France-based Winamax Poker has returned in recent days with the opening events of its "Mini WSOP," an online series featuring online replicas of the live World Series of Poker events running through mid-July in Las Vegas. But there's a key distinction. Each of the events carries an online buy-in of exactly 1/100, or one percent, of the matching live event at the WSOP. Each event is also denominated in euros instead of dollars.
As with the live WSOP, Winamax's Mini WSOP is in the midst of its earliest events. The 2023 Mini WSOP marks the sixth time that Winamax has offered the online series, and it's available wherever Winamax is licensed, though a majority of the site's players come from France and Spain. The series is fully authorized by WSOP Caesars Entertainment, too, since Winamax is the WSOP's official European partner in a deal that co-exists alongside the WSOP's "international" pact with GGPoker.
Besides the prize money and the affordable buy-ins, winners of the Mini WSOP's events also receive replica bracelets that mirror the look of the WSOP's own solid-gold jewelry, but with an added "Mini WSOP" touch.
One of the true distinctions of the WSOP as it exists today is the variety of poker formats offered. Many other live series, especially those outside Las Vegas, offer Texas hold'em, Omaha, and not much else. The broad selection available at the WSOP helps set it apart from the competition. For European online players, most of whom lack the means to travel to Las Vegas to play poker, a series such as Winamax's Mini WSOP offers a rare chance to play many of these poker variants.
The ongoing Mini WSOP schedule illustrates that breadth, and there's the added bonus for Winamax players in that most of the events conclude in hours, rather than running for multiple days like their live Vegas counterparts.
"The incredible diversity of variants and prices of Las Vegas is reproduced there daily, in its totality or almost. Stud or Stud High-Low, Razz or Deuce to Seven, 8-Game, Limit Hold'em, Omaha, Mystery (Bounty), HORSE," the Winamax Blog notes, "a colorful carnival of poker formats accessible at very low prices."
Featured image source: Winamax Poker
