Most people know what a poker tournament is: an arranged series of games where players
compete for a fixed prize pool with a set number of chips. The entrant who manages
to retain his/her chips throughout the tournament and capture those of their opponents
becomes the winner. There are thousands of poker tournaments organised every year,
but some major events stand out from the crowd; particularly the World Series of
Poker, European Poker Tour and Aussie Millions.
1. World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is by far the largest poker competition in the
world. Anyone can qualify for the WSOP, but it is also possible to buy a place in
the tournament - although for that, you'll need to have a spare 10,000 dollars (7,300
euros)! The tournament is held annually in Las Vegas and runs from early June to
mid-July, attracting more than 20,000 visitors to the Main Event in Las Vegas every
year. The world's top poker players participate in the WSOP and they all aim to
play their way to the Main Event, where the winner will win a multi-million dollar
cash prize and the famous WSOP bracelet. Since 2004, the WSOP also appoints a Player
of the Year prize to the person that has collected the most points throughout the
tournament.
2. European Poker Tour
The European Poker Tour (EPT) is the world's biggest poker tour with organised and
exciting poker events held in some of Europe's most exciting and exclusive destinations.
Similar to the WSOP, anyone can win a seat to the tour's Main Event by qualifying
online. The best will play their way to the EPT Grand Final, which is always held
at the Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco. The European Poker Tour begins in August each
year and runs until the Grand Final in April.
3. Aussie Millions
Poker is a huge thing even in the southern hemisphere, where the biggest tournament
is the Crown Australian Poker Championship - commonly known as the Aussie Millions.
The prize pool for the Aussie Millions is at 1.65 million AUS (896,000 GBP). The
final of the Aussie Millions takes place in Melbourne at the Crown Casino and has
done so since the tournament was held for the first time in 1998.
Common to all major poker tournaments is the quest for glory, fame and prize money.
It requires big cash prizes in order to attract the world's best poker players,
so it's only natural to have prize pools of millions of dollars! The winner of one
of the biggest events will always become a multi-millionaire.