The following email was sent to members of the Red Hot Poker Tour, announcing the details of the Tour’s 15th Tournament of Champions.  For only the second time in Tour history, the TOC will not be a freezout format.  Instead, the lucky 128 qualifiers who’ve earned their seat through outstanding play during the season will have to show off their skills at playing heads-up poker.  Win 7 matches and you could be next Tournament of Champions victor.

Please read over all the details carefully, as there are some changes from previous Tournament of Champions that you should keep yourself aware of.

Good luck on November 28th, everybody!

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RED HOT POKER TOUR – HEADS UP CHAMPIONSHIP.
The current details of the Season 15 Tournament of Champions are below. Some plans may change if necessary, but we hope this helps with planning.

DATE: Saturday, November 28, 2009

LOCATION: The Tournament of Champions 15 will take place at Norma Jeanes.
5977 Dixie Rd, Mississauga ON [map], 905.564.1400, www.normajeanes.com

TIME: The tournament will start early at 12:30 PM. Players MUST be at their seat by 12:15 PM. If a seat is empty at 12:15 PM the opposing player will receive a ‘bye’ to the next round.

QUALIFIERS: The top 128 players on the Red Hot Poker Tour CQ leader board will be awarded spots. There will be no Wildcard events or special entries in Season 15 due to player seeding in Heads Up.

INVITATIONS: Invitations will NOT be sent to qualifying players. If you are in the top 128 players on the CQ board at the completion of the Season, you have qualified. Terms and conditions apply.

SEATING: Instead of invitations, all 128 players will receive an email after 5:00 PM on Friday, November 27, 2009 – it will include an attachment showing each qualifiers table and opponent. Heads Up tournament grids with seating assignments will also be posted at the venue on the day of the tournament. There will be no need to line up or register for the event, but you must be at your seat by 12:15 PM or you will be disqualified from the tournament – and your opponent will receive a bye. No Exceptions.

SEEDING: Players will be seeded in 8 groups of 16 players based on their finish position after all points are posted from November 25, 2009. There will be no standby players because that would require reseeding players which will not be possible. PLEASE INFORM US BY 12:00 NOON NOVEMBER 26 IF YOU WILL NOT ATTEND. The seat will be replaced by the next available player on the leader board (129 .). If we are not notified by the deadline, the space will not be filled and the opposing player will receive a bye). If you do not plan to attend please email TOC@redhotpokertour.com.

SET UP: In Round 1 of the tournament, the 128 qualifiers will be seated at 16 tables (8 players per table). In Round 2 and more, there will be no more than 4 players per table. We recognize that Round 1 will be a little more crowded than we’d all like, but it is only one round, and this seating is required to coordinate such a large Heads Up tournament. We appreciate your understanding. The final two matches (4 players), and the final heads up Championship match will have dealers.

STRUCTURE: Round 1 will begin with each player starting with 4000 chips, and blinds at 25/50. The winner will carry all the chips (i.e. 8000) forward to their second round match, which will begin with blinds at 50/100. This will continue until the last match, where each player will start with 256,000 chips, and blinds at 1000/2000, and the final two players will play until one player has all the chips in the tournament. The levels will all be 10 minutes, which in Heads Up will generally result in a similar number of Hands as a 10 person table and 40 min blinds. The dinner break will be at 5:00 PM – The Tournament Director will evaluate active matches at that time and may temporarily halt play for some matches.

PRIZES: The final two players in the Championship match will EACH receive a seat in the WSOP ($1500 tournament). The overall winner will be the Season 15 Champion, and also receive the Trophy, Jersey, and flight to Las Vegas for the WSOP event as well as accommodations during the Red Hot Vegas Invasion. Please see Terms & Conditions for winner eligibility on www.redhotpokertour.com/terms_S15.html

NOV. 28 MATINEE: There will be regular Red Hot Poker Tour NLH tournament at 2:00 PM, November 28, 2009, at Norma Jeanes. Registration opens at 1:30PM. It will be eight tables or less – as it will all depend on the space available at that time. The tournament is open to all members, BUT some seats will be held for players who have been knocked out of the Heads Up Championship in Round 1. All levels will be self dealt.

NOV. 28 EVENING TOURNAMENT: There is a regular Red Hot Poker Tour NLH tournament at 7:00 PM, November 28, 2009, at Norma Jeanes. Registration opens at 6:30PM. There is no tournament at Adam’s Rib on November 28. The tournament will be eight tables or less – as it will all depend on the space available at that time (dinner break). The tournament is open to all members. All levels will be self dealt.

Good luck as you prepare for the Red Hot Poker Tour Heads Up Championship!

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