World Series Of Poker Bringing Million Dollar Event To Las Vegas

The World Series of Poker already has the biggest, most elaborate poker tournament in the world with its main event each year at the WSOP. The main event has seen a top prize of over $8 million on a couple of different occasions. That top payout could be dwarfed by the new tournament the WSOP has created.

One Drop, a charity headed by Cirque de Soleil founder Guy Laliberte, has come up with the idea of a $1 million buy-in tournament. The event would be part of the WSOP rotation, starting next summer, and some of the top players in the world have already committed to playing in the tournament.

Daniel Negreanu, Johnny Chan, Jonathan Duhamel, and Tom Dwan have all agreed to fork over the $1 million buy-in, according to ESPN. The goal for the tournament would be twenty-nine players, with a top prize that would exceed $12 million. Currently, Jamie Gold holds the record for top payout with the over $12 million he won at the main event back in 2006.

In the $1 million buy-in tournament, eleven percent would go to the charity. Under normal tournament structures, that would impede on the prize fund, but the idea for this event is that the normal ten percent rake for hosting the tournament would be waved, paving the way for the record-breaking top prize.

It is likely that as the tournament gains popularity, the top players in the world would all sign on. It is not yet known whether Phil Ivey, considered the best player in the world by many, will participate. Ivey sat the 2011 WSOP out in protest of Full Tilt Poker not paying US players after the company was indicted by the US Department of Justice.

Among the twenty-two players that have signed up are MGM Resorts International executive Bobby Baldwin and Treasure Island casino owner Phil Ruffin. The tournament must have at least twenty-one players in order to qualify for a WSOP bracelet.

December 5, 2011
Posted By Tom Jones
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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