Normally this sorta promotional bit wouldn\’t catch my attention for any longer than it takes to press the \”mark as spam\” button. But for whatever reason, new somethings related to online poker and real money get a second look these days.
And this one … knowing the tensions we\’ve seen between California card rooms and the poker sites we used to think of as the \”good guys\” (before government officials said, \”no no they Full Tilt and PokerStars are the bad guys!\”) … well, hmm, call me @JeffMadsenObv, but is it coincidence that California\’s first brick-and-mortar card room to open an online poker site did so on April 15?
Aha. Exactly.
Likewise, might we see more California casinos opening up online outposts soon … and how many similar ops across the country will be trying to entice players to their no-money real-money tables with WSOP seats? Also kinda curious … a $7,500 cash buyout option for the winner. (That seems pretty good, no?)
ZEN ENTERTAINMENT AND HUSTLER CASINO ANNOUNCE $10,000 WSOP SEAT
Lucky Online Poker Winner Will Play in the Big GameLAS VEGAS, MAY 12, 2011 — ZEN Entertainment Network (http://www.ZENEntertainment.com) , a leading social entertainment company that has been developing free-to-play games since 2006, and Larry Flynt’s Hustler Casino Los Angeles are excited to announce the creation of a $10,000 World Series of Poker seat available exclusively to online poker players at http://www.HustlerCasinoLA.com/FREEPOKER.
“We’re thrilled to be able to make this offer to our loyal fans and players,” said Stephanie Cota, chief marketing officer of ZEN Entertainment. “Some of poker’s biggest stars have come from online play, and we’re confident that the player who wins our online tournament will soon be a household name.”
Qualifiers
The Basic Seat Qualifier runs from May 3 to June 21, with daily qualifiers at 1:50 a.m., 5:04 a.m., 11:08 a.m., 2:24 p.m., 8:08 p.m. and 11:04 p.m. (all tournament times are Eastern Standard Time). It is open to all members with a buy-in of 250 points. The top 10 winners will receive an invitation to the $10,000 WSOP Main Event Championship and points based on the prize matrix.
The VIP Qualifier runs from May 3 to June 21, with daily qualifiers at 8:18 a.m. and 5:12 p.m. It is only open to VIP members and no buy-in is required. The top 15 winners will receive an invitation to the $10,000 WSOP Main Event Championship.
Championship
The invitation-only $10,000 WSOP Main Event Championship will be held June 22 at 10 p.m. The grand prize winner will receive a $10,000 Main Event seat on July 7 at the Rio Casino and Resort in Las Vegas, NV; an exclusive cocktail reception held in his or her honor; a professional photo shoot and $750 cash. (The winner may also elect to choose a $7,500 buy-out.)
All tournaments are announced with a display in the lobby one hour prior to the start. Each tournament is 3 hours long, with 4-minute-long breaks every half-hour.
ZEN players join the free-to-play network through the Hustler Casino website. Once they enter the network, they are directed to Hustler Casino’s tournament landing page where they can participate in Texas Hold ’em, Royal Hold’em, Triple Play Video Poker and more, while also viewing Hustler Casino’s messaging and branding. ZEN’s technology also creates natural pauses between hands, allowing players to click and explore banners, videos, take surveys and much more. The result is massive-player engagement sessions that last, on average, 67 minutes.
“Since the recent launch of ZEN Entertainment’s social gaming on our site on April 15, the response has been overwhelming,” said Al Underwood, Hustler Casino L.A.’s director of marketing. “Our customers are now able to enjoy the Hustler Casino experience wherever they are, whether they’re at home or even on the road and using their mobile devices.”
ZEN Entertainment Network is a 100 percent U.S.-legal, free-to-play online poker and video poker contest and sweepstakes site. It offers partners a fully branded, turn-key online presence with shared prize pools and instant player liquidity. Consumers enjoy a fun, social and competitive environment where they vie for $100,000 in monthly cash and prizes, creating a true win-win situation for everyone. ZEN continues to enjoy a powerful position in the marketplace, and its platform will continue to offer B2B partners play that conforms to U.S. laws.
For more information, please visit:
· Casinos: http://www.zenentertainment.com/casinos
· Blog: http://social.ZENentertainment.com/
· Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Zen-Entertainment/206074156088729
· Twitter: @ZEN_Network
About ZEN Entertainment
Founded in Las Vegas in 2008, ZEN is a leading global developer of casino-style and tournament-style game platforms and games, uniting brands and communities in 100 percent legal, online poker games for fun and prizes. ZEN’s flagship product, the ZEN Tournament Network, is the leading free-to-play games network. The ZEN Tournament Network is deployed alongside third-party brands, such as Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), casinos and others.
ZEN’s platform is based on a completely U.S. legal, free-to-play social and casual games environment, featuring tournament-style poker and video poker. The company’s platform consistently demonstrates high performance metrics, including 67-minute average user sessions and 10-plus hours of session play per month per user. ZEN provides each player with a diverse selection of tournaments to enjoy, many of which are sponsored by celebrities, national brands and manufacturers, movie studios and other marketers seeking to present their products to ZEN’s highly engaged casual-game audience.
To find out more about ZEN Entertainment Network, please visit www.ZENEntertainment.com.
About Larry Flynt’s Hustler Casino Los Angeles
Hustler Casino is a luxurious casino with Monte Carlo-style décor and open 24 hours a day, every day of the year, specializing in classic card games like blackjack, Texas Hold \’em, three card poker, pai gow poker and more, with over 50 dedicated poker tables and over 30 table games. Hustler has long been home to the largest seed progressive poker jackpots in the California, with a facility matching the plushest Las Vegas casinos, and offering fantastic food and attentive service that compares to the finest hotels. We are located just 15 minutes south of downtown Los Angeles and the Staples Center, in the celebrated city of Gardena.