It normally happens each summer. The World Series of Poker sets its bookend dates for its summer series in Las Vegas, which usually begins during the last days of May and runs through mid-July. Other casinos with prominent card rooms around Las Vegas then announce their own series. Casinos like the Orleans and Golden Nugget tend to offer lower buy-in options for poker players, while the Venetian and Wynn – and usually Aria – give players a variety with more buy-ins on the high side.
The competition is healthy, and poker players have a wide range of choices for poker tournaments.
This year, the WSOP scheduled its series for September 30 to November 23, the first time for an autumn series. That – plus the ongoing and endlessly frustrating pandemic – required poker rooms in Las Vegas to make some decisions.
Many of them decided to host summer series anyway. The Wynn, Venetian, and Orleans did offer summer poker series. Even South Point Casino got in on the action, and the PokerGO Tour tossed in a number of high rollers for good measure.
The good news for poker players is that there is also a plethora of poker series lined up at neighboring Las Vegas casinos during the time of the WSOP. The autumn series vary in scope, but they will all provide alternatives – or complementary options, if you see it that way – to the World Series.
Golden Nugget: Sept 28 – Oct 18
It is the Grand Poker Series, an annual series for the Golden Nugget Las Vegas but one that moved to the fall this year to play out alongside the WSOP. It is a bit shorter than in previous years, but it still offers a range of variants and buy-ins that average about $200 (many less than that and a few more). There are also a number of multi-day entry events and a few invitationals.
Start date: September 28End date: October 18Events: 50Buy-in range: $100 - $600Guarantee range: none - $500KLocation: Golden NuggetOfficial schedule linkStructure link
The Main Event of this series is called the Championship No Limit Hold’em, officially #22 on the schedule. It offers three starting flights (Oct 7-9), with the second day on Oct 10 for all survivors. That tournament requires a $600 buy-in but offers a $500K guarantee, the highest of the series.
The Bar Poker Open Championship will also be a part of this series. Players will have already qualified to play prior to the October 11 start date.
There is no ladies-only tournament in this series this year, though there are two seniors-only events. The Seniors Championship is on October 17 with a $400 buy-in for players 50 and older. The Super Seniors is reserved for players 60 and older and boasts of a $250 buy-in. Both tournaments offer $50K guarantees.
https://twitter.com/GoldenNuggetLV/status/1429521368954048522?s=20
Venetian: Sept 27 – Nov 28
There always seems to be a tournament series at the Venetian on the Las Vegas Strip. And it almost always features deepstacked tournaments. Usually, it’s an extravaganza. This fall, the Venetian will offer the DeepStack Championship II with two months of tournaments and more than $10M in prize pool guarantees.
Start date: September 27End date: November 28Events: 76Buy-in range: $300 - $2,500Guarantee range: $15K - $1MLocation: Venetian poker roomOfficial schedule & structures link
The Main Event of this series will be the NLH DeepStack Championship, which requires a $1,600 buy-in and offers three starting flights (Nov 7-9) with a $1M prize pool guarantee. There will be quite a few satellites for entries, as well as a Mini Championship with a $1,100 buy-in. That one is set with three starting days (Nov 1-3) and also has a $1M guarantee.
Another highlight of this series will be Event 55, the Card Player Poker Tour (CPPT) Main Event. That will host two starting days on November 11-12. The guarantee is another $1M but the buy-in will be $2,500.
Out of 76 tournaments, there isn’t one reserved for women only. However, there are two big ones for seniors. The first one is for players 50 and older with two starting days (Oct 29-30) and a $300K guarantee. The second is the Super Seniors for ages 60 and up, set to begin on November 1, play out for two days, and guarantee $50K for the prize pool.
https://twitter.com/VenetianPoker/status/1435686295280361475?s=20
Wynn: Sept 30 – Nov 21
The Wynn Fall Classic is not exactly a new series but one that was easily flexible to match up almost exactly with the dates of the WSOP. And it is the most ambitious to date with 37 tournaments and more than $13M in guarantees. The Wynn’s poker room is already setting this up to be one of the most popular series of the fall with its big offerings and bigger buy-ins.
Start date: September 30End date: November 21Events: 37Buy-in range: $400 - $3,500Guarantee range: $40K - $3M Location: Wynn poker roomOfficial schedule linkStructure link
The highlight of the series for many players will be the NLH Championship. It will require a $3,500 buy-in, offer three starting flights (Oct 29-31), and guarantee a $3M prize pool. This falls into the middle of the series. Other highlights, however, will be the Mystery Bounty events, one offering a $2M guarantee and the other one with $1.5M.
Ladies, there is a women-only tournament in this series. It will play on October 17 with a $400 buy-in and $40K guarantee. There will then be one event reserved for seniors aged 50 and older later on the schedule. That one has a $1,100 buy-in, two starting days (Oct 24-25), and a $400K guarantee.
https://twitter.com/WynnPoker/status/1431710119234916354?s=20
The Orleans: Oct 1 – Nov 5
Low-stakes poker players can always count on the Orleans to offer tournament series with reasonably-priced buy-ins. Typically, the Orleans runs the Summer Poker Series to coincide with the WSOP. This year, the casino ran it without that big draw to Vegas, but by popular demand, the poker room management decided to run a special Fall Poker Series with more than $2.5M in guarantees.
There will be a NLHE Championship toward the end of the series. The $1K buy-in is the highest of the series, though there will be mega satellites for $150 leading up to it. The Main Event will offer a $750K guarantee and three starting days (Oct 28-30), with the final table playing out on November 1.
Highlights of the series include the Thundering Threes ($333,333 GTD) from October 8-11 and a Mystery Bounty tournament with $400K guaranteed in mid-October. Those mystery bounties will range from $100 to $25K.
This series will not offer any ladies-only or seniors-specific events.
https://twitter.com/OrleansPokerRo1/status/1434047969745989635?s=20
Aria: Oct 5 – Nov 14
The last poker room in Las Vegas to weigh in – thus far – with an October/November series was Aria. The series is simply titled “2021 Autumn at Aria” and isn’t yet linked on the poker room’s web page. It offers a list of mostly no-limit hold’em events, mostly at the $400 buy-in level, and mostly offering $40K guarantees. Most days offer a single tournament starting at 11am, and there are no event numbers associated with them.
The closely-associated PokerGO Tour will offer some high-stakes tournaments during the time of the WSOP, though those will be at the PokerGO Studio and not in the casino’s poker room. The $10K buy-ins will take place on October 13 and then daily November 4-14, with a singular $25K buy-in set for November 25. All are NLHE tournaments.
As for the daily series, these are the basics:
Start date: October 5End date: November 14Events: 41Buy-in range: $240 - $1,100KGuarantee range: $25K - $100KLocation: Aria poker roomOfficial schedule
There is no Main Event, nor is there a ladies-only tournament. There is one seniors-only tournament on October 31 for players aged 50 and up.
https://twitter.com/ThePokerBoss/status/1435075195044196356?s=20
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