The 2008 World Poker Tour Legends of Poker tournament kicked off this past weekend at the Bicycle Casino of Los Angeles, California. Like the World Series of Poker Main Event, the WPT Legends of Poker has a $10,000 price tag for the entry fee. However, unlike the WSOP the Legends of Poker saw a serious decline in entrants this year.

                After two days of registration the number of player is at 373, which is far below the number of 485 in 2007. That’s a decline of 23% which is quite a big change in a single year. The Legends of Poker tournament has had an unstable attendance record since it began in the 1990’s. The main factor that has played into the upswings and downswings in players has been the entry fee.

                Since the first Legends of Poker tournament, before it was picked up as part of the World Poker Tour, the entry fee has varied greatly. Going as followed:

1^st Legends of Poker Tournament - $5,000 entry fee – 56 players

1996-1998 - $2,500 entry fee – less than 100

1999 - $2,000 entry fee – 121 players

2000-2001 - $5,000 entry fee – 35 players in 2001

2002 - $5,000 entry fee – 134 players (year that World Poker Tour became involved)

2004 - $5,000 entry fee – 667 players

2006 - $5,000 entry fee – 839 players

2006-2007 - $10,000 entry fee – 485 players

2008 - $10,000 entry fee – 373 players

 

                It’s easy to see that players are weighing their odds pretty heavily before deciding whether its worth the entry fee. Of course, other than entry fee the affiliation with the World Poker Tour has had a clear affect on attendance in the past.

                The indicators have been there that the interest in the Legends of Poker tournament is waning. This is partly due to the ever increasing popularity of the World Series of Poker who also hosts year-round poker events. The WSOP has become so prominent in the world of poker that their tournaments like the Main Event have started overshadowing the WPT big ticket tournaments. 

This has been recognized by television networks which were reluctant to cover the Legends event. The Game Show Network, who had previously aired the tournament, opted out this year. Their spot wasn’t quickly filled but Fox Sports eventually picked it up. As for the future of the tournament, we’ll have to see if this year’s attendance rate affects next year’s entry fee.