With online casinos and other gambling establishments, the poker world is growing more than ever today. In our current world, several Hollywood celebrities are professional poker players, and the tournaments now attract the attention of millions of people across the world. Here are the world’s most prestigious poker tournaments where professional players compete for large prize pots and attract the attention of millions of viewers. Beginners and intermediate players can click here for real-money poker matches and tournaments to expand their skills.
1. The World Series of Poker
The WSOP is among the most prestigious poker tournaments, with millions of dollars at stake for successful competitors. The annual event hosted in Paradise, Nevada, is currently sponsored by Caesars Entertainment and consists of 101 events. Major poker variants are featured in the tournament, although almost half of the events are dominated by Texas Hold ’em variants.
The 2024 WSOP tournament was hosted from 31st May to 20th July, where London-based Norwegian pro player Espen Uhlen won the $10 million main event. Espen made it to the Main Event in a field of 8,663 players, the second-highest number in history. The former brewer went against Adrian Attenborough in the final round and went home with over $10 million.
2. Super High Roller Bowl
The Super High Roller Bowl is another prestigious No-Limit Hold ’em poker tournament hosted in elegant venues worldwide. The inaugural edition of this high-stakes poker tournament was hosted in July 2015, featuring a $500,000 buy-in and attracting 43 players.
Brian Rast won the first tournament and took home $7.525 million. Over the years, the tournament has been hosted across several cities, including Macau, London, the Bahamas and North Cyprus, where the latest tournament was hosted in April 2024. The tournament welcomed 32 players in the $8 million prize pool, where Daniel Negreanu outranked Nick Petrangelo to go home with the $3.312 million first-place prize.
3. The Big One for One Drop
Similar to the WSOP, this $1,000,000 buy-in welcomes some of the world’s best poker players in a game of Texas Hold ’em. Launched in 2012, it’s the highest buy-in poker event in the world and the biggest when it comes to single payouts. This event is also known for its charitable contributions through the One Drop Foundation.
4. Triton Super High Roller Series
Malaysian businessman and poker star Paul Phua launched the Triton High Roller Poker Series. Phua launched his career as a VIP junket tour operator in Macau, where he took an interest in professional gambling and launched his online sportsbook. That helped him launch the Wynn Macau Casino Resort, and he helped organize multiple high-profile poker events across the world over the years.
Today, the Triton Super High-Roller Series attracts the biggest names in the poker world with incredibly high buy-ins. This year, the tournament welcomed big names like Ben Tollerene, Karl Chappe-Gatien, Phil Ivey, Tom Vogelsang, Mikita Badziakouski and others.
5. Pokerstars Championship
Launched in 2017, the Pokerstars Championship is a global poker tournament that was launched after merging the European Poker Tour with other tours. During the inaugural season, the tournament featured seven festivals in Panama, Bahamas, Monte Carlo, Macau, Sochi, Prague and Barcelona.
6. U.S. Poker Open
The U.S. Poker Open is widely known as a prestigious tournament with a series of high-stakes tournaments. Launched in 2018, the tournament is hosted in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the gameplay of the final tables is live-streamed on PokerGo. Besides the main event, the player with the most points also gets a $50,000 guaranteed prize from the tournament.
February 2018 was the debut season for this prestigious poker event, and Keith Titson took home $50,000 from the main event. Stephen Chadwick claimed the series Champion honors after winning in two events and being among the five in the final table.
In 2024, the high-stakes poker tournament was hosted at the Aria Resort & Casino, where Sean Winter claimed the win in the main event. The previous year’s runner-up earned $50,000 from the last championship, also earning the Golden Eagle trophy.
7. Poker Masters
Another high-stakes poker tournament launched in 2017, the Poker Masters, takes place at the Las Vegas Aria Resort &Casino. PokerGo streams the action of the final tables’ lives, and the player that gets the most points in the series walks away with the purple jacket.
In 2024, the Poker Masters featured ten events on the schedule, including two Pot-Limit Omaha, nine No-Limit Hold ’em and one 8-game event. The buy-ins ranged from $10,000-$50,000 for the main event. Sean Winter dominated the event and cashed in twice, going home with the Purple Jacket after being crowned the champion.
8. Aussie Millions
The Aussie Millions ranks as the biggest and most prestigious poker event in the Southern Hemisphere. This poker championship takes place every year in Melbourne’s Crown Casino, with the winner typically taking home $1 million in prize money. As such, this major poker championship also welcomes leading U.S. poker players like Daniel Negreanu and Phil Ivey.
The Aussie Million uses a similar format as the WSOP, featuring several tournaments as part of the series. It features several qualifying/ preliminary rounds, followed by an exciting main event. These qualifying events include several poker formats and variations.
During the first two years, the Aussie Millions only featured Pot Limit Omaha, and the buy-in was $1,000. However, the organizers later changed the format to accommodate international poker players and also raised the buy-in to $10,000. However, the main difference in Aussie Millions is that the main event starts with eight players instead of nine, like in other major poker tournaments.
The Aussie Millions also features two high-roller events with $100,000 buy-ins each. Because of the huge buy-in at these high-roller events, the prize pot is also incredibly large, and winners can count their profits in millions. Poker fans can watch these tournaments on Poker Go or Twitch to know how leading poker players act under pressure and gain experience.
