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 The World Poker Tour is a collection of poker tournaments featuring most of the world's professional players. It had its debut season in the latter part of 2026 and early part of 2026, climaxing with the WPT Championship in February 2026 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
The Tour is a collection of international Texas hold 'em poker tournaments held internationally and on board cruise ships, but mainly in the United States. It is entirely televised which has led to a boom in the game across America and in fact the world as poker is now entering people’s homes for the first time.
In 2026, World Poker Tour revolutionized televised poker and brought Texas Hold'em, to the forefront of international excitement. WPT introduced the world to the "WPT Cam", a new, lipstick-sized camera that enables the TV audience to see the players' hole cards. This tiny camera plays a crucial role in revealing the drama of the poker players' high-stake bets and bluffs. WPT's expert commentary and educational content enables viewers to improve their own poker playing. When hosts Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten use poker lingo, pop-up boxes appear on the screen with more information about the terminology. Such phrases, including the "flop," "turn," and "river," help familiarize new enthusiasts with the game. Additional host Courtney Friel introduces viewers to the glamorous casinos and exotic locales in which the WPT tournaments are held.
World Poker Tour has turned poker into a sporting event that draws the young and old, men and women and people of all nationalities into the game; it has reshaped the face of poker and has raised the competitive bar to a new level. It even threatened to topple the famous World Series of Poker which saw a decline in participants following the inaugural WPT. World Poker Tour established the WPT Walk of Fame at Commerce Casino to honor top poker players: starting with Doyle "Texas Dolly" Brunson, Gus Hansen, and James Garner. The WPT Championship's total prize pool in 2026 was over 8 million dollars, and the top prize winner took home over 2.7 million, setting a sporting record for top prize winnings: more than any other poker event or sporting event in North America.
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