World Series of Poker Tournament Circuit

On October 25, 2004 Harrah's announced the creation of the World Series of Poker Tournament Circuit that marked the beginning of the 36th annual World Series of Poker season. And with it began their efforts to evolve the World Series of Poker from a month long frenzied rush into a year long sport. The Tournament Circuit is a set of poker tournament stops at different casinos that will host all-comer events for players seeking high-level top quality poker action. It also allows players based on their performance at the tournament circuit events and the World Series of Poker, to qualify them for entry into the Tournament of Champions event. The Tournament of Champions is a freeroll event meaning that no player who will participate has to put up any of his or her own funds to play. Harrah's determines the number of players from each of the tournament circuit events who will qualify.

With the popularity of poker on the rise, Harrah's sought to capitalize on this movement by having 5 legs of the circuit that would be open to anyone who wanted to play regardless of skill level. In 2005 events were held in Atlantic City, NJ during January, San Diego, CA in February, Las Vegas, NV in March, Lake Tahoe, NV in April and New Orleans, LA in May. Each of the events were taped and will be aired on ESPN. All champions who won their events received a WSOP championship gold ring and a sizable amount of cash, which easily reached the six-figure level in the Main Events. The buy-ins for the tournaments ranged from a few hundred dollars to $10,000 per person for participation in the Championship Main Event held at each circuit leg. The game for each of the Main Events was Texas No-Limit Hold'Em poker.

The response from the poker playing public was well received drawing noted professionals like Erick Lindgren, Mimi Tran, Chris Ferguson, Chad Brown, Dewey Tomko, Robert Williamson III, Andy Bloch, J.C. Tran, Jennifer Harman Traniello, Tony Ma, Phil Ivey, John Cernuto, David Pham, Joe Awada, Antonio Esfandiari and others to the tables. It also brought out many superior regional poker players who are well known and respected in their areas of the country.

Since the acquisition of the World Series of Poker name and brand in 2004, Harrah's has been on a mission to expand the name into their properties and new areas of which the tournament circuit is one, so you can trust that this will be around for a number of years. Now the amount of "rake" the company earns from event prize pools is 6%, and this money is used to pay dealers and other expenses. Given the magnitude of tournament operations, that can't leave that much for profit. So why do they do it? A company spokesperson stated that the international exposure, newspaper and media coverage they are receiving on these events is priceless to them. It is helping to lay the groundwork for the corporation to expand greater than what they already are. So you can count on Harrah's to continue the effort to make the World Series of Poker bigger and better than it presently is.

Tom Howze is a webmaster for 9 sites that relate to 2005 World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour events, updates and information.

---

Poker Aces ? how to play them

Poker Aces refers to two aces dealt pre-flop. It is... Read More

Beat the Casinos

Do you have what it takes to become a successful... Read More

Compulsive Gambling and Gambling Addiction

Not many people argue that gambling and playing at casinos... Read More

Online Poker

Are you a poker player? Can't get the guys together... Read More

Martingale Betting System - Are You SURE?

Very common and popular system among newbies who like roulette,... Read More

Class: It Tells All

The word class, used by handicapper is no abstraction. The... Read More

Horse Racing Betting, The Risk Free Way

You may or may not of heard of all this... Read More

Help Become a Consistent Winner at Online Low-Limit Texas Hold ?Em by Playing at the ?Easy? Tables

Select Advantageous TablesTable selection is one of the most overlooked... Read More

Gambling Interesting Facts

SoccerbettingIs there such thing as "kangtao" or surewin tips?I have... Read More

Blackjack Basics

Of the card games that have been played since 900... Read More

An Easy Way to Become a Good Blackjack Player

Learning to play the game of casino Blackjack reasonably well... Read More

Roulette System: 4 Most Important Factors To Beat Roulette at Online/Offline Casino

In this article, you are going to learn about the... Read More

Internet Poker - 13 Rules to Follow

Add bad poker players to your buddy listPlaying poker is... Read More

How to Succeed in the Poker Freerolls Part 2

How to Succeed in the Poker Freerolls Part 1 looked... Read More

Five Roulette Tips to Dramatically Increase Your Profits!

Roulette is the third most popular casino game worldwide, after... Read More

2005 World Series of Poker -- Mid Tournament Report

The 2005 World Series of Poker started its 36th year... Read More

Online Casino Black Jack

Online casino black jack is said to have originated in... Read More

Mobile Gaming Leads the Way

The state of online gambling may have just found another... Read More

Tournament Blackjack and the Art of Sabotage

I was recently invited to play in the Daily Invitational... Read More

Gambling Stories 101

A win at a gambling table can be fun narrating.... Read More

Why Online Poker is Better Than Land Based Poker

Online Poker has become the greatest hit in the online... Read More

Las Vegas Dining and Drinks as Cheap as it Gets

Las Vegas, my favorite destination doesn't have to cost a... Read More

Slot Machine Odds

It probably more appropriate to call slot machines entertainment than... Read More

A Guide to Common Soccer Betting Terms

Accumulator. Sometimes called a parlay. A bet where the winnings... Read More

Asian Handicaps Explained

The most common way to bet on football in the... Read More

My Las Vegas Review

Recently I took ten days off and went to Las... Read More

The Secrets of Basic Craps Tournaments

Pssst...! Wanna know a secret?How about the secrets of basic... Read More

TOP 10 Biggest Betting-Gambling Mistakes

Our aim here is to highlight these common areas of... Read More

Slot Machines - Does Location Make a Difference?

Books have been written on this subject and the debates... Read More

How to Succeed in the Poker Freerolls Part 1

Online poker freerolls are a unique breed amongst poker tournaments... Read More

Why Do People Gamble?

Gambling is the act of wagering money on the outcome... Read More

Top 5 Things to Look for when Buying Quality Poker Table

When one is ready to buy a quality poker table... Read More

Becoming a Consistent Winner at Online Low-Limit Texas Hold ?Em

Start with Small Stakes and Play Tight, Tight, and More... Read More