UB heads-up

The Grand National and FA Cup semi-finals aren’t competition destined to mesmerize sports fans this weekend. UltimateBet today announced that their Bracket of Champions heads-up poker series is slated to get underway this Saturday.

In July 2007, UltimateBet launched the first ever Heads-Up SmackDown series, a 64-player one-on-one tournament modeled after US college basketball’s bracket competition.

In the inaugural competition, would-be Texas Hold’em champions competed over five weeks as the playing field narrowed itself down from 64 players to the final two. The final match saw the remaining two players compete for a first place prize of $11,200, a limited edition Heads-Up SmackDown championship ring and entry into this weekend’s Heads-up Bracket of Champions.

The heads-up format was overwhelmingly popular, leading UltimateBet to run the heads-up Texas Hold’em series a total of eight times.

Fast forward to this weekend’s Bracket of Champions. On 5 April, the eight champions will face off until only one player is left standing. The ultimate heads-up champion will then play Phil Hellmuth on April 13th in a best two out of three Texas Hold’em match for $30,000.