The first-ever Nations Cup will be hosted by the International Federation of Poker starting today in London. The event is just one component of the London Mind Sports Festival.
The event will include 12 teams, each consisting of some of the most successful professional poker players from around the world. The event will follow a unique game variant entitled “duplicate poker,” intended to minimize the effect of luck on the outcome of each game.
In an interview with PokerNews.com, the IFP explained the rules of duplicate poker as follows:
“Rather than competing against those at their table, duplicate poker pitches players against opponents dealt exactly the same cards in exactly the same position on neighboring tables. With all players in a particular seat given the same allocation of cards the only determining factor in the result of the tournament is how skillfully each player uses them.”
The event will have a nationalistic flair, with each team representing a country including Ireland, Australia, the United States, Denmark, Holland, Germany and Spain. Zynga, the company responsible for some of the world’s most popular online games including FarmVille and Mafia Wars, is also fielding a team.
A number of noted pros have already confirmed their participation in the event, including Sam Trickett, Liv Boeree, Vanessa Selbst, David Benyamine, Barry Greenstein, Antonio Esfandiari, Tony G and the recently-elusive Gus Hansen. Eoghan O’Dea and Sam Holden will also play, hot off their appearances at the WSOP Main Event final table.
Immediately after the Nations Cup, the International Federation of Poker will host its World Championship. That event, scheduled for the 19th, will include 130 poker pros vying for the $250,000 first-place prize. The World Championship will be filmed for eventual television broadcast.
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