Bar Poker Open Set to Take Over Downtown Vegas with $1M in Anticipated Prizes
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The Bar Poker Open (BPO) returns to the Golden Nugget from June 8–13, 2025, with a packed schedule of public tournaments, live-streamed events, and a $400,000+ invitational World Championship that’s expected to draw hundreds of qualified players from bar leagues across the country.
The series features more than $1 million in anticipated prize pools, including ten open events and a Championship tournament that awards a guaranteed $100,000 to first place.
What began as a small grassroots initiative has grown into one of the largest community poker festivals in the country. Over 30 leagues are represented, and thousands of players take part both on and off the felt.
BPO Vegas World Championship Full Schedule
A Championship Reserved for Bar Poker Qualifiers
At the center of the series is the 2025 Vegas World Championship, which is not open to the public. Entry is limited to players who have earned a seat through local bar leagues or BPO’s online system, with qualification windows running from July 2024 through May 2025.
The Championship begins on Monday, June 9, and features two Day 1 flights at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., each capped at 500 entries. Players may enter both flights, but can only bag chips once. Those who qualify from both flights take their best stack forward to Day 2 and earn a $1,500 bonus.
A “Second Chance” flight runs on Tuesday, June 10 at 11 a.m., but is only available to players who participated in one of Monday’s flights. Like Day 1A, about 10% of each flight will cash, with roughly 5% advancing to Day 2.
Day 2 plays out on Wednesday, June 11 at 11 a.m., followed by the televised final table on Thursday, June 12 at 2 p.m.. Production company Gorilla Gaming will stream selected tables throughout the Championship on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch.
PokerNews will have boots on the ground for the Vegas World Championship, showcasing from when the first card goes into the air until the final chip has been collected. Those who are playing the $1,000 PRO-AM event will also be pleased to know that live updates will be available on PokerNews as well.
Open Events, Satellites, and Cash Game Options
While the Championship is invite-only, the wider BPO schedule includes a full slate of open tournaments, starting with Ultimate Re-Entry flights on Saturday, June 7, leading into the official series dates.
Among the open events:
- Golden Sunday NLH ($250 buy-in, $50K GTD – June 8)
- Grand Stack NLH events on June 11 and June 14
- Tag Team, Deepstack Specials, and Nightly Nuggets throughout the week
Players can also qualify for the PRO-AM Invitational—a $1,000 buy-in event with an expected prize pool of $200,000—via $135 satellites running on June 8 and 9. The PRO-AM takes place on Thursday, June 12 at noon, with Day 2 on Saturday, June 14.
The Charity Series of Poker hosts an event on June 12 at 7:30 p.m., followed by the Cops 4 Kids Charity Event on Saturday, June 14 at 7:00 p.m.
More Than Just Tournaments
The BPO schedule also includes several social events and player perks. Most notably, the Wednesday night pool party at the Golden Nugget’s $10 million Shark Tank pool has become a staple of the series. The venue offers discounted room rates to players who book through the official BPO group, with no resort fees.
