Star-Studded Field Tops 1,100 at World Series of Poker Ladies Tournament
10 Juillet 2006 - 12:08AM
PR Newswire (US)
LAS VEGAS, July 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A field of more than
1,128 women -- by far the largest in poker history - entered the
Ladies No-Limit Hold'Em tournament at the 2006 World Series of
Poker, each hoping to unseat reigning champion Jennifer Tilly and
outlast a host of other Hollywood celebrities who entered the
event. Last year's victory by the Oscar-nominated actress Tilly
generated widespread publicity and sparked a near doubling in the
number of entrants from the previous record field of 600 in 2005.
"Jennifer Tilly has helped fuel the explosive growth in the
popularity of women's poker," said Jeffrey Pollack, commissioner of
the World Series of Poker. "She was a gracious winner of last
year's event and has been a terrific ambassador for the game." This
year, Tilly joined forces with ELLE magazine and PartyPoker.net to
form a team including actress Shannon Elizabeth and some of the
country's top female players to raise funds for the American Heart
Association's Go Red for Women campaign. The ELLE-PartyPoker team
includes actresses Tilly, Elizabeth, Alison Worth and Katie
Porrello; Lisa Tenner, president of Tenner and Associates; producer
and director Susan Genard; ICM executive Lori Sale; Card Player
Media executive Allyn Jeffrey Shulman; ELLE executive Hillary Kerr,
poker pros Karina Jett, Maureen Feduniak, Linda Johnson, Jan
Fisher, Jennifer Leigh, Wendeen Eolis and Irina Cornides, and real
estate developer Leslie Eichner. The ELLE team members will donate
a percentage of any winnings to the American Heart Association, and
team sponsors will match those donations. Heart disease is the No.
1 killer of women. The ELLE team wasn't the only one featuring
actresses. Hollywood Poker sent a team that included Anne Heche,
Ricki Lake, Victoria Pratt, Jean Smart, Mimi Rogers, Mena Suvari
and Kelly Hu. The start of the Ladies tournament -- one of 45
events in the 37th Annual World Series of Poker that runs through
August 10 -- drew the largest crowd of spectators thus far. Fans
packed the huge tournament room at the Rio All-Suite Hotel &
Casino, hoping for a glimpse of their favorite Hollywood or poker
celebrity. The final round of the two-day Ladies tournament is
scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. Monday, July 10. More information
about the World Series of Poker is available at
http://www.worldseriesofpoker.com/ Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.
(NYSE:HET) is the world's largest provider of branded casino
entertainment through operating subsidiaries. Since its beginning
in Reno, Nevada 68 years ago, Harrah's has grown through
development of new properties, expansions and acquisitions.
Harrah's Entertainment is focused on building loyalty and value
with its customers through a unique combination of great service,
excellent products, unsurpassed distribution, operational
excellence and technology leadership. More information about
Harrah's is available at its Web site - http://www.harrahs.com/.
DATASOURCE: Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. CONTACT: Nicole Khoury of
TBC Public Relations for Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.,
+1-410-627-0561 Web site: http://www.harrahs.com/
http://www.worldseriesofpoker.com/
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