The Epic Poker League (EPL) is working hard to become a powerful brand in the poker world for years to come. Each EPL event so far has been successful and generated wide media coverage. Unfortunately, so have the actions of some of its members, such as Chino Rheem debt scandal and Howard Lederer’s indictment by the DOJ.
“We are looking to build a brand that will have some heavy staying power,” said Jeffrey Pollack, co-founder with Annie Duke, “It’s a very heavy lift and will take time. But we have the right team for that lift.”
As a part of that heavy lift, the EPL is coming up to its TV debut. The EPL’s first broadcast will feature 20 hours of original poker programming, 7 hours on CBS and 13 on Velocity (formerly Discovery Communications). To be eligible for any of the events, including those broadcast, members of the EPL must meet a strict set of standards from poker money made in the past 36 months to criminal history. The 252 players who qualified this year have included well-known pros like Erik Seidel, Jason Mercier, Phil Hellmuth, Ben Lamb, and Scott Seiver.
Each episode of the EPL will be hosted by Pat O’Brien, an award-winning sports anchor.
“We recognize our place on the poker industry landscape,” said Pollack. “The World Series of Poker has been around for more than 40 years and is the bellwether for the poker industry. The World Poker Tour has been a terrific force for innovation, especially on the television side. I have enormous respect for what they do,” Pollack continued. “Our twist is a little different. We are coming at this from a different point of departure. With a little more focus on the pros, with a different flair on television. But we think there is room for us all. We don’t see ourselves as a competitor with them. We see ourselves as attempting to give more people around the world one more reason to pay attention to poker.”
Below is the comprehensive schedule for the EPL’s televised poker events:
CBS BROADCAST SCHEDULE
• Sat., Oct. 8, 2011 (1-2 p.m. ET)
• Sat., Nov. 19, 2011 (1-2 p.m. ET)
• Sat., Jan. 14, 2012 (Time TBD)
• Sun., Feb. 26, 2012 (1-2 p.m. ET)
• Sun., April 29, 2012 (1-2 p.m. ET)
• Sun., May 6, 2012 ( 1-2 p.m. ET)
• Sun., May 6, 2012 ( 2-3 p.m. ET)
VELOCITY BROADCAST SCHEDULE
• Fri., Oct. 7, 2011 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., Oct. 14, 2011 (10-11 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)
• Fri., Nov. 4, 2011 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., Nov. 11, 2011 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., Nov. 18, 2011 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., Nov. 25, 2011 (10-11 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)
• Fri., Feb. 3, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)
• Fri. , Feb. 10, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., Feb. 17, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., Feb. 24, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., March 2, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)
• Fri., April 13, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., April 20, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., April 27, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., May 4, 2012 (8-9 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)
• Fri., May 4, 2012 (9-10 p.m. ET)
• Fri., May 4, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET)
• Fri., May 11, 2012 (9-10 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)
• Fri., May 11, 2012 (10-11 p.m. ET) (CBS re-air)