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PokerStars Sponsors First Mixed Game Festival in Vegas

Written by Jennifer Newell
Last updated on
Jennifer Newell

The World Series of Poker in Las Vegas becomes the center of the poker universe for a month and a half each year – each year but 2020 because…you know. The WSOP not only sets up an entire convention center full of bracelet-awarding tournaments, it hosts a massive room of cash games and numerous side tournaments – the dailies – that giver poker players the opportunity to play nearly anything they choose.

Further, though, poker players flock to Las Vegas during the WSOP because other casino poker rooms want  piece of the action. Several of them host series that coincide with the dates of the WSOP. Those series attempt to create good value with prize pool guarantees, a range of buy-ins, and usually some poker variant selection.

This year, there is a new series taking place alongside the WSOP. It is different from the others and hosted by one of poker’s most enthusiastic supporters. The biggest online poker operator in the world is sponsoring it. And that means that there is one Platinum Pass to the next PokerStars Players Championship (PSPC) up for grabs.

First-Ever Mixed Game Festival

Cardplayer Lifestyle founder Robbie Strazynski announced it in July. The inaugural Mixed Game Festival is set for October 4-7 at the Westgate Las Vegas Casino, just off the Strip, on Paradise Road between the areas of the Wynn and Sahara casinos.

The Cardplayer Lifestyle-hosted series will provide three days of low-stakes Dealer’s Choice cash games, a chance to play a wide variety of mixed games. And on October 7, the series will conclude with a $200 buy-in HORSE tournament. Its details include:

-Buy-in: $200

-Location: Westgate Las Vegas poker room

-Date: Thursday, October 7

-Starting time: noon

-Starting chips: 10,000

-Registration opens: Monday, October 4 at 10am

-Registration ends: at the end of Level 6

-Levels: 20 minutes

-Seats available: 18 tables, 8-handed (144 players max plus alternates)

There is a kicker – a good one. Players participating in the previous days’ cash games can earn extra starting chips. They can earn 2,000 tournament chips for every five hours of cash game play during the festival, and it maxes out at 10,000 bonus chips for the HORSE event.

Players can preregister for cash game seats via the Poker Atlas app to reserve seats.

Those attending the festival will have access to a free salad bar and platters of fruits and vegetables open during the hours of cash game play. There will also be daily giveaways of PokerStars merchandise, as well as gift bags from BBO Poker Tables, t-shirts from RunGoodGear, and card deck sets from Faded Spade.

The latest addition to the perks is a charity component. There will be tip jars around the poker room for those wanting to donate to a good cause. The primary charity at this point is the Westgate Resorts Foundation, established by Westgate Resorts to benefit those in communities near the company’s properties. PokerStars and Westgate Casino will each match the total amount collected.

Platinum Pass Up for Grabs

Remember the PokerStars Players Championship? The PSPC was the biggest tournament opportunity to hit the poker scene in years. The buildup to the inaugural PSPC event in January 2019 in the Bahamas was ambitious, and the event itself exceeded most expectations. PokerStars soon announced the next one, set for August 2020 in Barcelona. Platinum Passes were the key to awarding players into the ~$25K buy-in tournament, and PokerStars awarded the first ones in August 2019.

Guess what happened? Pandemic.

PokerStars hoped to reschedule the next PSPC for this year, but guess what? Pandemic. However, PokerStars is determined to bring the PSPC back, to host one in 2022. The pandemic has to be over by then, right? RIGHT?!

Optimism is in the water at PokerStars, and it’s in the blood of Strazynski. The latter noted that PSPC II is supposed to take place in 2022 “with exact dates to be determined.” And considering he attended the first one in 2019, he knows “it’ll be nothing short of spectacular.” With that said, he is thrilled to be able to offer the first Platinum Pass to be awarded in a year and a half. The winner of the October 7 HORSE tournament will win that pass.

When we reached out to PokerStars for more information, a spokesperson provided this statement:

“We were very sad to announce last year that the PokerStars Players No Limit Hold’em Championship (PSPC) could not go ahead as scheduled. However, we are planning ahead to a later date, and we aim to celebrate being back with our community with a bang when the time is right.

“We are still planning when that will be, but we will update as soon as we have dates confirmed.

“As always, our priority is the safety and good health of all our players and staff, as well as the communities that host such large events.”

Whenever the PSPC does happen, the winner of the Mixed Game Festival will have an all-expenses-paid ticket to be there.

Bring Skills and a Mask

Strazynski will need to follow the Covid-19 policy of Westgate. And this moment, all patrons must wear masks indoors in Clark County, Nevada, which is where Las Vegas is located. There are no exceptions for large events like the WSOP or for people with proof of vaccination.

The host said he will abide by whatever the laws, edicts, and CDC guidance mandate. With that said, he noted, “For whatever it’s worth, I’m triple vaccinated! I intend to be giving lots of hugs and hi-fives.”

As far as skills necessary to play in his events, Strazynski believes that many of the players in the festival will have played mixed games at low stakes or in home games. However, they will be playing $4/$8 games, so the crowd will likely not be filled with professional mixed game players. “Hopefully, they’re not too good so that I can win some money!” Strazynski joked.

In seriousness, he said, “This is the perfect opportunity for ‘Hold’em only’ players to come to the Westgate and try out a bunch of different mixed games for the first time. They’re worlds of fun, and I guarantee we’ll attract a fun-loving crowd more than happy to welcome ‘mixed game newbies.’” He added that he won’t be surprised to see some seasoned veterans show up for the $200 HORSE tournament, considering there is a Platinum Pass up for grabs, but the crowd is likely to resemble the cash game crowd of the first three days.

Keep in mind that longtime poker pros and mixed game players Linda Johnson and Jan Fisher will host a Q&A session on October 6. They will be ready to answer all mixed game questions and provide tips and strategies for select poker variants.

A Long Time Coming

This has been a long time in the works for Strazynski. He originally planned his inaugural Mixed Game Festival to happen during the summer of 2020, though it had been in the works for quite a while before that. After all this time, it’s finally just a few weeks away.

“This feels absolutely surreal,” he said. “I first conceived of the idea for the Mixed Game Festival way back in November 2019. I was supposed to make the announcement on March 10, 2020…” (Guess what happened? Pandemic.)

“You can only imagine how difficult it was to stay tight-lipped about everything for 1.5 years. And of course, the logistics all had to be (re)arranged all over again,” Strazynski noted. “Thankfully, PokerStars stood by me and has kindly kept its full support behind this event throughout. A special shout out to former Westgate Poker Room Manager Mark Selby and his supervisor Chuck Palermo, as well as the current room manager Wan Choi, for being so wonderful to work and liaise with throughout these past 1.5 years.”

Meanwhile, there are some new perks on the schedule for the festival. Poker pro and author Dylan Lynde will sign copies of his book Mastering Mixed Games – priced at a discounted $20 – on October 4. He will donate all proceeds to the Westgate Resorts Foundation.

And on October 5, WSOP four-time bracelet winner Eli Elezra will sign copies of his book Pulling the Trigger – priced at just $10 – with proceeds going to the same charity.

More information is on the Cardplayer Lifestyle website via this link and this link.

Strazynski is more than a little excited to host this inaugural event. “I can’t wait to watch my dream come true and finally materialize. Here’s hoping it’ll be the first of many future Mixed Game Festivals to come.”

 

 

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