Upcoming changes at the 2011 World Series of Poker

During a media conference call the World Series of Poker explained the upcoming changes that will be in place for the 2011 WSOP tournament series. While there were a couple of very big announcement, the majority of changes were merely tweaks, some of which are format-based while others are more player-oriented. Here is a look at the changes announced during the conference call.

Live Streaming Coverage

The biggest announcement during the conference call had to be the news that live streaming coverage will be available at the final table of every WSOP bracelet event. ESPN will be streaming a number of final tables live, and now players and fans interested in watching any of the other final tables can do so at WSOP.com. Streaming coverage on WSOP.com will include two separate camera angles, but no commentary or hole-card cams, and will be filmed on a five-minute delay.

List of Sponsors

Once again Jack Links Beef Jerky will head up the official sponsors list, along with the Miller Brewing Company, On Tilt (who will be providing the WSOP bracelets), Blue Shark Optics, Klipsch, and Dearform Slippers, who will provide each entrant with a pair of slippers (I’m booking some prop betting action on which player receives 50+ pairs of slippers!

Hall of Fame Voting

Two changes were announced for the Hall of Fame voting process. Most notably is the “Chip Reese Rule” which will set an age requirement for the first time: 40 years-old. The second change involves the nomination process itself, with the fan vote now supplemented by a selected panel of poker media and players.

The rule was put in place after recent nominees included players like Tom Dwan, Daniel Negreanu and Phil Ivey, thanks to the vague wording of the old rule that stipulates a player must “meet the test of time”.

Player of the Year Race

The WSOP Player of the Year race will now feature a weighted system where points will be based on the number of entrants as well as the buy-in amount. The seven events at the World Series of Poker Europe will also count toward the award. The new POY structure has yet to be finalized at this point.

The change comes on the heels of the 2010 WSOP performance of Mike Mizrachi who won the $50k Players Championship, finished 5^th in the Main Event and made two other final tables at the 2010 WSOP, but failed to win the Player of the Year trophy -which went to Frank Kassela who won two bracelets and made a third final table.

Other Changes

The WSOP also announced a few minor changes to the convention area itself, including the addition of a few cash game tables. There will also be a robust non-bracelet schedule with satellite tournaments and the daily deep-stack event.