The World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event kicked off on July 3rd with a record-breaking number of runners. A total of 10,112 players entered which exceeded last year’s record of 10,043.
The WSOP is the biggest poker tournament in the world and takes place every July in Las Vegas. You don’t need to be a professional poker player to enter the competition, hence why each year has such a high volume of competitors.
As long as you’re over 21 and can provide the required buy-in, you can enter into the Main Event. For this reason, the WSOP games attract players of all ages and skill levels, with professionals playing against amateurs.
The accessibility of this competition should attract more players. There are, however, several aspects that put many off signing up.
Firstly players must pay the $10,000 buy-in. Not only is this a huge investment, but players also have to pay for flights and accommodation in Las Vegas during its busiest tourist season. Considering these expenses, the fact that the WSOP reached 10,112 players this year is definitely impressive.
Given the massive cost of entering the WSOP, only those with a high level of poker proficiency should enter – otherwise, players are almost guaranteed to incur a huge loss. Wendy Prinsloo states that it’s always best to practice low-stakes and free games before you start betting on bigger games such as the WSOP.
Offshore websites for poker enthusiasts are definitely the best place to start as they allow you to hone your skills while providing you with a chance to win big bonuses. They also let you gamble with cryptocurrency, which is something you can’t do at the WSOP.
This significant amount of entrants means that the WSOP Main Event winner will receive a huge prize pot when the competition ends on July 17. The record-breaking prize pull for 2024 is $94,041,600, which means that the last 1,517 remaining players in the competition will win something. The top 125 players will receive at least $100,000.
Even those who are knocked out before the final table will bag a significant payment from the competition. The person who finishes 12th will receive $600,000 and the players who finish 11th and 10th will receive $800,000 each.
The final nine players will each make at least $1 million for reaching the last table. The person who reaches second place will make $6 million, while the winner will bag at least $10 million plus the WSOP bracelet.
Daniel Weinman of Georgia came first place last year and secured himself the first-ever eight-figure prize in WSOP’s 50-year history. Weinman took home $12.1 in winnings – a record that could once again be broken this July.
The WSOP’s second year of record-smashing statistics is a good indicator that the competition is moving in the right direction. Before 2023, the last attendance record was 8,773, which was set way back in 2006. The incremental increase from 2023 to 2024 suggests that the competition is going to continue to expand in the coming years.
Another record that could be broken this year is the viewership. Last year’s competition had a peak viewership of 77,220.
The series is currently sponsored by Caesars Entertainment and takes place in Las Vegas. The games themselves are spread across two different venues: the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. The final will take place at the Horshoe, as it has done in previous years.