Thousands of poker players from around the globe have gathered at the Rio in Las Vegas for their annual pilgrimage to the World Series of Poker.
Many of these players accumulate savings throughout the year, and some even for several years, simply to claim their participation in the most grand poker event, the Main Event. It is not so much about the game of poker itself, but rather the overall experience.
However, participating in the Main Event demands a significant commitment that most individuals are unable or unwilling to make, and it’s not just about the $10,000 entry fee. The true commitment lies in the tremendous amount of time one must dedicate to play in a major poker tournament in 2014; it’s truly astonishing.
If you have a deep run in the Main Event, you will need to take at least a week off from work. The duration could extend up to two weeks, depending on the starting flight you opt for and the extent of your run. For instance, a player could potentially start on Day 1a on July 5th, return for Day 2a three days later on July 8th, and get eliminated on Day 3 (July 10th), even before earning any money. If you reach the final table, you will be playing until July 14th.
This isn’t just a problem with WSOP either.
Almost all major tournaments have several starting flights. However, even if you arrange to play on the final starting flight, you’ll still need to play poker for four to five days to reach the final table of a significant tournament.
Clearly, financial constraints are the most significant hurdle, but the time commitment also deters numerous players.
This is why the WPT500 at the Aria is like a breath of fresh air.
The WPT500 at the Aria
The tournament requires a $500 buy-in and includes six initial rounds. The last initial round is a Turbo round from 8:30 AM to 1 PM. Following this, the remaining players from the initial rounds return to begin Day 2 of the tournament.
A player, if they wished, could buy-in on Day 1f (the final starting flight) and participate in the entire tournament in just one day.
How is it going so far?
The tournament has already surpassed its $1,000,000 guarantee after just four starting flights. This shows that poker is thriving not only at the Rio, where players are living out once-in-a-lifetime dreams, professionals are testing their skills, and those with a significant amount of disposable income are participating, but also at the Aria, for players who simply have a passion for poker.
This is fantastic news for poker, and it might alert some individuals that the WSOP shouldn’t be the ultimate measure of poker’s popularity.
Poker could greatly benefit from tournaments such as the WPT500 at the Aria, especially at a time when legal online poker is just starting and the existing pool is essentially exhausted.
This event, with its reasonable $500 buy-in and the possibility of entering and winning the tournament in just one or two days, can attract novice players. However, its prize-pool and structure are also appealing to professional poker players.
Poker Needs a THIRD Class of Tournaments
In recent years, the tournament scene has grown increasingly divided into two categories, both of which require buy-ins significantly beyond the budget of a casual player.
Major events feature buy-ins of $3,500, $5,000, and in some instances, over $10,000. Conversely, mid-level tournaments offer buy-ins of $1,500.
All tournaments that require buy-ins measured in hundreds-of-dollars have been made preliminary events of the aforementioned Main Events. They lack the same allure as the more prestigious and larger Main Events.
However, recreational players are interested in participating in the Main Event, partly because it is heavily marketed, and some players might not even be aware of the existence of preliminary events. They prefer this over a $300 or $500 preliminary tournament, where the first place prize could be a relatively small five-figure sum.
Recreational players are interested in understanding exactly what they stand to gain by playing (for instance, the WPT500 made it very clear with a guaranteed prize pool of $1 million and a first-place guarantee of $200,000). This helps them ascertain whether the game is worth their time.
All of this is captured by the WPT500.
It’s plausible that an amateur player, who is in Las Vegas for the week and wanders into the Aria today, may choose to risk $500 for a shot at winning $200k. However, this scenario is unlikely to occur across town at the Rio, during the Borgata Poker Open, or in a $500 WSOPC preliminary tournament where the top prize is only $15,000.
The introduction of this third category of main event tournaments is exactly what poker requires to re-engage amateur players. It’s designed to attract individuals who initially intended to spend their $500 at the blackjack tables, enticing them to try their luck at a full day of poker instead.
Not all individuals aspire to win or even participate in the WSOP Main Event. In fact, the majority of poker players in my local game view the notion of spending $10,000 to engage in a poker tournament as outrageous and an unnecessary squandering of money, even though it could potentially result in millions. However, spending $500 for the chance to earn $200k? That seems more attainable.
Hey, isn’t that the guy from the WPT poker show over there?
