With the 2018 World Series of Poker about to begin, what better time for the WSOP to release the schedule for the upcoming 2018-2019 WSOP Circuit season? It will be the most expansive season ever for the now fifteen-year old tour, with 28 stops, ending in the Global Casino Championship.
Though the 2018-2018 WSOP Circuit season has more stops than any previous season, there are no new venues on the schedule. On location – Horseshoe Baltimore – has been jettisoned, while Seminole Casino Coconut Creek will be the site of both Florida Circuit stops.
The WSOP has also made some changes to the tournaments for next season. While I wouldn’t necessary classify any of them as “major,” they are significant enough to be worth mentioning. Rather than a rehash, here are the changes, quoted straight from the WSOP’s press release:
• More Starting Chips – Each official WSOP Circuit ring event now gives players many more starting chips than previously. The most popular price points, the $365 (now $400) and the Main Event (now $1,700) will increase starting stacks 50% each. So the $400 buy-in will start with 15,000 chips and the Main Event begins with a 30,000 starting stack.
• Price Point Polishing – Both to ease customer and cashier process time and to help beef up the prize pools, the WSOP Circuit will introduce some new price points in 2018-19. Buy-ins will now feature $250, $400, $600, $1,125, $1,700, $2,200, $3,250 and $5,300 ranges. The new primary price points will be $250, $400 & $600, while higher buy-ins remaining the same at $1,125, $2,200, $3,250 and $5,300.
• Introduction of Big Blind Ante – Some ring events offered in 2018-19 will feature the Big Blind Ante format. The popular new innovation that replaces players anteing every hand, to anteing once an orbit when in the Big Blind, was tested at points during the last circuit season and has been introduced in some play at the 2018 WSOP. Gaining widespread approval and adoption, Big Blind Ante takes away the frustrations faced when players are slow or forget to ante, as well as eases dealer chip collection, thus making for a more fun and positive experience.
“For our fifteenth season, the time was right to take a hard look at our offering and refreshing it to give players a better experience all around,” said long-time WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel in the news release. “Everyone loves more starting chips, and we think things like the Big Blind Ante and larger prize pools will be big hits for all players.”
2018-2019 World Series of Poker Circuit Schedule
August 2-13, 2018 – Harrah’s Cherokee (North Carolina)
August 16-27, 2018 – Foxwoods Resort Casino (Connecticut)
September 6-17, 2018 – Thunder Valley Casino (Sacramento area, California)
September 13-24, 2018 – Seminole Casino Coconut Creek (Coconut Creek, Florida)
September 27 – October 8, 2018 – Horseshoe Southern Indiana (Louisville)
October 11-22, 2018 – Horseshoe Hammond (Chicago)
October 25 – November 5, 2018 – Harveys Lake Tahoe (Reno/Tahoe Nevada)
October 31 – November 12, 2018 – Choctaw Durant (Dallas/Oklahoma)
November 16–27, 2018 – Planet Hollywood (Las Vegas Strip)
November 22 – December 3, 2018 – Harrah’s Cherokee (North Carolina)
December 1-12, 2018 – The Bicycle Casino (Los Angeles)
December 6-17, 2018 – IP Casino Resort Spa (Biloxi, Mississippi)
January 2-14, 2019 – Choctaw Durant (Dallas/Oklahoma)
January 10-21, 2019 – Thunder Valley Casino (Sacramento area, California)
January 17-28, 2019 – Horseshoe Tunica (Mississippi)
January 31 – February 11, 2019 – Potawatomi (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
February 7–18, 2019 – Seminole Casino Coconut Creek (Coconut Creek, Florida)
February 15-26, 2019 – Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino (Las Vegas)
February 21 – March 4, 2019 – Horseshoe Hammond (Chicago)
February 28 – March 11, 2019 – TBA
March 3-14, 2019 – The Bicycle Casino (Los Angeles)
March 7 – 18, 2019 – Harrah’s Atlantic City (New Jersey)
March 14-25, 2019 – Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa (Oklahoma)
March 21 – April 1, 2019 – Bally’s (Las Vegas Strip)
March 28 – April 8, 2019 – Horseshoe Council Bluffs (Omaha/Iowa)
April 10-22, 2019 – Harrah’s Cherokee (North Carolina)
April 25 – May 5, 2019 – Horseshoe Tunica (Mississippi)
May 9-20, 2019 – Harrah’s New Orleans (Louisiana)
TBD – $1 million+ Global Casino Championship
