PokerWorks

The World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) is quickly becoming a player favorite, with its past two years’ events drawing players from around the world and receiving media coverage from outlets like ESPN. And as the WSOP in Las Vegas quickly approaches, Harrah’s Entertainment has released the schedule for the September 17 to October 1st Europe tournaments to give players plenty of time to plan their flights and accommodations for the big London events.

Beginning on September 17th, the WSOPE will offer four tournaments with varying buy-ins, the last of which will be the £10,350 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em World Championship event to be played out over five days. And replacing the HORSE event of 2008 will be a pot-limit hold’em and pot-limit Omaha mixed event. The three starting events will each run over a three-day period, and the main event is scheduled for five days. The exact schedule for all four events is as follows:

Friday, Sept. 18 - Event 1 - $£1,060 NLHE w/2 starting days
Monday, Sept. 21 - Event 2 - £2,650 PLHE/PLO mixed
Wednesday, Sept. 23 - Event 3 - £5,250 PLO
Saturday, Sept. 26 - Main Event - £10,350 NLHE w/2 starting days

The inaugural WSOPE main event was won by 18-year old online poker phenom Annette Obrestad, and the 2009 main event resulted in a hard-fought victory by long-time poker pro John Juanda, for which he was awarded £868,800.

WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack said, “The World Series of Poker Europe has quickly established itself as the most prestigious tournament outside the United States. Winning a gold bracelet is recognized globally as the top prize in the sport and we look forward to awarding four more bracelets in 2009 at the Casino at the Empire in London.”

In addition to the WSOP presence, ESPN will be there throughout the main event to film feature table action, key eliminations and hands, and the entirety of the final table, all to be condensed into ten hours of coverage that will air in the United States at a later date not yet announced. The program will also be sold to non-ESPN markets for viewing on various channels, such as Channel 4 in the U.K. And live coverage of the event will be broadcast at ESPN360.com for viewers in the U.S., Europe, Mexico, and Brazil.

The 2009 WSOPE will again be presented by Betfair and take place at the Casino at the Empire in London, located in Leicester Square. The casino promises 24-hour cash games and side tournaments, and is even offering satellites for the WSOPE until the start dates. There will also be satellites offered at the Rio All-Suites Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas from July 9-11 during the summer’s WSOP main event. Players can also preregister for any WSOPE event at any London Clubs International casino in the UK or at the Rio.

Michael Silberling, COO of London Clubs International, commented, “The Casino at the Empire has quickly become the destination for poker in the UK. We look forward to hosting the best players in the game for the WSOPE this fall and will continue to offer the finest poker action daily for those in Leicester Square.”

While players gear up for the 2009 WSOP in Las Vegas, as Event 1 begins on May 27, they can also begin making their plans for London in September as well in order to maximize their chances for World Series of Poker bracelets and participation in the most exciting and watched tournaments in the world.