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Bigger Prize Pools, Added Events Coming to PokerStars WCOOP: Take 2 Series; $28M Guaranteed

PokerStars released the schedule for WCOOP: Take 2 on Thursdays with 66 events running runs Nov. 5-9 and total guarantees of $28 million.

PokerStars recently announced a sequel to the popular World Championship of Online Poker, which was cut short in September. The site released more details and a complete schedule for the series on Thursday.

WCOOP 2022: Take 2 runs Nov. 5-9 with 66 events and total guaranteed prize pools of almost $28 million. The re-run includes all canceled events from Sept. 25. That includes the Main Events for No Limit Hold’em and Pot Limit Omaha. Those and the women’s events get underway on Nov. 6.

“We know that WCOOP is a long-awaited calendar staple for our community and due to the cancellations, we want to ensure we give our players the WCOOP experience they had hoped for but make it even bigger and better,” Stars director of online poker experience Chris Straghalis said in a news release.

“We have added millions in value through an excellent schedule of satellites giving players of all levels the chance to compete for a prestigious WCOOP title and have also increased the NLHE Main Event guarantees to give even more of a strong reason for players to get involved.”

Highlights from PokerStars’ WCOOP: Take 2

The series sequel comes after the first WCOOP saw hacking attempts. The site’s security team prevented DDoS attack attempts to breach the site’s, Stars noted, but several events were canceled.

That included the NLHE Main Events. Those tournaments now receive boosts totaling $2.5 million in guaranteed prize money. Here’s a look at those events and what players can expect:

  • $109 NLHE Main Event Low – $3 million guaranteed, an increase of $500,000
  • $1,050 NLHE Main Event Medium – $5 million guaranteed, an increase of $1 million
  • $10,300 NLHE Main Event High – $7 million guaranteed, an increase of $1 million

Even more coming to series

PokerStars has also added $1.5 million in added value satellites as part of the series. Numerous free and low buy-in satellites are already underway.

The WCOOP: Take 2 schedule also includes a variety of new events with buy-ins from just $5.50. Here’s a look at the complete schedule.

