In an effort to attract more tournament players to its site, Bodog has introduced a new Holdem tournament series known as the Bodog Poker Open. PokerStars has the WCOOP and Full Tilt has the FTOPS, so it was only a matter of time before Bodog created something in an effort to keep up with the competition. “We’re excited to finally give our online players a tournament series where they can battle it out for some major bragging rights and serious money,” said Bodog CEO Alwyn Morris.
The Bodog Poker Open will start on March third and run until March ninth, featuring six events. Bodog is not guaranteeing any of its prize pools and is, instead, adding money to each tournament, including $25,000 for the main event. The total overlay will end up being $75,000 for the six tournaments combined.
The main event is being touted as the “biggest tournament in Bodog history”, featuring classic No-Limit Holdem and a $470+$30 buy-in. The winner will also receive an engraved Omega Speed Master Watch, worth $4,400. “While there will be more Bodog Poker Opens, there will only be one ‘first’ Bodog Poker Champion,” Morris mentioned. “He or she will have the … watch to show for it.”
Winners of the first five events will also receive bonus prizes in the form of an entry to the main event. Aside from a lower buy-in No-Limit Holdem tournament, there will also be a 6-max event, a re-buy event, a pot limit event, and a limit event. The buy-ins range from $100+$10 to $300+$25. Each will receive a $10,000 overlay.
If you don’t want to buy-in directly, there are satellites available that run twice per day for each tournament. The satellites for any particular tournament start one month prior to the actual event date, and they will be available until the given event starts. The games played in the satellites will match the games they’re awarding seats to; so for example, the satellite for the 6-max event will feature 6-max action. Here’s a complete list of satellites and their buy-ins:
Event #1 – NL Hold’em – $30 + $3
Event #2 – NL Hold’em (6-handed) – $40 + $4
Event #3 – NL Hold’em (rebuy) – $5 + $1
Event #4 – Pot Limit Hold’em – $24 + $2
Event #5 – Fixed Limit Hold’em – $18 + $2
Event #6 – Main Event NL Hold’em – $69 + $6
It’s currently unknown whether the Bodog Poker Open will be annual like the PokerStars WCOOP or several times a year like the Full Tilt FTOPS. Whatever the case, this new series will be great for both Bodog and online tournament players alike, and it will be very interesting to see how much participation it generates and how big the prize pools end up being.
See below for a complete list of the events complete with dates and buy-ins. If you plan on playing in any of the events, be sure to post in our forums with trip reports and hand histories. Good luck!
Event #1, March 3rd: $250+$20 No-Limit Holdem ($10,000 added)
Event #2, March 4th: $300+$25 No-Limit Holdem 6-max ($10,000 added)
Event #3, March 5th: $100+$10 No-Limit Holdem with Rebuys ($10,000 added)
Event #4, March 6th: $200+$15 Pot-Limit Holdem ($10,000 added)
Event #5, March 7th: $150+$10 Limit Holdem ($10,000 added)
Event #6, March 8th: $470+$30 No-Limit Holdem Main Event ($10,000 added)