This weekend, Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016, the World Poker Tour® returns to Maryland Live! in Hanover, Maryland for the second WPT® Maryland Live! Main Event. This year’s tournament boasts a big $1.5 million prize pool and has a $3,500 buy-in. All signs point to the event building on last year’s success of attracting 337 entries, and the guaranteed prize pool will certainly help.
“We are proud to be the only casino in Maryland to host the WPT this season,” said Mike Smith, Director of Poker Operations at Maryland Live! Casino. “Last year’s festival and Main Event were a huge success. With the size of our poker room, number of tables, and this year’s $1.5 million guarantee, we expect a strong showing of players and pros from around the country.”
One of those players who will be in attendance is defending champion Aaron Mermelstein. Last season, Mermelstein scooped up the title in the inaugural WPT Maryland Live! event, winning $250,222. It was the second time Mermelstein found himself in the winner’s circle of a WPT event, and this weekend he’ll be looking to both defend his WPT Maryland Live! title and score a third WPT title.
Speaking of winners, the WPT Maryland Live! festival has crowned a few champions already. The festival opened up with play on Sept. 24, and a handful of events are in the books. Winning the $350 buy-in opening event was Ju Park, who topped a field of 632 entries to take home a first-place prize of $35,831. Vincent Moscati won the second event, a $575 pot-limit Omaha affair, for $13,288 when he topped a field of 110 entries. The third event of the series was won by J.C. Clinton. He defeated a field of 132 entries to win $16,188 in the $575 no-limit hold’em tournament, and then Landrian Harris scored $4,488 when he won the fourth event of the series, a bounty event, by beating a field of 215 entries.
Others who will be in the field for the $1.5 million guaranteed Main Event are WPT Champions Club members Anthony Zinno, Olivier Busquet, Darren Elias, and Jesse Sylvia, plus Maryland Live! ambassador Christian Harder. Main Event action kicks off this weekend, Saturday, Oct. 1, at Maryland Live!, and you’ll be able to follow along with coverage of the event right here on WPT.com, so stay tuned!