TV network NBC has released the names of the first sixteen players it has invited to take part in the 2007 National Heads-Up Poker Championship which will be filmed shortly.
The following players, soon to be joined by a further 59 invitees, have so far been included:
Phil Ivey
Daniel Negreanu
Ted Forrest
Howard Lederer
Johnny Chan
Gus Hansen
Antonio Esfandiari
Joe Hachem
Sam Farha
Chris Ferguson
Jennifer Harman
Phil Hellmuth
Greg Raymer
Chris Moneymaker
Doyle Brunson
Jamie Gold
This is the third in the single elimination, bracket style annual contest to decide the best heads-up poker ace, and will see the winning player in each match move to the next round. To truimph and earn bragging rights to the Heads Up Champion title, the winner will have to win 6 matches against formidable opposition. Previous winners are Ted Forrest and Phil Hellmuth.
The first round is seeded randomly during a live pairings party held the night before the tournament begins. Players are divided into four brackets – Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts, and Spades – and play down until the semifinals are comprised of one player from each bracket.
A best-of-three-hands final then determines the champ.
Each episode will air Sunday at 3 p.m. (PT) beginning April 8, and the series will finish with a three-hour episode on May 20.
The field will be joined this year by one freeroll satellite winner from NBC Heads Up.com, and one winner from a live satellite on February 10 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.