(BUSINESS WIRE)–After making five World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables in his career–with three in the past two months–professional poker player J.C. Tran won his first WPT Champion title yesterday at the World Poker Challenge at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nev.

Beating out a field of 475 pros and amateurs, the 30-year-old Sacramento, Calif., native will take home a first place prize of $683,473 and a $25,000 seat in the WPT World Championship at the Bellagio in April.

A free World Series of Poker seat worth $10,000 will be the grand prize in a single tournament held as part of a Super Texas Hold ‘Em day at Rockingham Park race track. The main tournament has an 80% payback and the buy-in is $150.

The WSOP free seat is the third of seven to be given away at Rockingham Park in Salem New Hampshire as part of the track’s charitable Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments. The four remainder seats are scheduled to be awarded on April 21st, Kentucky Derby Day on May 5th, and Preakness Stakes Day on May 19th

Bodog Poker’s chairman is back for more poker TV with the seconf season of “Calvin Ayre Wild Card Poker,” the promotional poker programming effort from Bodog. This time, the championship of the event embraces a reality TV format that will bring the final contestants to Antigua for a week’s worth of Ayre-style living, for the chance to win the $2 million prize package — $1 million in cash and another million contract as a member of Team Bodog.

One of the seats at the final table of ‘Calvin Ayre’s Wild Card Poker’ will be awarded through online qualifiers, with three of the initial qualifying events held each week…

Amateur poker player Adam Weinraub outplayed a field of 385 celebrities and poker pros at the the 5th Annual World Poker Tour (WPT) Invitational to take home the $100,000 first place prize and a $25,000 free seat in the WPT World Championship.

Weinraub won his Invitational seat by bidding last year in a silent auction to benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation. To keep the giving going, the Orange County native pledged to donate an additional $20,000 to the fund as well as 20 percent of his WPT World Championship winnings.

Paul Wasicka defeated Chad Brown in two matches to win the 2007 National Heads-Up Poker, which ended March 4 at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas with Wasicka taking home the $500,000 top prize!

Brown finishes in second place, earning $250,000.

Earlier actress Shannon Elizabeth continued her path to poker superstardom beating two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, Humberto Brenes, to make the final four where she faced Paul Wasicka, the runner up to the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event.

Actress Shannon Elizabeth, who now plays more poker tournaments than makes movies, made to the final eight of the NBC’s 2007 National Heads-Up Poker Championship Tournament underway at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

She beat back two strong challenges yesterday to make her way through to today’s semi finals. Shannon who knocked out Barry Greenstein and Jeff Madsen in a heads-up action that surprised everyone.

Eric Hershler, a South Africa native, and Los Angeles resident, was the last man standing at the 2007 L.A. Poker Classic tournament held at the Commerce Casino poker room. His winnings included a trophy, the $2.4 million dollar first place prize, and a $25,000 entry into April’s World Poker Tour’s Championship event.

Hershler beat J.C. Tran In Heads Up Play To Win WPT’s Biggest $10,000 Event.