Danish poker pro Jesper Hougaard, who earned his first World Series of Poker (WSOP) championship gold bracelet earlier this year, has been hired as a paid flack for online poker room Bet 365 (www.bet365.com).

Hougaard, from Copenhagen, Denmark, and just 24 years old, won Event #36 at the 2008 WSOP in Las Vegas, a $1,500 buy-in, no-limit Texas hold ‘em tournament.

For the victory, Hougaard earned a coveted bracelet and $610,304.

He also finished in the money in two other events at the 2008 WSOP, an Omaha tourney and a Texas hold ‘em shootout tourney, picking up about $6,000 each time.

In addition, he finished in 356th place in the Main Event of the 2007 WSOP, which earned him $34,664.

Officially, according to Bet 365, Hougaard’s title will be Bet 365’s “poker ambassador” and his duties will include playing in Bet 365 tournaments, representing the online poker room in commercial ventures and participating in some land-based poker tourneys on the European Poker Tour (EPT) pro circuit.

Hougaard got his start competing professionally by playing pro ping pong.

Influenced by the pro poker success of fellow countryman Gus “The Great Dane” Hansen, Hougaard soon turned his efforts to poker and the rest is history.

(E-mail Tom Somach at tomsomach@yahoo.com.)