Are you dreaming about playing in the World Series of Poker next year? Maybe you are hoping to win a satellite at PokerStars or one of the other large poker rooms sending numerous of players to the WSOP. Well it looks like those days are over.
Harrah’s, the company running the World Series, has announced that it will not accept third party registration any more. This means that poker rooms will not be able to arrange tournaments with buy-ins to the WSOP as prices. The reason for this – yes you guessed it - the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). 2006 almost 9,000 players entered the WSOP Main Event, but this number is believed to decrease considerable in 2007. So is this the end of the WSOP-satellites, you ask. I don’t think so; I am an optimist and believe that the UIGEA is only a temporary set back for online gambling. You can’t regulate the Internet, people will always find a way to overcome obstacles in order to do the things they like. When it comes to the satellites there is nothing stopping the poker rooms from awarding WSOP buy-ins and let the winners themselves use them to enter the event and in that way eliminate the third party. I don’t believe that the WSOP attendance will decrease that much.

Maybe I should bet on it I read that some betting sites offer as much as 33-1 odds on there being as many registrants next year as it was 2006.

Mike G

Read more about gambling in the U.S: here.