World Poker Tour announces Tournament of Champions dates

World Poker Tour today announced the second of its Season XVIII Main Tour final tables to be played at the HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas inside Luxor Hotel and Casino.

In addition, the WPT is proud to announce that the Season XVIII WPT Tournament of Champions presented by Baccarat Crystal will take place from 31 May - 2 June inside HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas.

The first final table, taking place on 28 May, is the conclusion of the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Showdown. The first five days of the event will take place from 1 to 5 May at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood, FL. The defending champion of the event is James Carroll, who defeated a field of 1,360 entries to win his second WPT title in a final table played at HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas last season.

Next, the WPT Choctaw final table plays to a winner on 29 May. The event kicks off at Choctaw Casino Resort - Durant, OK from 15 to 18 May. Craig Varnell became the first player in WPT history to win a WPT500 and WPT Main Tour title last season when he won the Season XVII WPT Choctaw event to claim the $379,990 first-place prize.

The $15,000 buy-in WPT Tournament of Champions presented by Baccarat Crystal caps off the events at HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas. This premier event on the WPT schedule moves to HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas for the full duration of the tournament, with the final table closing out Season XVIII on 2 June. Ole Schemion beat a field of 76 WPT Champions last season to win the $440,395 first-place prize after overcoming WPT Commentator Tony Dunst heads up.

Each of the three final tables will be filmed for FOX Sports Networks to be broadcast in four, one-hour episodes.

The partnership between WPT and Baccarat Crystal marks the second season for Baccarat Crystal as the official naming rights sponsor of the WPT Tournament of Champions. Baccarat Crystal will continue to be the official sponsor of the winner’s toast at every televised event in Season XVIII, because everything tastes better in Baccarat.

The winner of the WPT Tournament of Champions presented by Baccarat Crystal will once again receive a custom Baccarat Crystal vase.

All players who reach the final table in a Main Tour event to be played at the HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas will receive travel and hotel accommodations in Las Vegas. All players who make the final table to be played at the HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas will receive sixth place prize money at the host casino of the event, with the remaining five places to be paid out at Luxor.

“The World Poker Tour is proud to announce the next set of final tables to be played at HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas, home of the WPT,” said Adam Pliska, CEO of the World Poker Tour. “Players, spectators, and sponsors have all embraced having the WPT final tables at our state-of-the art arena, and its cutting-edge production capabilities have enabled us to experiment with new creative ways to elevate the final table experience and take the WPT to new heights.”

“The WPT thanks our casino partners at Choctaw and Seminole Hard Rock for their continued support, and we are thrilled to host them once again at HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas,” added Angelica Hael, VP of Global Tour Management for the World Poker Tour. “These venues put the players first at all times and those same players can count on true VIP treatment when they arrive in Las Vegas to play for a WPT title.”

The first set of WPT final tables at HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas in Season XVIII will take place from 31 March - 2 April when the WPT Gardens Poker Championship, WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open, and the WPT L.A. Poker Classic each play to a respective champion.