Jul. 27, 2004
Poker event still in the works, but not on TV
Associated Press
DEADWOOD, S.D. - Poker players still will ply their trade in Deadwood in October, but it won't be on national television, promoters said.
Last week, Bill Walsh, owner of the Franklin Hotel on Deadwood's Main Street, said ESPN had confirmed that the northern Black Hills gambling town would be a backdrop for two days of videotaping the "World Series of Poker."
But ESPN says a telecast never was planned. Ashley Smith of ESPN's marketing department said the Deadwood people "got overzealous (and) there was a misunderstanding on what we are doing."
Walsh said a telecast had been planned but now acknowledges that after a week of phone calls, the poker games will not be on TV.
"Everyone (from ESPN) is backpedalling," Walsh told the Black Hills Pioneer.
Promoter Bill McDavid of Texas had said the Franklin Hotel would host the "World Series of Poker," which usually is taped in Las Vegas.
Now, Smith said radio contests will be held in about a dozen regional markets, and two winners will receive paid trips to Deadwood to play poker.
"And we will bring in a couple of fellows who have played on the World Series (of Poker) for this year," she said. "We don't know who that is going to be as of yet."
Walsh said the fall poker event still can be a big attraction for Deadwood.
Specific dates were not reported.
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Information from: Black Hills Pioneer,
http://www.bhpioneer.com