As the live poker action began to wind down in Las Vegas, the World Series of Poker kicked off its WSOP Europe series at King’s Casino in Rozvadov, Czech Republic.
Americans may have forgotten about the WSOPE, but players on other continents anxiously awaited it. The American borders may have opened on November 8, but players from many parts of the world didn’t care to pay last-minute airfare and scramble for accommodations to play in Las Vegas. And they did have the WSOP Europe option.
As a reminder, the WSOPE started on November 19 with a schedule set to run through December 7. There are 15 bracelet events on the schedule with buy-ins ranging from €300 to €100K. And this series, unlike the one in Las Vegas, offers guarantees on all of its events. The total for all 15 events exceeds €11M. The WSOP released the original schedule in July but tweaked it in October.
Vaccination Requirements
Everyone knew that the WSOP in Las Vegas decided to apply a vaccine mandate. But King’s Casino made its own announcements leading up to WSOP Europe.
On October 29, King’s Casino informed all guests of the casino and hotel property that they needed to prove their health status before entering. From November 1 – applying to all activities, not just WSOPE – guests needed to show proof of vaccination, proof of a negative antigen or PCR test, or show proof of recovery from Covid-19 within the past 180 days. King’s decided to provide free tests for 15-minute results.
Just earlier this week, King’s announced that every member of the King’s staff had been vaccinated. In addition, there would be consistent disinfection of all tables, slots, and public surfaces. They would also make hand sanitizer readily available.
https://twitter.com/PokerroomKings/status/1460332020085706753?s=20
Event 1: €300 NLHE Opener
They’re ready! The opening tournament of the 2021 WSOP Europe welcomed players in for the smallest buy-in of the series. The first of the two starting flights brought a massive field into play. It registered 744 entries to start, which was nearly twice the number of this Day 1A from 2019. Play stopped that night with just 149 players still in. Those players now receive a day of rest so that Day 1B can play. And survivors from both days will combine on Sunday to play Day 2 and then on to a winner.
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