Main Event coverage starts July 3
The 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is less than four weeks away and while most of us will not have the opportunity to attend in person, we will have the chance to watch much of the action online. On Thursday, PokerGO released its live streaming schedule for the festivities, which features coverage of 21 events, including, of course, the $10,000 Main Event.
nine-handed final table begins on Friday, July 15
PokerGO did not provide detail as to the exact broadcast schedule for the Main Event, instead simply listing the dates during which the tournament will run: July 3-16. To be fair, though, no times or other details were noted for any other events. PokerGO did emphasize the final table dates, which are naturally the days for which most fans will tune in. The nine-handed final table begins on Friday, July 15, and will play down to four players. The champion will be crowned on Saturday, July 16.
Last year, the WSOP ended its television broadcast relationship with ESPN, moving its non-streaming cable coverage to the CBS Sports Network. PokerGO, however, was still the primary provider of live content and there has been little to no mention of CBS’s coverage or schedule for this year.
Something for everyone
In the early years of the poker boom at the beginning of this century, ESPN provided coverage of many other events besides the Main Event. But in the years that followed, coverage was whittled down to just the Main Event and sometimes one or two other marquee events, like the $50,000 Poker Player Championship. Poker fans who enjoy variety and non-Hold’em games should like PokerGO’s lineup for the other 20 events.
No-Limit Hold’em is still the most common game variety, but it only comprises about half the schedule. The middle of the schedule, in particular, is filled with non-Hold’em events, like the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Championship, the $10,000 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Championship, $2,500 Mixed Big Bet, and the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship.
Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo, Mixed No-Limit Hold’em/Pot-Limit Omaha, and No-Limit 2-7 Lowball are also on the slate.
Streaming coverage begins on June 2 with the $100,000 High Roller Bounty No-Limit Hold’em event. It should be a fun one to watch, as not only are the stakes sky high, but each player has a bounty on their head, so the action should be exciting. The final event that PokerGO will live stream is the WSOP Tournament of Champions on July 20. The TOC is a $1m invitation-only freeroll for all of this summer’s bracelet winners and 2021-2022 WSOP Circuit gold ring winners.
WSOP enters a new era
This is a year of change for the World Series of Poker. Since 2005, the WSOP had been held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino on Flamingo Road, just west of the Las Vegas Strip. It was a solid location, easy to get to, with ample parking and lots of tournament space in the convention center.
There had been rumors for years, however, that Caesars Entertainment was looking to move the WSOP. That move became inevitable when Caesars sold the Rio in September 2019 for over $500m.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 World Series of Poker, save for a last-minute hybrid online/live Main Event. Last year’s 2021 WSOP was pushed to the fall, still at the Rio, but this year’s poker festival is back to its normal schedule of late May to mid-July.
for the first time ever, the World Series of Poker will be on the Las Vegas Strip
And with the 2022 WSOP finally comes that change in venue. For the first time ever, the World Series of Poker will be on the Las Vegas Strip, hosted jointly by Paris Las Vegas and Bally’s Las Vegas, the latter of which will soon be renamed Horseshoe Las Vegas. While it will probably be a bit more difficult to drive to the WSOP, the central location on the Strip will make it much easier for fans and gives players more accessible hotel options.