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Everything to Know About WSOP Circuit Toronto 2025

Everything to Know About WSOP Circuit Toronto 2025
Chris Robinson the Author
Chris Robinson Hand Analysis
  • Fact Checked by: PokerListings
  • Last updated on: March 21, 2025 · 5 minutes to read

The WSOP Circuit 2024/2025 series is concluding, and Canada is preparing for one of the marquee events to come back to its biggest city for the second year in a row! Great Canadian Casino Toronto will host 11 ring events from April 10th through April 22nd, 2025.

Last year the inaugural event was comprised of 8 events and here is how they turned out (prizes are in CAD).

Ring EventBuy-InEvent Name# CashedPrize Pool1st Place
1$250NLH Turbo104$139,394Carl Duggan – $25,528
2$1,000NLH93$528,030Matthew Paplyk – $102,644
3$600NLH 6-Max75$255,440Carlos Alberto Sanchez – $49,390
4$400NLH Deepstack723$238,559Saui Kalvari – $43,272
5$250NLH794$158,768Bruce Huynh – $28,006
6$600NLH112$398,342Shaun Sturgeon – $69,284
7$2,000NLH Main Event239$2,793,907Khaled Aljoma – $427,191
8$3,500NLH High Roller52$1,077,300Stephen Scuderi – $236,071
 Total 2192$5,589,740 

Based on the huge success of the event last year, this year the series has been expanded to 11 ring events, including dedicated ring events for ladies, seniors, a mystery bounty and a pot-limit Omaha event!

  • Event #1 – $600 NLH – 2 Days – April 10th & 11th
  • Event #2 – $300 NLH Ladies – 1 Day – April 10th
  • Event #3 – $1,000 NLH – 2 Days – April 12th & 13th
  • Event #4 – $400 NLH Turbo – 1 Day – April 13th
  • Event #5 – $800 NLH Mystery Bounty – 2 Days – April 14th & 15th
  • Event #6 – $400 NLH Seniors – 1 Day – April 15th
  • Event #7 – $600 PLO – 1 Day – April 16th
  • Event #8 – $2,000 NLH Main Event – 3 Days; 3 Starting Flights – April 17th to April 21st
  • Event #9 – $600 NLH Deepstack – 1 Day – April 20th
  • Event #10 – $3,500 NLH High Roller – 2 Days – April 21st & 22nd
  • Event #11 – $400 NLH – 1 Day – April 22nd

The second time through for Toronto will result in a smoother, more enjoyable experience for players who are planning to attend the event.

2024 WSOP Circuit Toronto Winners

Let’s look back at the 8 ring winners and see what they were up to since their big wins last year!

Ring Event #1 – Carl Duggan – Career Hendon Mob earnings – $19,359 USD – he had only one other recorded cash from the World Cup of Cards at Playground Poker in 2019 for $450 CAD

Ring Event #2 – Matthew Paplyk – He has 5 total career cashes greater than $10k USD and a total of 38 cashes on his Hendon Mob.  He had 3 total cashes at last year’s WSOP Circuit event in Toronto and will look to add to his collection next month.

Ring Event #3 – Carlos Alberto Sanchez – His biggest cash happened in Montreal in March 2023 when he finished 2nd in the $300 NLH Event #1 as part of the Playground March Million series for $40k.  Carlos has a total of 15 cashes, 5 since his WSOP ring win in Toronto.  He cashed once at the Calgary WSOP Circuit event in January and will look to build on that in Toronto.

Ring Event #4 – Saui Kalvari – Saui has 6 total recorded cashes and most recently cashed in the $600 NLH Event #18 at the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles.   He seems to mostly play in Calgary with 2 WSOP Circuit cashes at Deerfoot, but his Toronto win last year is his biggest score to date.  Will be better that next month?

Ring Event #5 – Bruce Huynh – Bruce is a relatively unknown having only one other recorded cash, which came in 2019 at Playground in Montreal when he placed 131st in the $550 NLH event as part of the WPT back then.  Will he come back this year and go for another ring?

Ring Event #6 – Shaun Sturgeon – Shaun has 3 cashes over $10k in his career, placing 4th in a $1100 NLH Event in Niagara Falls back in 2019, and 37th at the WPT North American Championship back in 2006, also in Niagara Falls.  Shaun has a total of 9 cashes to his credit, placing 27th in the WSOP Tournament of Champions last year, and added a cash in the COLOSSUS during the ’24 WSOP.  He hasn’t had a cash since his Las Vegas trip – will this turn the tide for him?

Ring Event #7 – Khaled Aljoma – The main event winner from last year, Khaled has 2 other cashes greater than 10k, but both came back in 2008 – one was a win in a $1,100 NLH Event at Great Blue Heron Casino, the other was a 14th place finish in the same $10k WPT North American Championship in Niagara Falls.  Khaled has over $400k in total cashes in his career – could he push that over $500k at the Toronto WSOP?

Ring Event #8 – Stephen Scuderi – The high roller winner from 2024 used the Toronto win to propel his career over the last 12 months – he racked up 4 other cashes since his ring, one of which is a 93rd place in the $600 PLO 8 handed bracelet event.  He also went to Calgary and placed 10th in event #2 – the $600 PLO event for just over $1k.  He captured a 2nd place in a weekly tournament in Pickering for $3,900, and back in February, went to Pompano Beach and placed 25th in event #18 – the $400 NLH event for a $855 cash.  Will his hot streak keep going in Toronto?

Toronto Compared to Calgary and Montreal

We have discussed at length the upcoming WSOP Circuit in Toronto next month as it comes with much fanfare and interest, but the WSOP Circuit has been a frequent visitor to the Great White North.  So how does Toronto compare to the upcoming event in Montreal, and the most recent series at Deerfoot in Calgary?

Playground Poker, Montreal, Quebec

  • 2 Circuit Series in 2024 (April, August); Potentially 2 Planned for 2025
  • 15 Ring Events Per Series
  • Prize pools approach $5 Million

Deerfoot Inn and Casino, Calgary, Alberta

  • 2 Circuit Series in 2024 (January, August); 2 Planned for 2025 (January held; August potential)
  • 16 to 17 Ring Events per series
  • Prize Pools are more than $5 Million.

Despite the WSOP Circuit stops in Montreal and Calgary being more established than Toronto’s, and they hold more ring events than the newest stop in Canada has, Toronto’s event last year exceeded the overall prize money awarded at the other stops.  Playground has become world renowned for its poker room – yet one of the newest poker rooms in Canada that doesn’t even offer regular tournaments, is immediately competing with it for the top stop in Canada. 

Given the milder climate in Toronto compared to Montreal and Calgary, as well as the access to the city – Toronto’s international airport is the main hub for several airlines, creating direct access from hundreds of destinations around the world, it should come as no surprise that the WSOP Circuit Toronto stop quickly became one of the go-to stops on the international circuit, and there is no telling how the expanded 2025 version of the event is going to go down.

Final Thoughts

The inaugural stop in Toronto was a massive success but came with growing pains that the poker room has hopefully worked out.  There is no question that demand is there for quality live poker tournaments in the Greater Toronto Area, and this upcoming stop should serve as a gauge as to whether Toronto will see multiple circuit events in 2025 and beyond.  With spring on its way and the snow gone, the cards are going to fly next month at the Great Canadian Casino Toronto when one of the top poker series in the world returns!

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