What makes an excellent poker tournament? Is it the number of players who enter to put their skills to the test? The size of the final prize? How big an audience is? In truth, playing the best online poker for real money and in-person poker tournaments encapsulate all of these factors.
They attract a lot of players and big audiences, and the sheer size of the pot is enough to make your eyes water. Some tournaments simply generate more hype than others, and this is usually due to a combination of all the above. If you’d like to experience something more professional than online poker with friends, we’ve got you covered.
Pre-2020, poker tournaments were massive, raking in millions of dollars in viewing fees alone. However, as we all know, the universe had other plans, and, like other sporting events around the world, poker tourneys had to go ahead without any fans in attendance.
The poker sites and sponsors managed to pull a few of these incredible tournaments together for 2021, but the pandemic ensured that the calendar was a little less meaty than normal. Regardless, there were still some exceptional poker events throughout the year. These were the biggest events to keep an eye out for in 2021, as well as some poker events for 2022.
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is undoubtedly the biggest poker event of every year. It’s the “World Cup” of poker. The WSOP Online Circuit Series began on January 14 – kicking off with a whole host of online tournaments to get the 2021 circuit in motion.
At this point, the Covid-19 pandemic was still making live poker events a bit of a challenge and as such, the WSOP expanded its online offering. The circuit consisted of 13 online events with more prize money and over 180 WSOP Gold Rings. The online circuit had incentives and a championship model similar to its live events.
Each of the tournament series had 12 official WSOP Gold Ring events, including $1,000 and $2,000 high-roller events, and a $500 PLO (pot-limit Omaha) tournament. A whopping $600,000 was added as extra prize money across different events and promotions. Here are some of the key WSOP events.
$250,000 WSOP Online Circuit Championship – WSOP Gold Bracelet Event
The year-end WSOP Online Circuit Championship is the one that everyone looks forward to, and with 256 entrants playing it out for the $250,000 prize pool, it’s easy to see why.
According to the WSOP website, “There are multiple ways a player can become eligible:”
- Win a WSOP Gold Ring event during the 2021 season
- Win a $10,000 Player of the Month Leaderboard
- Win a Second Chance Fast Forward
$10,000 WSOP.com Circuit Player of the Month
The top 10 players on the WSOP Circuit Series Leaderboard at the end of each month will win a share of $10,000 in tournament tickets and will get the opportunity to take part in the Monthly Freeroll of $25,000. On top of that, the top finisher on the leaderboard will win a seat to the $250,000 Year-End Championship Event.
Players will earn points from this leaderboard by participating in WSOP Gold Ring events each month.
WSOP 2021 Circuit Calendar
These monthly online events provide players with more prize money and ways to qualify online. The comprehensive leaderboards and ranking systems included 13 online events and added prize money, with more than 180 WSOP Gold Rings.
Winter Online Super Circuit
Dates: Jan 14-31, 2021
Rings: 18
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, Feb 2, 2021
Planet Hollywood Circuit
Dates: Feb 17-28, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, March 2, 2021
Silver Legacy Circuit
Dates: March 19-30, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Thursday, April 1, 2021
Spring Online Super Circuit
Dates: April 10-27, 2021
Rings: 18
$25k Freeroll: Thursday, April 29, 2021
Caesars Atlantic City Super Circuit
Dates: May 8-25, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Thursday, May 27, 2021
Summer Online Super Circuit
Dates: June 10-27, 2021
Rings: 18
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, June 29, 2021
Bally’s Online Circuit
Dates: July 16-27, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Thursday, July 29, 2021
Rio Online Circuit
Dates: August 20-31, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Thursday, September 2, 2021
Caesars Las Vegas Online Circuit
Dates: September 15-26, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, September 28, 2021
Fall Online Super Circuit
Dates: October 9-26, 2021
Rings: 18
$25k Freeroll: Thursday, October 28, 2021
Paris Las Vegas Online Circuit
Dates: November 10-21, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, November 23, 2021
Harrah’s Las Vegas Online Circuit
Dates: December 8-19, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, December 21, 2021
$250,000 Year-End WSOP Online Circuit Championship – WSOP Gold Bracelet Event
Date: Tuesday, December 28, 2021
Paris Las Vegas Online Circuit
Dates: November 10-21, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, November 23, 2021
Harrah’s Las Vegas Online Circuit
Dates: December 8-19, 2021
Rings: 12
$25k Freeroll: Tuesday, December 21, 2021
$250,000 Year-End WSOP Online Circuit Championship – WSOP Gold Bracelet Event
Date: Tuesday, December 28, 2021
WSOP 2022 schedule
Poker’s flagship event will move to the Strip at Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas. There will be a daily event in 2022. There’s a jam-packed schedule with some of the biggest and most WSOP events yet. Here are some events worth seeing:
Event No. 1: Casino Employees No-Limit Hold’em
Date: May 31, 2022
Days: 2
Buy-in: $500
Event No. 2: High-Roller Bounty No Limit Hold’em
Date: May 31, 2022
Days: 3
Buy-in: $100,000
Event No. 3: Freezeout No Limit Hold’em
Date: June 31, 2022
Buy-in: $100,000
Party Poker
Party Poker, one of the world’s leading poker sites, has a whole host of amazing online poker events and tournaments that took place in 2021. World Poker Tour (WPT) is an entertainment and gaming brand. It hosts a number of world-famous poker tournaments and festivals throughout the year.
