The Season XV World Poker Tour® Legends of Poker Main Event kicks off on Saturday, Aug. 27, 2016. When you’re talking about WPT® events, there are few that are as storied as the WPT Legends of Poker held at The Bicycle Hotel & Casino. The event has been a part of the WPT each season since the first, and it’s attracted huge fields with star players and awarded titles to some of the biggest names in the game.
When following an event, it’s not always the easiest thing to know what you should be looking for. But don’t worry, because we’ve got you covered with three things you can keep your eye on while following the coverage of the WPT Legends of Poker Main Event, which will be available for your viewing pleasure right here on WPT.com.
Frontrunners for Hublot WPT Player of the Year
After his victory in the WPT Choctaw Main Event, James Mackey (pictured above) moved into the lead in the race for the Hublot Season XV WPT Player of the Year. Mackey has 1,200 points and his lead is 200 points entering the WPT Legends of Poker Main Event, with three players hot on his heels.
Benjamin Zamani, who lost to Mackey in heads-up play in Choctaw, has 1,000 points, and is tied for second place on the leaderboard with Andjelko Andrejevic and Seth Davies. Both Andrejevic and Davies won events this season, with Andrejevic winning at WPT Amsterdam and Davies winning at the partypoker WPT Canadian Spring Championship.
Two times in the past, the WPT Legends of Poker Main Event has played an extremely meaningful role in the WPT Player of the Year race. Last season, Mike Shariati won the WPT Legends of Poker Main Event and also
Tyler Cornell’s Stomping Grounds
Tyler Cornell (pictured above) has done very well for himself at the WPT Legends of Poker. If he’s in the field for this season’s event, it wouldn’t be shocki
ng to find him making another deep run. On three previous occasions, Cornell has reached the final two tables of the event. One of those times he reached the official WPT final table.
In back-to-back seasons in Season IX and Season X, Cornell placed 11th in the WPT Legends of Poker Main Event. In Season IX, he finished 11th in a field of 462 entries to win $24,000, and in Season X, he took 11th in a field of 757 players to win $29,555. Most recently, Cornell scored fifth place in the Season XIII WPT Legends of Poker Main Event for $103,560, which is his largest live tournament score to date.
A Streak of California Legends
The last four winners of the WPT Legends of Poker Main Event have all come from California. Last season, Mike Shariati (pictured above) took the title and $576,369 and went on to capture the Hublot WPT Player of the Year title. Before him, it was Harry Arutyunyan in Seasonm XIII, Jordan Cristos in Season XII, and Josh Hale in Season XI.
Could we see another California take the WPT Legends of Poker title? Only time will tell, but if we’re going by recent memory, the probability is high.