The world’s most highly anticipated poker festival is returning to Las Vegas and is looking to create the biggest buzz. The World Series of Poker 2022 is set to begin on May 31 and the series’ tournament’s senior vice president, Ty Stewart, stated that this will be a new era of WSOP.
Vince Vaughn, who was selected to be the 2022 WSOP Master of Ceremonies, stated that he’s excited and honoured to be the Master of Ceremonies of what will be the best poker festival in history. He added that poker had been his favourite sport, and this represents a dream come true for him.
Vaughn isn’t the only one who considers this the best sport. There are millions of poker fans worldwide who are eager to tune in and watch WSOP 2022 or play in it. Of course, knowing how the game works, being familiar with the rules, etc., will help you have a better time if you are planning to visit Vegas for the tournament.
If you’re new to the game, it’s never too late to learn the poker strategies and get some practice in before heading to Las Vegas.
WSOP 2022 Has a New Location
Starting from May 31 through July 19, there will be a total of 88 events, plus the Tournament of Champions. The 2022 WSOP Main Event will start on June 3. The schedule features events in which the buy-in varies from as low as $400 to as high as $250,000. Koray Aldemir will have the chance to defend his world championship title.
For the past 17 years, the WSOP has been held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, but organizers have decided to provide players with a completely new experience, which is why this year’s event will take place at Horseshoe Las Vegas (rebranded from Bally’s) and Paris Las Vegas. The switch puts the WSOP on the Strip for the first time – the home of entertainment.
These two venues have a combined capacity of 150,000 square feet and feature 600 poker tables. After an in-person registration, players will be able to enjoy the first two tournaments on May 31 – $500 Casino Employees No-Limit Hold ’em and $100,000 High Roller Bounty.
The WSOP Main Event will start on June 3 and some of the most highly-anticipated events for this year are the $500 Housewarming No-limit Hold’em, the $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold’em, $400 Colossus No-Limit Hold’em, $1,000 Tag Team No-Limit Hold’em, as well as the WSOP Main Event.
$500 Housewarming No-limit Hold’em will start on June 2 and will last until June 8. The $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold’em will start on June 17 and will last until June 23, the $400 Colossus No-Limit Hold’em will start on June 24 and will last until June 28 and the $1,000 Tag Team No-Limit Hold’em will start on June 26 and will last until June 29.
Each of these events will feature some of the best players, and there will be plenty of upsets and excitement.
Key Tournament Highlights
There are a couple of key tournament highlights that both players and viewers should remember. First off, it was previously mentioned that the 2022 WSOP features 88 numbered tournaments, excluding the Tournament of Champions.
A few changes were made to the middle buy-in range as the organizers added a few extra tournaments in the $2,000-$5,000 buy-in range, and bounty tourneys are added.
One of the most talked-about subjects concerned COVID restrictions. In an official report, WSOP stated that it will follow CDC, local and state guidelines that will be in effect while the tournament takes place. In the official report, WSOP claims that there won’t be “vaccination requirement to play in the tournament”, but players will have to follow the CDC guidelines.
The Tournament of Champions will have a $1 million prize pool and this marks the first year since 2010 that this event will be held. Unlike other years, when the tournament was invite-only, this year, all bracelet winners will be able to join the event.
Finally, CBS Sports Network and PokerGO will be on broadcast duties.
Additional Rules to be Considered
While everyone is familiar with the general rules of poker and how the game works, there are a few rules that often fly under the radar. First off, there’s a chance that WSOP will be suspended due to bad weather. This was the case in 2019 when an earthquake hit Rio Casino during the first day of the Main Event.
According to WSOP rules, “excessive chatter” is actually a punishable offence, so players need to keep in mind that they need to be more focused on the game rather than chit-chat. If, for some reason, players end up with a joker, then they must inform the dealer. In this scenario, the card is declared dead.
WSOP will ban any apparel that features marijuana products or cryptocurrencies and there are a total of 5 different sanctions that can be imposed on a player if the competitive integrity of the tournament is compromised:
- Prize money forfeiture
- Chip forfeiture
- Ejection from the entire WSOP series or event
- Exclusion from entering the casino premises
- Exclusion from participating in future WSOP events