Full Tilt Doubles Poker Championship

The new show will feature an exclusive made-for-TV tournament called the "Doubles Poker Championship". Instead of a normal tournament where every player is out for himself (or herself), this new format pairs players up in teams where they must play together — switching up after every stage of a hand — to beat their opponents. So, one player will play preflop and on the turn while his teammate will complete the flop and river action. The new tournament was not for those with light wallets, as the buy-in for each player was $50,000 (yes, apiece, not per team). Thirty-two players were invited and accepted the offer to be on the show, including: Tom Dwan, Phil Ivey, Phil Hellmuth, Johnny Chan, Gus Hansen, Chris Ferguson, Mike Matusow, Annie Duke, Annette Obrestad, David Benyamine, Antonio Esfandiari, Howard Lederer, Phil Laak, and Andrew Lichtenberger. The series will switch up playing partners in the first few episodes as players fight for the opportunity to make the “playoffs” of the tournament, with the first few matches serving as a regular season.