As we all know, the poker industry's most highly regarded live poker tournaments are the World Series of Poker (WSOP) as well as the World Poker Tour (WPT). However, today the WSOP and the WPT no longer stand alone. The global gaming industry has witnessed the launch of numerous new live poker tournaments and competitions which offer great action away from the two "majors."

Amateur Poker League

The Amateur Poker League, also known as the APL, is offers live poker tournaments in numerous gaming venues across the United States. Interested players are welcome to join the league at any time during the season. There are no entry fees charged and no buy-ins to pay. The APL's tour features a three-phase structure: 'Monthly Venue Championship,' 'Semi-Annual Regional Championship,' and 'National Championship.' Since wagering money is strictly prohibited, APL players compete for points. The game played at APL tournaments is N/L Texas Hold 'em.

Asia Pacific Tour

The Asia Pacific Tour (APPT) is the first major land-based competition staged in this region. Much like the popular European Poker Tour championship, APPT is sponsored by top online poker rooms. The first season ran from August to December 2007. The competition featured five live poker tournaments staged in four different locations: Philippines, South Korea, China and Australia.

Crown Australian Poker Championship

First introduced over a decade ago, the Australian Poker Championship is more commonly known as Aussie Millions. Boasting a total prize pool of over AU$7 million, the Aussi Millions are staged in Melbourne's Crown Casino. In 2007, there were as many as 474 entrants who generated a AU$7,470,000 prize pool. The Final Table event had a staggering AU$10,500 buy-in. The top eighty players finished "in the money" and collected between AU$15,000 and AU$1,500,000 each. Today, rooms like Winner Poker offer seats to the Aussie Millions via satellite tournaments.

European Poker Tour

The European Poker Tour (EPT) was first launched in 2004 following the global growth in Texas Holdem popularity. The EPT greatly resembles the popular WPT championship. The only difference between the two competitions was that in seasons 1-3, EPT featured buy-ins nearly half the size of the WPT. This changed in the fourth season when the buy-in for most EPT tournaments was increased to €8,000. The EPT has live poker tournaments in several legs throughout Europe and one in the Caribbean each year which typicalyl sees an influx of American players who can make the quick trip.

Irish Poker Open

First organized by prominent Irish bookmaker back in 1981, the Irish Poker Open is the second longest running No Limit Texas Holdem competition in the world after the WSOP. Originally, the live poker tournaments took place at a gaming establishment called Eccentric Club in Dublin, later, however, it moved to the city's Merrion Casino. Ever since it was first introduced, the Irish Poker Open has been staged over Easter weekend each year and largely contributed to the surge in the game's popularity across Europe. 

National Heads-up Poker Championship

Launched in 2005, National Heads-up Poker Championship is an annual competition where U.S. participants play face-to-face seeking to establish the best heads-up player in the gaming industry. Participation in the event is limited with only 64 players entering yearly. Players may enter via an invitation only. As opposed to standard live poker tournaments, the competition features a gaming format modeled after the NCAA playoff tree. Players who win a match are allowed to advance to the next round. The fortunate player who manages to win six matches is announced champion.

Poker Dome Challenge

The Poker Dome Challenge was a series of speed focused live poker tournaments which lasted 43 weeks. The 2006-2007 competition offered a grand prize of $1,000,000. The series featured single table tournaments with six participants each. Among professional poker players who took part in the Poker Dome Challenge series were Tony G, Perry Friedman as well as Dennis Waterman. In accordance with speed poker play structure, each tournament participant was given 15 seconds to act on a hand. Betting was P/L before the flop and N/L after the flop. When the action turned heads-up the betting became all N/L.

Professional Poker Tour

A spin off of the popular WPT, the Professional Poker Tour (PPT) is a series of televised games. Participation in PPT tournaments is allowed only to highly-regarded players with established reputation as accomplished professionals. The competition was first launched in 2005 and enjoyed vast popularity while on air. Among PPT participants are such prominent pros as Josh Arie, Joe Beevers, Lyle Berman, Doyle Brunson, Todd Brunson, Mike Caro, Johny Chan, T.J. Cloutier, Barbara Enright and Antonio Esfandiari.

William Hill Poker Grand Prix

The William Hill Poker Grand Prix is a series of live poker tournaments sponsored by the operator of the popular William Hill online card room. The competition features pros as well as amateurs battling with each other over the coveted jackpot. The William Hill Grand Prix competition runs according to the following format: seven preliminary matches are played, with the winner of each match going to the Grand Final. The second-place finisher goes to a semi-final round, the winner of which also goes to the Grand Final.

World Championship of Online Poker

The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) was launched in 2002 as the online counterpart of the prestigious WSOP competition. Much like WSOP players, WCOOP participants battle each other in a variety of games. Among the games played at the online poker competition are L, N/L and P/L Texas Hold 'em, 7-Card Stud and 7-Card Stud Hi/Lo, Razz, P/L Omaha High and L Omaha Hi/Lo as well as HORSE. The 2007 competition also featured 5-Card Draw and 2-7 Triple Draw. The competition's main event is N/L Texas Hold 'em. Apart from a hefty amount of money, the competition's winner also collects a personally engraved 14 karat gold bracelet.

World Speed Poker Open

The World Speed Poker Open (WSPO) is an international competition. The WSPO live poker tournaments are staged under the rules of speed poker. In speed poker, each game participant is offered only 15 seconds to act on his hand before he gets disqualified. Twice per tournament, players receive an additional 30 second time-out.