World Series of Poker Announces 2017 Dates

Save the Date(s). The 48th World Series of Poker (WSOP) - the longest-running, richest and most prestigious tournament series - opens its doors on Tuesday, May 30, 2017 at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

The something-for-everyone schedule includes gold bracelet events, satellites, cash games and thrice daily deep stack tournaments running for 49 consecutive days, with the WSOP Main Event reaching its final nine players on Monday, July 17, 2017.

The opening weekend event of the 2017 schedule will once again feature the return of the world's largest live poker event. Colossus III will be a $565 buy-in re-entry No-Limit Hold'em tournament featuring two starting flights a day over three consecutive days -Friday, June 2, Saturday, June 3 and Sunday, June 4. The format will include re-entry, allowing players to enter again if they fail to advance initially. This event has drawn 43,987 entries during its first two years, easily the largest live tournaments ever and allowing all-comers to pony up the $565 entry and try and turn it into $1 million in a matter of days.

Also back on the schedule in 2017 are the popular Millionaire Maker, Monster Stack, Little One for ONE DROP, Seniors Event and Ladies Championship.

The summer poker festival reaches its pinnacle with the globe's longest-running poker tournament -- the $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em WSOP Main Event championship -- which is slated to run over ten consecutive days from July 8 - July 17, 2017 and will feature three starting flights - Saturday, July 8; Sunday, July 9; and Monday, July 10.

The first event on the schedule is the Casino Employees event, which will take place on Wednesday, May 31 this year, featuring a $565 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em two-day tournament with a single re-entry format.

The date is also confirmed for this year's Senior Event, which will again feature a $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em format for those aged 50 or older. It is set for 10:00am on Friday, June 16. New is a single re-entry option.

New wrinkles and more additions will be announced with the specific event schedule in the New Year.

The average WSOP gold bracelet event in 2016 featured a $3,205,961 prize pool with $555,475 going to the event's winner. The 2016 WSOP featured the Top 5 field sizes of the year in all of poker with the Main Event (6,737), Millionaire Maker (7,190), Monster Stack (6,927), Crazy Eights (6,761) and Colossus (21,613) entries combining to attract a staggering 49,228 entries. The 107,833 entries at the 2016 WSOP were the most in the event's 47-year history. A record 15,767 entrants walked away with prize money, with the WSOP's new 15% target payout structure utilized for the first time.

"We want to wish everyone Happy Holidays and best wishes for a safe and successful 2017," said WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart. "We are busy trying to finalize the entire 2017 WSOP schedule. We anticipate a similar series to last year with a few new wrinkles, but ensuring a broad array of options to satisfy every potential participant."

Buy-ins for tournaments at the Rio will start as low as $75. Live games will begin on May 30 and run 24 hours a day throughout the seven-week series taking place in the spacious Rio Convention Center for the thirteenth consecutive year.

Room reservations are being accepted across Caesars' Las Vegas properties. Visit Las Vegas - WSOP to make your room reservations for the 2017 WSOP. Individual event online pre-registration won't open until March, after all events have been determined and submitted to regulators and approved.

Nearly 500 poker tables will be set up across more than 100,000 square-feet of ballroom space to accommodate the thousands of players from around the world who attend poker's annuAl Woodstock.

WSOP.com's real-money online poker offerings in New Jersey and Nevada will be the exclusive online home for players in these states to win seats into WSOP events, including the Main Event. While in New Jersey or Nevada, eligible players can play on WSOP.com, whether a resident or not, and satellites are expected to run regularly throughout the WSOP. 888Poker remains our international online poker partner in most jurisdictions, with plenty of satellite qualifications planned to award seats to the WSOP in Las Vegas.

The 2016 WSOP was the largest attended in the WSOP's 47-year history - generating prize pools of more than $221 million. Participants in WSOP events hailed from 107 countries in 2016. The WSOP Main Event, won by Las Vegas's Qui Nguyen this year, attracted 6,737 players and was televised on ESPN television for the fifteenth consecutive year.

The current slate of individual events offered during the 48th Annual WSOP are being finalized, with 70+ officiAl Gold bracelet events expected, with weekends catering to the No-Limit Hold'em weekend warriors and a broad range of other variations of poker at both entry level and championship level buy-ins being mixed in throughout the series.

The full event-by-event schedule is expected to be released sometime in February. All above announced dates, times and events are subject to change.

About the World Series of Poker

The World Series of Poker® is the largest, richest and most prestigious gaming event in the world, having awarded more than $2.4 billion in prize money and the prestigious gold bracelet, globally recognized as the sport's top prize. Featuring a comprehensive slate of tournaments in every major poker variation, the WSOP is poker's longest-running tournament in the world, dating back to 1970. In 2016, the event attracted 107,833 entrants from 107 different countries to the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, and awarded more than $221 million in prize money. In addition, the WSOP has formed groundbreaking alliances in broadcasting, digital media and corporate sponsorships, while successfully expanding the brand internationally with the advent of the World Series of Poker Europe in 2007 and the World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific in 2013 and the WSOP International Circuit Series in 2015. For more information on the World Series of Poker, please visit www.wsop.com.

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