WPT Cyprus Championship Kicks Off with $2 Million Guarantee

The World Poker Tour returns to Cyprus as the WPT Cyprus Championship begins today at the Chamada Prestige Hotel & Spa. The main event features a $3,500 buy-in and a guaranteed prize pool of $2,000,000. The winner will be crowned on Monday, August 24th, and will join the prestigious WPT Champions Club.

Three Starting Flights and Open Registration Until Day Two

The WPT Cyprus Championship offers three starting flights. Day 1A kicks off on Wednesday, August 19 at 12:00 local time, with subsequent flights scheduled for Thursday and Friday. Players start with a stack of 50,000 chips. The opening blinds are 100/200 with a big blind ante of 200, and each starting flight plays eight 60-minute levels.

Registration remains open until the first break on Day 2. Players can join until approximately 2:15 PM on Saturday, August 22, before the start of the eleventh level. The organizers will also allow unlimited re-entries. Once registration closes, the final number of entries, prize pool amount, and the complete payout structure will be confirmed.

Last Year's Guarantee Surpassed by Over $400,000

The current edition builds on the successful 2025 tournament. Back then, organizers recorded 775 entries, creating a prize pool of $2,402,500. The original $2 million guarantee was thus exceeded by over $400,000. The title was claimed by Georgian player Ilia Kitsbabashvili, who took home $401,100 and a spot in the WPT Champions Club. For Kitsbabashvili, it was the crowning achievement of a highly successful festival. Before his triumph in the Championship event, he had also won two side events with a $1,100 buy-in. James Mahone finished second with $255,000, and Rafal Chmura took third place with a prize of $190,000.

WPT Prime Cyprus Was Postponed in March

This year's return of the World Poker Tour to Cyprus comes after a complicated start to the season. The WPT Prime Cyprus Championship, with a $1,100 buy-in and a $1,000,000 guarantee, scheduled for March, was postponed due to the conflict in the Middle East, flight cancellations, and travel uncertainties. The rest of the festival continued according to an adjusted schedule, but the main WPT Prime event was not held at its original time.

Therefore, it's going to be interesting to see how the August WPT Cyprus Championship fares in terms of participation. This $2,000,000 guaranteed tournament will be a crucial indicator of whether the international field returns to Cyprus in full strength after the complications in March. Early indications will come from the starting flights, but the decisive numbers will be revealed once registration closes during Saturday's Day 2.

The postponed WPT Prime Cyprus is set to return to the same venue from October 7 to 19. Its main highlight will be the WPT Prime Cyprus Championship, featuring a $1,100 buy-in, five starting flights, and a $1,000,000 guarantee. The Championship event is scheduled for October 15 to 19, and its final table will be streamed live.

Until then, the focus will be on the August WPT Cyprus Championship. Besides the battle for the title and at least $2,000,000, the main topic will be overall participation. This will demonstrate how the March disruptions have impacted the international players' interest in returning to Cyprus.