Omicron variant running rampant
The Nevada Gaming Control Board issued a notice to its licensees emphasizing that they must comply with Governor Steve Sisolak’s Emergency Directive 045 regarding mask wearing. The Directive, originally issued in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic began to take hold in the United States, essentially says that the state will follow the recommendations of the CDC. As such, the Directive requires people to wear protective masks indoors in counties with “substantial or high transmission of COVID-19.”
According to the CDC’s figures, most of the counties in Nevada do fall into those two categories, including Clark County, where Las Vegas is located. Counties that stay in the low or moderate categories for two weeks can drop the indoor mask requirement.
“As Nevada prepares for a substantial rise in visitation for the New Year’s holiday, the Board will intensify its enforcement of Emergency Directive 045 at all licensed locations subject to the mask requirement to ensure the safety of Nevada’s residents and visitor,” the Board wrote.
The Board added that it may look to the Nevada Gaming Commission to dole out disciplinary action if licensees violate masking rules.
The omicron variant of COVID-19 has been racing through the population in the couple months and new case counts, hospitalizations, and deaths are way up all over the country. In Nevada, the seven-day moving average of new daily cases is 1,446, nearly triple what it was just a month ago. New cases hit 2,781 on Wednesday, one of the highest daily figures the state has seen.
Virus didn’t stop WSOP this year
The COVID-19 pandemic eliminated nearly all live poker last year. But with the increase in effective vaccines and testing, live poker came back with a vengeance in 2021, with many tournaments setting attendance records.
The 2021 World Series of Poker was quite successful overall, especially considering the pandemic and rules put in place because of it. There was some confusion in the weeks leading up to the WSOP because rules changes and clarifications, but all and all, things ended up running fairly smoothly.
Some of the confusion started in August, when poker media guru Kevin Mathers noticed WSOP Rule #115, which stated that the WSOP could remove a player from a tournament if they were in close contact with someone who tested positive for the virus. This made people nervous, worried that they could be disqualified just for unluckily sitting next to the wrong person.
The WSOP clarified the rule, saying that a player would not be removed as long as they were vaccinated and asymptomatic.
In late August, the big decree was handed down: all players must show proof of vaccination to participate. Most were likely fine with the rule, though many were vocal at their displeasure and said they would not play this year. The WSOP later clarified things once again, saying that “WSOP Team Members” were not required to be vaccinated, only encouraged.
Players were permitted to go without masks at the tables, but everyone had to wear them if they weren’t sitting at a poker table.
Players from other countries were also limited as to their participation, as COVID-19 travel restrictions on people entering the U.S. from many countries made getting to Las Vegas extremely inconvenient. Those restrictions were lifted right around the start of the Main Event, so the WSOP added two starting flights to let people make last-minute travel arrangements.