Venetian Slot Tournament 2020
The Venetian Casino in Las Vegas was one of the first casinos to bring back live poker amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The game was one of the last to return and some casinos still do not offer it due to social distancing aspects. For the Venetian however, they are taking several precautions to ensure player safety including regular cleaning and mask-wearing. Because its poker room is open, the property recently hosted a major poker event, the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT).
The Venetian is about to become the first Las Vegas casino to host multi-table poker tournaments since the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown. In a post on Twitter, the Venetian poker room announced two such tournaments, one on Friday, June 19, and one on Saturday, June 20.
The Main Event of the MSPT had a $1,100 buy-in and took almost 16 hours to complete. In the end, it was Landon Tice, a 21-year-old, who took the crown. Tice earned $201,529 for his efforts. He outlasted the field of 1,123 to win, with the prize pool pushed past the $1 million mark.
Tough Heads Up Round
For Tice, he would not earn the win easily. He would face off against Brandon Lombardo in the final round, going head to head for quite some time in the Venetian poker room before the win was earned. Overall, the final table would take four hours to complete. When Lombardo and Tice reached the heads-up round, Lombardo would be the underdog, with a three to one chip deficit.
Venetian is happy to spread any mixed game or Open Face Chinese when there is interest. Venetian offers two daily tournaments. The noon tournament dealt Monday through Thursday has a $150 buyin. On Friday, it has a $200 buyin with a $10,000 guaranteed prize pool. The Saturday noon tournament has a $300 buyin with $100 going towards bounties. Venetian slot tournaments are fun but your chances of winning anything substantial at the tournament are slim. I would still do it again in a heartbeat. You register during the afternoon on arrival day and sign up for your tournament sessions. If you are a slot tournament fan then Las Vegas is the place to be. In this section we list the casinos in Las Vegas. If you are looking for tournament schedules then see our Las Vegas Tournaments section where we list all of the upcoming tournaments at the casinos listed below. I'd appreciate any advice. I just got an offer for a slot tournament @ Venetian in March - my first anywhere (low roller) The room is not comped, just discounted 3 days $99 per nt. Free entry to slot tournament and according to the person I spoke with at Grazie, some food which was described as 'we'll take care of you'.
However, it would not be long for Lombardo to make up the difference. The two would go back and forth for quite some time until talk arose involving a chopped pot. A few figures were thrown around, but no one was able to come to an agreement.
Play resumed again and it was not long before Tice would get a double and take out Lombardo in second place.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
| First | Landon Tice | $201,529 |
| Second | Brandon Lombardo | $135,074 |
| Third | Jesse Vitchez | $91,502 |
| Fourth | Sara Stohler | $62,091 |
| Fifth | Abraham Hichman | $40,304 |
| Sixth | Byung Shin | $30,501 |
| Seventh | David Larson | $22,876 |
| Eighth | Andrew Rodgers | $17,429 |
The win was a big one for Tice as he has just three cashouts in onlinepoker tournament play. He started playing in micro-stakes games and has worked his way to bigger action. In speaking with PokerNews after the win, Tice said that the win ‘feels so good!’
Live tournament poker has already returned to Las Vegas with several properties holding in-house events. Leading the way is the Venetian, which kicked off its latest DeepStack Extravaganza on October 26. The series will run through November 29 and offer more than $1.6 million in guarantees.
That includes a pair of premier mid-major Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT) stops. Last weekend, Landon Ticetopped an 1,123-entry field to win the $1,100 buy-in, $200K GTD Main Event for $201,529. This weekend, they will follow that up with a $1,600 buy-in, $400K GTD Main Event from November 19-23.
Both tournaments, which will be live reported by PokerNews, are expected to be busy, meaning players will have a chance to pre-register for the tournament. All pre-registered stacks will be in play at 11:10 a.m. when the tournaments begin.
| Date | Buy-In | Tournament | Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|
| November 13-15 | $1,100 | MSPT Venetian | $200,000 |
| November 19-23 | $1,600 | MSPT Venetian | $400,000 |
The $1,100 buy-in Main Event will start players with 25,000 in chips and play 40-minute levels. Day 1a will take place on Friday, November 13 with Day 1b on Saturday, November 14. Late registration will remain open until 6:25 p.m. both days. The surviving players from both flights will return at 11 a.m. on Sunday, November 15 to play down to a winner.
As for the $1,600 buy-in Main Event, that tournament will start players with 30,000 in chips and play 60-minute levels. There will also be three starting flights instead of two starting with Day 1a at 11:10 a.m. on Thursday, November 19. Days 1b and 1c will take place at the same time on Friday, November 20, and Saturday, November 21 respectively. Late registration will remain open until 1:15 p.m. on Day 2, which will play out on Sunday, November 22.
During the Venetian DeepStack Extravaganza, players must wear a mask and sanitize their hands before sitting down. Action is 8-handed at tables featuring Plexiglass dividers, which are wiped down each time a new player comes in. Additionally, dealers are required to sanitize their hands each time they enter and exit a table, and fresh decks of cards are circulated every two hours.
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MSPT Looks to Continue Momentum
Due to the pandemic, Season 11 of the MSPT was interrupted at the beginning of March. After a six-month hiatus, the tour returned August 28-30 at Grand Falls Casino, which is situated just outside Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The stop proved to be a tremendous hit asthe $1,100 buy-in, $100K GTD Main Event attracted 518 entries, well ahead of the venue’s previous record of 238 runners from 2015.
The MSPT is slated to return to Grand Falls on December 18-20 to close out the abbreviated season.
Meanwhile, the upcoming Venetian stops actually mark the second time the tour has visited the venue this year. Back at the end of January, the MSPT hosted the annual $1,100 buy-in, $1 million GTD Poker Bowl, a tournament that attracted 1,093 entries. The night before the Kansas City Chiefs dispatched the San Francisco 49ers to win Super Bowl LIV, Bob Whalen claimed $100,682 in prize money after a five-way deal was struck.
Venetian Slot Tournament 2020
While there is a lot of excitement surrounding the upcoming MSPT events, the tour and venue are already looking ahead to Season 12 with a tentatively-scheduled MSPT Venetian stop on January 1-3, 2021.
Venetian Slot Tournament 2020 Leaderboard
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