amount of time a qualifying player will be eligible to enter the FS+G professional poker league tournaments before his or her status comes up for review. For example, if a player has a Five-Year card, they will not come up for an eligibility review until the end of 2015-2016 season. For the upcoming 2011-12 season, the professional poker league will make available 27 Five-Year cards, 55 Three-Year cards, and 136 Two-Year-cards.

“Our goal in setting the objective qualifying criteria was to capture the best live tournament players – not a certain set of personalities,” said Annie Duke, Commissioner of the league. “Keeping the league membership small not only ensures the highest quality of tournament play, but also allows FS+G to provide a superior playing experience and outstanding service levels to our members.”

In its inaugural season, 218 players qualify for league membership. Additional players may qualify for 2011-12 league membership through August 1st, 2011 — so the inaugural roster may be expanded, based upon player performance in qualifying tournaments over the summer. There will be no exemptions of any kind for entry into the league, except for the nine temporary, single-event cards awarded through the Pro-Am tournament that precedes each of the four Main Events.

The Federated Sports + Gaming website (www.federatedinc.com) has a complete list of the 218 players who have qualified for the inaugural season of the professional poker league (http://www.federatedinc.com/poker-league/season-one-roster) and the detailed qualifying criteria (http://www.federatedinc.com/poker-league/qualification-criteria).

Some of the legendary players and rising stars that qualify for the league include: Doyle Brunson, Phil Hellmuth, Erik Seidel, Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, Barry Greenstein, Carlos Mortensen , Mike Matusow, Antonio Esfandiari , Vivek Rajkumar, Joe Hachem, Allen Cunningham, Tom Dwan, Jason Mercier, Vanessa Selbst, Eugene Katchalov, Andy Lichtenberger, Annette Obrestaad and Daniel Alaei.

“These players are an exciting mix of seasoned veterans and young talent,” said Duke. “They are the best of the best and we congratulate them on their achievements in poker and earning league membership in our inaugural season.”

“This type of league has been a dream of mine for more than 50 years,” said poker icon Doyle Brunson. “I’m honored to be included in this elite group and look forward to the challenge of competing with so many other skilled live tournament players.”

“I\’m very happy to be part of the pro poker league because of how well the players are being represented,” said Andy Lichtenberger, who also qualifies for a Two-Year card. “This is the first time we are getting something in return for all that we are putting in.”

FS+G announced today that each of the league’s four rake-free events will feature $400,000 in guaranteed prize pool overlay. Combined with a $1,000,000 free roll championship prize pool, FS+G is guaranteeing $2,600,000 in added prize money to league members in its first year. Details of other benefits to the poker league members will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Palms Casino Resort will host four event weeks in the inaugural season, along with the 2011-12 championship event. The four Main Events will feature different formats of No-Limit Texas Hold’em, including six-handed play, a heads-up tournament with an innovative seeding structure, and a special multi-format tournament to round out the season. Each event week will include a Pro-Am event, a charity tournament, and a $20,000 buy-in Main Event.

Each tournament week at the Palms will begin with a $1,500 Pro-Am event, which is also rake free for league members, in which the top nine finishers will be awarded a temporary league card for that week’s league Main Event. The nine Main Event buy-ins will be withheld from the Pro-Am tournament prize pool and the remaining prize money will be awarded to the top 10% of the Pro-Am players, including the players who are awarded the temporary league cards. The Pro-Am tournament will be open to all players 21 years and older.

2011-12 Federated Sports and Gaming Season I Tournament Schedule

Pro-Am Charity Tournament League Main Event

Event #1 August 5 – 8, 2011 August 7, 2011 August 9 – 12, 2011

Event #2 September 2 – 5, 2011 September 4, 2011 September 6 – 9, 2011

Event #3 December 9 – 12, 2011 December 11, 2011 December 14 – 18, 2011

Event #4 January 27 – 30, 2012 January 29, 2012 February 9 – 12, 2012

Championship —- —- February 13 – 14, 2012

About Federated Sports + Gaming
Federated Sports + Gaming (FS+G) was founded in 2010 to create proprietary world-class sports and gaming brands through the integration of traditional and digital media, including televised events, social media gaming and interactive digital programming. The company breaks new ground in the poker world through its launch of a revolutionary professional poker league in 2011. FS+G will celebrate the world\’s top poker players by providing them with the spotlight they have long deserved. FS+G is dedicated to creating new traditions in poker entertainment by providing fans and players with an unmatched poker tournament, poker TV and interactive poker experience. FS+G offices are based out of Los Angeles and Washington D.C. For more information please visit www.federatedinc.com.

