2013 WSOP Europe Kicks Off Today with €1,100 Ladies Event
Today, Friday, Oct. 11, the 2013 World Series of Poker Europe festival kicked off in Enghien-les-Bains, France, just north of stunning Paris. For the next two weeks, eight gold bracelets will be awarded, culminating in the premier €10,450 Main Event that always attracts one of the most star-studded fields in the world. The first event of the series is the €1,100 Ladies No-Limit Hold'em event.
Last December, the WSOP announced that it was moving the WSOP Europe to Paris after spending two years in Cannes. The newly-renovated Casino Barrière Enghien-les-Bains facility will hold all of the action in one spacious room, and a 500-seat theatre will host final tables and television production. The 2013 WSOP Europe is to be televised around the world with coverage on ESPN and Eurosport.
Not only will eight bracelet winners be crowned, but the WSOP Europe will see the heated battle for the 2013 WSOP Player of the Year award come to an end.
Heading into WSOP Europe, 2013 WSOP $50,000 Poker Players' Championship winner Matthew Ashton leads the way, with five-time bracelet winner Daniel Negreanu hot on his heels.
2013 WSOP Player of the Year Top 10
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Ashton | 649.75 |
| 2 | Daniel Negreanu | 598.34 |
| 3 | Loni Harwood | 487.20 |
| 4 | David "Bakes" Baker | 475.35 |
| 5 | Donald Nguyen | 466.13 |
| 6 | Marco Johnson | 439.38 |
| 7 | Tom Schneider | 438.51 |
| 8 | Chris Klodnicki | 400.80 |
| 9 | Jared Hamby | 395.73 |
| 10 | Anthony Gregg | 390.00 |
Click here for more information on the 2013 WSOP Player of the Year.
Not only did Ashton win the $50,000 Poker Players' Championship for $1,774,089, he also made three other final tables with second-, third-, and seventh-place finishes in those events. Negreanu won the inaugural WSOP Asia-Pacfiic Main Event for AU$1,038,825 and cashed six times at the WSOP in Las Vegas this summer. His best result was finishing runner-up to Eli Elezra in the $2,500 2-7 Triple Draw event for $107,055 that saw Elezra win his second gold bracelet.
Loni Harwood made history this summer, cashing six times at the 2013 WSOP and recording three final tables before winning her first gold bracelet in a $1,500 no-limit hold'em event for $609,017. That event had a massive 2,541 players. David "Bakes" Baker finished in the money on eight separate occasions and made four final tables — three of which were in one week.
Needless to say, there's a lot of talent that Ashton is going to have to fend off over the next two weeks.
Here's a look at the updated 2013 WSOP Europe gold bracelet schedule:
| Date | Event # | Tournament | Buy-In |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/11/2013 | 1 | Ladies No-Limit Hold’em (2-Day Event) | €1,000 + €100 |
| 10/12/2013 | 2a | No-Limit Hold’em Re-Entry Day 1a (4-Day Event) | €1,000 + €100 |
| 10/13/2013 | 2b | No-Limit Hold’em Re-Entry Day 1b (4-Day Event) | €1,000 + €100 |
| 10/14/2013 | 3 | Mixed-Max No-Limit Hold’em (4-Day Event) | €5,000 + €300 |
| 10/15/2013 | 4 | Pot Limit Omaha (3-Day Event) | €1,500 + €150 |
| 10/16/2013 | 5 | No Limit Hold’em (3-Day Event) | €2,000 + €200 |
| 10/17/2013 | 6 | Mixed-Max Pot-Limit Omaha – Day 1 (3-Day Event) | €3,000 + €250 |
| 10/19/2013 | 7a | Main Event – No-Limit Hold’em – Day 1a (7-Day Event) | €10,000 + €450 |
| 10/20/2013 | 7b | Main Event – No-Limit Hold’em – Day 1b (7-Day Event) | €10,000 + €450 |
| 10/22/2013 | 8 | High Roller No-Limit Hold’em (3-Day Event) | €25,000 + €600 |
History was made at last year's WSOP Europe as Phil Hellmuth captured the Main Event title to claim his record-setting 13th bracelet. Other bracelet winners in Cannes last fall were Antonio Esfandiari, Jonathan Aguiar, Roger Hairabedian, Imed Ben Mahmoud, Francisco Da Costa Santos, and Giovanni Rosadoni.
PokerNews will be providing daily recaps and feature article coverage from the 2013 WSOP Europe, so be sure to stay tuned to these pages for much more to come from the series.
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