WSOP Paradise Kicks Off: Daniel Negreanu in the House

The first-ever World Series of Poker (WSOP) festival in the Bahamas kicked off yesterday with the first couple of Day 1 flights for the $1,500 Mystery Millions event.

Featuring a $5,000,000 guaranteed prize pool, the Mystery Millions event attracted hundreds of players for Day 1A and 1B action, with plenty of others landing on Paradise Island as you read this.

The most outspoken Ambassador for GGPoker, Mr. Kid Poker himself took to Twitter and announced that he would take a bet on the event having an overlay, which means there could be some added value in store for all the players who make it out to Paradise for the preliminary events.

With action now underway, the inaugural WSOP Paradise festival will run through December 14, with a total of 15 gold WSOP bracelets set to be handed out during the period.

Daniel Negreanu Announces “Shuffle Up and Deal”

In a packed tournament room at the Atlantis Casino, GGPoker Ambassador and poker Hall of Famer Daniel Negreanu announced the much-anticipated “shuffle up and deal” for the first event of the WSOP Paradise festival.

Daniel didn’t waste too much time on the theatrics and decided to get the action going and send those cards in the air as fast as possible, which most players certainly appreciated.

For the WSOP, this entire festival will be a huge experiment, and it will be interesting to see how many players actually show up to play in the massive guaranteed events over the next couple of weeks.

Among those who have already taken their seats was chess player and content creator Alexandra Botez, who wasted no time sharing her excitement for the event and took a selfie with Negreanu who ended up seated to her direct left in the first event of the winter.

Good news: I finally met @RealKidPoker
Bad news: He’s sitting to my left 😅 pic.twitter.com/gtgolmObX2

— Alexandra Botez (@alexandrabotez) December 3, 2023

Dozens of other poker pros and celebrities have announced their intention to play WSOP Paradise over the last month or so, with the likes of Phil Hellmuth, Shaun Deep, Jonathan Little, as well as sporting legends Tony Parker and Sergio Aguero all among the attendees.

They will be joined by over 1,000 online qualifiers who made their way to WSOP Paradise via GGPoker’s satellite events and various promotions, and who will certainly add a special flair to the Atlantis Casino poker room when they arrive for the Main Event festivities.

A New World Champion to Be Crowned

As is usually the case at all WSOP festivals, WSOP Paradise will feature a massive $10,000 buyin Main Event, which will award a minimum of $15,000,000 in prizes this time around.

What’s even more important, the WSOP Paradise Main Event will also award a Main Event winner’s WSOP bracelet, one akin to those held by previous WSOP and WSOPE champions who won theirs in Las Vegas or various European locations.

Indeed, the Main Event will feature a big enough playing field and prize pool to make it a true World Championship event, and many of the world’s best poker players have announced their intention to battle for this unique trophy.

The likes of Phil Hellmuth, Shaun Deeb, and Daniel Negreanu will be on the hunt for WSOP jewelry, while thousands of casual poker players and grinders from all parts of the world will be looking to jump-start their poker careers and get a leg up on these poker elites.

No shortage of notables on the island👀 #2023WSOPP pic.twitter.com/72mbpJuBa1

— WSOP – World Series of Poker (@WSOP) December 4, 2023

Daniel Negreanu’s WSOP Vlogs are Coming Back

For years now, we have had a chance to see WSOP action through the eyes of one of the most active tournament poker players in the world, Daniel Negreanu.

After posting a full series of poker Vlogs from Las Vegas earlier in the year, Negreanu will be back with his daily Vlog recaps of WSOP Paradise, with the first episode already live.

Daniel and his wife Amanda have made it to the Paradise Island where Daniel plans to spend his days playing poker and battling for every chip, while for Amanda the trip to Paradise will be a chance to get a tan and enjoy the beautiful weather of the Bahamas.

We can expect to see plenty of hand breakdowns, Daniel going on tilt and tossing his camera at innocent bystanders, and some fun “Chainsaw Corners” each and every day, all of which are the elements that make these Vlogs some of the best poker content all year.

Make sure to follow Daniel on YouTube for daily notifications on his Vlogs coming out and remember to watch them all the day they are published if you want to get a full recap of what’s been going on in Paradise.

WSOP+ Mobile App Makes Its Debut

For the first time in its history, WSOP is using a branded mobile app to help players handle their WSOP schedules, registrations, payouts, and more.

The WSOP+ mobile app is now available to download for both iOS and Android devices and it will be available throughout the entire festival.

With the help of this app, you will be able to register for events online, avoid the lines, take a look at live tournament clocks and upcoming tournament schedules, and much more.

If you are about to land in Paradise or are already there, we highly recommend downloading the app to your phone to give yourself the very best experience possible.

The WSOP+ app is expected to make future appearances at WSOP festivals to come, in both Las Vegas and Europe, so take this opportunity to give it a test run.

If you sign up with WSOP+ right now, you can even benefit from a series of launch offers which could add thousands of dollars of value to your WSOP Paradise experience, making it well-worth a shot.

Two Weeks of Top Notch Poker in the Bahamas

If you are a poker player, there could hardly be a more appealing idea than spending two weeks basking in the Caribbean sun and playing poker with millions of dollars and WSOP bracelets on the line.

This is exactly what WSOP Paradise will have to offer over the next couple of weeks, so we hope you don’t miss out on this unique opportunity.

Stay tuned for more updates from WSOP Paradise as the poker bonanza unfolds and some fun stories as they come by each day of the festival!

Article by

Zvonimir Potocki

Zvonimir has played poker for well over a decade and shared his knowledge with his fans and followers on various sites. He will help you master anything from basic strategies to advanced topics, so you will not go wrong with his articles. He also loves watching poker on TV and shares his insights about poker celebrities. You can connect with Ivan via his LinkedIn profiile.