At each of the four tour "events", there will be a Pro-Am to start the action, followed by a charity event and finally the main event. The Pro-Am will have a $1,500 buy-in and each of the final nine players in that event will receive a temporary tour card to each their spot into the $20,000 rake-free main event. Essentially, the Pro-Am is a satellite where $180,000 will be carved out of the prize pool for those spots.
Here's a look at the schedule:
Event 1: August 12-19, 2011
• Pro-Am: August 12-15
• Charity: August 14
• Main event: August 16-19
Event 2: September 30-October 7, 2011
• Pro-Am: September 30-October 3
• Charity: October 2
• Main event: October 4-7
Event 3: December 1-10, 2011
• Pro-Am: December 1-5
• Charity: December 4
• Main event: December 6-10
Event 4: January 20-27, 2012
• Pro-Am: January 20-23
• Charity: January 22
• Main event: January 24-27
Championship: January 29-30, 2012
The league's championship will feature the top 27 players in the league standings. It will be a $1 million freeroll event.
Each of the four events will feature a different format of no-limit hold 'em. There will be a six-handed and heads-up action, as well as a "special multi-format tournament".
Federated Commissioner Annie Duke shared her thoughts and excitement for the new venture.
"We decided to vary the format of our events to showcase and challenge the skill of the best live tournament players in the world," said Duke. "Our Pro-Am events will create opportunities for break-out stars to shine."
It seems this is a new twist, in that the original intent of the league was to have only pros playing other top pros. Allowing satellite winners into the mix will likely keep the door open to other venues where players can earn temporary cards.
With under five months before the league launches at the Palms, the next big steps seem to be who will qualify and how, along with who will do the TV coverage and buy-ins and sponsorships.
