World Poker Tour to Kick Off Season XIX With WPT Cambodia

Asia for the past few months has been under a dark cloud after the Coronavirus epidemic was unleashed in December last year. The outbreak that has severely impacted the lives of many people and communities, also had a disastrous impact on the gaming industry. The imposition of travel bans and the forced shutdown of casinos by governments led to the cancellation and postponement of many poker series including APL Da Nang, WPT stops in Vietnam and Taiwan and the Triton Poker Series in Jeju.

While the Coronavirus epidemic continues to be a serious concern worldwide, the efforts put in to contain the disease have borne fruit. Following the resumption of casino operations in Macau and confirmation of the APT Taiwan stop, there is more good news for poker players in the Asian region. World Poker Tour (WPT) earlier today announced that the brand will be opening its Asia-facing Season XIX with its stop in Cambodia.

Slated to run from July 15 to 28, the second edition of the series will be hosted at the NagaWorld Integrated Resort in Phnom Penh. Comprising of 26 events, the 2020 WPT Cambodia will feature buy-ins ranging from $200 up to $15,000.

The magnum opus of the series will undoubtedly be the $3,500 buy-in Main Event that is scheduled to run from July 21 to 25. The ultimate champion of the Main Event will receive a $15,000 entry into the WPT Tournament of Champions, which will take place in Las Vegas at the end of Season XIX. The runner-up and third-place finisher in the Main Event will get a $3,500 entry into WPT Nagaworld Asia Pacific Championship Main Event to be held in May 2021.

Other marquee tournaments at the series include the $550 buy-in NagaWorld Billions opener, the $1,100 buy-in WPT Cambodia Mini Main Event, and the $10,000 High Roller Championship. Also, on the schedule is the $15,000 WPT Cambodia Short Deck High Roller Championship.

According to WPT’s press release from earlier today, “Players can look forward to a full season of events at NagaWorld Integrated Resort across the WPT calendar. The Season XIX WPTDeepStacks Cambodia festival will take place from November 11-24, 2020. This event will be eligible for points in the WPT Asia-Pacific Player of the Year race which includes a first-place prize of a $10,000 WPT Passport.”

“To close out the WPT APAC schedule in Season XIX, the inaugural WPT NagaWorld Asia-Pacific Championship festival will take place from May 5-18, 2021. Both WPT Cambodia and the WPT NagaWorld Asia-Pacific Championship winners will be eligible for the Season XIX WPT Tournament of Champions,” the announcement stated.

The first-ever WPT Cambodia that was hosted in November 2019 witnessed a record-breaking turnout in its Main Event, which generated the largest-ever prize pool in Cambodian poker history. Brian Tougias had trounced a massive 750-entry field in the event to claim his career-first live title, along with a whopping $131,460 in prize money.

Talking about the upcoming season, CEO of the WPT, Adam Pliska, said, “The WPT continues to expand globally and we are delighted to break new ground in the Asia-Pacific region to open our 19th season this July with WPT Cambodia. The breakthroughs made last November showed the poker world the magnificent NagaWorld and the passion of the network of players who flew from all corners of the globe to attend the record-breaking event.”

Reiterating the sentiment, Angelica Hael, WPT’s VP of Global Tour Management, added, “WPT and NagaWorld are back in Season XIX to write more history at this impressive resort. The power of these brands, along with the extraordinary efforts of Connaissance Management, equal a magical player experience unlike anywhere else on the World Poker Tour.”

Live Events Specialist for the WPT, Danny McDonagh, a man who has been the mastermind behind many successful series hosted by the WPT, said, “Firstly, I would like to thank the players and the fabulous NagaWorld team for their support last November to create the foundation for the upcoming WPT Cambodia Main Tour event. We look forward to welcoming even more players to this sparkling facility across three dates next season and growing the Asia-Pacific poker ecosystem to new heights.”