The New Year is here! 2023 promises to be another bumper year for poker, and many of the biggest brands in the industry have already been busy planning ahead. It also means that players, staff, and fans now have more opportunities for players to customise their schedules and travel to new and exciting destinations – and already, there’s so much to look forward to in the first six months alone!
As part of our commitment to bring you more content, from more places, more often, PokerMedia Australia is proud to present the first of our regular columns: the PMA Diary Dates, featuring a comprehensive list of major tournaments throughout Australasia that will be updated every month.
For more detailed information on specific events, click on the red text throughout the article.
JANUARY & FEBRUARY: PRIME TIME POKER
Since the last Aussie Millions Poker Championship was held at Crown Melbourne back in 2020, poker operators have been quick to capitalise on the mid-to-late summer timeslot, most notably the Australian Poker League (APL), which will once again launch the cards in the air for the New Year with the APLPT Queensland series at Southport Sharks.
Players in the Sunshine State will then have the opportunity to head further north to the APL NQ Classic at The Ville Resort-Casino in Townsville after stopping in at the Eatons Hill Hotel in Brisbane for the Season VI launch of the Australian Poker Tour (APT), running through from 15-22 January and boasting an estimated $1.5 million in series prize pools.
Meanwhile, the SA Poker Team is already up and about, with the Gambier Poker crew kicking things off in the festival state with a three-day mini-series, followed by the return of the Stacked Poker Championship in North Adelaide, which launches on the eve of Australia Day before the Southern Poker Tour (SPT) brings back the Havoc in the Hills at the Hahndorf Old Mill Hotel.
There’s also plenty of opportunity for the Harbour City as well, with the APLPT Sydney series returning to the Canterbury-Hurlstone RSL in late January, followed by the first National Poker League (NPL) Sydney Super Series of the year hosted at the Richmond Club, located at the foot of the Blue Mountains out in the Hawkesbury region.
But just when you thought our summer of poker was already sizzling, the action will no doubt be white-hot on the felt at The Star Gold Coast, when the World Poker Tour (WPT) Prime Gold Coast series returns from 23 February to 6 March – one of several of the WPT Global event dates announced during last month’s WPT World Championship at The Wynn Las Vegas.
| Dates | Event | Venue | State/Country |
| 10-15 Jan | APLPT Queensland | Southport Sharks | Queensland, AU |
| 13-15 Jan | Gambier Poker January Series | Mt Gambier RSL | South Australia, AU |
| 15-22 Jan | APT Brisbane Season VI | Eatons Hill Hotel | Queensland, AU |
| 24-29 Jan | APLPT Sydney | Canterbury-Hurlstone RSL | New South Wales, AU |
| 25 Jan-6 Feb | Stacked Poker Championship | Stacked Social, North Adelaide | South Australia, AU |
| 3-12 Feb | Asian Poker Tour Hanoi | VSOP Club | Hanoi, VN |
| 7-12 Feb | APL NQ Classic | The Ville Resort-Casino, Townsville | Queensland, AU |
| 21-26 Feb | SPT Hahndorf | Hahndorf Old Mill Hotel | South Australia, AU |
| 23-26 Feb | NPL Sydney Super Series | Richmond Club | New South Wales, AU |
| 23 Feb-6 Mar | WPT Prime Gold Coast | The Star Gold Coast | Queensland, AU |
MARCH & APRIL: SPREAD YOUR WINGS
With COVID pandemic travel restrictions now all but lifted across the globe, 2023 may well be the year to venture overseas and rack up your frequent flyer miles, starting with February’s season premiere of the Asian Poker Tour at the VSOP Club in Hanoi, Vietnam, before moving to Phu Quoc, Taiwan and the Philippines later in the year.
Having hosted over 100 live events throughout Australia and the Asia-Pacific since 2008, the Asian Poker Tour is currently rebuilding and expanding after the brand was sold to new owners last June.
Not to be outdone, the WPT will also be hosting three more Prime Main Events throughout Cambodia, India, and Vietnam through to the end of June, while our friends across the ditch have confirmed that the first of the New Zealand poker majors – the Wellington Poker Champs – will return to the Christchurch Casino in late March.
