Poker After Dark Begins New Season

LOS ANGELES -- The summer doldrums are over. Beginning with the week of September 10, NBC will launch five consecutive new matches of the popular show Poker After Dark as part of their second season,
 
Shana Hiatt will again host Poker after Dark on NBC.  with the final two new matches to be aired in November. The star-studded lineups for all of the remaining matches are impressive indeed, and some of the winners will surprise even the most ardent of fans, making them "must see" television for casual viewers and poker aficionados alike.

Here is the breakdown of the remaining matches and the dates they will be shown:

Week of September 10: This is Bracelets Week, and features six players who have won a combined total of 45 World Series of Poker bracelets. Headlining this match is Phil Hellmuth, who won his record-breaking 11th bracelet in 2007. Joining Phil are Doyle Brunson with 10, Erik Seidel with 8, T.J. Cloutier with 6, and Chris Ferguson and Layne Flack with 5 apiece.

Week of September 17: Over 6 seasons, only 8 players in history have won two or more WPT events that are open to anyone, and this match features 6 of them. Participating are Gus Hansen, who has won 3, and Howard Lederer, Erick Lindgren, Daniel Negreanu, Tuan Le, and Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, who have won 2 each.

Week of September 24: This match has been dubbed Rivals' Week, and boasts six players who have some sort of rivalry going on between them and at least one of the other players, friendly or otherwise. This entertaining match brings together Phil Laak and Antonio Esfandiari, Phil Hellmuth and Shawn Sheikhan, and Daniel Negreanu and Mike "The Mouth" Matusow.

Week of October 1: Three players who have already won a match on Poker After Dark return in quest of their second victory. Those players are Phil "The Unabomber" Laak, John Juanda, and Clonie Gowen. Trying to prevent them for winning their second match and winning for the first time on PAD are Annie Duke, Andy Bloch, and newcomer David Williams.

Week of October 8: This is "The Mega Match," and features a $50,000 buy-in instead of the usual $20,000, making it a $300,000 winner-take-all freezeout. The elite professional players participating in this unprecedented event are David Benyamine, Jennifer Harman, Eli Elezra, Barry Greenstein, Phil Ivey, and Allen Cunningham.

Week of November 5: Can anyone silence Mike "The Mouth?" That question will be answered in this talkative match that features Matusow along with Antonio "The Magician" Esfandiari, Mike Sexton, 2006 World Champion Jamie Gold, and newcomers Paul Wasicka and Alan "Boston" Dvorkis. Look for some interesting conversation between the members of this group!

Week of November 12: The second season finale is a beauty. It showcases the skills of the six players seen on the opening of every Poker After Dark episode. Those players, of course, are Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Gus Hansen, Jennifer Harman, Phil Hellmuth, Howard Lederer, and Phil Ivey. This is an epic battle and one you won't want to miss.

All matches begin late night on Mondays at 2:05 AM on NBC (check your local listings), and run for 5 nights in the same time slot. A recap of the week called the "Director's Cut" can be seen late night on Saturdays at 1:00 AM, right after Saturday Night Live. Poker After Dark is hosted by Shana Hiatt and narrated by Oliver "Ali" Nejad.

Look for more detailed information on each match in upcoming press releases just prior to their air dates. But above all, whether you're a night owl and watch the show in the wee morning hours, TiVo or otherwise record it, or watch it on the Internet at www.nbcsports.com/poker or www.pokerafterdark.com, get ready for some great televised poker.