Nevada plays host to one of the largest and most glamorous land-based poker events in the United States, the World Series of Poker (WSOP) hosted by 888.
While the United States are not the most welcoming place for online poker in the face of a pending reversal of the Wire Act, the 888’s World Series of Poker (WSOP) is certainly the world’s most important tournament. The WSOP bracelets are coveted trinkets of distinction that commands the respect of fellow players.
As the official sponsor of this year’s WSOP Main Event, 888poker is quite excited to break down the specifics of the upcoming competition slated for May 28 through July 16, 2019.
Having stepped up to be the organization at the helm of the event, 888 will have the opportunity to host the 50th edition of the competition. The event will focus on a series of preliminary land-based and online events, giving an entry to top talent to participate.
The company’s main focus will be in the United States where all land-based satellite competitions will be held with overseas participants still having a chance to make the cut by visiting the official website.
Signing Up for the Event
Called “Road to Las Vegas,” preparations about the event can start right now. All you need to do is log into your 888 Poker account and navigate to Tournaments and select Live Events. You’ll see a number of qualifying events available for as little as $0.01, $0.10, $1.00 and $5.00. Qualifiers will be running every day until June 16.
The satellites are purposed to help you climb a leaderboard with all players attempting to gain an entry into the Main Event later in the year. The main objective to many is to win the $1,050 “WSOP 2019 Main Event Package, which will save them the expenses. All qualifiers will be introduced on January 20, with the main ones you want to watch out for being:
- $1,050 “WSOP 2019 Main Event Package – Qualifier”
- $16.50 “WSOP 2019 Main Event Package – Sub-Satellite”
- $109 “WSOP 2019 Main Event Package – Satellite”
If you are among the lucky individuals to top the field of competitors, you will be benefit from an exclusive all-expenses covered package, which will allow you to enjoy a number of perks during your stay at Las Vegas:
- July 4 – 10, 2019 stay covered at the Vdara Hotel in Las Vegas
- $10,000 WSOP Main Event buy-in
- $1,000 for travel and expenses
- Invitation to the official launch party
The event will provide participants with three dates when they can join the fray and start climbing through the ranks:
- July 3, Day 1A
- July 4, Day 1B
- July 5, Day 1C
Players who make it through rounds A and B will continue to play on July 6, when both pools of players will be reunited to square it out while Day 1C participants kick back.
On July 7, Day C survivors will join the fray and settle scores between themselves. Following the initial “groups”, July 8 will see all players come together for the final dash. Players can postpone joining for as long as Day 2, July 6 and July 7.
888poker will also innovate its offer a bit, introducing the Big Blind Ante format as well as putting the stack freezeout at 60,000 chips. Other than the slight tinkering with the format, the company expects to dish out $200 million in total prizing money.
Commenting on the developments, WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart has expressed his excitement, pinning hopes on the Big 50 event which comes with a $5 million in guaranteed award money.
We’re excited to commence our golden event. We expect our opening weekend Big 50 event to be one of the largest in our history, and certainly one of the best value tournaments ever offered. This is part of our concerted plans to make the 2019 WSOP a better value all-around.
For those who haven’t quite made it into the Main Event, there’ll be a Mini Main Event kicking off on July 1, and offering participants a slightly faster-pace game which will hopefully generate substantial prize pool. The Mini Main Event will come with a $1,000 buy-in.
888poker won’t miss a chance to feature other events worthy of your attention, including:
- The Colossus which will take place from June 26 through June 27. With a $400 buy-in, the event will feature 40-minute levels.
- One-Day Super Turbos will be there for those who enjoy having a quick go at the game. A player will fetch you $300 bounty (in the $1,000-version of the game) and $500 in the ($1,500-version)
So far, there’ve been over 50 confirmed and scheduled events coming up. Some interesting picks are the Casino Employees, Ladies, and Super Seniors which will focus on a specific audience and demographics.
Set your alarm clocks for May 28 and remember to start the grind in 888poker’s Live Tournament section if you are determined to participate.
