It’s not too early for poker players to start thinking about the World Series of Poker Circuit Event which will be held in The Venue at Horseshoe Casino, Hammond, Ind., Oct. 15 – 27.
The event in Hammond will be the third stop of an expanded full-fledged national tour with stops throughout the United States. The tour, now in its seventh season, kicks off Aug. 19 at Horseshoe Council Bluffs in Iowa followed by a tournament at Horseshoe Southern Indiana starting Oct. 2.
The 2010 schedule will include at least 12 tour stops, with a handful of others expected to be announced in the months ahead.
There are some significant changes in store for participants, including this blockbuster: The buy-in for the Main Event (outside of regional championships) has been lowered to $1,500 from $5,000 in previous years in an effort to encourage larger fields and more players attending multiple stops on the tour.
Additionally, participants will be competing for a shot at the WSOP Circuit National Championship which includes a $1-million Las Vegas Tournament and a coveted gold championship bracelet, the first time ever an official WSOP bracelet will be awarded outside the annual World Series of Poker competition in Las Vegas and the annual WSOP Europe in London.
Other noteworthy changes and improvements include:
• A cumulative rankings system throughout the season which awards points for each official WSOP Circuit “Ring” open event, with four different ways to automatically qualify for the Circuit National Championship matching 100 players which will be held at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in May 2011 and televised nationally.
• Four regional WSOP Circuit Championships with a $10,000 buy-in event plus two hours of national television coverage per stop.
“The new model is exactly what the WSOP is all about, giving poker players of all bankrolls the chance to compete for the kind of fame, fortune and respect that comes only with a WSOP bracelet and a national television audience,” said Ty Stewart, WSOP vice-president.
Horseshoe Hammond will be the site of one of the four nationally televised regional championships along with Harrah’s Atlantic City, Harrah’s Rincon and Harrah’s New Orleans. The final nine players in each event will be awarded an automatic seat in the national championship.
The 100-player field that will make up the Circuit National Championship will be competing for a prize pool of $1-million with the final 10 players receiving prize money.
The game format for the championship will be No Limit Hold’em and there will be no buy-in required for any of the 100 players who qualify.
For more information please visit www.wsop.com.
