WPT Gardens Poker Championship Kicks Off 2020 with First Televised Stop

By Tim Duckworth

Season XVIII continues on the World Poker Tour with not only the first Main Tour stop of 2020, but the first televised stop of the season with Day 1A of the WPT Gardens Poker Championship from The Gardens Casino in Hawaiian Gardens, California.

When Season XVIII kicked off in July of 2019, The Gardens Casino once again hosted the opening event of the season as Roger Teska defeated the 373-entrant field to capture the WPT Gardens Poker Festival title and the $368,475 first-place prize. Just a few days ago, WPT500 Los Angeles attracted a 2,310-entrant field which saw Griffin Paul join Craig Varnell as the only duel WPT Main Tour and WPT500 champions when he collected the $174,850 first-place prize.

All eyes are now on the first televised stop of Season XVIII with the WPT Gardens Poker Championship kicking off three days of final tables from the HyperX Esports Arena at Luxor Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada beginning on Tuesday, March 31, 2020.

In Season XVII, the WPT Gardens Poker Championship was the second new event of the season, and it would be Frank Stepuchin topping the 253-entrant field to capture his first WPT title when he defeated the televised final table that featured Shannon Shorr, Steve Sung, Brent Roberts, Ray Qartomy, and Jonathan Abdellatif to pocket the $548,825 first-place prize.

Hublot WPT Player of the Year Standings for Season XVIII

At WPT Seminole Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open in Hollywood, Florida, Donald Maloney took the lead on the Hublot WPT Player of the Year leaderboard, but as the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic closed out the year in Las Vegas, Nevada, Alex Foxen jumped out into the lead to sit on 1,400 points after collecting his first WPT title following a second-place finish back in Season XVI. Trailing Foxen is Toby Joyce who is tied on 1,400 points following back-to-back second-place and 12th place finishes.. Maloney sits in third-place with 1,350 points while Aaron Van Blarcum (1,275 points) and Geoffrey Hum (1,200 points) round out the top five.

With Season XVIII now well underway on the WPT Main Tour, great prizes are on offer for whoever can follow in the footsteps of defending WPT Player of the Year Erkut Yilmaz and other WPT legends before him.

Included in the World Poker Tour’s enhancements for Season XVIII are added Hublot WPT Player of the Year prizes. Not only will the Hublot WPT Player of the Year for Season XVIII win a custom Hublot timepiece and complimentary accommodation at select WPT Main Tour stops for Season XVIII, but he or she will earn $15,000 in WPT tournament buy-in credits. Prizes have been added for second- and third-place finishers in the race, as well. The runner-up receives $7,500 in WPT tournament buy-in credits and third place receives $2,500 in WPT tournament buy-in credits.

WPT tournament buy-in credits can be used in any global WPT event, including WPT Main Tour, WPTDeepStacks, WPT500, and WPT Special Events.

WPT Gardens Poker Championship Structure and Schedule

The WPT Gardens Poker Championship features a $10,000 buy-in. There are five days of total play until the final table of six is reached and play resumes on Tuesday, March 31, at HyperX Esports Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Players are allowed a single re-entry on Day 1A/1B and Day 2 for a maximum of six total entries. Registration is open until the beginning of level 11 on Day 2, Saturday January 11; approximately 3:30 p.m. (PT).

As is the case with all Season XVIII WPT Main Tour stops, it comes with the World Poker Tour structure that includes the big blind ante format and 40,000 in starting chips. The first two levels will be 100-100 and 100-200 with no ante before the big blind ante kicks in for Level 3 and onward. Level 3 will be 100-200 with a 200 ante, and the big blind ante will be the same price as the big blind from there on out.

The WPT Gardens Poker Championship schedule will see play start at 12 p.m. (PT) on each day. Day 1A and 1B will play eight 60-minute levels with a 15-minute break after every two levels and there will be no dinner break. Day 2 and 3 will play five 90-minute levels with a 15-minute break after each level, and there will be no dinner break. Day 4 will be the final day of play from The Gardens Casino, and the tournament will remain at 90-minute levels until the final table of six is reached.

To view complete information on the WPT Gardens Poker Championship structure and schedule, click here.

The stage is now set for the start of Day 1A of the WPT Gardens Poker Championship from The Gardens Casino at 12 p.m. (PT). Stay tuned right here to WPT.com for the exclusive live coverage of the tournament from start to finish to see who becomes the WPT Gardens Poker Championship Champion, and wins his or her way to the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions.

Photography by Joe Giron / PokerPhotoArchive

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