In yesterday's ESPN Radio broadcast "The Poker Edge" with Phil Gordon and Andrew Feldman, Gordon revealed that Harrah's has informed the online sites that they will not be accepting third-party registrations for this year's World Series of Poker. Gordon puts it in layman's terms:
"If you go to one of the online sites and win a seat to the WSOP, they will not allow the site to buy you in. You're gonna have to buy yourself in."
While some may point out that sites could simply award such prizes in cash instead of the actual tournament buy-in, Gordon points out a major problem most players would still face:
"All these guys that win the $10,000 or $12,000 satellite? It's a big deal to convince your spouse to let you take that $12,000 and go gamble it again... if you don't have a choice, what can they say?... But it's a completely different thing for you to win a seat on 'Site X' and for them to send you a check, say for $12,000, which is kind of the normal package price, and then you take that check, you cash it, and then you buy your ticket to the WSOP. There are a lot of things that can intervene between the time you get that check and the time you actually go to Las Vegas."
Additionally, Full Tilt Poker just sent the following email to recent winners of their "Winner's Choice" $12K WPT/WSOP-Cicuit Event super satellite (full text follows the jump):
Unfortunately due to the upcoming change in legislation Full Tilt Poker
will no longer be able to satellite US residents into live tournaments in
US. This policy will be effective immediately. There are currently 3
options that you have with your winner's choice package.
1. We can credit your account with the $10K buy in. This money would be
yours to do with what you please. We will also send you a full assortment
of Full Tilt Poker gear and accessories.
2. You can choose to attend the WPT $10K tournament at the Falls View
Casino in Niagara Falls, Canada. This event starts on the 24th of Oct and
we would need to know by this Wednesday, the 11th if you would like to
play in this tournament.
3. You can choose to attend the Dublin All-Star Tournament in Dublin,
Ireland. This tournament begins on the 17th of Nov. The prize package
for this event is $8K so in addition to the $2k that you have already
received and the entry into the tournament, you would be credited another
$6K for travel expenses and spending money.
We are extremely sorry for this inconvenience and we hope that you can
understand the position that we have been put in because of the current
legal situation.
Please feel free to respond with any questions you may have along with
your decision about what you want to do with your prize package.
Thank you,
Team Full Tilt
In the podcast, Gordon estimates that as a result of Harrah's decision and the new online gaming laws, the 2007 WSOP Main Event will draw fewer than 2200 players.
"This law will have a tremendous effect on peoples' ability to satellite their way into major poker tournaments-- that much is very clear," he concludes.
