Bodog Beat

Poker pro Ivan Demidov is one of the Russian stars who will be playing in the newly-announced Russian Poker Tour (RPT).

The next addition to the string of regional poker tours has been announced and this incarnation will be taking place in the land of vodka and several really talented poker pros, Russia. The Russian Poker Tour (RPT) will kick off in January and already has two events on the schedule.

The inaugural event of the tour, the RPT St. Petersburg, will begin on January 25 and run through February 1 with a buy-in of $5,000. The second stop on the tour will be in the capital city of Moscow and will be held February 22-28 and feature a higher buy-in of $10,000.

Two outstanding Russian poker players are expected to play in these events, Ivan Demidov and Alex Kravchenko. Demidov is coming off the year of a lifetime after final tabling both the 2008 WSOP Main Event and the 2008 WSOP Europe Main Event, finishing second and third, respectively, for a combined total of nearly $6.5 million. Kravchenko is the first Russian citizen to ever win a WSOP bracelet, which he did at the 2007 WSOP, and the highest-earning Russian ever.

If you want to play in a major international poker tournament on someone else's dollar, then head over to Bodog Poker and check out the $12,000 Player's Choice packages. You can qualify online for the WPT, EPT, WSOP and even the RPT.