WPT Announces Dates For the Final Table of Delayed 2020 Tournaments

The past year was a memorable one for many reasons. And topping the list for mostly the wrong reasons was the COVID-19 pandemic that led to a worldwide shutdown of industries, including all live poker stops.

Among the many affected live poker tournaments were the World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event final tables from Gardens Poker Championship, Borgata Winter Poker Open, and WPT LA Poker Classic. The three FT’s were to take place at the HyperX Esports Arena in Las Vegas on consecutive days between March 31 to April 2, last year.

Given the gradual resurgence of live poker globally, WPT has now released the dates for the long-delayed final table of four events, including the upcoming WPT SHR Poker Showdown.

WPT Final Table Schedule

Starting March 10, the PokerGo Studios at the Aria will host the filming of the long-delayed final tables of the WPT Gardens Poker Championship, WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open, and WPT LA Poker Classic. WPT has also included the details for its upcoming 2021 WPT SHR Poker Showdown that will have its FT played live on May 18.

Let us quickly recap the upcoming final tables.

2020 WPT Gardens Poker Championship

The Season XVIII WPT Gardens Poker Championship kicked off on January 9, last year. Pulling in 257 entrants, the event generated a prize pool worth $2,467,200.

The final table was set to take place on March 31, with Chance Kornuth (2,995,000) headlining the six-handed final table. The other finalists included Markus Gonsalves (2,370,000), Tuan Phan (2,070,000), Jonathan Cohen (1,615,000), Qing Liu (795,000), and Straton Wilhelm (435,000).

The delayed final table will now resume next week on March 10, with Kornuth on the button. There is 34:18 remaining in Level 23 (15,000-25,000 and a 25,000-big blind ante). The eventual winner is set to receive $554,495 as per the announced payouts.

2020 WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open

The WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open (BWPO) got under on January 26, 2020. The $3,500 buy-in tourney registered 1,290 runners, collecting a $4,129,290 prize pool.

The event played down to the six-handed final table on January 30, with Veerab Zakarian (11,990,000) bagging the chip lead. James Anderson (10,040,000), two-time WPT champion Brian Altman (9,865,000), Bin Weng (8,890,000), Andrew Hanna (6,730,000) and Nathan Russler (3,990,000) were among the other finalists.

The final table was initially to take a two-month-long hiatus before resuming on April 1, 2020. The final table will instead play out on May 16 this year.

The champion of the tournament will take home $674,840 in first-place prize money.

2020 WPT LA Poker Classic

The WPT LA Poker Classic kicked off on February 29, 2020, registering a starting field of 490 entries, culminating in a $4,727,550 prize pool.

The six-handed final table was reached on March 4, with Indian-origin Balakrishna Patur (6,320,000) taking the pole position. The 45-year-old recreational player had company in Cimbolas (4,310,000), James Carroll (4,125,000), Ka Kwan Lau (2,250,000), Scott Hempel (1,670,000), and Upeshka De Silva (930,000) on the final table.

The finalists were initially slated to reconvene on April 2, 2020, with Patur on the button and 31:22 remaining in Level 25 (20,000-40,000 and a 40,000-big blind ante). The final table will instead take place almost 13 months later than initially scheduled on May 17, 2021. The winner will take home $1,015,000 in prize money.

2021 WPT SHR Poker Showdown

The WPT Seminole Hard Rock (SHR) Poker Showdown is the only new event on this list. The $3,500 buy-in event offers a $2 Million guarantee and is slated to take place at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood. Starting on April 23 next month, the event comprises two starting flights, and the six-handed final table is expected to be formed on Day 4, i.e., April 27.

The six-player final table will be televised and take place on May 18.

Keep following PokerGuru for more updates on the upcoming WPT Main Event Final Tables!