The World Poker Tour will bring its $5,000 bestbet Scramble Championship back to bestbet Jacksonville in Florida from September 4-9, 2026, offering a $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool and a full festival schedule
The World Poker Tour (WPT) has confirmed that the $5,000 buy-in bestbet Scramble Championship will return to bestbet Jacksonville in Florida from September 4-9, 2026. This No-Limit Hold'em event, which typically takes place in November, is moving to an earlier slot on the calendar and will again feature a $1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool. The tournament is set to play down to its final six players on September 8, with the final table scheduled for a livestreamed finish on September 9.
Key Tournament Details
bestbet Jacksonville, one of Florida's largest poker rooms, will host the WPT bestbet Scramble Championship as the centerpiece of its annual festival. The event is open to all eligible players and will use a multi-flight format, with Day 1A beginning on September 4, followed by additional starting flights on September 5 and 6. The defending champion is Connor Rash, who won $315,530 after outlasting 327 entrants in 2025. In 2024, Nick Yunis of Chile claimed the title and $310,079. Winners of this event are added to the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup, which is displayed at the venue.
Festival Schedule and Satellite Opportunities
The bestbet Jacksonville festival includes a range of side events and satellite tournaments leading up to and during the WPT main event. Notable highlights include the $1,700 No-Limit Hold'em Mystery Bounty with a $300,000 guarantee starting August 27, and the $800 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold'em event on September 2, which is capped at 32 players. Players can also compete in a $580 Mega Satellite on September 2 for a chance to win a package to the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas in December. The full schedule features a mix of formats, including Pot Limit Omaha, Big O/8 or Better, and specialty events like the Double Board Bomb Pot.
What Players Should Know
Registration for the WPT bestbet Scramble Championship and all festival events is available on-site at bestbet Jacksonville. The main event's $1,000,000 guarantee is based on total entries across all starting flights, and the final table will be broadcast via bestbetLIVE. Players should review the official tournament structure and rules for details on re-entry, late registration, and payout distribution. For those interested in the broader poker tournament landscape, recent high-stakes results such as Kayhan Mokri's chip lead in the €100,000 EPT Super High Roller at EPT Barcelona have also drawn attention to the international circuit; see this coverage of major European events for comparison.
Poker tournament guarantees, such as the $1,000,000 prize pool for the WPT bestbet Scramble Championship, represent the minimum total payout organizers commit to distribute, regardless of the number of entries. If total buy-ins exceed the guarantee, the prize pool increases accordingly. Guarantees are designed to attract players by reducing uncertainty about potential payouts, but actual prize distribution depends on the final number of participants and the event's payout structure. Players should always check the official terms for details on how guarantees are handled in the event of overlays or exceptional circumstances.
