Binion's tournament is smaller, but it's on

Binion's Horseshoe put an end to speculation about whether the 30th annual World Series of Poker is on or off by announcing a downsized version of the tournament to begin April 28.

Resort officials recently completed some fine-tuning for the 13-event granddaddy of all gaming tournaments. One of those decisions was to begin satellites -- games that offer players a chance to win tournament seats at a fraction of the buy-in fees -- five days before the opening event.

Also, a resort official confirmed Monday, the $10,000 buy-in no-limit Texas Hold' em world championship game will remain a four-day event starting May 10 instead of being shortened to three days as had been discussed. Also, the first place purse will once again be $1 million, officials said.

Still the tournament figures to be a far cry from last year's monthlong 20-event meet that drew 4,100 entrants -- many players enter more than one event -- and created a record prize pool of greater than $12.4 million.

"(Horseshoe owner) Becky Binion Behnen will continue this Las Vegas tradition in honor of her father, the legendary Benny Binion," Horseshoe spokeswoman Adeana Shendal said Monday.

Behnen, who bought the Horseshoe interests of her brothers Jack and the late Ted Binion and her sister Brenda Binion Michael last year following a highly publicized feud, vowed at that time that the tournament "will stay at the Horseshoe."

The resort had been left to the four Binion children by their father Benny, who died in 1989, and his late wife. Upset over declining profits, Behnen had sued Jack, claiming the resort had lost $20 million over the past two years because he'd shifted attention to the Louisiana and Mississippi Horseshoe gaming properties he owns.

In settling the lawsuit, Jack Binion bought the interests of Ted and Brenda, then sold theirs and his to Behnen. She obtained the rights to the World Series of Poker when she acquired the Horseshoe.

However, for several months speculation had been that the storied tournament had reached the end of its long and colorful run. Poker players in cardrooms around town were mumbling that the tournament that was started in 1970 by Benny Binion was going to be axed.

Last July, the Horseshoe quietly canceled its other major poker tournament, the Hall of Fame Classic. Longtime World Series tournament director Jim Albrecht and tournament coordinator Jack McClelland left the Horseshoe, further fueling speculation of the World Series' pending demise.

Instead, the World Series will celebrate its 30th birthday at the place where it was born as a small poker convention and grew into an international event that either spawned or enhanced the legends of gamblers like three-time champions Johnny Moss and Stu Ungar and poker hall-of-famer Doyle Brunson.

For the first time in the tournament's history, none of the open events will have a buy-in less than $2,500. Last year, several of the earlier events had $2,000 buy-ins.

Among the games that have been dropped are the $5,000 buy-in no-limit deuce-to-7 draw with rebuys event -- it was popular with a small number of the more famous and higher stakes players -- and the $5,000 buy-in limit 7-card stud world championship.

The $3,000 buy-in no-limit Texas hold 'em game has been increased to a $3,500 buy-in game as have the buy-ins for many of the preliminary games. There are seven versions of Texas Hold 'em, three versions of 7-card stud, including the women's $1,000 buy-in championship, and three Omaha hold 'em events.

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