With another WPT/WSOP/EPT triple battle in the books, we look back at which event got the most out of this busy period for live poker.
The dust has settled on the 2nd Battle for December where the EPT, WSOP and WPT went head-to-head-to-head with three of their biggest events of the year.
The WSOP Paradise went all guns blazing with a $50 million guaranteed event that barely missed the guarantee. The WPT threw a curveball and hosted a $5 million freeroll at the Wynn. EPT Prague did nothing different, but it was still a record-breaker.
Not to be trite, but in a way, all three events won, because they were all playing different games.
Everyone was a winner (no, seriously)
WSOP Paradise established itself as the event for the High Rollers. It has the biggest prize pools and even partnered with Triton. There was no doubt this was where the elite poker was played.
The World Poker Tour, once again, had the good will event. It was where most US grinders who are not elite level played too. It was clearly also the event we were all talking about in December.
EPT Prague won because, once again, it didn’t spend an extra penny on marketing and it attracted a huge field regardless. It showed that Europeans wanted to stay closer to home during the holidays and catered to that market.
Three separate markets
While the WPT remains the bucket list December event for most players, they must be disappointed that only 1,457 of the allotted 2,000 freeroll winners actually showed up. This is a perennial problem with freerolls in general. If the freeroll happens next year, I implore them to make it open to WPT Global players too.
WSOP Paradise will remain a High Roller-only festival as long as it stays in the Bahamas. It’s not as popular a destination as those who host events there would have us believe and it’s incredibly inconvenient for a lot of people.
Going forward it seems there will be three separate markets in December and that is fine. The High Rollers go to the Bahamas, the Europeans will head to whatever replaces EPT Prague next year, and everyone else will go to Vegas.
Once again, the overall numbers this month have shown how much life there is in live poker, which is fantastic news as we head into 2025.
Who won the Battle for December in your eyes? Let us know in the comments: