Apt Prepares For Season Iv Final In Brisbane

Most poker players don’t have a lot of great poker memories from 2020. Live poker was unavailable for the majority of the year, but at least players knew that. This year has been a mixed bag, as venues reopened for poker – some faster than others – as vaccines helped slow the pandemic. But vaccine hesitancy mixed with a newer and deadlier variant of the virus brought more closures in some parts of Australia. All poker operators can do is plan for the best and roll with the punches.

The Australian Poker Tour knows that all too well.

The crew and players have plowed through the worst of the card room closures and persevered to host tournaments that most people didn’t think possible. Now, they’re preparing for the Season IV Grand Final, which will be the APT Brisbane in September.

Catching Up With APT

The Australian Poker Tour started 2021 with high hopes and an impressive turnout for its APT Brisbane in January. The series brought in 6,546 entries and awarded $1,537,420 in prize money. The $225 buy-in Main Event had 971 entries and a $162,545 prize pool. Kris Ilnicki won the tournament for $37,500.

Next up was the APT Gold Coast at Southport Sharks. Those 21 events on the schedule delivered 6,485 entries and awarded $2,021,670 in prize money. The Main Event brought showed 950 entries and $157,850 in the pool, and David Rodwell took first place for $31,300.

The APT Sydney did start at the Cube in late June but with a scaled-down version. There were 11 events, most of which didn’t hit their estimated prize pools. The worries about the virus and another shutdown looming prevented many players from making the trip. The series didn’t even host a Main Event as it hoped to do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrrZk0v2dYE

Gearing Up for a Big Finale

The APT is in hot pursuit of a full tournament series, as they’d love for the Grand Final to be big. They scheduled the Season IV Grand Final at Eatons Hill 20-26 September. There will be 31 events with buy-ins ranging from $60 to $5K. In total, the week estimates the total prize pools to hit $1.75M.

The website has yet to publish the full schedule, but the APTLive Facebook page did. Here’s the rundown of said schedule:

• Event 1 on 20 Sept: $150 buy-in NLHE Opener ($30K estimated prize pool)
• Event 2 on 20-21 Sept: Invitational Tournament of Champions ($40,500 GTD)
• Event 3 on 20 Sept: $100 NLHE 8-Max Freezeout ($15K est.)
• Event 4 on 20 Sept: $350 NLHE Big Bounty ($150 bounties) ($75K est.)
• Event 5 on 20 Sept: $120 Short-Deck (antes only) ($10K est.)
• Event 6 on 21 Sept: $150 NLHE Mix Max (8-6-2) ($15K est.)
• Event 7 on 21-22 Sept: $2,500 NLHE Goliath ($300K est.)
• Event 8 on 21 Sept: $660 NLHE 6-Max Shot Clock ($30K est.)
• Event 9 on 21 Sept: $100 Pineapple ($10K est.)
• Event 10 on 22 Sept: $450 NLHE 6-Max Championships ($40K est.)
• Event 11 on 22-24 Sept: $200 NLHE Championships Mini Main Event (2 starting days, 3 flights) ($100K est.)
• Event 12 on 22-26 Sept: $600 NLHE Main Event (4 starting days, 4 flights) ($300K est.)
• Event 13 on 22 Sept: $550 PLO8 ($20K est.)
• Event 14 on 22 Sept: $120 NLHE 6-Max Shootout ($15K est.)
• Event 15 on 23-24 Sept: $1K NLHE Players Championships ($150K est.)
• Event 16 on 23 Sept: $120 NLHE Accelerator ($10K est.)
• Event 17 on 23 Sept: $120 NLHE Ladies Championship ($7,500 est.)
• Event 18 on 23 Sept: $60 NLHE Short Stack Shuffle ($10K est.)
• Event 19 on 24-26 Sept: $1,200 NLHE The Grind ($200K est.)
• Event 20 on 24 Sept: $120 NLHE Rebuy ($15K est.)
• Event 21 on 24-25 Sept: $5K NLHE Extreme High Roller ($150K est.)
• Event 22 on 24 Sept: $100 NLHE Big Bounty Game ($15K est.)
• Event 23 on 25 Sept: $350 NLHE National Teams (5-player teams) ($15K est.)
• Event 24 on 25 Sept: $200 NLHE ($30K est.)
• Event 25 on 25-26 Sept: $1,200 Big PLO ($75K est.)
• Event 26 on 25-26 Sept: $1,200 8-Game Mix Champs ($25K est.)
• Event 27 on 25 Sept: $240 NLHE Tag Team (2-player teams) ($12,500 est.)
• Event 28 on 26 Sept: $450 NLHE Beast ($100K est.)
• Event 29 on 26 Sept: $80 NLHE Megastack ($10K est.)
• Event 30 on 26 Sept: $800 PLO-NLHE Rotation High Roller ($50K est.)
• Event 31 on 26 Sept: $60 PLO Frenzy ($7,500 est.)

Check the July 7 post on the APT’s Facebook page for each day’s lineups, including starting times, reentry options, and satellite information.

Looking Toward Season 5

Players will be able to count on the Australian Poker Tour to push forward, past the Grand Final and into a brand-new season – Season V. A fresh start, they hope, will bring an official end to shutdowns and the ability to plan for future series…and keep those plans without pandemic-related interruptions.

• 1-7 November, 2021: APT Sydney at the Cube, CCC
• 17-23 January, 2022: APT Brisbane at Eatons Hall
• 21-28 March, 2022: APT Sydney at a location to be determined
• 26 April-1 May, 2022: APT Gold Coast at Southport Sharks
• 12-17 July, 2022: APT Adelaide at a location to be determined
• 5-11 September, 2022: APT Brisbane at Eatons Hall
• November 2022: APT Sydney at a location to be announced

Details will emerge in the weeks and months to come so players can mark their calendars and tally up their bankrolls. With some luck and a lot of vaccines, the APT hopes to return to normal scheduling and playing.