First Epic Poker League Main Event concludes today

The Epic Poker League’s first-ever Main Event will conclude today at the Palms with six players seeking the first prize of the $1 million.

The $20,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em Six Handed event has a final table with six well-known professional poker players — Huck Seed, Gavin Smith, David "Chino" Rheem, Hasan Habib, Erik Seidel and Jason Mercier.

The winner also receives the league’s first Main Event Champion’s Ring.

Habib is the chip leader with 1.655 million in tournament chips, but Rheem in a close second with 1.432 million. Seidel, a member of the Poker Hall of Fame and an eight-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, is in third with 1.109 million in chips.

First place earns $1 million, second place collects $604,330, third earns $360,970, four place earns $237,560, fifth place wins $154,260 while sixth place wins $107,980.

The Epic Poker League is the brainchild of Jeffrey Pollack and poker professional Annie Duke, who is the commissioner. Pollack’s Los Angeles-based Federated Sports + Entertainment owns the league.

Pollack was commissioner of the Caesars Entertainment-owned World Series of Poker from 2005 to 2009.

The Epic Poker League is modeled after the PGA Tour. Players must meet a set of qualifications to compete. The current list of qualifiers includes past winners of the World Series of Poker’s Main Event and other top professionals. Players will also be ranked throughout the season based on performance.

Each of the Epic Poker League’s events will have a $20,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em Main Event.

The next Epic Poker League event will take place at the end of September with other events planned for December and January. The Palms is hosting the league in its first year.

The league’s top 27 players, based on the tournament’s scoring and rating system, will meet in February for a $1 million entry-free championship event.