The World Series of Poker is the most anticipated poker series offered in the United States. Decades old, the WSOP offers players the opportunity to take part in gold bracelet events. The winner of these events earns the WSOP title, bragging rights and the coveted gold. For the past few years, online events have been offered with players taking part in Nevada and New Jersey. With the recent Wire Act change by the US Department of Justice, players were afraid that WSOP bracelet online events would not be open to them in New Jersey. The interstate online gambling ban would essentially block players in NJ from taking part.
Thankfully, the WSOP has confirmed that online bracelet events will take place before June 14th, which is the deadline that the DOJ put in place for the enforcement of their new regulations. This means that players from New Jersey can take part without fear of federal interference.
Online Events
The 2019 WSOP will be offering a total of nine online bracelet events. The events will kick off on June 2nd, so players in New Jersey can participate in the first and second online events. The first is a $400 no limit hold’em event while the second event, starting on June 9th, will be a $600 pot limit Omaha event.
The remaining seven online events remain up in the air as to if players in New Jersey can take part. The court case involving the Wire Act changes by the DOJ is still ongoing. The outcome could affect how players can compete, depending on the ruling. Hopefully, the outcome will be in favor of the online gambling industry and players from New Jersey will continue to be able to compete in the WSOP online event as they have in the past.
The remaining events offered for gold bracelets online include buy-ins ranging from $400 to $3,200. Many formats will be included in the mix for the events such as 6-max PLO, Double Stack, Knockout and Turbo.
iGaming Threat
Since the DOJ reversed the 2011 opinion involving the Wire Act, the state of online gambling in the US has been scrambling to figure out what will happen next. The change prohibits all interstate online gambling, not just sports betting as was the case in the past. Existing online casino and poker operations are under threat as well as online lottery games and more.
A legal effort has been ongoing against the ruling with states including New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania in the mix. For Pennsylvania, the state has been delayed in offering services due to the Wire Act change. The state is taking their time in launching to ensure they are in compliance with the rules and regulations in place.
The leader of the legal challenge against the Department of Justice is the New Hampshire Lottery, the group that initially filed the lawsuit. Others have joined in that feel the change puts their existing industries at risk.
For now, the legal challenge is ongoing. Hopefully, we will see a positive outcome for the gambling industry in the near future. With the WSOP, at least players in New Jersey can take part in two online poker events. We may find that the additional events are open to players in the future, if the legal challenge comes to an end. We will stay tuned to any new developments and report as they happen.
