Are there too many WSOP events?

The 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event $10,000 no-limit hold’em championship has played down to its final nine players. The final table is set and ready to roll for ESPN and poker fans around the world. On November 6 they will play down to the final two, take one day off, then resume on November 8th and play until a champion is crowned. The casual fan is attracted to the large prize pools and requisite poker fame that follows. While the World Series of Poker is poker’s flagship event drawing the attention of millions world wide, there are so many events that there is a very distinct possibility that they are watering down their own brand.

There are many different poker games and each has a dedicated following from players. Whether you prefer razz, pot limit Omaha, or stud hi, the WSOP has a bracelet for that game. Not only that, but there are various buy-in tournaments to match. This year there were 57 total events. Bracelets were given out for buy-in tournaments that ranged from $1,000 to $50,000. Many popular games like no-limit hold’em had multiple events.

When the World Series of Poker was started 1970 the only game played was no-limit hold’em. The second game added was five-card stud in 1973. Throughout the next few decades more and more events were added with bracelets awarded for all of them. While there may be more events, it may not necessarily be a good thing. With so many small buy-in tournaments thousands of players can experience the thrill of playing in the WSOP. However with large fields in the eyes of many poker pros the smaller buy-in tournaments became somewhat of a lotto. Skill was required to win, but you also need to have a lot of luck. Wading through thousands of players is like navigating a mine field. The smaller tournaments also tend to start players with a smaller amount of chips and structure that raises the blinds faster. What that means is a player has to pick up a lot of chips or risk being taken out by the blinds and antes.

Winning a bracelet in the WSOP is still an amazing accomplishment and something anyone would be proud of for the rest of their life. As long as thousands of poker players keep coming Harrah’s will not have any reason to eliminate events. Simple economic theory like supply and demand will dictate whether or not events are added or subtracted in the future. Rather than reduce the number of overall events the less popular events will probably be replaced to reflect the reality of the poker economy and align with the player requests.

Curtis Steuber.