16 January 2007 -- Building on the recent success of the 2006 Borgata Poker Open -- the biggest poker tournament in Atlantic City's history -- and the debut of its new, 85-table room -- the largest poker room in Atlantic City -- Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa announced it will kick off the New Year with the second annual Borgata Winter Open. The 14-day tournament will begin January 17, 2007, and will conclude with the Borgata Poker Classic, part of the WORLD POKER TOUR(R) (WPT), on January 26-30, 2007.

The Borgata Winter Poker Open will mark the WORLD POKER TOUR's sixth visit to Borgata. The most recent Borgata Poker Open in September drew a record 540 players with a prize pool over $5,000,000. A virtual who's who of poker stars, the tournament drew such competitors as Michael "The Grinder" Mizrahi, Shannon Shorr, Daniel Negreanu (2004 WPT Player of the Year and winner of the 2004 Borgata Poker Open), Phil "the Unabomber" Laak, Academy-Award nominee Jennifer Tilly, David Williams, Antonio Esfandiari, actress Shannon Elizabeth, David "the Dragon" Pham and Maciek "Michael" Gracz, all vying for the WPT title. However, it was an up and coming amateur from North Carolina named Mark Newhouse, who captured the WPT title and the first-place prize of $1,519,020.

Last year also marked the debut of Borgata's revamped 21,500 square-foot poker room, home to three anchor events: Borgata Winter Open/WPT Poker Classic, Borgata Summer Open and the WPT/Borgata Poker Open. The Borgata Poker Room now features an eighteen-table High Limit Room offering food service; a nine-table tournament area offering bleacher seating for tournament viewing that may be partitioned off as a "reserved" poker area; and a 58-table Main Poker Room offering live poker action. The room is outfitted with over seventy plasma televisions and offers the largest variety of games and limits in Atlantic City. Highlights from 2006 include the first ever Borgata Summer Open, which drew nearly four-thousand entrants and cash prizes totaling $2,517,030; the fourth annual Borgata Online Poker Open, which drew nearly ten- thousand entrants with cash prizes totaling over $10 million; and $50,000 Guaranteed Friday tournaments, a favorite among amateurs and professionals alike.

"At Borgata, we strive to offer our poker players a full destination experience with A-list entertainment, exciting nightlife options, stellar dining, upscale accommodations, a robust poker program and above all, great service," said Larry Mullin, President and Chief Operating Officer of Borgata. "Borgata is excited to partner with the WORLD POKER TOUR once again to bring a world-class tournament to Atlantic City and offer our players a unique experience while they are here."

Televised nationally on the Travel Channel and one of the premier stops on WORLD POKER TOUR's 17-tournament tour, the Borgata Poker News Classic will feature the world's top poker players along with local fan favorites competing in No- Limit Texas Hold'em poker. The buy-in amount is $10,000.

Online reservations are available for Main Events by visiting http://www.theborgata.com. On-site registration for all events begins Friday, January 12, 2007, and will be available until January 29 at 2PM.

Special hotel room rates are available to tournament players Sunday through Thursday at $100, Friday at $179 and Saturday at $199. Call 1.866. MYBORGATA for more details.

About Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa

Borgata is a joint venture of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) and MGM MIRAGE (NYSE: MGM). Located at Renaissance Pointe in Atlantic City, it features 2,000 guest rooms and suites, 161,000 square feet of gaming, 200 gaming tables, 4,100 slot machines, 14 destination restaurants, 11 retail boutiques, a 54,000 square foot spa, 70,000 square feet of event space, and parking for 7,100 cars.

For more information on Borgata or to obtain a copy of this press release, please visit http://www.theborgata.com or use AOL keyword: borgata. Additional news and information on Boyd Gaming can be found at http://www.boydgaming.com; additional information on MGM MIRAGE can be found at http://www.mgmmirage.com.

poker news - online casino - poker blog