The 2021 World Series of Poker Main Event just got bigger…and more diverse.
This week, the United States announced the official easing of border restrictions that had been implemented during the pandemic. The US government had prefaced this move in late September with the intention to make this happen, but there is now a date in place: November 8.
When the WSOP announced the 2021 Las Vegas schedule, it included four starting days to run November 4-7. Considering that fully-vaccinated poker players will be able to enter the United States on November 8, WSOP executives made a quick decision. They added more starting days to give more players the chance to get in and get to the tables.
This could be a game changer.
US Announcement
It started with a September 20 announcement from the White House. The US planned to ease travel restrictions on fully-vaccinated people from certain countries.
Those restrictions had been in place for more than a year pertaining to nonessential travel. That September notice came in response to pressure from Europe and other nations that had been easier on American visitors. The White House finally made this decision in September after consultations with the US National Security Council, Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Departments of State, Homeland Security, Transportation Department, and Health and Human Services.
The goal was to reopen US borders to travelers in November.
The White House finally set a date. On October 15, officials announced that fully-vaccinated foreign travelers will be able to enter the United States via land and air, starting on November 8.
Travelers will need to show proof of vaccination to Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officers at airports and other travel checkpoints.
The key piece of information here is that the process will BEGIN on November 8. All vaccinated foreign nationals can then enter the US by any means. The process for entry for all visitors will start with travelers crossing into the United States by land only. This means that international poker players will need to fly into Canada or Mexico and cross by land.
CNN published an article with all of the details.
New Main Event Schedule
The news about new travel allowances prompted the World Series of Poker to take action. In fact, that same night, the WSOP tweeted that it would add two more flights to the Main Event.
https://twitter.com/WSOP/status/1449222309277933575?s=20
The original 2021 Main Event schedule offered four starting days November 4-7. The first two days’ survivors would meet on November 8, and the second set would get together on November 9. On Wednesday, November 10, all remaining players would gather and play forward toward the money.
That is no longer the case. There are also changes to the number of levels played. Though the old schedule is the one that remains on the official WSOP website and the structure sheet for the Main Event, Kevin Mathers published a revised copy of the structure sheet on Twitter.
The new Main Event schedule is as follows:
-November 4 (Thursday) at 11am: Day 1A (first of six starting days, to play 5 levels)-November 5 (Friday) at 11am: Day 1B (second of six starting days, to play 5 levels)-November 6 (Saturday) at 11am: Day 1C (third of six starting days, to play 5 levels)-November 7 (Sunday) at 11am: Day 1D (fourth of six starting days, to play 5 levels)-November 8 (Monday) at 11am: Day 1E (fifth of six starting days, to play 5 levels)-November 9 (Tuesday) at 12pm: Day 1F (final starting day, to play 5 levels)-November 9 (Tuesday) at 11am: Day 2ABD (combines survivors of Days 1A, 1B, and 1D)-November 10 (Wednesday) at 11am: Day 2CEF (combines survivors of Days 1C, 1E, and 1F)-November 11 (Thursday) at 11am: Day 3 (combines all Day 2 survivors)-November 12 (Friday) at 11am: Day 4 (likely day to begin payouts)-November 13 (Saturday) at 11am: Day 5-November 14 (Sunday) at 11am: Day 6-November 15 (Monday) at 11am: Day 7 (plays down to final table of nine)-November 16 (Tuesday) at time 1:30pm: Day 8 (plays down to four players)-November 17 (Wednesday) at time 1:30pm: Day 9 (play to a winner)
There is a special note at the top of the sheet that indicates a new late registration period. Players can enter the Main Event through the seventh level, which is into Day 2 territory. So, for the first two levels on November 9 and 10. Logistically, it is unclear how it will all happen, but the WSOP will likely clarify when necessary.
https://twitter.com/Kevmath/status/1449231381712670721?s=20
According to Mathers, there are also now new mega satellites into the Main Event.
https://twitter.com/Kevmath/status/1449430114026942467?s=20
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