International
Upon the conclusion of the Asian Poker Tour’s recent event in Macau, the tour signed sponsorship deals with three top pros, all of whom played well on the APT stop - JC Tran, Quinn Do, and Nam Le. Steve Sung was asked to join the group a few weeks later, and on December 19th, the APT announced that one more pro will join the since-dubbed Poker Pack. David “Chino” Rheem has signed sponsorship deals with the APT and becomes its latest member.The Poker Pack is a group of well-known Asian pros who have significant successes to their names and will represent the APT in tournaments around the world, not only limited to the APT series.
Rheem not only finished seventh in November at the 2008 World Series of Poker final table for nearly $1.8 million, but he most recently won the World Poker Tour Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic main event for just over $1.5 million. The young pro has been a fixture on the tournament circuit for several years, but it wasn’t until his appearance as a member of the coveted WSOP November Nine that he gained more notoriety. And as the latest WPT champion, the 28-year old can also claim membership in the elite Poker Pack.
Rheem said, “The opportunity to sign a deal with all my friends was too good to be true! I have a huge amount of respect for JC, Nam, Quinn and Steve and together as a team I think we are really going places. I already pretty much travel the circuit with the other members of the Poker Pack and to be formally signed up is fantastic.”
CEO of Asian Logic Plc Tom Hall added, “Chino is a great guy and magnificent player and we’re really happy to welcome him into the Poker Pack. If you look at how much prize money all these guys have made in 2008 and how much they may make in 2009 it is scary! As individuals they are all well known players on the circuit - together the possibilities are endless! There are many teams in poker but these guys are a really unified unit. They travel everywhere together and enjoy each other’s success. Poker is in its infancy in Asia and we’re excited by what we have lined up for the Poker Pack and what they will achieve as a group.”
In truth, the five members of the group are close friends, and their presence on the global tournament circuit is eye-catching. Not only do they travel in the same social circle, but they’ve all had their individual successes, though they are not without the advice and support of each other. JC, Nam, Quinn, Steve, and Chino are a team, with or without the Poker Pack, but as a formal and sponsored group, there might be a new kind of motivation that could lead to even more success.
Besides playing in numerous other January tournaments, the group of five will be traveling to the Philippines to compete in the Asian Poker Tour stop there from January 27th to February 1st. The location will be the Dusit Thani Manila Hotel in Manila, and the APT main event will be a $2,500 + $200 buy-in. The Poker Pack will be there in force.
WPT in Paris
There's still time to 
German
French
Spanish
Italian
Hungarian
Croatian
Dutch
Brazilian
Romanian