Will A Live World Series Of Poker Tournament Series Actually Take Place In 2020?

The 51st annual operating of the World Series of Poker was formally postponed on April 20, 2020 as a consequence of security issues surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak. The largest, richest stay poker match sequence on this planet was set to award a report variety of WSOP gold bracelets this 12 months, with 101 occasions initially deliberate to run from late May by the center of July, however was indefinitely placed on maintain together with the remainder the stay poker scene throughout the early months of the pandemic.

When the postponement of the sequence was first introduced, organizers indicated that they have been hoping to reschedule it, though probably with an amended schedule, for someday within the fall.

“We are committed to running the World Series of Poker this year but need additional time to proceed on our traditional scale while prioritizing guest and staff well-being,” mentioned WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart on the time.

More than six months later, there was no official replace on if and when a stay 2020 WSOP would possibly happen.

Card Player reached out to Stewart and a WSOP media contact about an replace on Oct. 26, however there was no response. Several key media employees for the WSOP have been furloughed throughout the early months of the pandemic, and lots of have since been formally laid off.

The WSOP is a division of Caesars Entertainment, which just lately struck a $17.3 billion cope with Eldorado Resorts that resulted in a merger of two of the biggest corporations out there. The newly-merged firm owns greater than 50 properties in 16 states and a number of other internationally. The merger acquired approval from New Jersey regulators in late July, the ultimate field to be checked earlier than transferring ahead, and the transition course of might very effectively put further obstacles in the best way of WSOP organizers.

While a stay WSOP is seeming much less prone to happen in 2020 with every passing day, the WSOP joined various different high-profile poker tournaments and sequence in internet hosting a web-based model of their occasions throughout the spring and summer time months.

The WSOP Online awarded 85 gold bracelets from the beginning of July by early September, with occasions unfold throughout two separate on-line poker platforms. A complete of 283,983 entries have been made all through the sequence, with $174.5 million in prize cash awarded alongside the best way. A variety of WSOP information have been set throughout the sequence, together with the $50 buy-in ‘Big 50’ occasion which attracted a staggering 44,576 entries.

Other large sequence moved on-line this 12 months included the Super High Roller Bowl, the Poker Masters, a number of WSOP Circuit sequence, and a World Poker Tour pageant with a number of essential occasion tournaments.

Live poker started to return world wide within the late spring, with one of many largest rooms in Europe, King’s Casino Rozvadov, formally resuming operations on May 11. More brick-and-mortar poker rooms reopened world wide all through the summer time, however many did so with out their typical match choices. The new-look stay match scene featured limits on the overall variety of gamers allowed per occasion, fewer gamers allowed per desk, a masks requirement, and lots of different security precautions.

The Venetian® Resort Las Vegas reopened on June 5. Just over three months after resuming operations, the cardroom hosted Las Vegas’ first stay poker match sequence for the reason that shutdown started. The DeepStack Showdown Poker Series ran from Sept. 7-27, and featured greater than $400,000 in assured prize cash throughout a 32-event schedule. The demand for stay tournaments proved to be sturdy, with each single occasion beating its assure, and most doing so by a substantial margin.

Bigger buy-in stay tournaments started to crop up once more throughout the fall, with the Mid-States Poker Tour internet hosting the primary stay ‘mid-major’ essential occasion for the reason that begin of the pandemic. The MSPT Grand Falls Casino $1,100 buy-in no-limit maintain’em essential occasion attracted 518 complete entries to blow away the $150,000 assure, making a last prize pool of $500,960. Mark Collins took residence $107,706 after popping out on high.

The first of the most important stay excursions to host a pageant was the European Poker Tour. The EPT Sochi 175,000 RUB no-limit maintain’em essential occasion attracted a complete of 637 entries to Casino Sochi. Ruslan Bogdanov earned 15,984,500 RUB ($212,914 USD) because the eventual champion of this occasion.

The World Poker Tour has not but introduced new dates for his or her occasions, however the tour does have three delayed last tables that have been set within the early months of the 12 months that seem prone to be performed out in 2020. Two-time bracelet winner Chance Kornuth, who’s the chip chief with six remaining within the WPT Gardens Poker Championship, tweeted in late October, “… just got the call that the Gardens WPT final table will be held at the PokerGO studio Dec. 3.”

The WPT L.A. Poker Classic last desk is anticipated to play out that very same week, with the dates for the third last desk, from the WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open, but to be decided. The WPTDeepStacks tour has upcoming stops in Taiwan and Johannesburg deliberate for later this 12 months.