Events hosted on Party Poker
WPT500 Online
Dates: March 7-23, 2021
The $530 buy-in, $1,000,000 GTD (guaranteed prize pool) WPT500 tournament kicks off this festival and is followed immediately by the $530 buy-in, $1,000,000 GTD WPT500 Knockout to give everyone a second chance at the WPT title.
While these are the headline events, a whole host of other tourneys take place at the same time, such as the $55 buy-in Super50 and Super50 Knockout, which boast two massive prize pools of $250,000 and $400,000. There was also a range of high-roller tournaments with buy-ins from $1,050 to $5,200.
There’s something for everyone at this festival, with a host of poker formats to choose from, including Omaha, Omaha Knockout, Hyper and Turbo tournaments, and various table-max variants, including two Mix-Max events.
Irish Open Online
Date: March 26-April 7, 2021
The main event in the Irish Open in 2020 attracted nearly 3,000 people and the winner walked away with nearly $600,000.
Played in Ireland, the buy-in stands in euros. The Irish Open Main Event has a €1,100 ($1,310) buy-in and a €1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. However, there is also a range of side events for those with smaller budgets, with mini-version tournaments such as the Mini Main Event, which has a €109 buy-in and €100,000 guaranteed. There’s also the €5,200 buy-in €250,000 Guaranteed Super High Roller event. The festival has many types and formats of poker to choose from, so everyone gets a chance to play the game of their choice.
Grand Prix Ireland Online
Dates: March 28-April 6, 2021
With a mere €55 buy-in and a huge €250,000 prize pool, the Grand Prix Ireland is one of the poker world’s most affordable events. Taking place online in 2021, the format is now going to run as a progressive knockout tournament.
WPT Online Series
Dates: May 14 – June 2, 2021
The exact dates of this event are yet to be announced, but it’s worth getting excited about. The schedule will be announced soon, with championship events and lots of side events. Of course, there’s a massive cash prize up for grabs, as well as a seat to the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions.
WPTDeepStacks Sochi
Dates: August 6-8, 2021
Taking place in Russia, this partypoker LIVE and WPT event is packed to the brim with poker action. Keep an eye out for announcements on when this is going to take place.
WPT World Online Championships
Dates: August 12, 2021
With daily satellites, championship and side events, the WPT World Online Championships bring with it poker fame. Regularly check the site to find out when this event will take place.
Caribbean Poker Party
Dates: November 11-21, 2021
The Caribbean Poker Party in the Bahamas is just the event you need to attend. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for players, and Party Poker will run satellites throughout the year to help players get there. Keep your eyes peeled for the massive main event, the high-roller tournaments and the fun side events that take place in this tournament every year.
Millions Europe
Dates: 29 May -12 June, 2022
Heading to Barcelona, Spain, the Millions Europe is headlined by the $3,206 buy-in Main Event. There’s also the MILLIONS Opener, Warm Up, Bounty, High Roller, Barcelona Cup and more.
BetMGM poker tournaments
Luckily, you don’t have to wait to get involved in a world-class poker tournament. At BetMGM online casino, we have daily real-money online poker tournaments for all our customers. Whether you’re just starting out and looking for tournament experience, improve your poker tournament strategy or you’re an old hand who wants to sharpen your skill set, we have a whole host of daily tournaments for any level and all sorts of budgets.
We know time is money and if you have a tight schedule then we’ve got the perfect solution for you! Our Sit & Go Tournaments are a fun and educational poker-tournament format that gives you the opportunity to win in just an hour. So no matter how strapped you are for time, there’ll always be a way for you to squeeze in an enjoyable poker session.
You can also look forward to the BetMGM Poker Championship scheduled for June 23-26, 2022, which will take place at ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. There are four days of BetMGM poker events scheduled.
Play poker online at BetMGM
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