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GSN Awards Georgia Viewer With Winnings
James Van Alstyne Outlasts Competitors to Win GSN's 'Poker Royale:
The WPPA Championship'
Van Alstyne and Viewer Malin-Maria Teal of Cumming, Georgia
Played for the Chance to Win $10 Million - They Were Unsuccessful, but Each
Won $15,000 Tonight
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 11 -- Malin-Maria Teal from Cumming, Georgia,
is the winner of $15,000 tonight as the lucky home viewer selected to
participate in GSN's live series finale of POKER ROYALE: THE WPPA
CHAMPIONSHIP. As the grand prize winner of the $10 Million Poker Sweepstakes,
Teal was partnered via telephone with the series' poker champion James Van
Alstyne, who was present in Las Vegas along with host Kevin Nealon and
play-by-play commentator Robert Williamson III. In front of a packed crowd at
the Fremont Street Experience, Van Alstyne was dealt a five card hand and if
he had received a full house or better, he and Teal would have split
$10 million. Van Alstyne drew an ace of hearts, nine of hearts, 10 of hearts,
nine of spades and a six of spades which equaled to a pair. The pair netted
each of them $15,000 and a year's supply of Pizza Hut pizza per the
sweepstakes rules.
Teal was chosen in a random drawing as the grand prize winner following
her entry into the sweepstakes, which required entrants to log onto
poker.GSN.com and enter one of the designated passwords that were revealed
during each of the six episodes of POKER ROYALE. Teal and Van Alstyne could
have won additional money if they had drawn one of these other combinations:
* If they drew a full house or better they would have split $10,000,000
* If they drew three of a kind, a straight or a flush, they would have
each received $25,000
* If they drew two pairs, they would have each received $20,000
Van Alstyne had to defeat a strong field of competitors to become the
champion of the series and victor of the tournament bracelet. Lee Markholt,
Paul Wolfe, Kathy Liebert, Carlos Mortenson and Amir Vahedi were a few of the
other top players that he faced in the network's first poker series. The
network will premiere a second poker series, POKER ROYALE: BATTLE OF THE SEXES
on Friday, January 21 at 9:00 PM ET/PT. The series will be hosted by
nationally syndicated radio talk show host Tom Leykis and game show host
Kennedy.
Teal, 33, an equine massage therapist, is an avid poker player and says it
is the only card game that she plays. Teal attributes most of her skill to
tips learned from watching GSN's POKER ROYALE. As for what she plans to do
with her new winnings, Teal said, "I'm either going to buy a motorcycle or
better yet go to Vegas and play poker."
(Note: Grand prize winner is subject to verification of eligibility.)
GSN, the Network for Games, is the only U.S. television network dedicated
to game-related programming and interactive game playing. The network
features game shows, reality series, light sports, documentaries and casino
games. GSN is the industry leader in interactivity and as such allows viewers
a chance to win prizes by playing along with GSN's televised games via
GSN.com. Reaching 56 million Nielsen homes, GSN is distributed in the U.S.
through all major cable systems and satellite providers. The network is
jointly owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment and Liberty Media Corporation.
For further media information, visit GSN's press website at corp.gsn.com.
SOURCE GSN
Web Site: http://corp.gsn.com http://poker.GSN.com
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