Patent ID: 8419546

Claim:
A method of operating a tournament gaming system, said method comprising: providing a first tournament and a second tournament, wherein values of tournament awards for the first tournament, the second tournament being different and providing each of said first tournament and said second tournament includes: (a) for each of a plurality of gaming machines, causing said gaming machine to: (i) determine a designated quantity of tournament games available to be subsequently played by a player of said gaming machine in said tournament, and (ii) for each of said tournament games played, generate and display a tournament game outcome; (b) tracking tournament game play of each player; (c) when a player elimination triggering event occurs, eliminating a designated number of players from the tournament, said designated number being at least one and less than all of the players in said tournament; (d) after said player elimination triggering event occurs, for each eliminated player, determining any unplayed tournament games said eliminated player has remaining when eliminated; (e) determining a tournament winner from the plurality of players based on the tracked tournament game play; (f) determining a value of the tournament award based, at least in part, on an average expected payout value of each of said determined unplayed tournament games; and (g) notifying said tournament winner that said tournament winner wins the tournament award.