PokerStars announced today that they will hold a freeroll for the final 89 players who still had chips remaining when Mexican gaming officials shut down the $2,500 no-limit hold’em Latin American Poker Tour main event in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, on Saturday, Dec. 6. The freeroll will be held on PokerStars.net, and the players will begin the tournament with as many chips as they each had remaining when play was cancelled.
The online freeroll will be played down to the final nine players, who will then be flown down to the LAPT event in Vina del Mar, Chile, which is taking place Jan. 20-22, 2009, where they will contest the final table for a television taping and the LAPT title. PokerStars has also added $50,000 to the existing prize pool. Among those 89 players who still held chips were Team PokerStars pros Greg Raymer and Victor Ramdin.
Here is what Sarne Lightman, the LAPT director of marketing, had to say regarding the decision: “We know that many of our remaining players really wanted the opportunity to finish this tournament and earn their shot at an LAPT title. Although the tournament was suspended and the prize money distributed, PokerStars still wants to offer its players this extra opportunity. PokerStars will also be adding $50,000 in prize money to the final table.”
