Even though the 2011 World Series of Poker is quickly drawing to a close, the large live tournaments of the season are far from over. Some of the best events of the year are yet to come, and we can expect to see a lot of different players shine throughout the rest of the summer and early fall of this year.
Italian Poker Tour
IPT San Remo – 28 July-1 August, 2011
The Italian Poker Tour continues with a stop in San Remo, Italy, where last year’s winner, Marcello Caponnetto, walked away with €170,000. Players can buy-in at Casino Sanremo starting two hours before the event begins, or you can try your luck now with one of the many online qualifiers at PokerStars.
IPT Nova Gorica – 1-5 September, 2011
This event, held in Nova Gorica, Slovenia, is very similar to the San Remo event, but with a more relaxed dress code. Last year’s winner took home 200,000 euro, and the 2011 event promises a greater turnout, not only for the Main Event, but for the live qualifiers that lead up to it.
European Poker Tour
EPT Tallinn – 2-7 August, 2011
Season 8 of the European Poker Tour kicks off in Tallinn, Estonia this year. Unlike many poker events, in which players must be 18 to play, the inaugural event of the newest season of the EPT has a minimum age of 21, due to Estonian laws. Last year, the EPT Tallinn title went to Kevin Stani of Norway, who won the €400,000 first place prize. Like many other players, Stani won his entry in a qualifying satellite.
EPT Barcelona/Estrellas Poker Tour Final – 27 August – 1 September, 2011
Season 8 of the European Poker Tour’s stop in Barcelona promises to be big– last year, the event saw over 750 entrants, creating a prize pool of almost €4 million. The increased field has made last year’s event the biggest poker tournament that Spain has ever seen, and poker players looking for this kind of intensity will not be disappointed in Season 8.
EPT London – 30 September – 6 October, 2011
This classic event on the European Poker Tour ends just in time for players to hop on a plane to France to become part of the action at WSOP Europe, a well-timed maneuver if ever there was one. The EPT and WSOPE events are arranged perfectly to keep all the big names in poker in Europe for a month. Players need to be registered with the Grosvenor Victoria Casino in order to participate, and PokerStars has a series of satellite tournaments for those who want an alternative to forking out the ₤5,000 buy-in.
EPT San Remo – 21-27 October, 2011
Since its first year as a part of the European Poker Tour, the San Remo event has quickly become one of the biggest pots in not only the EPT but live competitive poker today. Past EPT San Remo winners include Jason Mercier and Liv Boeree; Mercier won over €800k, while Boeree won around €1.25 million. As with all EPT events, qualifiers are through PokerStars.
Latin American Poker Tour
LAPT Punta del Este – 3-7 August, 2011
The Latin American Poker Tour heads to Punta del Este, Uruguay in early August and kicks off this leg of the tournament in style with a welcome party at the Mantra Casino on the 3rd, then follows it up with another party at Nogaro Casino on the 6th. This event has low buy-ins, compared to the other poker tournaments currently out there, although players can also qualify online.
Grosvenor UK Poker Tour
Grosvenor UK Poker Tour Leg 4: Luton – 14-21 August, 2011
The side events for this leg of the GUKPT involve a series of freezeouts with low buy-ins (all are ₤500 or under), while the main event is standard No-Limit Hold’em.
GUKPT Goliath at the Ricoh Arena – 24-28 August, 2011
If you have time for only one European event this year, you might want to consider this mammoth event from the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour for two reasons: the event has a buy-in of only ₤100 as part of their drive to break European records for tournament attendance, and 25% of all buy-ins goes to Marie Curie Cancer Care, which provides nurses and hospice workers to the terminally ill.
Grosvenor UK Poker Tour Leg 5: Coventry – 9-16 October, 2011
The GUKPT officials have curious timing, as they scheduled this event to coincide with WSOP Europe, but there will likely be very little overlap between the two tournaments. Grosvenor is the small pond in this scenario where many of the big fish will be leaving to pursue bigger pots and stronger competition.
Asian Poker Tour
APT Asian Series – 17-23 August, 2011
The Asian Poker Tour Asian Series is in the Phillipines this year, and the Main Event has a buy-in of 50,000 Phillipine pesos (a little over $1,000). There are also a large number of qualifiers for the APT events; you can learn more about the tournament at theasianpokertour.com.
World Series of Poker Europe
WSOP Europe – 7-20 October, 2011
This two week event will be counted in the Player of the Year race, so expect to see more faces from the United States than ever before, especially from the leaders in the PoY race, as missing this tournament could cost them the title. Unlike the regular WSOP, which offers a large number of poker types, the WSOPE is really just focused on Hold’em and Omaha, with no other forms of poker making an appearance this year.
There are eight events in this year’s WSOPE, including the unnumbered Ladies Event, which once again does not offer a bracelet. The other events are: €2,860 Six-Handed No Limit Hold’em, €1,090 No Limit Hold’em, €5.3k Pot Limit Omaha, €3.2k No Limit Hold’em Shootout, €10.4K No Limit Hold’em (Split Format), €1,620 Six-Handed Pot Limit Omaha, and the €10.4K Main Event Championship.