Most events will have a x2 min cash and the overall structures have flattened for this year’s World Series of Poker.
Payout structure is one of the big debates every year at the World Series of Poker, but this year they have gone with something most people will find appealing.
The structure has been flattened with most players who cash at least doubling their money:
NEW PAYOUTS for 2024 WSOP!
Min cash for most events will now be 2x buy-in.
See payout calculator for full breakdown of prizes for each event. https://t.co/bEG5KwCKlF pic.twitter.com/O73LSYAfQU
— WSOP – World Series of Poker (@WSOP) May 21, 2024
Playing around with the calculator above one of the few events without a x2 mincash is the Main Event, which still has a somewhat top heavy payout structure, as it likes to create a marketable first prize.
This is what the 2024 final table will look like compared to 2023, if the field size was the same:
| Position | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | $12,100,000 | $11,000,000 |
| 2nd | $6,500,000 | $6,500,000 |
| 3rd | $4,000,000 | $4,500,000 |
| 4th | $3,000,000 | $3,500,000 |
| 5th | $2,400,000 | $2,500,000 |
| 6th | $1,850,000 | $2,000,000 |
| 7th | $1,425,000 | $1,500,000 |
| 8th | $1,125,000 | $1,250,000 |
| 9th | $900,000 | $1,000,000 |
As you can see, most players are better off in 2024 and crucially, everyone starts the final table as a millionaire, which is a great marketing claim.
For a deeper dive into a ‘normal’ event which doesn’t have a marketing influence on the payouts, this is what a $1,000 event from 2023 which had 1,710 last year would look like:
| Position | 2024 Payouts | 2023 Payouts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $217,121 | $236,741 |
| 2 | $144,747 | $146,335 |
| 3 | $104,546 | $106,602 |
| 4 | $76,394 | $78,495 |
| 5 | $56,484 | $58,429 |
| 6 | $42,263 | $43,972 |
| 7 | $32,007 | $33,461 |
| 8 | $24,537 | $25,749 |
| 9 | $19,044 | $20,041 |
| 10-11 | $14,967 | $15,778 |
| 12-13 | $11,913 | $12,567 |
| 14-17 | $9,604 | $10,127 |
| 18-26 | $7,844 | $8,259 |
| 27-35 | $6,492 | $6,816 |
| 36-44 | $5,445 | $5,695 |
| 45-53 | $4,629 | $4,817 |
| 54-62 | $3,989 | $4,125 |
| 63-71 | $3,486 | $3,578 |
| 72-80 | $3,090 | $3,143 |
| 81-89 | $2,778 | $2,797 |
| 90-98 | $2,535 | $2,522 |
| 99-116 | $2,346 | $2,304 |
| 117-143 | $2,205 | $2,134 |
| 144-170 | $2,104 | $2,004 |
| 171-257 | $2,004 | $1,753 |
As you can see, the players who go deep are only slightly worse off in the 2024 version, but the first 167 cashers who bust out (who are 65% of the players who cash) are all better off.
Whether they admit it or not, most players want flatter payout structures and these news changes will be mostly popular in Vegas, starting next week.
Thoughts on the new payout structure? Let us know in the comments:
