Poker players prepare for Main Event

Queen's Birthday weekend will see over 200 of the country's top card players gather at Auckland's Sky City casino for the 2011 NZ Poker Open.

Qualifying stages will whittle down the Main Event starting field in the days leading up to the long weekend.

The 'final table' will take their seats on Monday 6 June.

It costs $1100 to enter the Main Event, but it's still possible to get into the field via one of the so-called Satellite events at the casino's Poker Room during May.

The Satellites are already underway and entry ranges from $20 to $240.

"This tournament promises to show the poker community of New Zealand who the real players are," said Peter Lawrence, SkyCity Auckland's General Manager - Table Games.

The Main Event was won last year by Aucklander Jackson Zheng. His pair of queens on the final hand defeated his heads-up opponent, fellow Auckland player Kevin Clark.