Championship Gaming Series™ (CGS) has just announced the launch of the CGS Pro-Am Division, which will include the addition of two new Pro-Am games for online competition, Valve’s Counter-Strike® 1.6 and Team Fortress® 2. The new CGS Pro-Am Division dramatically expands the opportunities for amateur and professional gamers to participate in CGS competitions.

CGS Pro-Am will launch in North America and Europe in August 2008, with players competing on CGS game servers, online. The top two CGS Pro-Am finishers in those two games in each region will receive top seeding and travel packages to compete in the Counter-Strike® 1.6 and Team Fortress® 2 showdown during the CGS 2009 North America Combine. The CGS 2009 North America Combine will showcase Counter-Strike® 1.6 and Team Fortress® 2 tournaments with North American and European players competing for a total prize purse of more than $50,000, plus additional prizes.

“The CGS Pro-Am Division is a critical step in the league’s continuing evolution and the growth of our worldwide audience,” said CGS Commissioner and CEO Andy Reif, “Now amateur players are going to have a chance to step up and play against the very best pros in the world. We are also going to keep expanding the opportunities for gamers to play in CGS by adding more Pro-Am games and more competitions with our partners.”

“Every gamer wants to see the dream match-ups between their favorite teams,” said Marcus “DJ Wheat” Graham, CGS Senior Producer, Online and internationally-recognized eSports broadcaster. “The CGS Pro-Am Division is going to help make those matches a reality. From a programming perspective, it’ll be fantastic to see CGS pros going head-to-head with other teams showcasing their talent. We’ll also finally see a unification of Counter-Strike players, as CGS pros will have an opportunity to play Counter-Strike 1.6.”

More information, details, and rules will be available soon at thecgs.com. Registration for the CGS Pro-Am Division commences in July, 2008.