Tickets for the first 20 shows of Garth Brooks [ tickets ]' upcoming residency at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas have sold out, and a stern warning was issued to ticket brokers that the venue will not tolerate unauthorized resales, according to a press release.

The first series of shows--Dec. 11-13, Jan. 1-3 and 22-24, Feb. 12-14 and 26-28--went on sale Saturday (10/24) and sold out within five hours. The Wynn Las Vegas website received more than 5.4 million page views with up to 40,000 people waiting in an online queue. The resort's phone lines reached capacity after 140,000 calls were accommodated.

With such a high demand, the Wynn recognized that unauthorized sellers now have access to tickets, so they've enlisted legal counsel to help thwart what could end up being exorbitant mark-ups for Brooks' tickets.

In a statement, Wynn said its legal counsel has communicated with suspected scalpers and private unauthorized sellers, advising them they have not been authorized as a licensed ticket broker by Wynn Las Vegas and are not authorized to resell any Garth Brooks tickets for his concerts at the Encore Theater.

The warning came with the following statement of repercussions: "Management reserves the right to cancel any ticket and refund the face value of the ticket to the ticket holder if management determines, in its sole and absolute discretion, that such ticket was purchased from a ticket reseller at an amount in excess of face value. Any ticket you sell in excess of face value ($143) will be subject to cancellation. We would suggest that you advise your potential purchasers of such possibility."

In other words, if a fan buys a ticket from a broker or scalper, the Wynn claims it can be voided and any excess "service charge" spent on the ticket will not be refunded.

The statement said the resort will enforce the strict ticketing rules to the fullest extent. The Wynn will be conducting ongoing audits to examine purchaser records and information that may result in automatic cancellation of confirmed purchases if a violation of policy is discovered.