Channel your inner gladiator during November as the 888poker God of the Arena Progressive Knockout (PKO) Series get underway. The annual event runs Nov. 10-17 with 24 tournaments for players of all buy-in levels hoping to run like a god.
God of the Arena PKO features Regular, Mini, and Late variations of each tournament. Event 1 is a $215 tournament set for Nov. 10 with a $150,000 guarantee.
There is also a Mini version of this tournament on the same day with a $22 buy-in and $30,000 guarantee. The Late event that night brings a $55 buy-in with a $20,000 guarantee.
What’s a Progressive Knockout poker tournament?
The God of the Arena PKO offers a bit of a twist on a traditional online poker bounty tournaments. In the progressive knockout format, a player’s bounty increases as he progresses through the field.
Each time a player eliminates another player, he receives a portion (usually 50 percent) of that player’s bounty. The other portion is added to that player’s own bounty amount – increasing the price on his head.
PKOs are a unique and exciting alternative to traditional bounty tournaments and bring about a different style of play. Players have a shot at a bounty bonus as the event moves along.
“Find a good balance between playing aggressively enough to accumulate bounties without being too loose,” Team888’s Martin Jacobson said about the tournaments.
888poker ambassador Chris Moorman pointed out one mistake to avoid in a PKO tournament
“The number one mistake I see people make in a PKO MTT is bounty hunting too hard with awful hands,” he says, “when it will ruin their stack if they lose.”
Some highlights of the 888poker God of the Arena PKO series
The biggest day in the series is the final day with the Regular, Mini, and Late Main Events set for Nov. 17. The day’s events begin with the $109 Warm Up with a $100,000 guarantee.
An hour after that kicks off, the $50,000 Mini Main Event gets underway with a $33 buy-in. Beginning between these tournaments is the main attraction – the $300,000 guaranteed Main Event with a $320 buy-in.
All tournaments in the series are in the no limit hold’em PKO format. Players can get in the action for as little as $8.80 with several $16.50 and $22 tournaments also on the schedule.
Those looking to qualify for a fraction of the buy-in will find plenty of qualifiers to enter on the site as well. Players have a shot at some event bigger value. 888poker is offering free qualifiers for Event 1 ($150,000 guaranteed) and Event 23 ($300,000 guaranteed).
Here’s a complete look at the God of the Arena PKO Series schedule:
| Date | Event | Buy-in |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 10 | #1 - $150,000 9-Max | $215 |
| Nov. 10 | #2 - $30,000 Mini 9-Max | $22 |
| Nov. 10 | #3 - $20,000 Late 9-Max | $55 |
| Nov. 11 | #4 - $30,000 8-Max | $55 |
| Nov. 11 | #5 - $10,000 Mini 8-Max | $8.80 |
| Nov. 11 | #6 - $10,000 Late 8-Max | $22 |
| Nov. 12 | #7 - $50,000 9-Max | $160 |
| Nov. 12 | #8 - $20,000 Mini 9-Max | $16.50 |
| Nov. 12 | #9 - $15,000 Late 9-Max | $55 |
| Nov. 13 | #10 - $30,000 8-Max | $109 |
| Nov. 13 | #11 - $20,000 Mini 8-Max | $16.50 |
| Nov. 13 | #12 - $10,000 Late 8-Max | $33 |
| Nov. 14 | #13 - $30,000 9-Max | $109 |
| Nov. 14 | #14 - $20,000 Mini 9-Max | $16.50 |
| Nov. 14 | #15 - $10,000 Late 9-Max | $33 |
| Nov. 15 | #16 - $20,000 Freezeout | $55 |
| Nov. 15 | #17 - $15,000 Mini Freezeout | $16.50 |
| Nov. 15 | #18 - $10,000 Late Freezeout | $33 |
| Nov. 16 | #19 - $30,000 6-Max | $109 |
| Nov. 16 | #20 - $20,000 Mini 6-Max | $16.50 |
| Nov. 16 | #21 - $10,000 Late 6-Max | $55 |
| Nov. 17 | #22 - $100,000 Warm Up | $109 |
| Nov. 17 | #23 - $300,000 Main Event | $320 |
| Nov. 17 | #24 - $50,000 Mini Main Event | $33 |