BetMGM Ambassador Darren Elias Talks WPT, BetMGM Poker Championship & More
Leading sports betting and internet gaming operator BetMGM Poker is hosting the first-ever $3,500 buy-in BetMGM Poker Championship from June 23-26 at ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. The BetMGM Poker Championship, which headlines the 2022 ARIA Poker Classic, will kick off four days of BetMGM live poker action at the luxurious Las Vegas casino.
One man who will be there is BetMGM Ambassador and four-time World Poker Tour (WPT) champ Darren Elias, who recently spoke with PokerNews about the upcoming series and just missing out on his record-extending fifth WPT title.
"It’s still kind of bittersweet to be so close, be heads-up with the chip lead, be right on the precipice there," Elias said of finishing runner-up to Mark Davis at the end of May in the World Poker Tour (WPT) Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown, a tournament that attracted 2,010 entries. "It’s tough to be too upset because it’s still a great score but obviously I would’ve liked to win."
Elias earned $660,000 for finishing in second place. While the New Jersey native failed to close that one out, he's hopeful he can carry his momentum into the summer at the 2022 World Series of Poker, and more important for him, the BetMGM Poker Championship.
"It’s kind of unique here in America to have this concept going again," Elias said of having an online avenue to send players to live events. "We’ve already qualified around 20 players from Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. We expect to qualify over 75 players. We have satellites running in those states, the big one being $535 every Sunday to give away the $6,000 packages. I think it’s great just to see these sorts of events exist again in the US and hopefully, we can run more of these bigger events at MGM properties and get some synergy with the online market."
For those who win their way to Vegas, they'll not only compete in a major tournament but also get the chance to hang out with Elias.
" There will be a Player Party, maybe even a freeroll event at PokerGO Studio, we’re still hammering out the details, but a great experience for the players to go over and play at, in my opinion, the premier place to play poker, the PokerGO Studio. Where the high rollers are filmed, the Super High Roller Bowl, it's absolutely pristine in there, so that will be a good event. Matt Berkey and I will be there for that event."
Whether it was the End Boss Poker Series late last year or more recently the March Poker Mania a few months back, BetMGM has been hitting home runs in the US market, and Elias is their biggest slugger lending his name, expertise, and support to each event.
"It’s exciting to be a part of a team that’s willing to take chances and run these sorts of events," he said. "I feel like we’re building momentum and hopefully the cards fly the way we’d like to with regulation and combining markets so we can kind of create these bigger player pools and run bigger events. It’s exciting to be a part of and I’m looking forward to the future with BetMGM."
Likewise, Elias is looking forward to calling the ARIA home all summer long as that's his new home away from home.
"ARIA is definitely one of my favorite places to be, one of my happy places I’d say," he said. "We’ve got great restaurants, great rooms, and the poker room, the staff there, they all do a great job. You get treated with respect. They really work with the players to give them what they want which I appreciate and I think most players appreciate."