Details of the upcoming Los Angeles Poker Classic (LAPC) at the Commerce Casino have been released and the 50-event series appears to offer a little something for everyone. In addition to the World Poker Tour (WPT) LAPC Main Event and the WPT Celebrity Invitational, the Commerce Casino will play host to a number of other events, including the first-ever U.S.-based Badugi tournament and an Ironman event, in which players compete in a tournament with no breaks and no deals.
In 2009, newly hired Tournament Director Matt Savage added events to the already ample LAPC schedule, including $10,000 buy-in HORSE and Heads-up contests. Scotty Nguyen took down the HORSE event, while Full Tilt Poker pro Vivek “Psyduck” Rajkumar won the double elimination Heads-Up tournament. Both of these $10,000 events will be back in 2010, as will a $25,100 buy-in High Rollers event set to take place on February 28th.
The series, which runs from January 21st through March 4th, will kick off with a $335 buy-in No Limit Hold’em event with a whopping $1 million guarantee. A similar event was held during the Commerce Hold’em series in September. The tournament featured a $220 buy-in and easily eclipsed its $500,000 guarantee after nearly 4,000 people showed up to play. The LAPC version will offer three different starting days and, in a unique twist, should a player bust out on Day 1A or Day 1B, they are allowed to come back the following starting day, buy back in, and start all over again.
Other new events on tap for the series include the first ever Badugi tournament held in a U.S. casino, a Chinese Poker event, a $1,065 No Limit Hold’em event with rebuys, and Savage’s latest concoction, an Ironman event. The Ironman tournament has no scheduled breaks, gives 50% of its prize pool to first place, and explicitly forbids any deal making at the final table. Commerce ran its first Ironman tournament in September and drew a field of 64 players. The event lasted for over 19 hours and was eventually won by Brett Radin. Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin also made the final table, finishing in sixth place.
The WPT Celebrity Invitational typically takes place after the LAPC Main Event has wrapped up, but this year, the fun-filled freeroll event will run on February 20th and 21st before taking a break to film the final table on March 3rd. The $10,000 buy-in Main Event will take place from February 26th to March 4th. Last year’s Main Event drew a field of 696.
Here is the complete schedule of events for the upcoming LAPC. All events drawing more than 100 players will be two-day events unless otherwise noted and all times are local.
1/21 – 1pm: $335No Limit Hold’em (Day 1a), $1,000,000 guarantee
1/22 – 1pm: $335No Limit Hold’em (Day 1b), $1,000,000 guarantee
1/23 – 1pm: $335No Limit Hold’em (Day 1c), $1,000,000 guarantee
1/24 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em, $100,000 guarantee
1/25 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em
1/25 – 4pm: $335 7 Card Stud, $50,000 guarantee
1/26 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em Shootout (1 Day Event)
1/26 – 4pm: $335 Omaha H/L, $50,000 guarantee
1/27 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em, $10,000 seat added
1/27 – 4pm: $335 Stud H/L
1/28 – 1pm: $545 Omaha H/L and Stud H/L
1/29 – 1pm: $545 6-Handed No Limit Hold’em
1/30 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em w/ rebuys, $250,000 guarantee
1/30 – 4pm: $545 HORSE
1/31 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em, $200,000
2/1 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em
2/2 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em
2/3 – 1pm: $335 6-Handed No Limit Hold’em
2/4 – 1pm: $335 Heads-Up (Single Elimination – 256 Max), $10,000 seat added
2/5 – 1pm: $220 No Limit Hold’em (Day 1a), $250,000 guarantee
2/6 – 1pm: $220 No Limit Hold’em (Day 1b), $250,000 guarantee
2/7 – 1pm: $335 Double Stack No Limit Hold’em
2/8 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em
2/9 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em
2/9 – 4pm: $545 Omaha H/L
2/10 – 1pm: $1,065 No Limit Hold’em
2/10 – 4pm: $545 Stud H/L
2/11 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em, $10,000 seat added
2/11 – 4pm: $1,065 6-Handed No Limit Hold’em
2/12 – 1pm: $545 Limit Hold’em
2/12 – 4pm and 8pm: $230 Megasatellite for $1K Rebuy
2/13 – 1pm: $1,065 No Limit Hold’em w/ rebuys, $1,000,000 guarantee
2/14 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em w/ Knockout Bounty, $100,000 guarantee
2/14 – 4pm: $1,065 2-7 Triple Draw
2/15 – 1pm: $1,585 No Limit Hold’em
2/15 – 4pm: $1,065 8 Game Mix
2/16 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em
2/16 – 4pm: $1,065 Badugi
2/16 – 8pm: $1,050 Megasatellite to $10,000 HORSE
2/17 – 1pm: $1,065 HORSE
2/17 – 4pm: $1,585 Chinese Poker ½ High ½ Low (1 Day Event)
2/17 – 8pm: $1,050 Mega satellite to $10,000 HORSE
2/18 – 1pm: $1,065 No Limit Hold’em (6-Handed at 36 players)
2/18 – 4pm: $10,000 Commerce HORSE Championship (3 Day Event)
2/19 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em Shootout, $100,000 guarantee (1 Day Event)
2/19 – 4pm: $1,065 6-Handed Pot Limit Omaha w/ rebuys
2/20 – 8pm: WPT Celebrity Invitational Day 1
2/21 – 1pm: WPT Celebrity Invitational Day 2
2/21 – 1pm: $460 Ironman Turbo Megasatellite
2/21 – 4pm: $2,100 No Limit Hold’em Ironman Event, $10,000 seat added
2/21 – 8pm: $1,300 Heads-up Championship 8-Handed Qualifiers
2/22 – 1pm: $335 No Limit Hold’em, $200,000 guarantee
2/22 – 4pm: $3,085 6-Handed No Limit Hold’em
2/22 – 8pm: $2,550 Heads-up Championship 4-Handed Qualifiers
2/23 – 1pm: $1,065 No Limit Hold’em
2/23 – 4pm: $10,000 Commerce Heads-up Championship, $10,000 seat added
2/23 – 8pm: $1,050 LAPC Main Event Megasatellite
2/24 – 1pm: $545 No Limit Hold’em Shootout (1 Day Event)
2/24 – 4pm: $5,100 No Limit Hold’em
2/24 – 8pm: $1,050 LAPC Main Event Megasatellite
2/25 – 11am, 3:30pm, and 8pm: $1,050 LAPC Main Event Megasatellite
2/26 – 12pm: $10,000 LAPC Main Event Day 1
2/27 – 12pm: $10,000 LAPC Main Event Day 2
2/28 – 12pm: $10,000 LAPC Main Event Day 3
2/28 – 4pm: $25,100 Commerce High Rollers Event
3/1 – 12pm: $10,000 LAPC Main Event Day 4
3/2 – 12pm: $10,000 LAPC Main Event Day 5
3/3 – 4pm: WPT Celebrity Invitational Final Table Taping
3/4 – 4pm: LAPC Main Event Final Table Taping