PokerStars WCOOP 2022: Take 2

DateEvent
Nov. 5#01-L: $5.50 NLHE [#Kickoff], $40K Gtd
Nov. 5#01-M: $55 NLHE [#Kickoff], $175K Gtd
Nov. 5#01-H: $530 NLHE [#Kickoff], $200K Gtd
Nov. 5#02-L: $11 8-Game, $15K Gtd
Nov. 5#02-M: $109 8-Game, $35K Gtd
Nov. 5#02-H: $1,050 8-Game, $60K Gtd
Nov. 5#03-L: $11 NLHE [Progressive KO], $150K Gtd
Nov. 5#03-M: $109 NLHE [Progressive KO], $400K Gtd
Nov. 5#03-H: $1,050 NLHE [Progressive KO], $500K Gtd
Nov. 5#04-L: $11 NLO8, $15K Gtd
Nov. 5#04-M: $109 NLO8, $35K Gtd
Nov. 5#04-H: $1,050 NLO8, $80K Gtd
Nov. 5#05-L: $55 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Single Re-Entry], $100K Gtd
Nov. 5#05-M: $215 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Single Re-Entry], $175K Gtd
Nov. 5#05-H: $1,050 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Single Re-Entry], $200K Gtd
Nov. 5#06-L: $5.50 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $30K Gtd
Nov. 5#06-M: $55 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $85K Gtd
Nov. 5#06-H: $530 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $125K Gtd
Nov. 6#07-L: $5.50 NLHE [Sunday Kickoff], $50K Gtd
Nov. 6#07-M: $55 NLHE [Sunday Kickoff], $200K Gtd
Nov. 6#07-H: $530 NLHE [Sunday Kickoff], $400K Gtd
Nov. 6#08-L: $22 NLHE [Progressive KO, Sunday Warm-Up], $200K Gtd
Nov. 6#08-M: $215 NLHE [Progressive KO, Sunday Warm-Up], $600K Gtd
Nov. 6#08-H: $2,100 NLHE [Progressive KO, Sunday Warm-Up], $600K Gtd
Nov. 6WCOOP Main Event - Low: $109 NLHE, $3M Gtd
Nov. 6WCOOP Main Event - Medium: $1,050 NLHE, $5M Gtd
Nov. 6WCOOP Main Event - High: $10,300 NLHE [World Championship of NLHE], $7M Gtd
Nov. 6#10-L: $5.50 NLHE [Progressive KO, Womens Event], $3.5K Gtd
Nov. 6#10-M: $22 NLHE [Progressive KO, Womens Event], $10K Gtd
Nov. 6#10-H: $109 NLHE [Progressive KO, Womens Event], $25K Gtd
Nov. 6WCOOP PLO Main Event - Low: $109 PLO, $250K Gtd
Nov. 6WCOOP PLO Main Event - Medium: $1,050 PLO, $600K Gtd
Nov. 6WCOOP PLO Main Event - High: $10,300 PLO [World Championship of PLO], $1M Gtd
Nov. 6#12-L: $11 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, Freezeout, Sunday Cooldown], $85K Gtd
Nov. 6#12-M: $109 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, Freezeout, Sunday Cooldown], $350K Gtd
Nov. 6#12-H: $1,050 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, Freezeout, Sunday Cooldown], $400K Gtd
Nov. 7#13-L: $11 NLHE [Progressive KO, Take 2 Special], $175K Gtd
Nov. 7#13-M: $109 NLHE [Progressive KO, Take 2 Special], $700K Gtd
Nov. 7#13-H: $1,050 NLHE [Progressive KO, Take 2 Special], $1M Gtd
Nov. 7#14-L: $11 HORSE, $10K Gtd
Nov. 7#14-M: $109 HORSE, $30K Gtd
Nov. 7#14-H: $1,050 HORSE, $50K Gtd
Nov. 7#15-L: $55 NLHE [Turbo, Turbo ME 2nd Chance], $250K Gtd
Nov. 7#15-M: $530 NLHE [Turbo, Turbo ME 2nd Chance], $300K Gtd
Nov. 7#15-H: $5,200 NLHE [Turbo, Turbo ME 2nd Chance], $400K Gtd
Nov. 7#16-L: $11 NLHE [Turbo], $50K Gtd
Nov. 7#16-M: $109 NLHE [Turbo], $175K Gtd
Nov. 7#16-H: $1,050 NLHE [Turbo], $200K Gtd
Nov. 8#17-L: $55 NLHE [Super Tuesday - Single Re-entry], $175K Gtd
Nov. 8#17-M: $215 NLHE [Super Tuesday - Single Re-entry], $200K Gtd
Nov. 8#17-H: $1,050 NLHE [Super Tuesday - Single Re-entry], $400K Gtd
Nov. 8#18-L: $11 5-Card PLO, $20K Gtd
Nov. 8#18-M: $109 5-Card PLO, $60K Gtd
Nov. 8#18-H: $1,050 5-Card PLO, $85K Gtd
Nov. 8#19-L: $5.50 NLHE [Heads-Up, Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $40K Gtd
Nov. 8#19-M: $55 NLHE [Heads-Up, Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $125K Gtd
Nov. 8#19-H: $530 NLHE [Heads-Up, Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $175K Gtd
Nov. 9#20-L: $55 NLHE [Take 2 Closer], $125K Gtd
Nov. 9#20-M: $530 NLHE [Take 2 Closer], $150K Gtd
Nov. 9#20-H: $5,200 NLHE [Take 2 Closer], $350K Gtd
Nov. 9#21-L: $11 PLO, $25K Gtd
Nov. 9#21-M: $109 PLO, $75K Gtd
Nov. 9#21-H: $1,050 PLO, $125K Gtd
Nov. 9#22-L: $5.50 NLHE [7-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Series Wrap-Up], $30K Gtd
Nov. 9#22-M: $55 NLHE [7-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Series Wrap-Up], $100K Gtd
Nov. 9#22-H: $530 NLHE [7-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Series Wrap-Up], $125K Gtd

★★★ Ready to get in the WCOOP action at PokerStars? Click here for a complete site review with exclusive PokerScout bonus offers. ★★★

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PokerStars Brings New Virtual Reality Game Option for New Meta/Facebook Headset

PokerStars announced on Wednesday the launch of a new virtual reality game for Meta’s new Quest Pro headset.

Fans of PokerStars’ free-to-play virtual reality game will soon have another online option. The company announced on Wednesday the launch of a new title for Meta’s upcoming Quest Pro mixed reality headset.

Meta is the parent company of Facebook and the new device is set to launch Oct. 25. PokerStars VR will be one of a select number of games chosen to launch alongside the new device.

“Our goal with PokerStars VR is to push the potential of new technologies as far as we can to create a fun and authentic social casino game that really is limitless,” PokerStars director of virtual reality and innovation James O’Reilly said in a news release.

“We’re extremely proud to be part of the launch of Meta’s Quest Pro, which is a transformation in virtual and mixed reality. Our developers have been having great fun exploring what this technology means for our players and we can’t wait to show them what we have in store.”

What to expect from PokerStars VR, Meta deal

PokerStars VR is a free-to-play social casino game allowing players to take on others from around the world. Along with poker, games include roulette, blackjack, and slots are available in a unique virtual environment. PokerStars VR also recently announced craps coming to the Stars Casino One environment.

Poker players will find cash games, multi-table tournaments, Sit & Go events, and Spin and Go’s. With the Meta Quest Pro partnership, PokerStars VR is promising even more.

The new Meta headset promises “enhanced performance as well as full-color passthrough for a full mixed-reality experience, face and eye tracking, and other cutting-edge technologies,” PokerStars noted in announcing the new game.

The company’s virtual reality developers, Lucky VR, designed the new game behind the scenes. Lucky staff worked to create new ways to take full advantage of Quest Pro’s capabilities and integrate them into the VR game.

