World Poker: The most famous tournaments and their winners

Poker has long been considered one of the most popular gambling pastimes. It’s even considered by many to be a true sport. So it’s not surprising that poker tournaments of all kinds are held. But only the best and most famous ones attract true professionals and thousands of spectators.

World Series Of Poker

This is currently the most famous tournament for all poker enthusiasts. Each year the best players meet up in Las Vegas to face off against each other. The full event lasts for a month and dozens of tournaments are played during this time. The WSOP is one of the few poker tournaments that is televised. The tournament has a prize pool of more than $220 million.

The championship itself attracts more than just the players. Lots of spectators are betting on the outcome of the event and representatives of the biggest poker rooms are looking for young and talented poker players. The fact is that almost all poker players can take part in the tournament. This applies not only to professionals but to amateurs as well. That is why the championship is very popular.

The very first Championship was held in 1970. After that it became an annual event. During the whole time of the WSOP, participants from different countries became winners. However, the first five times the first place went to representatives of the United States. Among them, Johnny Moss deserves a special mention as he won nine gold bracelets. On the other hand, Phil Helmut can’t be equalled in the number of wins in the championship, having been in the top places as many as 75 times.

World Series of Poker Europe

The championship is considered relatively young. After all, the first tournament wasn’t played until 2007. Despite this, the WSOPE is already a very popular and in demand event among European poker players. True professionals and novices can also meet at the same table here. Thanks to the WSOPE the world has seen many previously unknown players. And the first winner was Annette Obrestad from Norway. Now her name is known to all poker connoisseurs, but then she became the very first representative from outside the United States to win a World Series tournament. This victory gave the girl a gold bracelet and a prize of £1 million.

World Poker Tour

The tournament was originally created in 2001 as a major competitor to the successful WSOP. What made it special was the large number of cameras broadcasting all championship tournaments. This allowed viewers to see professionals playing in great detail and they loved it.

Now a lot of well-known players are taking part in the championship, but it has also given the green light to newcomers. One of them was Gus Hansen, who won the first draw. He won over $500,000 and became famous worldwide.

European Poker Tour

The first draw was in 2004 and the peculiarity of the tournament was that it was held in a new country every year. This helped popularize the game worldwide. Another feature of the tournament was that many online poker players, who proved themselves in virtual poker rooms, could get an invitation to the tournament. Each time, competitors from different countries compete for the top prize. The most successful is Canadian Glen Chorney who has won over $3 million.

Aussie Millions

The biggest tournament in the Southern Hemisphere, played in Melbourne in 1997. The most famous entrant is Stuart Scott. In 2009 alone, he won over $2 million for his participation in this particular tournament. A successful year in 2019 was for American Bryn Kenney, who won the Australian Millions and received over a million dollars in prize money.