The 23-year-old former Full Tilt Poker Pro – who emerged from the online poker scene to make her mark on the live circuit with victory in the inaugural £10,000 buy-in World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) No-Limit Hold’em main event in 2007 for an incredible $2,013,734 – was certainly excited to have found a new home after the demise of Full Tilt, particularly as she only last week signed with Las Vegas-based player management firm Poker Royalty.

The player agency has obviously done their job so far, with Obrestad now joining an incredible roster of clients – including Antonio Esfandiari, Cyndy Violette, Daniel Negreanu, Doyle Brunson, Erick Lindgren, Eugene Katchalov, Gus Hansen, Jennifer Harman, Johnny Chan, Patrik Antonius, Phil Hellmuth, Scott Clements, Scotty Nguyen and Tom ‘durrrr’ Dwan.

Norwegian Keen to Work With Fellow Pros

Obrestad said:

I had heard amazing things about Lock Poker from all my friends and pros who play there, and I was thrilled when I got an offer from them.

Being part of Lock is something I’m really excited about and it will be a great beginning of a new, exciting relationship.

Lock is the new generation of online poker where player experience drives the company with an incredible Pro team that I can hardly wait to work with.

Lock Poker have without a doubt added a great player to their line-up with the addition of Obrestad, who has managed to accumulate over $4 million in her career through live event cashes – as well as millions more from her online exploits as ‘Annette_15’ at websites such as PokerStars, UltimateBet and Full Tilt Poker.

Lock Poker CEO Impressed by New Signing’s ‘Fierce’ Passion

Jennifer Larson, Lock Poker’s chief executive officer, could hardly contain her excitement at snapping up such an exceptional person and player, believing that Obrestad takes Lock to the next level with her fierce passion, extraordinary talent and total dedication to the game.

She continued by saying:

Players like Annette are the eyes into the soul of the game. We intend to integrate her into all aspects of the company. Lock has taken the poker world into a new era where the player reigns. Partnering with our pros is the only path to greatness!

Incredibly, Obrestad’s impressive internet poker career began when she was just 15, playing freerolls to build up a bankroll and fine-tune her extremely aggressive approach before unleashing her obvious talents on the live poker scene almost the moment she became 18 years old back in September of 2006.

Debut Live Tournament Results in Cash

In fact, Obrestad cashed in her very first live tournament – taking 37th place for $12,415 in the $5,000 buy-in Championship event as part of the Aruba Poker Classic – just 12 days after her 18th birthday.

While still working away under the radar, Obrestad then secured fifth place for $21,113 at the European Poker Tour (EPT) Grand Final €500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event in Monte Carlo six months later.

A couple of other small cashes from side events then came her way on the EPT and at the Irish Open in Dublin – before that amazing WSOPE success in London just one day before her 19th birthday!

The Norwegian superstar had to outlast 361 other starters – including the likes of Poker Royalty stablemates Hansen, Lindgren and Antonius, as well as Theo Jorgensen, Kenny Tran, Annie Duke, Ian Frazer and Jamie Gold – to take that title and probably set a record that will never be broken as the youngest player to win a WSOP bracelet.

Poker Royalty ‘Delighted’ With Deal

Of course, the player agency are also delighted to see Obrestad join such a forward-thinking team, with director of European operations Jim Erwood adding:

Poker Royalty is delighted to announce the new relationship between Lock Poker and Annette.

Lock is making another bold statement with a marquee signing like Annette as they continue to build their incredible team of pros.

These are exciting times for both Lock Poker and Annette and we look forward to the relationship blossoming.

Now, if you fancy taking on Obrestad – or any one of the Lock Pro Elite team – then get on over to Lock Poker now and use our Lock bonus code ‘PNREPORT’ when signing up and avail yourself of a 150% match up to $750 bonus.

Click here to visit Lock Poker.

Melanie, who plays under the table name of “Callisto”, is the third highest ranked female player in the world according to the Global Poker Index, behind Vanessa Selbst (currently 7th) and Vanessa Rousso (57th), having enjoyed a recent ten-place jump in the ratings. She is also currently 43rd in the “All-Time Women´s Live Poker Money List” despite being only 25 years of age.

Melanie Looks Forward to Playing with Chris, Matt and Leo

Following the announcement of her Lock Poker Pro Elite sponsorship deal, Melanie was quoted as saying that she was thrilled to be joining a team which included Chris Moorman, Matt Stout and Leo Margets – one of the few women above her in the “All-Time Women´s Live Poker Money List”. However, Melanie will not find the competition on Lock Poker particularly easy, as other Lock Poker Elite Pro´s with over $1 million in online tournament winnings include Nicky Evans, Casey Jarzabek and Poker Room Manager Eric Lynch.

Eric was particularly delighted to welcome Melanie to the team, saying that “I´ve known Melanie for a while and her ferocity at the tables and passion for the game of poker are unmatched”. Lock Poker owner and CEO, Jennifer Larson, was equally as gushing about her new Lock Poker Pro Elite saying “Players like Melanie give us true insight into the product and player experience that we need to become the best. Melanie is a perfect fit for Lock. Passionate, relentless in her dedication to the game and incredibly intelligent”

Lock Poker Continues to Grow

Lock Poker accepts players from the US which extends the peak hours on the site and provides players down the food chain with plenty of weak opposition. It was also set up and is now managed by poker players, so there are plenty of the benefits that poker players would like to see more often on other sites – reload bonuses, worthwhile freeroll tournaments and 24/7 live chat customer support. Lock Poker uses some of the best online poker software in the industry and players will appreciate the high level of security used in banking transactions.

