The WPT L.A. Poker Classic is one of the most elite poker events of the year, every year. The famed tournament hasn’t just produced some of the biggest and most storied moments in World Poker Tour history, but it has done so in all of poker.
L.A. Poker Classic Winners Always Score Big Money
In the early years of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic, the winner of the event was a virtual lock to finish the calendar year in the top 20 money earners for that year. From the first nine seasons, 2003 to 2011, the only player to win the WPT L.A. Poker Classic and finish the year outside of the top 20 in money earned was Phil Ivey. Ivey only narrowly missed out, though, as he finished 2008 as the 21st highest money earner.
With the rise of big buy-in events taking the poker landscape by storm in recent years, winners of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic have finished the calendar years of 2012 to 2017 in an average position of 75th on the yearly money-earned leaderboard. The highest result during that time was Anthony Zinno in 2015 when he placed 10th. That said, the WPT L.A. Poker Classic winner still won more than $1 million in each of those years. In fact, one would have to comb through the history books all the way back to the very first season of the World Poker Tour to find the only time the champion of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic did not receive a first prize north of $1 million.
Players and fans can look forward to another $1 million handed out in Season XVI, as Commerce Casino has slapped a juicy seven-figure first-prize guarantee on this season’s WPT L.A. Poker Classic $10,000 Championship.
Plenty of Hublot WPT Player of the Year Weight
In addition to awarding the winner with a life-changing sum of money, the champion of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic is as close to guaranteed as guaranteed can be to walk away with the maximum amount of Hublot WPT Player of the Year points, 1,400. In order for this to happen, the Season XVI WPT L.A. Poker Classic $10,000 Championship must generate a prize pool of $4 million or more, according to the official Hublot WPT Player of the Year scoring system. It has been the case every season since Season III that the WPT L.A. Poker Classic Championship event has generated a prize pool of $4 million or more, making it extremely likely we’ll be seeing that again.
Speaking of the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race, the WPT L.A. Poker Classic has played a very significant role in the race throughout the years. Only once did the WPT L.A. Poker Classic champion finish outside of the top 10 in the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race. That was Chris Moorman in Season XII when he finished 18th. Leaving out Moorman’s finish, champions of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic have finished with an average position of 4.6 in the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race. Furthermore, the WPT L.A. Poker Classic winner has gone on to finish first, second, or third in the Hublot WPT Player of the Year race six times in 15 seasons.
Just How Big Can the WPT L.A. Poker Classic Get?
Huge. Absolutely huge.
Before this season’s WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic at Bellagio in Las Vegas, the WPT L.A. Poker Classic shared the record for largest field size in a $10,000 buy-in World Poker Tour event at 791 entries. That booming number came from Season V when Eric Hershler won the event for a staggering $2.43 million – the largest first prize in WPT L.A. Poker Classic history – and it was tied with the Season XV WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic. The difference between the two prestigious events was that the WPT L.A. Poker Classic is played in a freezeout format, whereas the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic allows for reentries.
Hershler’s win wasn’t the only time that first place in the WPT L.A. Poker Classic Championship topped $2 million, either. In Season IV, Alan Goehring topped a field of 692 entries to win $2.392 million.
Through the first 15 seasons of the WPT L.A. Poker Classic, 8,500 entries have been generated and $81.76 million in prize money has been awarded. Of that prize money, $21.72 million has been awarded to first place alone. The average WPT L.A. Poker Classic Championship prize pool is $5.45 million, with an average top payout of $1.448 million.
The Season XVI WPT L.A. Poker Classic $10,000 Championship kicks off on Saturday, February 24, at Commerce Casino.
Looking to win your way to a World Poker Tour event for your shot at becoming a WPT champion? Play for your chance on ClubWPT.com, where eligible VIP Members can play for over $100,000 in cash and prizes each month, including seats to WPT events, no purchase necessary.