WSOP Europe gets a high-roller tournament

The poker economy is one of the stranger ones in the world, considering that as historic Main Event buy-ins drop from $10,000 to $5,000 and even $3,500 in these tough economic times, other tournaments are seeing their buy-ins balloon, making the gap between the haves and have not’s in the poker world all the more pronounced.

Take for instance the recently finished $1,000,000 Big One for One Drop tournament (where Antonio Esfandiari walked away with an $18 million first-place prize), the announcement of a similar tournament (rumored to be a $500,000 reentry event) set to take place in Macau, and now the announcement of yet another potentially six-figure buy-in tournament that will be held at the World of Series of Poker Europe tournament series in September.

At the WSOP.com website Ty Stewart announced an addition to the 2012 WSOPE schedule, a €50,000 Re-entry No-Limit Holdem High Roller event. The High-Roller tournament will not be a bracelet event, but is expected to be one of the most-hyped tournaments on the WSOPE schedule, and has already seen the likes of Macau regulars Paul Phua and Richard Yong register.

“We can’t wait to get back to Cannes for WSOP Europe, where the stars of poker come to shine,” said WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart. “We truly believe 2012 is the year we accomplish our goal to make WSOPE the richest and most prestigious event on the European calendar.”

The 2012 World Series of Poker Europe tournament series will feature seven bracelet events, including the prestigious Main Event, along with the High-Roller tournament and countless side games. The tournament series will once again take place in Cannes, France at the Hôtel Majestic Barrière / Le Croisette Casino Barrière, and will run from Friday, September 21, 2012 to Thursday, October 04, 2012.

Here is a look at the updated 2012 WSOPE schedule from the www.wsop.com website: