In January of 2023, after nearly three years of COVID-19 impacted reductions in poker offering, Atlantic City, New Jersey's Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa will once again host a tournament with a five-figure buy-in. The Borgata and BetMGM have jointly announced "The Return: A Borgata Championship Event."
The event, in actuality a four-tournament mini-series, begins on January 2, 2023, runs for seven days, and offers buy-ins ranging from $1,100 to $5,300, with the latter being the entry to the Return's championship event, which will guarantee both a $3 million prize pool and a $1 million first-place payday.
Only once since the pandemic's onset has the Borgata offered a live tourney with a buy-in of $1,000 or higher, with that being a $1,090 standalone event last March. That's a far cry from pre-pandemic days for what was long regarded as one of the East Coast's true destination casinos for tournament poker.
"The return of championship poker to Borgata is a long time coming," said Vincent Alonge Jr., Borgata’s Director of Poker Operations. "Borgata is the premier gaming destination on the East Coast, which includes best-in-class poker tournaments."
