World Poker Tour expands WPT Season XI schedule

An unexpected press release landed in my inbox today detailing seven additional stops on the Season XI World Poker Tour (WPT) schedule. Two of the seven added stops will be full-fledged WPT events, while five other will fall into the Regional/National category. One of the new stops will take place in familiar surroundings as the WPT heads to Jacksonville, Florida, while the other brings the WPT north of the border for a stop in the burgeoning poker hotspot of Montreal.

This brings the total number of WPT events on the Main Tour up to an impressive 25 tournament series, with the Regional and National series boasting a similar number of tournaments. Here is a look at the two stops added to the Main Tour on Thursday:

WPT bestbet Open– Jacksonville, Florida has quickly established itself as a favorite poker destination for players seeking exciting action both on and off the felt. From April 26 – 30, World Poker Tour offers players the chance to enjoy great scenery and hospitality while competing to become the next member of the WPT Champions Club when the WPT bestbet Open returns to the bestbet Casino. Sponsored by ClubWPT.com, this $3,200 + $300 tournament will feature two Day 1s with re-entry and be live streamed on www.WPT.com.

PartyPoker.net WPT Canadian Spring Championship – Last November, the PartyPoker.net WPT Montreal event attracted 1,173 entrants, making it the largest major tournament in Canadian poker history, and the fourth largest WPT event ever held. On May 3, the World Poker Tour returns to the Playground Poker Club for the PartyPoker.net Canadian Spring Championship, a C$3,000 + $C300 buy-in tournament running from May 3 – 9 and live streamed on www.WPT.com.

The Regional and National tour acts as a minor league of sorts for the WPT, letting them gauge the interest in poker at different casinos around the world, and offering players lower-priced events to participate in. The added stops on the Regional and National are spread across three separate continents and four different countries. Here is a look at the new stops along with the dates for the Main Events:

• WPT Regional Florida Spring Tampa Bay Open (March 7-10)
• WPT National London (March 15-19)
• WPT National Johannesburg (April 5-7)
• WPT Regional Mississippi IP Spring Classic (April 5-8)
• Bwin.es WPT National Marbella (April 11-15)

The World Poker Tour is currently in Baden, Austria before moving on to one of the tour’s flagship stops at the Commerce Casino for the WPT LA Poker Classic at the end of the month, followed by another highlighted tournament series, the WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star tournament which will take place in early March.