Countdown Begins To World Series of Poker 2010

With just ten days left before the 41st World Series of Poker get underway in Las Vegas, already a buzz of excitement and anticipation has descended on Sin City where poker’s most prestigious series of tournaments has been taking place since 1970.
The most widely anticipated event in the poker calendar will be running from May 27th until July 17th 2010, during which time the 57 gold bracelets on offer will attract the world’s best players all hoping to make a piece of poker history.
The 6 week poker extravaganza will kick off with the $50,000 Players’ Championship, an 8-game event which replaces the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship event of past years, and eventually will culminate in the hugely popular $10,000 WSOP Main Event.
However, as WSOP tournament director Jack Effel explains: “Whatever your game and whatever your bankroll, the 2010 WSOP schedule offers something for everyone. We are planning for the largest WSOP ever and look forward to welcoming all players to the Rio in Las Vegas this summer.”
At the WSOP 2009, the tournament managed to attract a massive 61,000 entrants with the $10,000 WSOP Main Event contributing 6,494 players of that number. However, one thing the organiser Harrah’s will be keen to avoid is a repeat of last year’s debacle when over 500 players were unable to enter the Main Event on the final day of registration as its capacity had already been reached. Included among the hundreds of disappointed poker players who missed out on the competition were Patrik Antonius, Ted Forrest and T.J. Cloutier.
The Main event also manages to draw the biggest wagers from punters, and so far bookmakers, such as Bet24, are making 7 times WSOP bracelet winner Phil Ivey the favourite to win with odds of 80/1.
Allen Cunningham and Gus Hansen are 100/1, Phil Hellmuth, Peter Eastgate, Dario Minieri, Daniel Negreanu, Patrik Antonius and Barry Greenstein are 125/1, while Scotty Nguyen, Chris Ferguson, Huck Seed, Erik Seidel and Tom Dwan are on offer at 150/1.
Finally, internationally recognized watch designer Steve Soffa has been chosen to create and produce the entire set of gold bracelet prizes for this year’s World Series of Poker event. Soffa, who is also a keen amateur player commenting on his appointment said:
“I’m extremely passionate not only about the game but also about what I do and I want to bring to the table my artistry into the tradition of the game.”