The World Poker Tour has added even more prizes to the Tournament of Champions including an Audi S5 Coupe, a super cool pair of shades from Maui Jim, and a seat in a poker game featuring Tiger Woods.
While the all-seeing eye of the poker world is firmly focused on the current battle to dominate the live tournament scene involving PokerStars, 888Poker, and partypoker, the World Poker Tour (WPT) is quietly going about its business commanding the ship in North America.
With the failed attempt to recreate the same pizzazz in the rest of the world seemingly behind them, the WPT has stepped on the gas in the past few years. Attendances are higher than ever, and the Royal Flush Crew hands out seven-figure scores like they used to back in the day.
The Tournament of Champions is a part of that evolution. Only time will tell if it has the right ingredients to become part of the long-term plans of the greatest poker tour in the US, but they are doing everything in their power to make it work.
Last season, Farid Yachou stunned the world of poker when he defeated 64 entrants to take home the $381,600 first prize and a brand new Corvette, recording only his second live cash on The Hendon Mob (his WPT Main Event win in Amsterdam was the other). And this year, the winner will also get a new ride.
Less than a week after the WPT announced Monster as the headline sponsor, who added $100,000 in additional prize money to the mix, they have released further news on the prizes available to those that attend.
The event is only open to Season XV Main Event winners, or WPT Champions Club members willing to part with the $15,000 buy-in. The event will be rake-free, and every participant will receive a custom-made pair of Maui Jim sunglasses.
The game will operate by Protection Poker’s Action Clock. Players have 30-seconds to make a decision with five additional 30-second timebank extension chips to use at their discretion. Players who reach the final table will all start with four 30-second timebank chips.
The final table will be six-handed, and all six receive a Monster Superstar Ravebox, but that’s where the prizes end unless you win the thing.
The winner of the Season XV WPT Tournament of Champions will receive an Audi S5 Coupe, a pew in the Tiger Woods charity poker night ran by the WPT, a Hublot King Power Unico Carbon and Red watch, a custom made BBO Poker Table, and a week stay with Wyndham Extra Holidays.
The winner of the Season XV Monster WPT Tournament of Champions will drive away in a 2018 @Audi S5 Coupe! https://t.co/Rx55GlECuh#WPTTOCpic.twitter.com/b2nO6oy2HA
— World Poker Tour (@WPT) March 25, 2017
The WPT Tournament of Champions takes place April 7 – 9 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. 17 places are already guaranteed (see below) with another two set to be taken in the $3,500 buy-in WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship and another from the $10,000 buy-in WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Finale.
Here are those players who have already qualified
• Seth Davies, partypoker WPT Canadian Spring Championship
• Andjelko Andrejevic, WPT Amsterdam
• James Mackey, WPT Choctaw
• Pat Lyons, WPT Legends of Poker
• Jesse Sylvia, WPT Borgata Poker Open
• Zachary Smiley, WPT Maryland Live!
• Sam Panzica, WPT bestbet Bounty Scramble
• Luis Rodriguez Cruz, partypoker WPT UK
• Mike Sexton, partypoker.net WPT Montreal
• Niall Farrell, partypoker WPT Caribbean
• Oleg Vasylchenko, partypoker WPT Prague
• James Romero, WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic
• Daniel Weinman, WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open
• Ema Zajmovic, partypoker.net WPT Playground
• Darren Elias, WPT Fallsview Poker Classic
• Daniel Strelitz, WPT L.A. Poker Classic
• Mike Del Vecchio, WPT Rolling Thunder
