On Thursday, officials from the World Series of Poker (WSOP) announced that cable station Versus will air action from select Circuit Events. Poker Productions, which brings shows like GSN’s “High Stakes Poker” and NBC’s “National Heads-Up Poker Championship” to life, will produce the WSOP Circuit programming.
Versus has not yet announced which events it will be carrying, but the series is expected to debut next June. What is certain is that the network will air the $1 million WSOP Circuit National Championship, which awards a gold bracelet to its winner. The player who takes home the top prize will also be one of 10 to claim a share of a $1 million prize pool.
There are four ways to qualify for the National Championship: win a $1,500 Main Event at any Circuit stop, accrue the highest number of points of any player at a WSOP Circuit stop, reach the final table of a $10,000 Regional Championship, or make the top 36 in points by season’s end. This is the first season that a National Championship will be held, as it was introduced as part of a large-scale overhaul of the WSOP Circuit in July.
WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart was looking forward to bringing Circuit Events to poker fans on Versus: “This is a big milestone for the industry. We’re thrilled that one of the premier all-sports networks has recognized the brand power of the WSOP and decided to take the plunge into broadcasting our game.”
Jeff Goldberg, Vice President of Programming for Versus, added, “We are very excited to present coverage of the World Series of Poker Circuit tour to a national audience of more than 75 million U.S. homes. The WSOP tour is one of the most successful in the business and we knew it was a great opportunity for our first venture into poker tournament coverage.”
The WSOP Circuit can currently be found in Hammond, Indiana, where the first Regional Championship of the season will soon take place at the Horseshoe Casino. The stop includes 11 events, including a $10,000 Regional Championship that starts on October 25th. The final nine players will earn a spot in the National Championship, which will occur at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas just before the start of the 2011 WSOP at the Rio.
Today’s kickoff event at the WSOP Circuit stop in Hammond is a $350 No Limit Hold’em tournament. The winner gets a coveted Circuit gold ring, a $10,000 Regional Championship seat, and a seat into the $1,600 WSOP Hammond Main Event. On Saturday, the second event of the WSOP Circuit stop will play out, a $560 No Limit Hold’em contest. Then, players can test their skills in games like HORSE and Limit Omaha Eight or Better throughout the rest of the schedule.
Points on the WSOP Circuit are awarded to players who cash in events. Preliminary ring event winners bank 50 points and the top 27 on the leaderboard earn at least five points. Beyond the top 27, finishing in the money will earn each player 2.5 points. Winning a $1,500 buy-in Main Event means 100 WSOP Circuit points.
Other $10,000 Regional Championships will play out at Harrah’s Atlantic City, Harrah’s Rincon, and Harrah’s New Orleans. Versus formerly aired the UB.com-sponsored poker news show “Poker2Nite,” which starred Joe Sebok and Scott Huff. “Poker2Nite” lasted one season on the network and was not renewed.