About The Palms
The Palms Casino Resort, heralded as one of Las Vegas\’ hippest resorts, is an all-encompassing, one-stop destination. Owned by the Maloof family, the boutique property boasts three distinct towers and a diverse mix of bars and restaurants across a 95,000-square-foot casino. Amenities include the legendary Playboy Club; Ghostbar; Rain Nightclub; The Pearl Concert Theater; Moon Nightclub; N9NE Steakhouse; Nove Italiano; Little Buddha; Simon Restaurant & Lounge; The Palms Pool & Bungalows; Palms Spa and AMP Salon; Drift Spa & Hammam; LA Sunset Tan; Brenden Theatres, a 14-theatre Cineplex; Huntington Ink Tattoo Lounge; the Fantasy Suites, including the Hardwood Suite, the only hotel room in the world with its own basketball court; and over 60,000 square-feet of meeting space. The Palms has played host to MTV’s Video Music Awards, Real World: Las Vegas and Bravo’s Celebrity Poker Showdown, and E!’s Girls Next Door and Sunset Tan feature the resort on a regular basis. The Palms Casino Resort is located just west of the Las Vegas Strip and I-15 on Flamingo Road. For reservation information, call toll free at (866) PALMS-RES, (866) 725-6773, or visit www.palms.com. For groups of 15 rooms or more, contact the Sales Department at (866) PALMS-MTG or (866) 725-6768.

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Professional Poker League Qualification Fact Sheet

Here are some important facts about the qualification criteria for the new professional poker league:

1. Not all poker tournaments count towards meeting the league eligibility criteria. Only qualifying tournaments count, a poker tournament is considered a “qualifying tournament” if it:
ü Has a buy-in of $1,500 U.S. or more.

ü Is open to the general public. Invitational tournaments qualify as long as members of the public can play their way in through preliminary or satellite events. Seniors, Ladies, Employees, CEO and other special-design events are not qualifying tournaments.

ü Is announced and publicized to the general public at least 30 days prior to the start of the event.

ü Attracts a minimum of 21 players.

2. The following poker tournaments are considered “major” title events (assuming they meet the ‘qualifying tournament’ requirements in point #1)

ü Federated Sports + Gaming Main Events

ü WSOP Las Vegas and WSOP Europe open event with a buy-in of $1,500 US or higher

ü WPT Main Event

ü NAPT Main Event

ü EPT Main Event

ü Aussie Millions Main Event

ü WSOP Circuit Main Event with a buy-in of $5,000 U.S. or higher

ü British Columbia Poker Open

ü European Poker Championships

ü Any tournament with a buy-in of $10,000 US or higher and a field of 100 or more and took place in the year 2001 or after

ü Any tournament with a buy-in of $5,000 US or higher and a field of 100 or more and took place in the year 2000 or before

3. Adjusted lifetime earnings, are the sum of all cashes in qualifying tournaments. A player’s single largest win in a qualifying tournament may be capped if it exceeds the threshold for the player’s applicable card level.

Professional Poker League Qualification Criteria

Qualification for the new professional poker league is based on a player’s performance in qualifying tournaments and measured by a combination of adjusted lifetime earnings; number of major poker titles won; adjusted earnings since January 1, 2008; and, the adjusted number of cashes since January 1, 2008. The criteria for each type of card is as follows (note that all monetary amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars):
Five-Year Card
ü At least $4.0 million in adjusted lifetime earnings, with the single largest win capped at $2.0 million
ü At least 3 major titles
ü At least 9 cashes since January 1, 2008, for a total of at least $600,000 won

Three-Year Card
ü At least $2.5 million in adjusted lifetime earnings, with the single largest win capped at $1.5 million
ü At least 1 major title
ü At least 9 cashes since January 1, 2008, for a total of at least $500,000 won

Two-Year Card
ü At least $2 million in adjusted lifetime earnings, with the single largest win capped at $1 million
ü At least 1 major title
ü At least 6 cashes since January 1, 2008, for a total of at least $300,000 won

Or

ü At least $1.25 million in adjusted lifetime earnings, with the single largest win capped at $750,000
ü At least 9 cashes since January 1, 2008, for a total of $600,000 won