WPT World Championship is Most Popular Poker Festival At Wynn Las Vegas

WPT President and CEO Adam Pliska Insight On WPT World Championship

The third annual WPT World Championship has become the most popular poker event of the year in the U.S., joining the annual World Series of Poker summer event in Las Vegas. This year’s 2024 World Poker Tour festival at luxurious Wynn Las Vegas features more than 60 tournaments anchored by the $10,400 buy-in WPT World Championship starting Dec. 14.

The WPT World Championship events started this week on Dec. 3 with a $1 million guarantee No-Limit Hold ‘em tournament and $800 entry fee. The festival runs through Dec. 23 and features numerous promotions and more than $100,000 million in prize pools from events played across many variants of poker with the most popular No-Limit Hold ‘em.

“The Wynn Poker team is so excited for what’s in store for the 2024 WPT World Championship,” Executive Director of Poker Operations Ryan Beaugaard told me this week. “With more than 60 poker tournaments this year, as well as what will likely be $100 million in prize pools – plus so many other promotions and activations – the energy at Wynn Las Vegas is going to be electric.”

The fast-paced action and excitement created during the recent Formula 1 race along the Las Vegas Strip included the Ultimate race weekend at Wynn Las Vegas. That featured luxury cars at the Encore Players Lounge, near the Wynn poker room. Now the WPT in partnership with Wynn is giving away a new McLaren GTS car during the World Poker Tour championship.

“I look forward to feeling the energy in the tournament area during the ClubWPT Gold $5M Freeroll, and again when we give away a $240,000 McLaren GTS a few days later,” Beaugaard said. “We’ve created some unique opportunities and experiences for poker players this year, and are expecting it to be an incredible festival.”

The Ultimate Guide And Poker Events Schedule During The WPT World Championship

The WPT Prime Championship kicks off the biggest events Dec. 8 with four starting flights. The event grew by 100% last year to 10,516 entries, and the $5 million guaranteed No-Limit Hold ‘em tournament has a $1,100 entry fee. There are numerous milestone satellites for players to win their way into the WPT Prime, WPT World Championship and ClubWPT Gold event.

ClubWPT Gold $5M Invitational Freeroll

The ClubWPT Gold free roll is a 3-day tournament starting Dec. 13. The $5 million event is an invitational that awards hundreds of recreational players from around the world an opportunity to compete for a huge payoff against poker pros, content creators and other lucky entrants for a $1 million first place prize.

Hundreds of Golden Passports are given away to online qualifiers, including 200 on Sat., Dec. 7. Multiple sign up options have been available to players through ClubWPTGold.com. A total of 2,000 seats are given away through satellites, WTP Ambassadors, ClubWPT and ClubWPT Gold, which has a Golden Tree booth set up at Wynn Las Vegas Dec. 8-11 offering more opportunities to win a Golden Passport and other prizes including a custom 2025 McLaren 240 GTS wrapped in gold.

Pliska: WPT Provides More Positives for Poker

I talked to World Poker Tour President and CEO Adam Pliska this week, and he’s been with the company since the WPT startup back in 2002. Like the Wynn, the World Poker Tour’s goal is to enhance the player experience. The partnership has created a fantastic year-end poker festival with this year’s promotions, prize pools and giveaways providing the best yet for poker players.

“We’re creating a very different kind of festival,” Pliska says during an online conference call while explaining what’s transformed from year 1 to year 2 at the WPT Championship at Wynn Las Vegas.

“People realize the WPT World Championship at the Wynn is a special event,” he says. “But we’re trying to open the gates in poker and hoping that we get some new narratives and stories with people that come and experience the festival for the first time.”

The promotions, poker events and offerings set up in the finest property at Wynn Las Vegas ensures continued interest and excitement in the poker community.

“I hope the result of this is that we end up broadening the narratives that we’re talking about poker to remind people that this is a fun thing to do, and worthy of dedicating our space and efforts to poker.”

Next year’s launch of ClubWPT is creating more excitement as a new poker platform for U.S. and Canadian markets. It’s all building off the interest and sucess of the World Poker Tour and the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas.

“We are building a social sweepstakes site, and it’s a really unique time for us,” Pliska said of the WPT. “People want ways to get into events, and tournament numbers are being driven more by satellites and qualifers. What you’re seeing is we’ve opened the gates to people, and we’re keeping the momentum alive and responding to the interests of players.”

Three epic final tables will be livestreamed during the WPT World Championship.

• WPT World Championship
• WPT Prime Championship
• ClubWPT Gold $5M Invitational Freeroll

WPT World Championship

A pillar event on the poker calendar is now the WPT World Championship. The event took off two years ago with 2,360 entrants and shattered the $15 million guarantee with a nearly $30 million prize pool. Last year’s WPT World Championship had 3,836 entries and a $40 million prize pool with the winner receiving $5.67 million and the top six finishers all becoming millionaires.

The opportunity to compete in the biggest year-end event and potential to get your name on the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup during a final table broadcast and livestream is a rush and honor to the late legendary poker player, Hall of Famer and WPT commentator Mike Sexton.

“I’m so excited to see what the championship event is this year, because there is a real exciting new variable,” Pliska adds. “A million dollars (100 seats) is going into the WPT Championship through promotions, offering those players an opportunity that would not otherwise be there.”

That engagement and excitement is a real Wynn for the players.

“The total tab on this is definitely beyond anything we’ve ever imagined doing in the past,” Pliska said. “But we’ve put these promotions together in a way that everyone benefits,” he says in discussing the WPT’s approach.

The World Poker Tour’s approach is working, and the WPT World Championship is the culmination of energy and effort by a dedicated team to engage people and create a fun festival showcasing poker and providing value and opportunities for players.

“It’s a very good time for poker players, and that’s what we should be celebrating.”

You can bet on it.

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