WPT Legends of Poker Returns This Month to the Parkwest Bicycle Casino

The last time that the prestigious WPT Legends of Poker event was held was back in 2019, but in a few days it will finally return. As before, it will be played out at the world famous Bicycle Casino, which is now officially called Parkwest Bicycle Casino.

The 2022 edition of the tournament will be played from August 27–September 1, feature a $5,250 buy-in with three starting flights, and will carry a guaranteed prize pool of $2,500,000.

WPT CEO Adam Pliska said: “The Legends of Poker event holds a very special place in the history of the World Poker Tour. Collaborating with The Bike on another event is a fitting continuation of our 20th anniversary celebration.”

His sentiments were echoed by Mo Fathipour, the Parkwest Bicycle Casino Tournament Director, who stated: “The Legends of Poker festival is a cornerstone event for The Bike and we are excited knowing that our partnership with the World Poker Tour will continue. Players from around the world know that we take great pride in our hospitality, and they can expect that to continue all month leading up to the WPT final table.”

Tournament Schedule

• Day 1A: Saturday, August 27, at noon (10 levels)
• Day 1B: Sunday, August 28, at noon (10 levels)
• Day 1C: Monday, August 29, at noon (10 levels)
• Day 2: Tuesday, August 30, at noon (10 levels)
• Day 3: Wednesday, August 31, at noon (until final table of 6 players is reached)
• Day 4: Thursday, September 1, at 1 PM (live-streamed final table)

The final table will be live-streamed on all WPT platforms including YouTube and Twitch.

Tournament Structure

• Buy In: $5,250
• Re-entry: One re-entry per day until the start of level 9
• Starting stack: 50,000 250 big blinds)
• Ante format: Big Blind Ante
• Blind levels: 60 minutes
• First level: 100/200 with Big Blind Ante of 200
• Late registration: 9 levels
• Players per table: 9 and 8 when 10 tables remain
• Guaranteed prize pool: $2,500,000

Click here to see the complete structure with blind levels.

The tournament will be part of WPT Week, which will begin on August 21, that will also feature five side events, featured below. All six events are eligible for the WPT Player of the Festival leaderboard, which awards a $1,100 WPT Prime Passport to the player with the most points over the course of those six events.

Click here to see the complete schedule with all the tournaments and satellites.

Past WPT Legends of Poker Champions

The WPT Legends of Poker was first played in 2002 with 134 players and its first champion was Chris Karagulleyan. At the final table were Kathy Liebert (6th) and Mark Seif (4th).

During the third season, in 2004, the legend himself, Doyle Brunson, emerged victorious from a field of 667 entries to capture his first WPT title and the biggest single payday of his career: $1,196,260.

In 2006 the tournament buy-in rose to $10,000 and in 2007 there were 487 entries, creating the largest prize pool of that event: $4,607,500. The champion that year was Dan Harrington, who obtained his best result ($1,635,365) and the largest first place prize in the event’s history.

The 2019 WPT Legends of Poker

The last time this tournament was held was from August 31–September 4, 2019. There were 520 $5,000 entries that led to the creation of a $2,392,000 prize pool. The top 65 players cashed in the event, among them the late, great Mike Sexton (57th), as well as other big names like Chance Kornuth (49th), Ankush Mandavia (43rd), Joe Serock (36th), Phil Laak (33rd), Jordan Cristos (22nd), Aaron Mermelstein (16th) and Brian Altman (10th), among others.

Aaron Van Blarcum was playing his first WPT tournament and made it all the way to the final table, where he started with the smallest stack. The underdog managed to recover and ended up being crowned champion, achieving the biggest prize of his career up to that moment: $474,390.

The next person to etch their name on the Mike Sexton Champion’s Cup could be YOU!