The Process of a $1,500 WSoP Seat

[shipitfish]

I got this email this morning that explains the details of the WSoP entry from Full Tilt:

Congratulations on your finish in our “Race For Bracelets” tournament. We are pleased to tell you that $500 has been placed in your account, and that you can collect your $1500 in World Series of Poker tournament chips at Full Tilt Poker's hospitality suite at Rio Hotel in Las Vegas. These tournament chips can be put toward the entry fee for any of the WSOP's tournaments, including the Main Event.

Please note, you are responsible for your own travel arrangements and expenses. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

Also make sure that you are aware of the identification requirements that need to be met to receive your prize. You can find all of the information at the link below: http://www.fulltiltpoker.com/wsopseats.html

You can pick up the chips in our hospitality suite. The suite will be across from the main tournament area in the convention center space of the Rio.

[ Details of how to find the suite and when it is open. ]

Also please note, that Full Tilt Poker will not be pre-registering players for any of the preliminary events.

A few interesting things to note here:

• will not be pre-registering players: This is somewhat annoying, although the events are highly unlikely to sell out, I assume. There is, in fact, no indication that there are entrant number caps on any of the events. And, hey, if they are setup to have 8,000 or more in the main event, they surely have room and staff to accommodate the smaller events.
• can be put toward the entry fee for any of the WSOP's tournaments, including the Main Event: this is really interesting. You could actually just win seven of these little ones and get a main event seat instead. However, I was playing this specifically because I wanted to be in a smaller event, so I am not going to chase more of these little ones to try and do that. Besides, winning seven would be tough.
• These tournament chips: cute. I guess I didn't realize that there was WSoP “funny money”. It makes sense, though — it's an easy to pay out satellite winners of all sorts. However, if they are as good as cash when it comes to entry in WSoP events, it contradicts this part from the rules and regulations page: any WSOP entry ... won at Full Tilt Poker is non-transferable. If you cannot use your entry, it cannot be given away. Once I have the tourney chips, couldn't I give them away? Or, are they just using term loosely?
• Also from rules page, The name you registered with Full Tilt Poker is the same as the name on your license or passport: Phew, I'm glad that I registered under my real name on Full Tilt.

I am strongly leaning toward playing event 37, which is a three-day NL HE tournament starting on Tuesday 25 July 2006. Here are my reasons:

• NL HE is currently by far my best game. I used to be much better at limit HE, but I am so out of practice, and I don't think I could get up to speed quickly enough to make my limit HE skills match my NL HE skills.
• According to last years' entrant count, Event 37 had only 863 entrants. This was the smallest $1,500 NL HE field by at least 150 at the 2005 WSoP. My feeling is that I have more of a shot to cash in a smaller field. (And, I must be realistic that my goal is to cash, not make a final table.) While the scores are bigger with larger fields, when you only have one shot, you have better odds with a smaller field.
• I theorize that Event 37 attracts fewer pros. 37's final table is the day before Day 1A of the main event. The pros have been playing events of this magnitude all month. If they're going to sit one out, it's probably going to be this one, to give themselves a rest before playing the Big One. I wish I could confirm this theory, but I haven't been able to find lists of registrants' names to the 2005 WSoP events online; I presume it's not published.
• I have decided, given my excitement of this win, to play some main event satellites now. If I do get very lucky and win a main event seat too, it will be easy to extend my trip if my plan is to be there just before it.

This whole thing just has me so excited. I know that I'll be a underdog to the field; tournament poker is generally not my thing. But, it's just so much fun. I feel like I used to when I first started going to my first computer conferences as a young undergraduate. It's just so much fun to go see a “convention” of something that really interests you.

Comments

WSOP CHIPS

[(Anonymous)]

Looks like for events other than the Main event, they are using WSOP value chips similar to what they use at WSOP circuit events. I just came back from the Lake Tahoe Circuit and I was able to use the Satellite chips as value for a number of other events.

I won a Main Event package and they are doing the pre-registration for that event only, but will still provide "WSOP" Chips to confirm the registration.

I have thought before myself what you are thinking about reducing the field and using some of the smaller events and I think it is a very good idea, that may pay off, especially when the pros are thinking of the Main Event and the tourists have either already left or are visiting the first weekend day of the main event.

Good Luck to you.

Will
will@xpresstechnology.org