© June 25, 2007
By Daniel Cox
Editor, Gaming Review On Line

Las Vegas – The World Poker Tour (WPT) and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) are going heads up in Las Vegas this year. The Bellagio Cup III, with 28 events, began June 11^th and culminates with the WPT $10,000 Main Event July 10-15 is occurring at the same time as the 2007 WSOP at the Rio. The WSOP, with its most ever 55 events, began June 1^st and finishes with the $10,000 Main Event July 6-13.

As of June 19^th, the WSOP appears to have the chip lead in this one-on-one battle of televised poker powerhouses. Most of events at the Bellagio are $2,500 to $ 5,000 buy-ins, which is higher than the majority of events at the Rio, with under $2,500 buy-ins. Some examples of the WSOP domination in talent and prize money can be seen in a few comparable tournaments. On June 11, Phil Hellmuth won his record breaking 11^th WSOP Bracelet and $637,254 in Event 15. The $1,500 No-limit event began with 2,628 and had a prize pool of $3,587,220. In comparison, the Bellagio’s opening event, their only $1,500 no-limit event, had only 145 entries and a total prize pool of $210,975. A second heads up battle is found in the Rio’s $5,000 Event 22, June 13 -15 against the Bellagio’s $5,000 Event 4 on June 14^th. The event at the Rio had a prize pool of $3,012,700 from the 640 entrants, while the Bellagio had 63 entries for a total prize pool of $305,550.

An interesting aspect of the Bellagio event was that there were three top professionals at the final table in winner David Williams, John Gale and Roland de Wolfe while the final table at the WSOP only boasted a top professional in ninth place finisher Michael Gracz. But the difference in the numbers was most evident in 50^th place finisher at the Rio, actress (and WSOP Bracelet winner) Jennifer Tilly, won more than the Bellagio’s sixth place finisher. Though the prize amounts are less at the Bellagio, many professional players may find the smaller number of competitors, thus significantly fewer amateur players, is better for their game.

The final showdown in this battle will come in mid-July when the World Poker Tour Main Event and the World Series of Poker Main Event face off. Between the increase in the number of tables available in the Rio and the effects of the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) on Internet qualifiers for the World Series, the Rio is only scheduled to have three sessions of Day 1 this year, July 6-8. This gives players knocked out on Day 1 of the WSOP a chance to enter the WPT on July 10^th. The Rio expects over 7,500 players to enter the WSOP this year, with fewer than 250 of those considered to be top professional players. With the history of the last few years, it is a strong bet many of the top players in poker will become available to play in the Bellagio Cup III.