There’s still plenty of wealth for toil back home, however, including WPT League Championship festivals in Illawarra and Sydney, as well as an all-new special event for the NPL known as ‘The Empires’, a fully dealt No Limit Hold’em tournament featuring a $1,750 buy-in and an estimated $500,000 prize pool. The APLPT also continues its roadshow with its long-awaited return to Club Italia in Melbourne, followed by a second stop at Southport Sharks at the end of April.
| Dates | Event | Venue | State/Country |
| 14-19 Mar | APLPT Melbourne | Club Italia, Sunshine | Victoria, AU |
| 15-26 Mar | WPT League Autumn Festival | Wests Illawarra, Unaderra | New South Wales, AU |
| 16-20 Mar | WPT Prime Cambodia Main Event | NagaWorld Integrated Resort | Phonm Penh, KH |
| 22-26 Mar | 2023 Wellington Poker Championships | Christchurch Casino | Christchurch, NZ |
| 23 Mar-2 Apr | Asian Poker Tour Phu Quoc | Corona Resort & Casino | Phu Quoc, VN |
| 30 Mar-2 Apr | NPL Sydney South West: The Empires | Assyrian Sports & Cultural Club, Fairfield Heights | New South Wales, AU |
| 13-17 Apr | WPT Prime India Main Event | Deltin Royal Casino | Goa, IN |
| 20 Apr-7 May | WPT League Championship Sydney | St Johns Park Bowling Club | New South Wales, AU |
| 25-30 Apr | APLPT Queensland | Southport Sharks | Queensland, AU |
| 28 Apr-7 May | Asian Poker Tour Taipei | CTP Club | Taipei City, TW |
MAY & JUNE: THE WORLD’S YOUR OYSTER
With the season’s change comes the annual pilgrimage to poker’s promised land: the 54th rendition of the World Series of Poker (WSOP), which will once again be held at Paris & Horseshoe Casinos Las Vegas. While the full schedule has been ear-marked for release later this year, organisers have already released several key dates, including the USD $10,000 (AUD $14,712) No Limit Hold’em World Championship Main Event, with the first Day 1 flight due to begin on 3 July.
WSOP Senior VP & Executive Directory Ty Stewart stated in last month’s press release that the historic debut of the WSOP on the Las Vegas Strip delivered in a big way, adding that “poker players and fans can now officially mark their calendars and maybe even book their loved ones or themselves a trip to the WSOP as a holiday gift.”
Senior VP and General Manager of Paris & Horseshoe Las Vegas Jason Gregorec echoed those sentiments and added that the anticipation for the 2023 WSOP was already building, even with more than six months to go before the first pitch.
“The tournament delivered unforgettable moments during its debut on The Strip, and we’re excited to welcome back poker’s premier event of the year,” Gregorec said. “We can’t wait to see the first WSOP Main Event champion crowned at the new Horseshoe Las Vegas.”
Of course, there are still plenty of great offerings closer to home, including an opportunity to get your family and friends together for an Aussie poker road trip, starting at the inaugural Rooty Hill edition of APLPT Sydney and then moving on to either APLPT Albury or the Gambier Poker Johnnie Walker Classic before heading across the Bass Strait for the APLPT Tasmania series at Wrest Point Hobart.
| Dates | Event | Venue | State/Country |
| 23-28 May | APLPT Sydney | West HQ, Rooty Hill | New South Wales, AU |
| 25-29 May | WPT Prime Vietnam Main Event | Crown Poker Club | Hanoi, VN |
| 30 May-18 Jul | 54th Annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) | Paris & Horseshoe Casinos, Las Vegas | Nevada, US |
| 2-11 Jun | Asian Poker Tour Ho Chi Minh | Saigon Poker Club | Saigon, VN |
| 7-11 Jun | APLPT Albury | Commercial Club | New South Wales, AU |
| 8-12 Jun | Gambier Poker Johnnie Walker Classic | Mount Gambier RSL | South Australia, AU |
| 22-25 Jun | APLPT Tasmania | Wrest Point Hobart | Tasmania, AU |
Do you have a major poker event coming up that you want to share with us? Email landon@pokermedia.com.au or drop us a PM via our socials and we can add it to the list! You can also check out the calendar widget on our website for all updated scheduled events over the next 12 months, and for a detailed analysis and rating of all poker event structures, visit our friends at the Australian Poker Schedule.
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