I wasn't able to attend the July Harrah's New Orleans BJ tournament, but I did get the following information: Yes, it was invitational. Round One was an accumulation format with numerous 30-minute sessions Friday and Saturday... 10 hands only. Top 40 scores posted at 3:00pm Saturday. Then Round Two, Quarter-Finals, and Semi-Finals were elimination format with 5 players per table and 1 moving on. Still 30-minute sessions with 10 hands. Final table was 20 hands with 5 players. Payouts: 50/20/15/10/5. They only have this size tournament a couple of times a year, but they also have a couple of higher qualifying tournaments a year for which I have no information.