News

What's Next?

The WSOP is over, well sort of. Here is a look of what's to come in the months ahead.

Aug 10 2010 05:36 PM EST

Just about everything at this year’s World Series of Poker was both bigger and better. A lot bigger and a lot better.

A new tournament attendance record was set, with 72,966 combined entries in 57 gold bracelet events. Prize money was the second-highest in WSOP history, as the sum total of monies awarded to all players who cashed amounting to a whopping $187,109,850. This year’s Main Event was also the second largest in history, despite some gloomy predictions that 2010 might be an off year. Finally, cash games and satellites were busier than ever.

Now that the WSOP has finally ended – make that almost ended, since the Main Event final table has not yet been played -- what’s next? What will the WSOP do for an encore?

The answer is – a lot. In fact, there are several new and exciting events ahead in the very near future. Here’s a quick look at what’s coming in the next few weeks and months for poker players and all fans of the WSOP:

WSOP Television Coverage Continues on ESPN – The worldwide leader in sports began showing this year’s WSOP last month. Following a one-hour special preview show on July 20th, the $50,000 buy-in Poker Players Championship and Tournament of Champions debuted back-to-back during the next two weeks. WSOP Main Event coverage begins on August 10th and will be continuously updated with new segments each and every Tuesday night, starting at 5 pm PST. There will be a total of 26 one-hour programs packed with Main Event action which will be shown over the next three months. Excitement builds each week towards the final table, which is to be shown on November 9th. Once again, the delayed format and serial coverage gives millions of viewers the chance to see how many top players fared in this year’s world championship, as well as provides a storyline for each of the November Nine finalists.

The WSOP Circuit Begins at Council Bluffs – This year’s WSOP Circuit is starting earlier than ever. The first of 12 tour stops planned for this season takes place this month at Horseshoe Council Bluffs, in Iowa. The Council Bluffs series includes 33 poker events, including nine gold ring tournaments. The poker action takes place August 19-31, which is a departure from pervious years when the Circuit came to Iowa during the middle of winter. The new summer schedule is expected to boost attendance and enthusiasm for the kick-off event of 2010. For more information, click here.

New and Improved WSOP Circuit (Season 7) – This year’s WSOP Circuit promises to be the most exiting ever. The new schedule runs from this month (August) through May (2011) and will include at least 12 tour stops, with a handful of others expected to be announced in the months ahead. The latest schedule can be viewed here. This year’s format includes several notable improvements, including:

A cumulative ranking system throughout the season, awarding points for each official WSOP Circuit open gold ring event, with multiple ways to automatically qualify for participation in the national championship.
A season-ending National Championship tournament for 100 players who automatically qualify via cumulative rankings or performance-based criteria. The televised National Championship tournament will be played at Caesars Palace Las Vegas prior to the commencement of the 2011 WSOP. The tournament boasts a $1,000,000 prize pool and will award a WSOP Gold Bracelet.
Four Regional WSOP Circuit Championships, each with a $10,000 buy-in event. These regional tournaments will include two-hours of national television coverage.
Standardized structures and payouts at all WSOP Circuit events. Main Events are lowered to a more affordable $1,500 buy-in (aside from the four $10,000 buy-in Regional Championships) which are designed to encourage larger fields and more players attending multiple stops on the tour.

Fourth Annual WSOP Europe in London – The fourth WSOP Europe will be played at the Empire Casino in London from September 14th-28th. The casino is located in the heart of central London in Leicester Square. This two-week long tournament series attracts players from all over Europe, and abroad. For more information, click here. This year, there will be five gold bracelet events consisting of the following tournaments:

Event #1: Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em (£2,500 buy-in)

   3-day tournament starting Sept. 14

   Event #2: Pot-Limit Omaha (£5,000 buy-in)
   3-day tournament starting Sept. 16

   Event #3: No-Limit Hold’em (£1,000 buy-in)
   5-day tournament starting Sept. 17

   Event #4: Heads-Up No-Limit Hold’em (£10,000 buy-in)
   3-day tournament starting Sept. 21

   Event #5: Main Event Championship (£10,000 buy-in)
   6-day tournament starting Sept. 23

November Nine – Poker’s biggest night takes place in early November when the nine survivors from this year’s Main Event return to Las Vegas to take their seats at the final table. The championship finale, also known as the November Nine, will be played starting on November 6th, 2010. The initial session of play will whittle the nine finalists down to the last two survivors. Those two finalists will return two days later to play heads-up for the 2010 world championship. This year’s winner will receive at least $8,944,138 in prize money, the coveted WSOP gold bracelet, and designation as the official 2010 world poker champion. To read more, click here.

2010 “Player of the Year” Race – When this year's Main Event began, Frank Kassela had the WSOP Player of the Year title all but locked up. A week into the Main Event, all that stood between the two-time gold bracelet winner (with six cashes in 2010) and the coveted honor of becoming Player of the Year was one lone challenger, Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi. Kassela and the rest of the poker world anticipated what seemed to be an inevitable conclusion to this year's race. But Mizrachi not only survived day after day, but made it all the way to the November Nine. This gives the two-player race some added drama since a Mizrachi victory in the Main Event would also bring co-Player of the Year honors with Kassela (both players would be tied in points). Anything other than a Mizrachi win in November means Kassela automatically wins the title. For more information on this year's Player of the Year race, click here.

By the time all the activities of this year’s WSOP have concluded, planning for next year’s WSOP will already be underway. Indeed, the only thing better for poker is what's ahead in 2011, and beyond.

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