49th World Series of Poker recap

The 49th Annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas was another record-breaking year. The 78-event, 50-day poker series broke many records including attendance and prizepool records.

Up for the sixth consecutive year, this year’s attendance broke the record for number of total entries at the series. 123,865 entries participated this year (up 2.4%), marking the second consecutive year with more than 120,000 entries, keeping the WSOP far and away poker’s biggest annual live festival.

This WSOP established a host of new records as poker enthusiasts from 104 different nations traveled to Las Vegas to compete in the game’s grandest spectacle, and a record 18,105 players received prize money this year.

The WSOP remained the industry leader in terms of prize money awarded, with this year’s tally amounting to $266,889,193 (up 15.1%) – breaking the record for the most money awarded at a single poker series and it is the first time the WSOP has eclipsed the quarter billion dollar mark in prize money in one WSOP. There were 28 players that earned $1 million or more this year, which is the most ever at one WSOP.

The Main Event in 2018 had 7,874 entries, a 9% increase over last year, creating the largest prize pool of the 2018 WSOP at $74,015,600 and the second-largest first-place prize, which amounted to $8,800,000. The only larger top prize of the series was the $10,000,000 first-place prize of the Event #78: $1 Million Big One for One Drop. The 2018 Main Event was the second largest in the history of the series, only behind the 2006 Main Event, which had 8,773 entries.

“The 2018 World Series of Poker was another big success and it’s thanks to the loyal players that make it out to Las Vegas every summer,” said World Series of Poker Executive Director Ty Stewart. “We love seeing the Main Event grow to numbers no one ever thought was possible in 2018 as well as positive reaction to our new events. The team will be hard at work to make sure this remains the premier poker festival in the world.”

For the sixth time in its history, WSOP generated a total prize pool that topped the $200 million mark.

In the 49-year history of the WSOP, the game’s most prestigious tournament series has now awarded over $2.99 billion -- actually $2,999,643,394 in prize money.