Online Poker

Players competing in this year's World Series of Poker can expect to find a richer variety of games taking place in a newly designed "poker superstructure" adjacent to the Rio casino in Las Vegas.

World Series of Poker commissioner Jeffrey Pollack detailed some of the new plans for poker's biggest event - including a schedule moved up nearly a month - during a recent open conference call.

The final table of this year's $10,000 main event is scheduled for noon July 17, more than three weeks earlier than last year's date of Aug. 10. The 2007 World Series begins June 1 with a $5,000 mixed Texas hold 'em - meaning limit and no-limit - event.

"We'll also be on ESPN earlier than ever before. The turnaround to TV will be shorter," Pollack said.

The revised schedule positions the tournament as "the summer programming we were meant to be, rather than creeping into the fourth quarter," where it faces competition from the NFL and college football.

Playing off the success of last year's $50,000 buy-in HORSE tournament - a mixed-games event featuring hold 'em, Omaha, razz, 7-card stud and 7-card stud high-low split that attracted many of the world's best poker players - officials tweaked and expanded the roster of games available during this year's World Series.

"Last year's HORSE event was a way for us to signal we're going to look at the tournament fresh again each year," Pollack said.

"We wanted to (make HORSE-type games available) not just for the top players but for the other players as well."

The 2007 schedule includes a $2,500 HORSE event, a $5,000 HORSE event and a $1,000 SHOE event along with the reprise of the $50,000 HORSE world championship tournament. Another mixed-game tournament pairs Omaha and stud high-low.

Other tournaments feature "specialty" games such as deuce-to-7 triple draw, Omaha high-low and razz. "That comes from meeting with the players, and listening to the players' requests," said Howard Greenbaum, chief of operations for the World Series.

In all, 55 "bracelet events" - indicating a championship bracelet is awarded to the winner - are planned.

The tournament "superstructure" built next to the Rio will hold 258 tables this year, according to Pollack, who said officials plan to accommodate as many as 10,000 players in the championship event but will not cap the field.
"If there's more, we'll find a way to figure it out," Pollack said.

Harrah's own at least 6 Las Vegas casinos that I can think of, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem to find some extra space...

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