Wsop 2020 Officially Postponed to Later In 2020
Poker players and fans plan well in advance for every summer’s World Series of Poker in Las Vegas. They make arrangements to travel from all over the world to play for a coveted gold bracelet, watch their favorite players, or both. Many of them come from Australia.
They were able to start planning as early as last December for this summer. The WSOP released its core dates late last year – starting and ending dates – and the layout of the $10K buy-in No Limit Hold’em World Championship, better known as the WSOP Main Event.
Throughout January and February, WSOP officials continued to release information. There were bundles of tournaments, a high-roller schedule and a value menu, championships and unique events like those reserved for teams, seniors, and women.
By the end of February, players had access to a full 101-event schedule, registration and payout information, and improvements made for the 2020 WSOP. There was also a daily tournament schedule and cash game information available. The package was nearly complete.
Coronavirus Unknowns
The month of March put everything into a confused state. The spread of the coronavirus pandemic around the globe began to shut down societies and entire countries. Even Las Vegas shut down all non-essential businesses, which included every casino.
Not only were millions of people around the world confined to their homes, there was no end in sight. Countries watched as Italy and Spain faced unimaginable disease and death, and no one knew how their own countries would be impacted or how long the quarantines would last.
All the while, poker tours and casinos cancelled tournaments through March, and then through April, and then into May. The cancellations included many events on the WSOP Circuit – both US and international events through the rest of the 2019-2020 season.
WSOP officials maintained all along that it was too early to make a decision about the summer series. It depended upon the casino’s decision to reopen, Nevada’s decisions regarding public health, and the ability to keep players safe.
A Decision
On April 20, the WSOP made its decision. Little more than one month remained before the scheduled start date of the 2020 World Series of Poker, and players needed to know.
The 51st running of the World Series of Poker was officially postponed.
The release stated that the postponement was “a result of the public health emergency involving COVID-19.” And the hope is to reschedule it for the fall of 2020, which means sometime around September or October. However, everything is yet to be determined, and “changes are anticipated.”
WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart said, “We are committed to running the World Series of Poker this year but need additional time to proceed on our traditional scale while prioritizing guest and staff well-being.”
The one tournament that the WSOP is most committed to hosting – somehow, some way – is the 2020 WSOP Main Event. Everything else, however, is in flux.
Online Options but Not for Aussies
The WSOP is planning to offer some online events through the summer to players in the US and on a global level.
“In the interim, official WSOP competitions are expected to be played online this summer, and we will soon announce details of an expanded series of tournaments to be played on WSOP.com and through partnerships with international operators, which will allow players to chase WSOP glory from their homes.”
However, this will not include Australians.
The WSOP.com tournaments are only available to people in three American states – Nevada, New Jersey, and Delaware. As for the international partnership, the WSOP recently announced that it is working with GGPoker. The two are planning a global WSOP Super Circuit Online Series for early May. This is likely to be the partner for any official summer WSOP bracelet tournaments as well.
The problem for Australians is that they are not allowed to play on GGPoker. They will not be able to access the May WSOP Circuit events online or anything that the WSOP offers online this summer.
This will be the case for other countries, too. Players in ring-fenced markets like France, Spain, Italy, and Portugal will not be able to play on GGPoker, for example. And players in the US are not allowed to play on GGPoker. (The vast majority of Americans are also not able to play on WSOP.com, either.
Wait and See
Players who had reservations for the Rio in Las Vegas – or any Caesars Entertainment property in Las Vegas – can visit the Caesars reservation website to cancel or delay their hotel accommodations.
If WSOP live events are rescheduled for later in 2020, players will likely have advanced notice, enough so that they can book flights and handle other accommodations to Las Vegas.
Meanwhile, Aussies will need to wait and see what happens or simply scrap all ideas of participating in the 2020 WSOP altogether.
