The World Poker Tour's much-anticipated debut in Macau in mid-June has been called off by the WPT less than three weeks before it was scheduled to begin. In a brief statement released today, the WPT declared that the series "will not move forward."
What was to have been the inaugural WPT Macau festival was announced in early April. The series had been slated to run from June 18-24 at Wynn Macau. The seven-day stop would have included a championship event running from June 20-24, featuring a HK $40,000 buy-in (about US $5,100).
After a six-year hiatus, tournament poker had only recently returned to Macau, a special administrative region of China that is Southeast Asia's largest gambling hub. WPT CEO Adam Pliska had spoken on multiple occasions prior to the stop's announced debut of his long-held hopes and plans for bringing a series to Macau.
“Macau has long been a sought-after destination for us, wanting to deliver the WPT experience to the region,” said Pliska when the stop was announced. Those plans will again be placed on hold for at least the near future.
WPT regrets inconvenience
The WPT did not specify the reason for the abrupt cancellation but expressed hopes that a Macau festival will take place at some future time. The complete brief as issued by the tour reads as follows:
Greetings,
WPT Macau, which was scheduled to take place in June, will not move forward. WPT, Wynn Macau, and Allied Gaming and Entertainment regret any inconvenience or disappointment for players from around the world who were planning to travel to Macau and play in the event.
WPT remains committed to working with Wynn Macau and AGAE in the future to bring world class poker tournaments back to the region.
Back-to-back Southeast Asian setbacks for WPT
The Macau cancellation comes less than two weeks after a WPT 'Passport' special-event series planned in Hanoi, Vietnam, was called off just days before it was set to begin. That planned stop at Hanoi's Crown Poker Club did not include significant on-site involvement from the WPT, but was set to award numerous seat-and-travel packages to December's WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas.
The Hanoi series was reported by local outlets to have been missing some of the needed regulatory approvals, hence its last-minute cancellation. Regulatory and licensing concerns have been an ongoing hurdle for poker organizers throughout Southeast Asia. It is not publicly known whether the Macau cancellation is also a regulatory matter involving Macau or mainland China officials.
