The 2020 WSOP Main Event is underway for players located outside the US, and American players will soon have their chance to join the competition to become the next poker world champion.
You might be a bit confused if you paid attention to the WSOP Online Bracelet Series this past summer. Stoyan Madanzhiev took down the historic World Series of Poker Main Event on GGPoker for $3.9 million in September. He won what many assumed was the 2020 WSOP Main Event.
That record-setting tournament with more than $27 million in the prize pool was the largest in online poker history. But the WSOP refused to acknowledge Madanzhiev as the 2020 world champion, as it was a $5,000 buy-in tournament. So, we now have a new version of the annual world championship event. The buy-in for this freezeout is the standard $10,000, and the tournament is being played both online and live.
It all started Nov. 29 on GGPoker for international players, and Day 1 concluded on Sunday, Dec. 6. Once play is down to the final table, those nine players will head to King’s Casino in Rozvadov, Czech Republic, to play down to a winner. In the US — more specifically in Nevada and New Jersey — online play begins Dec. 13 on WSOP.com. The final table of that tournament will run Dec. 28 at the Rio in Las Vegas.
Two days later, the GGPoker and WSOP.com winners will meet at the Rio to determine the world champion. An additional $1 million will be added to the prize pool, which will be shipped in the direction of the finale champion.
Registering for the 2020 WSOP Main Event
If you want to compete in the 2020 WSOP Main Event on WSOP.com, you must be located in Nevada or New Jersey at the time of play. You don’t have to be a resident of those states, you just have to be within state borders during play.
The buy-in is $10,000, which you must have in your account at the time of registration. Or, you can try to win your way in via a satellite tournament on WSOP.com. As of now, there are multiple daily satellites available for as little as $100 into the $10,000 tournament, including a $320 2020 WSOP Main Event Scramble on Dec. 12 with at least five seats guaranteed.
If you haven’t signed up for WSOP.com, it would be wise to do so at least a couple days before the tournament starts. You will be required to verify your identity upon registration, which includes submitting a scanned ID. Get that done in advance so that your account is good to go on Dec. 13.
Given that the buy-in is so high, WSOP.com recommends depositing at a Caesars-brand casino cashier’s cage in Las Vegas. Those can be found at Caesars Palace, Harrah’s, Bally’s, Flamingo, Paris, and Planet Hollywood. It may be difficult to get enough money on the site in time using other deposit options.
Answers to Common Questions
The 2020 WSOP Main Event is a freezeout, so once you bust, your dream of becoming the next world champion will come to an end.
Due to the current global health pandemic, precautions are being made to ensure the live final table is safe. Should you catch a heater and reach the final table at King’s Casino or the Rio, you will be required to take a COVID-19 test on-site.
If you test positive for the virus, you won’t be permitted to compete and will receive ninth-place money. Even if you’re the chip leader heading to the final table, you’ll be out of luck if you show up positive.
Additionally, you can only register for one of the tournaments on GGPoker or WSOP.com. So, if you’ve already fired a bullet on GGPoker, you can’t travel to the US to fire one on WSOP.com.
Players begin the 2020 WSOP Main Event with 60,000 chips, the same starting stack as in 2019, and each blind level runs for 30 minutes. The structure is one of the best you’ll ever find in an online poker tournament, especially for professional poker players.
