The Canadian Poker Tour (CPT) continues to grow and expand and its latest addition is none other than Absolute Poker pro Lacey Jones. The tour recently announced that the model, poker player and media personality is going to be the new face of the CPT. The tour will also be gaining more media exposure thanks to the launch of CandianPokerPlayer.tv, an online television network devoted entirely to the game of poker.
Jones struck up talks with the CPT during last year’s World Poker Showdown and CPT sponsored event, the Costa Rica Poker Showdown. Jones took third place and apparently made a lasting impression on CPT executives. She will now serve as the tour’s spokeswoman, with her duties beginning right away. Jones will be featured on the cover of Canadian Poker Player Magazine’s February issue, which will arrive in casinos, newsstands, and bookstores later this month.
CPT President Kelly Kellner believes Jones is a perfect hit for the tour. “Here is a girl that loves hockey, loves Canadian beer, and is an amazing poker player to top it off. I told her she has been picked up off waivers and claimed by Canada and the CPT,” joked Kellner in an official press release from CPT. “We believe that by having Lacey attend many of our events and the fact that she is about to move to Vancouver, the partnership couldn’t be stronger.”
Jones attended the CPT Kickoff Poker Series at the Deerfort Inn and Casino in Alberta last month and is planning to join the tour again when it ventures to Calgary for the Winter Freezeout from February 24th to 28th. The series is set to be held at the Cash Casino and will feature a $760 buy-in Main Event.
Like Kellner, Jones is excited by the new partnership. “I truly love Canadians and am so happy to be a part of the Canadian Poker Tour,” Jones enthused to the media. Jones is no stranger to publicity. In the past, she has taken on hostessing duties for the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and the British Columbia Poker Championships. She has also done a number of on-air interviews and commentary sessions in tandem with the WSOP.
Jones and the CPT will be prominently featured in a new website from the parent company of the CPT, HeadsUp Entertainment. Last year, HeadsUp announced plans to launch a poker-themed online television network and it appears those plans are finally coming to fruition. The online network will bear the name of HeadsUp’s magazine, Canadian Poker Player, and will feature footage from a number of Canadian Poker events.
The channel is set to launch on March 5th and feature content like the heads-up bout between “Yukon” Brad Booth and Huck Seed in the title match of the Canadian Poker Open, the final table of the Stampede Classic, and documentary footage of several 2007 CPT events. Kellner, who also serves as President of HeadsUp, assured skeptics there would be plenty of Canadian-related poker content to keep the channel running for the foreseeable future: “There are so many amazing players and stories that we find on tour. Both the magazine and our online network will give players from across the country a forum and showcase as we strive to build new poker superstars.”
HeadsUp Entertainment is not the only group with its eyes on the CPT and burgeoning Canadian poker scene. When PartyPoker signed player and media personality Kara Scott, it was announced that she would be making the rounds on the CPT as well, promoting the site in her home country.