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Editorial: 2010 WSOP Forecast

On December 18, Harrah's Entertainment released the official schedule for the 41st World Series of Poker. The 2010 WSOP will be held at the Rio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas again starting on May 27 and running through July 17.

After the 2009 tournament overflowed from the main playing floor, the 2010 WSOP will receive a floor space upgrade that will include the Rio's entire convention center. The WSOP's director, Jack Effel, has predicted that this year's tournament will be the largest WSOP yet. GP has some of our predictions.

First of all, if the WSOP has learned anything from 2009's many Main Event disappointments, then they'll offer a larger entry allowance not just for the Main Event but also for this year's newly expanded selection of low buy-in events which will no doubt be popular among the growing amateur crowd. The increased square footage should make the expansion easy, not to mention profitable.

WSOP 2010 Expect to see a few of 2009's trends continue through 2010 - like more countries, celebrities and women represented in regular tournament play. Speaking of foreign female players, one of the most exciting potential entries is 2007 WSOPE Champion Annette Obrestad. Obrestad has been nothing short of a sensation in her home country of Norway, even leading a team of European pros to victory against a roster of American legends at the first Caesars Cup challenge in 2009. Obrestad already holds the highest European poker title, and 2010 will mark the first year she is eligible to compete in the WSOP.

With the Main Event field growing, who knows if Ivey will ever get a second chance at the final table, but with millions of ongoing prop bets still in the balance we certainly expect him to try. We also expect to see even more online pros crossover to playing live at the WSOP for a number of reasons. First, many of the younger pros are now becoming legal for live play; take for example 2009's 21-year old Champion Joe Cada.

Second, WSOP satellite offerings continue to climb online, and players like final table contestant Antoine Saout are living proof that with the right skills you can parlay a $50 entry into a multi-million dollar prize. The more notable online pros, like Tom Dwan, also have something to prove and sites to promote.

03-Jan-2010, 09:49

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