The World Poker Tour (WPT) World Championship is finally here and it kicked off in style, with 9,670 players showing up to play the preliminary WPT Prime Championship, 99 of whom remained going into Day 3.
Yet, even the massive attendance in the Prime Championship will be overshadowed by the ClubWPT Gold Freeroll, where WPT will give away $5,000,000 in cash and other prizes to celebrate the launch of its brand-new sweepstakes poker site.
The Freeroll kicked off on Friday morning, with nearly 1,500 players registered in the early levels, as some of the 2,000 expected failed to show up and put their Golden Passports to use.
As the field continues to shrink and the paid positions approach, we take a look at the events of the day and what you can expect to see in the coming days of the WPT World Championship festival.
Hundreds of Players Flock to the Encore Ballroom
Friday morning saw the biggest poker freeroll of all time kick-off at the Encore Ballroom, which was once again transformed into a poker tournament venue for the duration of the WPT festival.
Hundreds of players made their way to the Ballroom, many of them recreational players with absolutely no previous experience playing the game at these levels.
Yet, they were given an opportunity to play for a first-place prize of a million dollars by WPT, which could be the opportunity of a lifetime for many of them.
The masses of Golden Passport winners were joined by some big names, including the likes of Phil Ivey, Xuan Liu, Joey Ingram, Mariano Grandoli, and quite a few other well-known names in the poker industry.
Dan “Jungleman” Cates joined the action as well, making a characteristic big entry, taking on the role of Willy Wonka and bringing his Oompa Loompas with him to create quite a show in the Ballroom.
An icon of the poker world or a complete amateur, everyone in the field will be in with the same chance of making a deep run and winning one of the hundreds paid spots in what could be the best-value poker tournament ever organized.
Hundreds of Cash Prizes Up for Grabs
When the ClubWPT Gold Freeroll was announced, a full breakdown of the $5,000,000 prize pool brought plenty to be excited about. Out of the 2,000 players expected to play, 503 were set to make the money and win at least something.
The minimum prize of $1,000 will be reserved for everyone who makes the money, with slight pay jumps along the way leading up to the final table.
Everyone who makes the final table of the Freeroll will be guaranteed at least $20,000 in cash, with the second place guaranteed $250,000, and a cool million dollars prize reserved for the champion.
On top of the regular prizes, a million dollars will be given out in the form of mystery bounties, which will kick-in once 297 players are left in the field.
Two $100k and two $50k mystery bounties will be hidden in the envelopes, along with hundreds of others, the lowest of which will be worth $500.
On top of these, additional mystery bounties will be added during final table play, with the top one worth $200k, along with a single $50k bounty, three $25k bounties, and two $10k bounties.
For everyone who makes the money but does not reach the final table, a final draw for 100 seats into the WPT World Championship event will take place, giving them one more shot to make it big at the festival.
Overall, the tournament will easily be one of the best opportunities you could ever have in poker, with quite an exciting couple of days ahead for hundreds of players who got their seats with absolutely no risk involved.
Three Contestants Left in the McLaren GTS Draw
Over the last couple of days, WPT has been giving away countless prizes via a prize drum placed near the Encore Ballroom. Anyone who wanted to was allowed to pull a card from the drum, but a few players got way luckier than others.
Josh Bobrosky, Rafael Orellana, and Richard Wilson are the three lucky players who pulled the coveted “Jackpot” cards and will be in the final stage of the draw and with a chance at winning the top prize, a brand-new McLaren GTS, worth over $200,000.
All three contestants are in their 20s, and all three will be in with a chance at winning the valuable prize come Sunday, when one of them will be awarded the opportunity to drive home in a dream car.
The winner will be offered an opportunity to take the car or $150k in cash instead, while the remaining two players will split $50k in cash.
The player who gets the main prize will be forced to choose between padding his poker bankroll and driving off in the fastest ride of their lives.
Neither of the three has yet made up their mind on which way they will go, so the final decision will come down to the wire.
WPT World Championship Kicks Off Tomorrow
As players drop from the $5 Million Freeroll, they make space for those who will be signing up for tomorrow’s Day 1A of the WPT World Championship, the most anticipated tournament of the WPT season.
The next couple of days will see hundreds of the world’s best poker players, including those not yet in Las Vegas, descend upon the Wynn/Encore and take their shot at what should be another massive WPT season finale.
Stay tuned for more updates from the 2024 WPT World Championship festival, as action heats up and new millionaires emerge over the next week.
