The World Series of Poker (WSOP) today announced that it will host a hybrid online and live version of the $10,000 No-Limit Hold-‘Em World Championship, a.k.a the Main Event. It will begin Sunday Nov. 29 for international players and on Sunday Dec. 13 for domestic players.
Due to travel restrictions and an abundance of caution for player safety, in this year’s format, early-round play will begin online with one entry on WSOP.com or GGPoker.com, before shifting to a live setting for final-table action on two continents. Each “bracket” will pay out prize money to tournament entrants independently. The final table will be a world’s first, heads-up for the World Championship, with $1 million in prize money. The Main Event will be the traditional “freeze-out”: single entry, plus the longest levels and deepest stacks ever offered on the online platform.
All in-person tournaments, domestic and international, will be subject to special COVID rules and procedures, the details of which will be published at a later date and will require players to undergo a required health screening prior to live participation.
U.S. residents can play the Main Event at WSOP.com in New Jersey or Nevada beginning on Sunday, Dec. 13. The $10,000 event is expected to take two full days to reach the final table, with play suspended for an overnight break after approximately 12 hours of action. The tournament will pause when play hits the final table, with the final nine players traveling to Las Vegas for the TV taping and culmination of the tournament to take place at the Rio, subject to applicable regulatory approval.
Dates for the domestic tournament:
- Day 1 – Sunday, Dec. 13
- Day 2 – Monday, Dec. 14: play down to 9 players
- Final Table – Rio, Monday Dec. 28: play continues to a winner; prize money paid
International residents eligible to use GGPoker’s popular online poker platform will have three dates from which to choose their starting flight. Similar to the traditional offline events, players may only choose one date of play. Similar to the domestic flight and subject to casino availability, play will be paused for the final nine contestants who will report to King’s Casino in Rozvadov, Czech Republic, to play their final table in a live TV taping. Should travel restrictions or a casino shutdown prevent the live portion from moving forward in December, organizers reserve the right to continue the tournament play online or reschedule to a later date.
Dates for the international tournament:
- Day 1A – Sunday, Nov. 29
- Day1B – Saturday, Dec. 5
- Day 1C – Sunday, Dec. 6
- Day 2: play down to 9 players, Monday Dec. 7
- Final Table – *King’s Casino, Tuesday, Dec.15: play down to a winner
*Subject to local regulatory approval
Finally, the winner of the domestic tournament and the winner of the international tournament will meet at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, subject to applicable regulatory approval, for a televised showdown on Wednesday Dec. 30. In addition to any prize money won by entrants in their respective tournaments, WSOP and GGPoker have committed an additional $1 million to the winner of the heads-up match along with the Main Event championship bracelet and the title of 2020 World Champion. *Note, should the international winner be under the age of 21 and thereby ineligible to play in the state of Nevada, organizers reserve the right to change the date and location of the heads-up match.
A comprehensive list of satellite events allowing qualification for as little $1 will be available on both WSOP.com and GGPoker.com. There will also be weekly free-rolls offering $10,000 seat entry for multiple weeks leading up to the tournament.
Note, players are allowed to create and/or fund their online poker accounts prior to arriving within the state borders of Nevada and New Jersey. However, they must be geolocated through a CPU of mobile device to be within the state borders to be able to commence any gaming activity. New players may require document verification and are highly encouraged to register early.
As has been the case each year since 2003, ESPN will air coverage of the 2020 WSOP Main Event, featuring Lon McEachern and Norman Chad.
“There must be a World Champion in 2020,” said Ty Stewart, Executive Director of the World Series of Poker. “Poker’s history is too important. It’s a unique format for the Main Event, but this is a unique year. We want to keep players’ health and safety top of mind and still deliver a great televised showcase for the game we love.”
