According to McDavid, ESPN plans to broadcast its tournament from Callahan's at the Franklin Hotel. Music group Big and Rich also will play during the "World Series of Poker" event.

Franklin Hotel owner Bill Walsh said McDavid and music promoter Mark Oswald have worked on the landing the tournament for about a month.

McDavid has worked longer, so far unsuccessfully, to finance the Deadwood City Limits entertainment center. McDavid said despite setbacks, the hotel and casino project remains alive.

McDavid said the Deadwood name and the ability to provide a new, exciting backdrop for the poker tournament was very attractive to entertainment executives.

"Usually getting talks moving this far ahead would take weeks and not just a day or two as is taking place here," McDavid said in a separate interview earlier this month. McDavid said the chance opportunity was "something I just couldn't turn down for Deadwood."

While working on Deadwood City Limits, he said he came across a chance to "do a little something that I thought would be good for everybody downtown."

"I have been spending all of my time on our main project, but this other thing, the poker tournament on cable television, it just kind of fell into my lap out of a conversation and then things started to happen rather quickly," said McDavid.

He said Oswald mentioned that he was in the process of promoting a televised poker tournament for Las Vegas that would feature the music group Big and Rich.

"We were just talking and I said it was too bad we couldn't do that project here in Deadwood, a town that is really historically linked to poker," McDavid said. "What started out as a comment quickly turned into a lot more; within the day I was talking to other people involved with the tournament."

Walsh said that his ESPN contact had confirmed Friday there will be an October show from the Franklin. The two-day taping will feature 12 previous winners. ESPN will fly the players to Deadwood, where they will stay at the Franklin.

Callahan's is the hotel's Main Street level saloon, featuring huge plate glass windows. The setting, and floor space that will give TV cameras elbow room around the poker tables, drove the selection, Walsh said.

"Bill McDavid and Mark Osborn in Nashville have worked on this for about a month. They have some of the contacts, and this is indicative that they are capable of this kind of business," Walsh said. "It should be a great attraction for us."