Only 10 days to go and here’s how the 2015 WSOP tournaments break down…
There are 68 tournaments on the 2015 WSOP Schedule, an increase of 3 over last year. If your specialty is playing No-Limit Hold’em, you have 37 opportunities to play for a bracelet; the same number of opportunities as in the 2014 WSOP.
The 2015 WSOP schedule features lower-priced, uber-affordable tournaments. First up is the $565 no-limit hold’em tournament called “COLOSSUS“. The COLOSSUS features a guaranteed $5,000,000 prize pool, 2 starting days with 2 flights per day. No rebuys, but re-entries are allowed (if player busts or forfeits chips from previous flight prior to bagging). If the maximum number of players register for each flight, the tournament will be the largest open-field tournament ever with over 20,000 entrants. In this post PokerListings.com does a nice job of explaining the seating capacity and reports that preregistration for the tournament was already creating a logistic challenge back in March.
Also on the uber-affordable scale is the July 4th weekend $777 Lucky 7’s no limit hold’em tournament; the last tournament before the 2015 schedule wraps up with the $10K Main Event. New to the WSOP schedule, the Lucky Sevens tournament features 1 starting day with two starting flights. Players can re-enter once, into flight A or B.
In addition to lower-priced tournaments, organizers have sought to increase “play” time by increasing starting chip stacks, extending play time for levels, adding new levels, and extending registration time (for certain tournaments with buy-ins below $10K). Check the WSOP schedule and tournament structure sheets. Here’s how starting chip stacks have increased, as reported on WSOP.com:
- $565 buy-in: 5,000 starting chips (Colossus, new event; 10 times the buy-in, same as last year’s Monster Stack)
- $777 buy-in: 5,000 starting chips (new buy-in level this year, treated like a $1k event) – 100 big blinds
- $1,000 buy-in: 5,000 starting chips (increase of 66% over 2014) – 100 big blinds
- $1,500 buy-in: 7,500 starting chips (increase of 66% over 2014) – 150 big blinds
- $2,500 buy-in: 12,500 starting chips (increase of 66% over 2014) – 167 big blinds
- $3,000 buy-in: 15,000 starting chips (increase of 66% over 2014) – 200 big blinds
- $5,000 buy-in: 25,000 starting chips (increase of 66% over 2014) – 250 big blinds
Breakdown by Game
Here’s how the 68 tournaments in the 2015 WSOP breakdown by game type.
| Game | # Tourneys of this Type | % Tourneys of this Type |
|---|---|---|
| No-Limit Hold’em | 37 | 54 |
| Limit Hold’emv | 7 | 10 |
| Pot-Limit Omaha | 7 | 10 |
| Mixed Games including 10-Game Dealer’s Choice, Poker Players Championship, Omaha mixes, etc. | 6 | 9 |
| Seven Card Stud | 4 | 6 |
| H.O.R.S.E | 3 | 4 |
| Omaha Hi/Low | 2 | 3 |
| Razz | 2 | 3 |
Breakdown by Buy In Fee
Now that you know the game mix of the 68 tournaments, let’s look at the mix by buy in.
| Buy In | # Tourneys w/this Buy In | % Tourneys w/this Buy In |
|---|---|---|
| $1,500 | 24 | 35 |
| $10,000 | 14 | 21 |
| $1,000 | 10 | 15 |
| $3,000 | 6 | 9 |
| $5,000 | 5 | 7 |
| $565 | 2 | 3 |
| $2,500 | 2 | 3 |
| $777 | 1 | 1 |
| $1,111 | 1 | 1 |
| $25,000 | 1 | 1 |
| $50,000 | 1 | 1 |
| $111,111 | 1 | 1 |
There are quite a few affordable options this year.
No Limit Hold’em Tournaments by Buy-In
How much is playing in the 2015 WSOP going to cost you? Take a look at the buy in mix spread over the 37 no limit hold’em tournaments during this WSOP.
| Buy In | # NLHE Tourneys w/this Buy In | % NLHE Tourneys |
|---|---|---|
| $1,500 | 12 | 32 |
| $1,000 | 9 | 24 |
| $5,000 | 5 | 14 |
| $10,000 | 3 | 8 |
| $565 | 2 | 5 |
| $3,000 | 2 | 5 |
| $777 | 1 | 3 |
| $1,111 | 1 | 3 |
| $2,500 | 1 | 3 |
| $111,111 | 1 | 3 |
There are no strictly No Limit Hold’em tournaments in the $25K and $50K range, and one of the $565 No Limit Hold’em tournaments is open to casino employees and dealers only.
So, how deep is your bankroll going to take you?