The World Series of Poker, WSOP for short, is the biggest and most high-status set of poker tournaments in the world. Held in the casinos of Las Vegas, Nevada, the WSOP’s first event was held in 1970. It’s been held every year since and is growing each year ever since. It features various poker styles and multiple winners every year. The final prize of WSOP is called the “Main Event” and consists of Texas Hold ‘Em.
Though the WSOP has been around since 1970, it started gaining national popularity only as poker fans around the globe have increased. With the screening of the “Main Event” on ESPN in the early 2000s, the WSOP turned into a cultural phenomenon. Since then, prizes have multiplied exponentially and the numbers of competitors have boomed. Poker stars and celebrities alike have sought after WSOP seats in the 2000s.
Texas Hold ‘Em is the Main Event, but the poker championship of WSOP has included as high as 55 different poker styles. Each winner receives a World Series of Poker bracelet along with cash winnings. The smaller events consist of five and seven-card stud, Omaha hold ‘em and Pai-Gau (Chinese poker), each of leading to the Main Event.
The Hold ‘Em tournament has come to define the World Series of Poker and featured some of the game’s biggest names along with some of the WSOP’s most regular winners. Among these players you can find poker legends Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Moss, Johnny Chan, and Crandell Addington. The winner of the Main Event in 2005received over $7.5 million USD after a $10,000 USD buy-in. The total prize money came to over $52 million USD to over 500 players that year.
The WSOP started in 1969 as the idea of poker player Benny Binion. The first event took place at the Holiday Hotel and Casino in Reno. The following year it was held at Binion’s casino in Las Vegas, `The Horseshoe`, where it stayed until 2004. Harrah’s Entertainment bought the Casino in 2004 and the WSOP moved to the Rio Hotel and Casino, where it’s being held since.
Since 2005, the WSOP has almost tripled in size with the arrival of on-line gaming. With the addition of amateur players in the Main Event, non-professionals have come to play and are being a large part in the WSOP. Chris Moneymaker and Greg Raymer were the first amateurs to win in 2003 and 2004. The number of players in the WSOP Main Event increased from 500 in the year 2000, to over 5,000 in the year 2005 thanks to this new evolution.