The signing of Melanie Weisner is another feather in the cap for Lock Poker and indicates the sites intention to grow even larger – Lock Poker having already enjoyed substantial growth since its move to the Merge Gaming Network in April 2010. With superb ongoing promotions, a Lock Poker rakeback equivalent cashback available up to 22% and a 150% Lock Poker deposit bonus up to $750.00, players registering an account with Lock Poker have the opportunity to enjoy a potentially very lucrative poker experience – provided you avoid running into Melanie Weisner!

Numerous poker stars have been either dropped by or left many pro teams recently, but Lock Poker has actually added a new player to their Elite Pro Team roster in brilliant Belgian Kevin Vandermissen.

The 23-year-old joins an ever-growing Elite Pro Team with other Lock Poker Pros such as Eric ‘Rizen’ Lynch, Leo Margets, Chris Moorman, Nicky Evans, Paul Volpe, Greg Tiller, Jarred Hubbard, Casey Jarzabek, Bryan Pellegrino, Michael Drummond, Brett Jungblut, Joe Connolly, Stephen Devlin, Matt Stout, Brian Martinez, Francisco Costa and Jason Young.

Vandermissen – who started playing poker after watching James Bond movie Casino Royale – has enjoyed an impressive online career so far, taking his initial $25 deposit up to more than $550,000 in winnings after he had learned the game playing freerolls.

But he’s not just a virtual felt star, having also won just over $863,000 in live tournament earnings, with two runner-up finishes in Hinterglemm and Paradise Island at European Poker Tour (EPT) events among his best placings.

He also has first place finishes from the Supercash 400 event in Oostende, the Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza III in Las Vegas, and the Full Tilt Poker Series Grand Final in Barcelona – all in 2010.

Belgian Star “really proud” to Join Lock Poker

Vandermissen said about his move to join Lock Poker: “I am really proud and happy to be welcomed to the Lock family.

“This is a new era for me as a player and I’m looking forward to representing Lock Poker all over the world.”

Meanwhile, Lock Poker’s poker room manager Lynch said that he was thrilled to have signed up the Belgian star.

He added: “I am super excited to have Kevin as a part of the team. Not only is Kevin an amazing player, but he also brings us a unique perspective to poker and is truly one of the great ambassadors of the game.

“I am looking forward to the opportunity to work with him further in the future”.

If you want to match your skills against players such as Vandermissen at Lock Poker, then get yourself over to their website, key in Lock Poker bonus code {LOCKPOKERBONUSCODE}  and take advantage of our wonderful initial Lock Poker bonus of 150% up to a maximum of $750.

Visit www.LockPoker.eu.

How does a bonus of as much as $1,000 from Lock Poker sound to you? Yes, I thought so. Well, the more hands you play at this Lock Poker, the more chance you’ll have of pocketing that grand – if you can hit a royal flush, that is.

The Lock Poker windfall will match up to 100 big blinds when you are playing, with $1,000 the maximum that can be earned by customers of the poker room.

However, players can also earn double VIP points with Lock Poker – which has been a member of the Merge Gaming Network since last year – within selected time restrictions, with Double Trouble Thursdays and Fridays the days to boost your points total.

Kick-Start Your Weekend with Double VIP Points

It’s the perfect way to begin your weekend with Lock Poker as double points are handed out – and placed directly into your account – to VIP members every quarter-of-an-hour on Thursdays and Fridays.

Certainly, VIP players that are keen to match their poker-playing skills against the likes of Lock Poker PRO Elite team members Bryan Pelligrino, Casey Jarzabek, Nicky Evans, Paul Volpe, Jason Young, Greg Tiller, Brian Martinez, Chris Moorman, Francisco Costa, Brett Jungblut, Joe Connolly, Leo Margets, Eric Lynch, Michael Drummond, Joe Brooks, Stephen Devlin and Matt Stout will be eager to add to their points total in the coming months.

So, if you are keen to get stuck in about some of the game’s biggest names, Lock Poker – which is licensed by regulatory body the Kahnawake Gaming Commission – is accepting new customers from across the globe right now.

Lock Poker First Deposit Bonus up to $750

Here at Lock Poker Bonus you can get a first deposit bonus of a 150% match, up to a maximum of $750 if you use the PNREPORT code when signing up.

Once signed up, new clients will be happy to see that Lock Poker provide an extensive range of poker tournaments, sit-and-gos, leaderboards which offer fabulous prizes, and that previously mentioned royal flush bonus, as well as $50 freerolls every day, a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool event on Sundays, and so much more.

Rabbit Hunting and Run it Twice Features Available

Basically, the well-designed Lock Poker website is packed full of enticing features, including rabbit hunting and running hands twice – which is an option that allows two outcomes from a single hand through dealing the community cards twice – that attract countless thousands of poker players every day of the week.

In essence, Lock Poker is one poker room that all players should visit to see what is on offer.

Check out what’s happening at Lock Poker right now, by clicking here. Enjoy.