The first-ever live BetMGM Poker Championship, with a $1 million guarantee, is now set as the headline event of the 2022 ARIA Poker Classic series. The BetMGM Poker Championship at ARIA is a $3,500 buy-in no-limit hold'em event that begins on June 23, 2022, and runs through June 26.
The Aria Poker Classic's complete seven-week schedule, running throughout June and much of July, had already announced its entire event slate, including a $3,500 NLHE event on these dates. It's the branding with the BetMGM name, however, that has fueled additional interest, as it supports widespread rumors that MGM may be planning to launch a BetMGM online poker site in Nevada.
At the present time, WSOP.com enjoys an online-poker monopoly in the Silver State. Two early competitors, South Point Poker and UltimatePoker, folded their online poker operations after failing to generate any meaningful market share.
Mystery-bounty BetMGM event also on Aria series schedule
While the four-day, $1 million championship will headline the BetMGM live-poker rollout, it's also not the only Aria Poker Classic event to be so designated. On June 25, the Aria will host a BetMGM-branded $600 mystery bounty tourney. As a BetMGM release notes, it "will mark the first time ARIA has run this modern take on a live poker knockout tournament."
BetMGM is also running a series of qualifiers in the states where the company has a live poker presence. BetMGM promises to award 15 seats to the $3,500 championship from each of its "live" poker markets, with the winners' packages also including travel expenses and five nights of lodging at Aria,
According to Luke Staudenmaier, the Director of Poker at BetMGM, "The first-ever BetMGM Poker Championship descends on Las Vegas during one of the most exciting times of the poker season. ARIA is a legendary poker brand and we're thrilled that the Championship has become an integral part of this year's Poker Classic. Through our relationship with MGM Resorts and its world-class U.S. properties, we'll continue to leverage event programming and connect with players both online and in their favorite poker rooms."
Though Las Vegas's MGM Grand casino also offers poker, MGM's Aria property, farther south on the Strip, is the logical choice as the venue for launching BetMGM's live poker events. The Aria already boasts a dedicated poker-tournament facility, including the PokerGO production studio, and the casino is home to many high-profile events and series throughout the year.
Featured image source: Aria
