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THE FINAL STOP! HARRAHS' NEW ORLEANS SET TO CLOSE 2011-2012 WSOP CIRCUIT SEASON

For Eighth-Straight Year, "The Big Easy" Hosts Final WSOP Circuit Stop.

May 10 2012 12:43 PM EST

THE FINAL STOP! HARRAHS' NEW ORLEANS SET TO CLOSE 2011-2012 WSOP CIRCUIT SEASON

The Last Station: Harrah’s New Orleans Hosts Final WSOP Circuit Stop

New Orleans, LA (May 10, 2012) -- The 17th and final World Series of Poker Circuit stop of the 2011-2012 season began with a big turnout at Harrah's New Orleans, located right next to the famous French Quarter. More than 800 players are expected for the first of a dozen gold ring events.

Indeed, New Orleans has become a favorite destination for poker players and regulars on the WSOP Circuit. For each of the past eight seasons, Harrah’s New Orleans has been the last waltz of a long poker symphony. This year, New Orleans wraps up seventeen WSOP Circuit event stops, which have attracted tens of thousands of poker players from all over the United States, and beyond.

The current season began last September at Horseshoe Bossier City, and now comes full circle back to the state of Louisiana for what promises to be a thrilling conclusion to what has been a record-breaking poker tour. See full schedule of events HERE.

There's a lot at stake for poker players who will make their way to the Crescent City over the next two weeks. Not only are nearly a dozen gold rings up for grabs, as well as lots of prize money. What seems to be driving attendance is the wildly-popular WSOP Circuit National Championship rankings. New Orleans is the last chance players will have to earn points to qualify for this year’s National Championship.

More information on the WSOP National Championship, including current rankings, can be found HERE.

Since the season began, all tournament players have been in the running for 100 guaranteed pre-paid seats in the $1 million WSOP Circuit National Championship finale. In a sense, every National Championship seat is valued at $10,000 -- since that’s the proportion of the million dollar-plus prize pool each player represents. Another 100 players are eligible to buy into the tournament (top ranked players from each of the past two WSOPs in Las Vegas), which means the event will cap out with well over a million dollars at stake.

This marks the second straight season that the WSOP Circuit has utilized a national ranking system based on accumulated points. All players earned their points by finishing in-the-money in one or more of the 204 total gold ring tournaments which are being offered this season.

What awaits the fortunate 100 players who will advance to the National Championship? First, there is the chance to win a lot of money. Second, is the opportunity to appear on national television, since the tournament held at the Rio Las Vegas will be broadcast nationally on ESPN – one of only three events this year to be covered in full by the network. Third, all players will be competing for the most coveted prize in the game of poker – the WSOP gold bracelet. This is the second time that a gold bracelet has been tied to the WSOP Circuit. Last year, Sam Barnhart, from Little Rock, AR won the inaugural WSOP National Championship title.

The final opportunity for most players to be crowned the 2012 “WSOP Circuit National Champion” will take place at Harrah’s New Orleans. Over 12 consecutive days – through May 21st – tournament players will be jockeying for position in what will be the final chance to earn ranking points.

Incredibly, as of May 10th, only 34 of the 100 seats in the National Championship have officially been determined. That means there are still 66 seats up for grabs, open to just about anyone who can make a major move in the coming few weeks.

Many players around the country have been earning points over the past nine months. Some of those players have arrived in New Orleans in order to make one last push towards earning an at-large bid into the finals. Players who earn the most points in the national rankings will receive at-large bids up to the point where there are exactly 100 participants.

At the time of this writing, the following players have already earned guaranteed seats into the WSOP Circuit National Championship. These seats are already locked up and they are now in a position to make poker history. All that is required of these players is to show up at the Rio Las Vegas on Friday, July 6th and be ready to play.

See 2011-2012 WSOP Circuit.

At the time of this writing, many other players (hundreds, in fact) are very much in the running for guaranteed seats into the WSOP Circuit National Championship, as well. These players are advised to keep a close eye on WSOP.com. Specific rules and an explanation of the point system can be found HERE.

At the conclusion of the Harrah’s New Orleans tour stop – on May 21st -- the final official list of 100 players who qualify will be announced.

It’s not too late to come and play in the final WSOP Circuit stop of the 2010-11 season, held at Harrah’s New Orleans. The OFFICIAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE is posted here.

A Final Note: For poker players who remain undecided or are on the fence about attending, New Orleans is known to have "more than a few" interesting things to see and do. In fact, New Orleans is probably one of the most companion-friendly stops of any tournament series for poker players. See you in The Big Easy!

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