Montego Bay, St James - The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) will, in a few weeks, decide if it will play a role in an inaugural poker tournament being planned by a section of Montego Bay's business community.

"We will review the proposal and decide on July 13," said Lorna Robinson, the JTB's promotions and events officer.
The tournament, which conceptualiser Gary Dyer proposes to call the Caribbean World Series of Poker, is a take-off from the 16-year-old World Series of Poker staged annually in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Gary Dyer points to the view that participants and spectators of the Caribbean World Series of Poker will have of Montego Bay from the roof of The Wexford Hotel, which is to be renovated for the event.

Dyer, a businessman who is promoting the event through his company, Great Events Management, told the Observer that he expects the tournament to inject the local tourist industry with new life at what is normally a slow time leading up to the beginning of the Winter tourist season.

"It's not about the money, it's about showcasing Jamaica and all that Jamaica has to offer," he said.

If the relevant approval and sponsorship are secured from the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission and other business entities respectively, Dyer will proceed with a glamorous plan to enclose the roof of The Wexford hotel on Montego Bay's famous 'Hip Strip' with glass barriers and have it air-conditioned in preparation for the tournament.

"This would be the ideal place because it offers a spectacular view," he said.
He will also proceed to process the first 200 applications to enter the first leg of the tournament for a fee of J$10,000 each from the Jamaican public.

"We'll then eliminate down to the top 50 who will automatically go to the Caribbean World Series of Poker in November for an entry fee of US$600," he said.

The proposed date for the Caribbean series, which is expected to last for five days, is November 1, 2006.
A beach party has been planned for October 31, 2006, the day before the tournament starts, and a reggae show on November 5, 2006, the day after the tournament closes.

Dyer said that he was still in talks with several business entities with a view to their possible roles as sponsors of the event, which he was careful to define as a "sanctioned gaming tournament".

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