#TheCupAwaits: It's the Final WPT Main Tour Event of Season XVI, the WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic at ARIA!

Welcome to the first-ever WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic! We’re here at ARIA Resort & Casino for the Season XVI WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic and the final WPT Main Tour event of the season. In addition to a huge first-place prize and the final seat into the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions, this event will see the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race come to a close. With a big buy-in of $10,000 at the stunning ARIA Resort & Casino, the stage is set for a magnificent event.

This four-day event is named in honor of Bobby Baldwin, president and COO of ARIA. Prior to his position at ARIA, Baldwin served as president and COO of some of the most storied casino properties in Las Vegas, including the Golden Nugget, Bellagio, and The Mirage. In addition to his success as an executive, Baldwin has many accolades on the poker felt. He boasts more than $2.3 million in earnings, including a win in the 1978 WSOP Main Event, which at the time made him the event’s youngest champion.

The cards will be in the air at 12 p.m. local time in Las Vegas for the WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic, and players will start with 30,000 in tournament chips. Day 1 will last 10 levels, with each level lasting one hour in length. On Day 2, the level time will increase to 90 minutes and stay that way until the final table is reached. This event allows for players to make one reentry, and the registration and reentry period will remain open until that start of Day 2 on Monday, May 21, at 12 p.m. The final table of the event will be streamed on PokerGO.

The winner of the Season XVI WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic will take home a hefty chunk of money to go along with his or her $15,000 seat to the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions starting on May 24 and also taking place at ARIA. In the WPT Tournament of Champions, immense value has been added with a rake-free $15,000 buy-in, $100,000 in cash added to the prize pool, an additional $50,000 in cash added to the winner’s share, a luxurious Hublot watch for the champion, and a $50,000 membership to JetSmarter also going to the winner. This is in addition to the player gift bags that WPT Champions Club members receive, valued at more than $1,000, and the hotel and flight accommodations covered for Season XVI champions. The WPT Tournament of Champions is an exclusive event only for WPT Champions Club members.

Looking at the Hublot WPT Player of the Year leaderboard, Art Papazyan is still on top heading into the final event of Season XVI. Thanks to his two World Poker Tour victories this season, Papazyan has 2,450 points and a rather comfortable lead of 600 points over the closest competitor, Derek Wolters. As you may have learned by reading this article on the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race heading into the WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic, with a prize pool of more than $2 million by less than $4 million, 10 players could pass Papazyan with a victory in the WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic, four players could pass him with a finish of at least second place, and three players can pass Papazyan with at least a third-place finish. If the prize pool pushes to $4 million or more, 23 players have a shot at taking first place away from Papazyan with a victory in the final event.

Needless to say, there is a lot on the line in the Season XVI WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic.

Once again, cards will be in the air at 12 p.m. local time in Las Vegas. Be sure to stay tuned right here to WPT.com for continued coverage of Season XVI of the World Poker Tour, starting with the WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic next!

If you’re interested in becoming a WPT champion, you can play for your chance on ClubWPT.com. ClubWPT is where eligible VIP members can play for more than $100,000 in cash and prizes each month, including seats to WPT events. No purchase is necessary for the ClubWPT sweepstakes and the service is void in states where prohibited. See terms and conditions at ClubWPT.com.