It seems that WSOP has revealed details of their main event for 2020, a year in which the majority of their live competitions have had to be curtailed due to the pandemic. It all started off so well with around a dozen tournaments in the United States having been completed before the entire industry was put into lockdown. However, it has then been advantageous for online which has seen an upsurge in major tournaments having to take place virtually due to various restrictions.
Their Plan
Now, it appears that the WSOP has created a plan that combines some live tournaments with the virtual kind to ultimately produce some kind of the main event for the year. While they could be applauded for trying to do this, it does mean that thousands of players that took part in a similar kind of tournament in the middle of the year are now confused. Why? Well, they thought that the tournament was the main event, but it now seems that this wasn’t the case.
So, This Event
With this event, they are trying to more closely imitate what happens in Las Vegas each year. However, as it has that blend of online and offline, it does mean they are going to be operating internationally rather than everyone being in the same building. Well, that’s what they say, until you realize you need to be in either Nevada or New Jersey at the time of the tournament.
Also, it carries the official moniker of being the WSOP 2020 Main Event, so it does sound like it’s going to be the real thing.
This event is going to come with a $10k buy-in and there are no re-entries allowed. After entering, you are given the equivalent of $60k in chips and you play at 30-minute intervals. The first day of play is going to involve 20 levels with the second day is going to keep on going until you are left with the final 9 players who will take part in the final table.
But then there’s the important point of an individual will be withdrawn if they test positive for Covid-19. Considering the final table is going to take place to live in the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, you can start to see why an individual needs to be nearby. However, if someone does test positive, they are given the prize money for a ninth-place rather than being replaced by someone else on the final table.
It Has Been Done Before
Perhaps the surprising thing with this decision is that the number of tournaments they have arranged online throughout 2020 has been highly successful. This success has been replicated around the world. Also, the tournament that people thought was the main event even set a new world record with over 5,700 entries and a prize pool that topped $27 million. That in itself was huge, but for some reason, WSOP has decided to gamble and throw another tournament in an attempt to round off the year with a bang.
Even though some individuals may be perturbed by all of this, you can still pretty much guarantee that this upcoming tournament in December will be another success story.
