The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a poker tournament held annually in Las Vegas. The first WSOP in 1970 was an invitational wherein Benny Binion invited six of the best known poker players to the Horseshoe Casino. At first, the WSOP grew slowly. It was twelve years before the WSOP drew 52 participants, in 1982. In the early 1980s, satellite tournaments were introduced, allowing people to win their way into the various events. By 1987, there wer...
more
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a poker tournament held annually in Las Vegas. The first WSOP in 1970 was an invitational wherein Benny Binion invited six of the best known poker players to the Horseshoe Casino. At first, the WSOP grew slowly. It was twelve years before the WSOP drew 52 participants, in 1982. In the early 1980s, satellite tournaments were introduced, allowing people to win their way into the various events. By 1987, there were over 2,100 entrants in the entire series. Participation peaked in 2006, with 8,773 players competing in the Main Event alone.[citation needed]
The first World Series of Poker was not a freeze-out tournament, but rather an event with a set start and stop time, with the winner determined by secret ballot. In 1973, five-card stud was added as a second event. Since 2007, the WSOP has consisted of 55 events. While events traditionally take place over one or more consecutive days during the series in June and July, in 2008, the Main Event final...
less
