World Series of Golf Dates Announced

The World Series of Golf, an event which combines “…the skill of golf with the finesse of betting,” has been scheduled for May 12-15 at the Pete Dye designed Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort.  Last year’s inaugural event was contested by five players, including poker pro Phil Ivey and 2006 WSOP Main Event fourth place finisher Rhett Butler.  Mark Ewing won the WSOG and $250,000.

The basic rules of the WSOG are the same as any other golf match, except that the score is not tallied using strokes.  Instead, each player starts with the same amount of money (think chip stack in a poker tournament) and plays until their funds are depleted.  Players only compete against those in their group, not against everyone in the event.

At the start of a hole, each player contributes an ante to the pot.  This ante increases as the day moves along.  After each shot, a round of betting ensues.  Depending on his confidence in winning the hole, a player can bet, check, or fold.  Just like in poker, the other players can choose whether or not to stay in by calling or raising (or checking, if no bets have been made), or concede the hole by folding.  The winner of the pot is the one who forces everyone to fold or actually completes the hole in the fewest number of strokes.  In the case of a tie, the pot is split.

The winner of each group will move on to the next round.  The second round winners will advance to the final round.

The WSOG is open only to amateur players.  The buy-in is $10,000.