The World Poker Tour's collaborative online series with partypoker has a new flagship event. BetMGM has joined the team to create the WPT Online Borgata Poker Open.
The event will kick off on September 19, 2021 and run until September 21. It will count as part of the WPT Main Tour. The online Borgata event will headline the partypoker US Network Online Series in New Jersey. The partypoker US Network Online Series starts this Thursday (August 12).
Players will have to sit in front of a computer that is physically in New Jersey in order to play. They will be able to enter the event on the partypoker NJ, Borgata Poker, and BetMGM Poker platforms. partypoker's U.S.-wide platforms will be running satellites, but players will have to head for NJ on the day if they want to join the game on the 19th.
The WPT tweeted about the event very simply. "World Poker Tour and @BetMGM Announce WPT Online Borgata Poker Open from September 19-21," the @WPT account wrote.
Borgata branding
Prompted by COVID, the WPT has greatly expanded its range of online events.
The live Borgata Poker Open is one of the biggest events on the WPT's regular calendar. Using the event's branding online adds a little extra polish. The series might have been a little underwhelming from a marketing point of view otherwise.
Adam Pliska, CEO of World Poker Tour told the press how excited he was about the upcoming event. "The WPT Online Borgata Poker Open, powered by partypoker US Network, marks the return of the Sexton Cup to New Jersey." he said. "We are very happy that WPT’s strategic move in online tournaments has been bolstered by one of the longest and most prestigious casinos on the tour."
In the run-up to the live WSOP, attention is harder to get for online events. It's even tougher in this case, since the Borgata Poker Open is both online-only and a New Jersey exclusive.
New Jersey is part of the shared MSIGA player pool in the U.S. The other states involved in this agreement are Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. The expectation is that other states, like Michigan, will be joining soon. However—despite the shared player pool—players will have to be located in New Jersey if they wish to play the event.
"New Jersey continues to be a leader in regulated online poker and the WPT is thrilled to partner with BetMGM," Angelica Hael, the Vice-President of Global Tour Management for the World Poker Tour, said. "This event follows up on the three incredible series held in 2020. We are confident this series will continue pushing our partnership to new heights."
The lion's share
The partypoker US Network Online Series now marks a pretty impressive confluence of poker brands.
BetMGM is a partnership between the MGM brand and Entain, the Isle of Man company that owns partypoker and Ladbrokes. The Borgata casino is owned by MGM Resorts. Throwing the WPT into the ring makes for a prestigious collection of logos for the final table felt.
Matthew Sunderland is the Vice President of Gaming for BetMGM.
"BetMGM has found a great partner in WPT and is excited to work together again to bring another online Main Tour event to New Jersey," Sunderland said. "Our last Main Tour event together was a huge success, and we look forward to offering players in New Jersey a piece of the $1 million prize pool."
According to Jamie Kerstetter, the event will be streamed live on the WPT twitch channel.
Featured image source: Flickr by WPT
