As the final cards were being dealt at this year's World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, three Bodog online poker players were already being dealt seats to the 2009 WSOP Main Event.

The three seats are the first to be awarded by any online poker site and were won in the final tournament of the Bodog Poker Mini Series, a 25-tournament series mirroring the Holdem events at the World Series in Las Vegas but with buy-ins equal to just one percent of the actual buy-in of the WSOP Event.

The three players, “pokerfanx789, “dudix” and “Boswan,” were each awarded $12,000 VIP Prize Packages to the 2009 Main Event and the chance to compete for millions as a member of Team Bodog.

The 27-player final tournament of the Bodog Mini Series consisted of the top four players on the series' Tournament Leader Board, 18 players from the Semifinal qualifier and five selected from a random "wild card" drawing of players who had entered at least three Mini Series events.

The Final Table took place on Thursday, July 10, and the top three finishers were awarded $12,000 Main Event Prize Packages with the rest of the final nine players receiving T$109.

"Team Bodog players had an amazing run at this year's series in Las Vegas, and we're already gearing up for next summer by awarding three seats to the 2009 Main Event," said Morris Mohawk Gaming Group CEO Alwyn Morris. "The three winners of our Bodog Poker Mini Series are guaranteed an experience like no other in Las Vegas as they compete for a shot at poker stardom and millions of dollars."