The World Poker Tour was founded in 2002 and is a series of international poker tournaments. In 2022, the WPT launched the first-ever WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas. The event featured a $15 million guaranteed prize pool, which was the largest in poker history at the time.
In 2023, the WPT announced a record-breaking $40 million guarantee for the WPT World Championship. The 2023 event will take place as the flagship event of the second WPT World Championship Festival from November 29-December 23 at Wynn Las Vegas.
The World Poker Tour is one of the most prestigious poker tours in the world, as the name states. Throughout the year, the WPT hosts events around the world, mostly in the United States, and players compete for massive prize pools. In some cases, the winner takes home over $1 million, especially in the $10,000 buy-in events such as the Five Diamond World Poker Classic at Bellagio in Las Vegas.
Players compete for more than just big cashes in WPT events. Each tour stop awards points toward the Player of the Year race, which is awarded to one skillful winner at the end of each season. Winning WPT Player of the Year is a prestigious honor that many tournament grinders strive to achieve, much like the World Series of Poker Player of the Year.
2022 WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas
What is the history of the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas?
The first-ever WPT World Championship drew 2,960 entrants in December of 2022. The event nearly doubled the guarantee with a final prize pool of $29,008,000.
The big winner was Eliot Hudon, who added his name to the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup and took home $4.1 million for the effort. He beat out a stellar final table that included Frank Funaro and Benny Glaser.
The 2022 tournament won a Global Poker Award for Best Poker Event of the Year.
In 2023, the WPT announced a guaranteed prize pool of $40 million for the $10,400 buy-in event. The colossal guarantee will be part of the second WPT World Championship Festival at Wynn Las Vegas.
2022 WPT World Championship winner Eliot Hudon
How can I play in the WPT World Championship?
Aside from paying the $10,400 entry fee, satellites for the WPT World Championship have been running online at WPT Global since late July and will continue to do so up to the start of the live event in December.
Feeder satellites from only $5 feed into direct qualifiers, which cost $220 and $1,060 to enter and run every Sunday for the foreseeable future. At least one WPT World Championship package, worth $12,400, is guaranteed in each direct qualifier. Capture a package to receive a $10,400 seat in the 2023 WPT World Championship plus a $2,000 travel stipend.
Debuting in 2022, the WPT World Championship is the final tournament of the WPT season. The 2023 version boasts a guaranteed prize pool of $40 million.
Where is the WPT World Championship held?
The WPT World Championship will be held at Wynn Las Vegas.
What are the dates of the WPT World Championship Festival?
The WPT World Championship runs from November 29 through December 23.
When is the $10,400 WPT World Championship Main Event?
The WPT World Championship runs from Dec. 12-21. The four starting flights are from Dec 12-15.
How can I watch the WPT World Championship?
The WPT World Championship will be filmed and broadcast as an episode of the World Poker Tour.
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