Tournament coverage Poker

Harsh lessons for WPT

Written by Pai Yao

This article first appeared in the Jan/Feb 2015 issue of World Gaming magazine.

The first ever WPT event to be held in the Philippines was one with tremendous potential, but the reality turned out to be a tournament series plagued with problems.

In issue #32 of WGM, we ran an interview with World Poker Tour (WPT) President Adam Pliska in which he spoke about the organization’s two upcoming Asian events – WPT National China which was first held in 2012 and the brand new WPT National Philippines being held at Manila’s Solaire Resort & Casino for the very first time.

Pliska, who has done a great job in expanding the WPT in recent years, noted that the key to running these events – which generally have minimal input from the WPT itself – was to find quality local partners with both a knowledge of the local gaming landscape and the ability to ensure the event runs smoothly.

“The number one thing for the WPT has always been securing high level partnerships,” he said. “We want the best in the business, the gold standard … good partners are the key. It is the WPT brand in conjunction with a partner who knows the region, who is responsible and who won’t disappoint you.”

As it was, Railbird Ronny was lucky enough to be in attendance for the inaugural running of the Philippines event, but sadly it seems Pliska’s wishes weren’t granted and an event that boasted so much promise was let down by those given the responsibility by the WPT of ensuring its success.

From room bookings mysteriously disappearing into thin air to dinner breaks being cut short without the knowledge of players and baffling last-minute schedule changes, this was far from the smooth and professional operation the WPT is usually known for.

To say Railbird Ronny was disappointed would be an understatement, although it should be pointed out that very little of this was the fault of the WPT itself. The Philippines is a notoriously difficult place for the uninitiated to do business and with so many parties wanting a piece of the pie it can be hard to know which way to turn.

But it certainly serves a warning as to the importance, as Pliska foretold, of choosing partners wisely. After all, the last thing the WPT needs is its good name sullied by others.

In the meantime, players in Manila were faced with some truly absurd situations. In the lead-up to the Main Event, schedule and structure changes saw the High Rollers event attract a grand total of just six players. The Main Event itself was brought forward two days less than a month before it began. Bizarrely, the Pot Limit Omaha event had antes. And midway through Day 1a of the Main Event, a number of players returned from the dinner break only to find that play had resumed 15 minutes earlier than scheduled. Too bad if you were short stacked!

There was also one particular person, well known in the local industry, who was called in to do a specific job but decided he should be running the whole show. This gentleman caused nothing but frustration throughout and annoyed the dealers so much they decided to turn up to Day 2 of the Main Event 40 minutes late in protest!

Solaire must also take some of the blame for this given they cut corners in an attempt to save money, while our spies tell us that the new management team that came on board after contracts were signed but before the event itself were less than helpful. We feel for the handful of people on the floor and in supporting roles who we’re reliably told were either underpaid or left out of pocket altogether!

WPT National China wasn’t spared its own share of disasters either, with a flight of the warm-up event cancelled because a bridge tournament being held at the same venue went longer than expected.

Eddy Liang prevailed in Sanya

Eddy Liang prevailed in Sanya

The great shame of these blunders, particularly those at WPT National Philippines, is that the event has so much potential. Manila has been at the forefront of tournament poker’s push into Asia over the past eight years with the APPT and APT regularly holding events there. Unlike Macau, where the PokerStars LIVE room spent years trying to find a permanent home, properties in Manila have generally shown much greater willingness to welcome poker into the fold and that trend is likely to continue in the coming years when two new Integrated Resorts open their doors in the Entertainment City area they share with Solaire.

And it must be said there was a real buzz in Solaire’s impressive Grand Ballroom throughout the WPT event with the locals thrilled to have the chance to play alongside the likes of WPT commentator Mike Sexton, WPT expert analyst Tony Dunst, high stakes pro Daniel Cates and a number of other big names including JJ Liu, Lacey Jones and David Steicke.

A total of 385 players took part in the inaugural WPT National Philippines Main Event with Sexton making a deep run at the title before eventually being eliminated in 10th, however it was Japan’s Tetsuya Tsuchikawa who would be crowned champion and take home the US$156,849 first prize. Tsuchikawa is no stranger to success, having finished runner-up at the Macau Poker Cup in 2011, but this result was undoubtedly the biggest of his career.

Tetsuya Tsuchikawa WPT National Philippines champion Tetsuya Tsuchikawa

Tetsuya Tsuchikawa WPT National Philippines champion Tetsuya Tsuchikawa

From Manila it was onto Sanya where early predictions of a field of around 1,200 proved a little ambitious. Perhaps burdened by its clash with the Asia Championship of Poker in Macau and certainly by the 20 percent tax taken from the prize pool of tournaments held in China, the final figure came in at 898 starters with a first prize of RMB 1,540,000. China’s Eddy Liang was the man to claim that prize, becoming the third winner of WPT National China in the process.

It was a great performance by Liang to outlast such a hefty field and likewise Tsuchikawa. Let’s hope the WPT can turn things around in the future for their Asian events and we’re heaping the same praise on the events themselves as we do with the victorious players.