If a tree falls in the forest and nobody is there to hear it, does it make a sound? If a World Series of Poker tournament is scheduled, but nobody signs up to play, did it ever exist?
The answer to the former question is clearly “yes,” while the answer to the latter seems to be “no.”
2024 WSOP Online Event #13: $5,300 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller was deleted from the schedule Tuesday night after only four people showed up, and the tournament was canceled.
Key Highlights
- Only four players registered for the US WSOP Online $5,300 NLH High Roller.
- The tournament required a minimum of eight players to begin.
- Poker community cites “bracelet inflation” and late registration as possible reasons for low interest.
Tournament Needed Eight Players Minimum
The US version of the 2024 WSOP Online began September 29 for players on WSOP.com in Michigan, New Jersey, and Nevada and is slated to run until November 12.
There are 33 official gold bracelet events, five of which have a combined $1.6 million in guaranteed prize pools.
One of the non-guaranteed events was Event #13: $5,300 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller, scheduled for 4:00pm PT on Tuesday, October 15.
Normally, that would be an exciting tournament, as the price point would limit the field to the strongest players on WSOP.com. There was one problem, though: almost nobody signed up and the tournament was canceled.
Just four players registered for the event, half of the eight required for the event to start. Forty-five minutes after the scheduled start time, WSOP made a hype post on X for the tournament; whoever oversees the account was obviously not aware of what was going on.
Almost three hours later, another social media post encouraged players to late-register.
All four players were refunded their $5,300 buy-in.
Too Many Bracelets?
The surprising lack of interest in the 2024 WSOP Online NLH High Roller event has naturally raised questions about how this could happen. One possibility suggested by the poker community is that “bracelet inflation” is hurting interest.
….with each new Series, there are more bracelets to be had, so the urgency for any individual tournament is reduced
There were 99 live events at the traditional WSOP this summer. There were 30 more bracelet events online. There are WSOP Europe, WSOP Paradise, WSOP Online in the United States, and WSOP Online for the rest of the world on GGPoker.
It’s still difficult to earn a WSOP gold bracelet and it’s still a treasured accomplishment for most, but with each new Series, there are more bracelets to be had, so the urgency for any individual tournament is reduced.
The traditional World Series of Poker in Las Vegas once again drew massive numbers; the Main Event was the first to eclipse 10,000 players. But that’s the grandaddy of all live poker tournaments. It’s a must-see festival. The experience of a lifetime.
But maybe the combination of bracelet fatigue, high buy-in, and limited player pool (remember, just three states) resulted in poker players simply not being interested in this high-roller event this time.
Were Players Still Waiting to Register?
The other possible reason players have suggested for the lack of signups is late registration. Late registration, especially in high buy-in tournaments (and especially in live events), has become increasingly popular.
By registering late, players can skip the slower, early stages of the tournament and begin closer to the money bubble. The tradeoff is that they will start with a smaller stack relative to the blinds, but when you don’t play, you can’t get knocked out.
Waiting until the tournament starts to register also allows players to get a more accurate view of the field and prize pool in order to determine if playing is worth it.
It is possible that there were more players waiting to register late, but the WSOP was unwilling to wait for them.
If they either removed late registration, forcing players to commit by game time, or allowed the tournament to proceed through the late registration period, perhaps enough people would have signed up.
Of course, those who did register in time could end up playing through the entire late registration period and then have the tournament canceled on them, which would be a waste of time.
Sources
https://www.pokerstrategy.com/news/world-of-poker/Online-WSOP-event-cancelled-because-nobody-showed-up_133018/
https://www.wsop.com/promotions/wsop-online-24/nv/
https://x.com/WSOP/status/1846365445919539341
