The UK’s most prestigious amateur poker tour is back and taking things to a whole new level.
The first big announcement for the Amateur Poker Association & Tour is that online giants Betfair.com are to become the their chief sponsors and will be adding value to every tournament. Each regional event will bear the Betfair banner, as will the National Championships, and players looking to qualify for live events on the cheap can log onto Betfair.com and take part in the numerous satellites running throughout the year.
Probably the biggest incentive for players looking to compete in the next APAT season, aside from the prize money, is the 33 GUKPT Main Event seats and 23 APAT Professional League seats on offer. As always there are no registration fees with the APAT which makes every prize on offer all the more sweet for those lucky enough to clinch an APAT title.
NEW YEAR, NEW SCHEDULE
In previous years the tour mainly consisted of a core schedule of regional events that culminated in a National Championship, but this season each player will be put through a veritable Krypton Factor of events. Here’s a brief look at the new APAT schedule:
Amateur Championships
The main thread running through the APAT season is, of course, the 17 international ranking events across the country. The series will also pave a trail through Europe with stops in Austria, Estonia and Spain. Dusk Till Dawn will once again host the seven-event World Championship of Amateur Poker (WCOAP) and feature the inaugural £100 buy-in World Amateur Team Championships, pitting 16 countries against each other across the felt. The World Championships of Amateur Poker are set for August 27th-31st, 2010 which as well as the Team Event culminates in the 3-day £100 buy-in No Limit Hold’em Main Event.
FIRST ON THE TOUR: Betfair Welsh Amateur Championship – 20-21 March, Aspers Casino, Swansea
Professional League
For those looking to step up the ranks and test their skills against some of the toughest competition in the UK the new professional league is making its debut in the APAT calendar. Every event carries a £250 entry fee, as opposed to the standard £75, and the fields are capped at 50 players so each event doesn’t descend into a crapshoot. Each tournament will be a true test of skill with deep stacks, a slow clock and an elite field all battling it out for a wad of cash and a GUKPT Main Event seat. Oh, and they’re Pot Limit Hold’em, too.
FIRST ON THE TOUR: 20th March – Grosvenor Casino, Swansea
Specialist Series
If ploughing through a field of dogged Hold’em hounds has become somewhat tiresome then the new specialist series will definitely be worth a shot. Six mixed discipline events carrying a £25 buy-in are scheduled for the coming season and each will run alongside the regular Championship events. Winners of these events will also receive entry into one of the professional league tournaments later in the year.
FIRST ON THE TOUR: 21st March – £25 Pot Limit Omaha – Grosvenor Casino, Swansea
Online Championship
What modern poker series would be complete without an online festival? Ten events, $50 buy-ins and plenty of added value make these a must; especially if braving the wilds of the outside world is too much to bear. All the action will take place on Betfair.com and if you just can’t get enough of the online game then the National Online League is another chance to gun for virtual glory with one of the 30 poker clubs across the country. The online season kicked off as we went to print but there are still plenty of events on offer. The United Kingdom Online Championship and its Omaha counterpart take place on Betfair Poker March 27th with a $20 Omaha tournament kicking off at 9pm and the $50 Hold’em main event an hour earlier.
ADDED BONUSES
As well as the regular prizes you’d expect from an APAT season, this year the outfit are offering a £20,000 sponsorship package to the winner of the Professional League. Plus, the 17 regional winners, together with the Online Championship victors, will battle it out in a special one-day tournament where one lucky player will walk away with another £20,000 sponsorship package.
The forthcoming APAT season is already shaping up to be the best yet, with more events, more money and more chances to become a champion than ever before. For further details of all the events and a list of dates visit: www.apat.com |
