The World Series of Poker are rolling out a series of online qualifiers for the Colossus II for customers based in either New Jersey or Nevada, and the WSOP World Champion Joe McKeehen gets some poker media beef off his chest.
PokerStars plant their Red Spade flag into New Jersey cyber soil, and two weeks later they are the market leader. I mean, what did everyone expect? They are the largest online poker room in the world after all, and they have everything at their disposal. Well, nearly everything.
Online poker players resting their weary wrists in either New Jersey or Nevada will soon be able to qualify for the 2016 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Colossus II – something that you can’t do on PokerStars.
In 2015, the $565 buy-in Colossus shattered the world record for live tournament attendance when more than 22,374 entrants created a prize pool of more than $11m. This year the WSOP intends to raise that bar to pole vault like proportions guaranteeing the $7 million in prize money and over a million bucks for the winner. Last year, Cord Garcia walked away with $638,880.
Starting April 3 and running through April 24 WSOP is running online satellite events into the Colossus for as little as $10 in Nevada and $20 in New Jersey. The WSOP Nevada satellites start at 4 pm. It is a rebuy event. Two $565 seats are guaranteed. At 6 pm there is a $20 re-entry with one seat guaranteed. In New Jersey, there will be a $20 rebuy at 6 pm awarding one $1,165 package.
Players can also qualify for the WSOP Main Event. Satellites began in March, and will continue through April, with even more opportunities to qualify. Additional competitions will be set up on Tuesdays in New Jersey and Saturdays in Nevada.
Joe McKeehen’s Isn’t a Fan of Poker Media
One player who couldn’t give a monkeys about online satellites is Joe McKeehen. The 2015 WSOP Main Event Champion has earned close to $11m in the past three years and, therefore, shouldn’t feel the need to part with $10 to try and muscle his way through a few hundred qualifiers.
The winner of the most prestigious poker event in the world is important to the ecosystem. The adulation heaped on those shoulders opens up the poker community to the world beyond our little bubble. First impressions last and all that.
Well, I think McKeehen’s role as unofficial poker ambassador for the world of poker is well and truly over after the young man vented his frustration via Twitter on the WSOP’s decision to move some events back to an 11 am start time.
so these 11 am start times for wsop are real huh? thought they were just a joke
— Shayne Gostisbehere (@dude904) 29 March 2016
It wasn’t a joke, and when McKeehen realised this, there was one faction within the poker community that he wanted to blame – the poker media.
the fact the media has ANY say or impact on the players and how the tournament is ran is a fucking joke — Shayne Gostisbehere (@dude904) 29 March 2016
they have nothing to do with how the tournament is played, they just report it. and 90% of them clearly don’t even try
— Shayne Gostisbehere (@dude904) 29 March 2016
First to stick up for the poker media was PokerNews very own Matthew Parvis.
@MatthewParvis cool, i’m a player and if morons like you went away the game would be much more enjoyable for most of us. — Shayne Gostisbehere (@dude904) 29 March 2016
And then Jessica Welman had a go.
@jesswelman if you take this personal then you must be part of the problem.
— Shayne Gostisbehere (@dude904) 29 March 2016
Will Shillibier is starting to worry.
@dude904 My first time working in the media at the WSOP this year. This is the one thing I’m most worried about — Will Shillibier (@Shillibier) 29 March 2016
And then the players came to the rescue with PokerStars Team Pros Daniel Negreanu and Jason Mercier politely pointing out that the 11 am start times had nothing to do with poker media at all.
The world champion didn’t agree and ended the tete-a-tete in the same way I end my arguments with the wife when I can see no light at the end of the tunnel.
@RealKidPoker we’re just gonna agree to disagree like usual and i’m gonna do my thing and you’re gonna do yours.
— Shayne Gostisbehere (@dude904) March 29, 2016
Something tells me I am not going to get my interview with him this summer.
