Burlington, Vermont, Wins With Poker Players

"We were surprised at the amount of interest from the state of Vermont," stated Mark Fracalossi, Executive producer of the Tour. "I know there are many civic-minded people in Vermont, and a few I spoke to stated how they wanted to give to the community in a unique way."

The Small Town Poker Tour is the first Charity Poker Tour to travel the country in search of the best amateur poker player in America. The Tour will travel to all 50 United States. You can nominate a town by visiting www.smalltownpokertour.com. The Tour donates 100% of the money to charity. The tour works with local charities; when you sign up to play, you pick a charity to play for, and the top three finishers' charities are paid. The top three players are that state's Small Town Poker Tour Champs.

We want to make this the finest traveling fundraiser in the world," Fracalossi said. The Tour will be filmed for television, with production duties going to Make It Happen Productions of Los Angeles. A European Tour is set for the spring of 2005.

Any local charities are urged to contact the tour. The times and dates of the stop will be announced soon. "Our Team will be visiting Burlington the next few weeks, looking at a few sites and meeting with local charities and officals," Fracalossi said.

"We are going to take poker back to where it all started," Fracalossi said. "Everyone views the shows now with their high stakes, and flashy sets, but the roots of poker games can be found in every small town in the USA."

In the next few months, the tour will travel the East Coast before hitting the Midwest in late spring. Anyone can nominate a town, simply by visiting the Web site.

So don't be surprised if you see someone who looks like the grandmother next door or the guy who bags items at your local store at the final table. "Our goal is to make this a fund raising machine for the towns we visit."