Harrah’s Announces New WSOP Circuit Stop in Oklahoma

Poker is booming on Oklahoma, and now Choctaw Casino is in on the action, too.

With a full month of poker in London dominating the international tournament schedule, the WSOP Circuit wisely scheduled a break between its recently completed first stop at Horseshoe Council Bluffs in Iowa and the second stop at Horseshoe Southern Indiana. But the tour is still making news thanks to a recently announced addition to its 2010-2011 schedule.

The newest stop on the fully revamped WSOP Circuit will run at Choctaw Casino Resort in Durant, Okla., from January 6-25, 2011, in between the Regional Championship at Harrahs Atlantic City and the smaller stop at Harrah’s Tunica in Mississippi. The Choctaw Casino Resort recently underwent a $300 million expansion that included a new 30-table poker room housed on its own executive level within the casino.

The WSOPC stop at Choctaw marks the first time that a Circuit event will be held at a casino not owned by Harrah’s. “After visiting the property, it was a must that we brought a WSOP Circuit stop to Choctaw Casino Resort,” said WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart.  “This is a huge poker market that has clamored for high stakes tournament poker and we’re ecstatic to be hosting a WSOP Circuit in this gorgeous property in Durant come January.”

A total of 10 gold WSOP Circuit rings will be up for grabs in Oklahoma in January, including one in the Main Event that will come with a seat in the WSOP National Championship. With thousands of poker players within driving distance in Oklahoma and Texas, the new stop should have no trouble becoming an overnight success. Harrah’s is also promising to add one more stop to this year’s WSOP Circuit schedule soon, so there should be a bit more news before the schedule is locked in for good.