Over $7 million juiced from WSOP ME. How to turn poker from a negative to a positive sum game.
Caesars Entertainment bested Jordan Griff to come in 2nd in the WSOP main event by raking $7,078,400 off the prize pool.
Niche activities like the Winter X games, Mr. Olympia, and World's Strongest Man contest are somehow able to produce shows and pay out prize money without entry fees. As poker players we like to think of ourselves as smart, but for whatever reason we get back less money than we put into our major events. Have the competitors in those other events outsmarted us?
The obvious reason why all those other events are positive sum activities is because of sponsorship money. The opportunities for sponsorship of major poker tournaments seems substantial. Online sites, casinos, tourism boards like the LVCA, and aspirational brands like Rolex & Cadillac all seem like natural fits for a big money televised/streamed poker event. Yet, event after event, poker players keep paying juice and a portion of us are busted out because of it.
Every year there is speculation from the poker community over which ME final table member will be best for poker, but imo there's almost no chance the positive effect of a good champion will outweigh the negative effect of the irrepressible grind of rake. $7 million is a lot to cover in sponsorship money. A competing tournament, however, with a capped number of buy-ins and by consequence capped expenses to run seems like the perfect opportunity to have sponsorship cover the costs of dealers, tv production etc. and maybe even add some money to the prize pool. If a series of these events were held it might not lead to another poker boom, but with extra money coming into the poker economy it does figure to lead to some degree of sustained growth.
7 million is monkey piss compared to the aproximately 20 million the IRS takes out per 100 million of entry fees. The IRS is the biggest winner by far and should be in the Poker HOF.
This is why tournament poker is a "sucker's dream" that ends in shambles for most.
IRS don't take any of my winnings.
Yeah, also, dealing with poker players who on average can be very disagreeable and complain a lot, so they tolerate a lot in that respect.
I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I have no issue with rake at the current level since we get the logistics handled for that price. I would fight against any increase though because increases would harm the poker economy.
Not just the logistics but the softest 10k of the year by a landslide.
If you're playing for a living rake is a business expense pure and simple.
Obviously there is a point where rake becomes unbeatable but I'll happily pay some higher take for much softer games.
Let me see if I understand this correctly: A live tournament is charging 7% juice, and you rocket scientists are complaining that this is too high???
Let me see if I understand this correctly: A live tournament is charging 7% juice, and you rocket scientists are complaining that this is too high???
You missed the part where 10k people entered but yea.
Rake is too high lmao.
Imagine Caesars saying wow we got 10k people but a bunch of poker dick parasites with giant backpacks,tablets, headphones who sit there tanking and drinking green tea want more money let's lower the rake for them.
Next they'll ask the NFL to lower the price of Superbowl tickets.
If you want a healthy poker economy you should hope the main event is able to rake $10M next year. $7M is nothing on $100M in wagers. The US economy is huge, total rake across US casinos and sports books was over $60 BILLION last year, which was a tiny drop in the bucket of $23 TRILLION in US personal income.
You missed the part where 10k people entered but yea.
Rake is too high lmao.
Imagine Caesars saying wow we got 10k people but a bunch of poker dick parasites with giant backpacks,tablets, headphones who sit there tanking and drinking green tea want more money let's lower the rake for them.
Next they'll ask the NFL to lower the price of Superbowl tickets.
You missed the part where in the typical $100-buyin MTT at the typical local poker room only $65 goes into the prize pool.
The people complaining here are not the pros; they are just NVG Dunning-Kruegerrhoids who think they know everything but in reallity don't know ****.
So is the plan to turn the Main Event into a freeroll for a couple hundred thousand like Mr Olympia or what?
No; the plan is to complain about something over which the complainers have absolutely no control or influence.
The casinos make more from other gambling and view the poker pros as taking some of their cut. The tournaments sort of promote the casinos, but casinos aren't charitable institutions.
I would say that it might cost all $7 mil to run the event. But in the same aspect the amount of revenue generated within the properties with hotel rooms being booked, restaurants being eaten at, gaming action on the floors and poker room. Then all the sponsorships and TV money. They make a mint on all that stuff. But not necessary the entry fees.
That is why the wsop got moved to one of the hottest times of the year instead of the original may time frame. They knew the poker players would still come in droves.
Wasn't the wsop main event prior to 2002 no rake?
Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Would be interested to know the rake percentage for wsop main event by year.
Wasn't Becky Behnen unable to pay the utility bills for Binion's Horseshoe in 2002?
