Changes to WSOP International Schedule

The World Series of Poker has altered its International event schedule resulting in the combination of WSOP Asia-Pacific and WSOP Europe. The events will be held on a bi-annual basis rather than the annual schedule as announced on Tuesday. Other modifications to the schedule include the addition of 10 open bracelet events in the second WSOP Asia-Pacific (WSOP APAC) from October 1 to October 17, 2014. Moving the event to October allows for a spring tournament plus plenty of time to plan satellites and special promotional offers. "The WSOP standard is bigger, better and different. Moving to a rotational approach, with one international event per year allows for better organization and more marketing in each region. We also want to do right by the players, and provide more value for their travel dollar. There is a glut of poker tournaments around the world, and our vision is to each year put on a single global showcase that can't be missed," said Ty Stewart, WSOP Executive Director. Crown Melbourne Chief Operating Officer, Xavier Walsh said, "Crown is once again proud and excited about this partnership between two industry leaders to create another premier poker event in this region. The new scheduling sits perfectly within the Melbourne events calendar, at the tail end of the Australian Rules Football finals and the beginning of the internationally renowned Spring Racing Carnival. “This provides Crown with significant exposure in Asia, Europe and America, which will in turn form an integral part of Crown's global marketing strategy to attract additional international visitors to Australia and Crown Melbourne."