The Most Anticipated Upcoming Poker Tournaments

Poker is a big deal and is as high-stakes as it comes, so it’s only natural that there are numerous events that take place throughout the year that attract spectators in the thousands and millions. While these events often have no date to start or finish, often running all year round, a few are worth following regardless of how popular they are.

In this article, we’ll be looking at five upcoming poker events that will have you sitting on the edge of your seats if you’re not quite skilled enough to be participating yourself. Don’t worry. These events are reserved for the best of the best, so there’s no shame in not being at the table. Instead, sharpen your skills playing online poker, and maybe one day you’ll make it.

1. World Series of Poker (WSOP)

The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is known for being as big as it comes when we’re talking poker, attracting the very best players from across the globe, as well as thousands (if not millions) of spectators at home and on the road. The WSOP takes place in Las Vegas, the home of poker, from May to June, though there are offshoot tournaments that you can join online and in the physical casinos.

If we’re going to compare it to a sporting event, the WSOP is as close to the World Cup as it gets, attracting players from across the planet, from the US and Europe to top Asia and even the Pacific. Despite being located in Las Vegas, players still make the trip because of how well-respected it is, taking place across over 80 events and involving thousands of players.

2. World Poker Tour (WPT)

The annual World Poker Tour (WPT) World Championships cost entrants in excess of $10,000, which is a crazy amount of money and means that only the most skilled and dedicated usually join.  If you were to join, you should expect to find a good mixture of professionals and young stars taking part, often online poker stars who want to try their luck playing the real thing, though you may also find some amateur players taking part just for the fun of it.

In 2022, Quebec native Elkiot Hudon came home with the top prize of over $4,000,000, having set the stage alight, which is even more impressive considering the 25-year-old only started playing poker seriously about three years ago. This is much more than the competition’s first price, which was $1,000,000 back in 2003, won by inaugural champion Alan Goehring. This December, keep an eye out for the WPT World Championships, and if you’re feeling lucky, sign up as soon as possible.

3. Triton

A relative newcomer in the world of professional poker tournaments, especially when compared to the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tournament World Championships, Triton is a more selective tournament that offers huge prices for the lucky few who manage to secure a spot. Typically attracting 30+ players at various events across the globe, Triton is definitely one for the professionals, being hosted in the most exotic locations from Las Vegas to Vietnam.

As you might expect, such a high-stakes tournament played at such unique locations doesn’t come cheap, with entry fees being in excess of $10,000, though the money on offer makes this a worthwhile trade for many players. Held throughout the year, this is as serious as it comes, and so the money being won is often life-changing and unrivaled elsewhere, with payouts starting from $200,000 and going all the way up £20,000,000, which Bryn Kenney won during a $1,000,000 buy-in event.

4. European Poker Tour (EPT)

The European Poker Tour (EPT) is organized by PokerStars and takes place throughout the year, first beginning in 2004 and is the product of poker trailblazer John Duthrie, who wanted to take professional poker to new levels in Europe. The very first edition of the EPT took place in some of Europe’s finest locations, being hosted in major cities, including London, Barcelona and Monte Carlo, setting the stage for future success and attracting thousands of players every year.

To qualify for the EPT, a player usually has to excel in one of the numerous online tournaments that run before the main events, which are organized and hosted by PokerStars. For the main event, the winning player should expect to take home over $1,000,000, with the side events offering payouts often in excess of $50,000, sometimes being as large as $900,000, depending on the number of players participating.

5. PokerGo Tour (PGT)

The PokerGo Tour (PGT) is a relative newcomer when it comes to professional poker tournaments, having been first launched in 2021, though it has made a real splash. This tournament aims to uncover the best poker player in the world, attracting the best-rising stars who want to find their ticket to poker-playing stardom, earning points for each win, qualifying them to be in a chance of winning the special year-end prize, which varies every year.

On the road and held throughout the year, these events don’t come cheap but often attract rising stars and established professionals alike, costing over $10,000 to enter, with anywhere from 30 to 200 players taking part each time. Despite being expensive to enter, the average PGT payout is anywhere from $200,000 to $1,000,000, depending on the number of players participating. At the year-end, the best PGT players qualify for the champions, attracting the finest players from that year.