Players using the headset adapt their surroundings to suit their playing habits. Options inside this new poker world include:

  • a fully immersive virtual reality experience
  • partial immersion that brings objects or spaces from their physical world into the game through editable “passthrough windows”
  • full mixed reality that enables players to bring core virtual game elements into their own world

Added technological features

Sophisticated face and eye-tracking also brings a new social dimension to PokerStars VR, the company notes. A key upgrade allows players to make and see realistic facial expressions in their customized avatars. Players can smile, frown, and glance at their cards just as if at a real poker table.

“Advanced haptics will meanwhile add to richer, more engaging gameplay with players getting the full experience of the hundreds of toys, props, and items available,” PokerStars notes.

PokerStars VR uses Tox Mod, an artificial intelligence live chat monitoring tool, to assist a dedicated moderation team. Players also have access to a range of in-game safety tools including the option to take time out from games, set spending limits, and issue player reports. Players can also customize the extent of their interaction with others in the game.

While PokerStars doesn’t offer real-money gaming on the VR version, the platform has created a loyal group of players. The company is hoping the new additions grow this poker option even more.

★★★ Ready to get in the action at PokerStars? Click here for a complete site review with exclusive PokerScout bonus offers. ★★★

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Tournament Trail: Roundup of International Poker Events Scheduled for This Fall

International poker players have worldwide options this fall. Big tournament series such as the World Series of Poker, European Poker Tour, and the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour are hosting major events before winter sets in.

Players can expect big fields and solid guarantees.  Here’s a look at some of the international poker tournaments through December. 

WSOP Europe headlines in the Czech Republic

King’s Resort in Rozvadov, Czech Republic, hosts the WSOP Europe Oct. 26 – Nov. 3. Players trying to close out the year with a gold bracelet will have 15 tournaments to choose from this fall.

The series offers a wide range of buy-ins and highlights include the €10,000 Main Event and a €50,000 High Roller. 

“We’re very excited to host the biggest and most prestigious tournament series with the biggest guarantees in Europe without any limitations and struggles of the past two years,” King’s owner Leon Tsoukernik said in a news release. “Finally, travel restrictions for players coming from the US have been lifted. We’re all set to deliver first-class service and hospitality for all poker players at King’s.” 

King’s is the largest poker room in Europe, boasting 160 poker tables. Players will have a good mix of game types to pick from throughout the series. This includes No Limit Hold’em, Pot Limit Omaha, Short Deck, and eight-game mix. A few major events include:

  • €350 Opener (Event 1, Oct. 26)
  • €1,350 Mini Main Event (Event 3, Oct. 31) 
  • €5,000 Pot Limit Omaha (Event 6, Nov. 6) 
  • €1,100 Bounty Hunter (Event 14, Nov. 14)

For a complete preview of the series and a schedule, click here.

Road to PSPC with PokerStars

PokerStars is continuing to run the Road to the PSPC (PokerStars Players Championship) Tour this fall. 

The events offer Platinum Passes to the PPC in the Bahamas, scheduled for January. A Platinum Pass includes a tournament and travel package worth more than $30,000.

Some events and locations of PokerStars official events include:

  • Oct. 10-16 – Bucharest, Romania
  • Oct. 18-22 – UKIPT (London, United Kingdom) 
  • Nov. 3-13 – APPT (Cambodia)
  • Nov. 8-13 – Paris, France
  • Nov. 14-26 – Brazilian Series of Poker (Sao Paulo, Brazil)
  • Nov. 22-27 – FPS (Aix-en-Provence, France) 
  • Dec. 7-18 – EPT (Prague, Czech Republic)
  • Nov. 27- Dec. 4 – Namur, Belgium

For more information on winning a Platinum Pass, click here.

WPT heads to Asia

The World Poker Tour has a few international tournaments to end the year. The company has announced two official upcoming events in Asia.

From Nov. 2-6, WPT hosts an invitational event in Tokyo at Sankaku Hiroba. This private event features some major players in the game with more information coming soon. After that the tour is headed to Taiwan on Nov. 16-21. The TWD30,000 main event highlights the series. 

“The WPT was very fortunate to be able to hold its first event in Taiwan in December 2020, open only to players in Taiwan due to COVID restrictions at that time,” the tour notes.

“Taiwanese players came out in force for a very respectable 526-Main Event field. Our great partners CTP, who are highly regarded for their professional running of poker events, can’t wait to host the next WPT event to an international field.”

Grosvenor UK Poker Tour finishes Season

Over in the United Kingdom the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) is making the rounds. The tour has more major events planned to close out the year. 

From Nov. 6-13, Blackpool hosts the £1,350 main event. The series closes out the year at The Poker Room in London from Dec. 1-18 and features a £2,000 Main Event. 

WSOP International Circuit

The WSOP has a few more international circuit stops to hit before 2022 comes to a close. All event stops award championship rings to winners.

Winners of the ring events are also awarded a spot in the $1 million dollar freeroll Tournament of Champions. 

“Poker is bigger than ever and there has been a recent run of international champions in our Main Events,” WSOP Senior Vice President Ty Stewart said. “We’re excited to bring the once-in-a-lifetime poker experiences of the WSOP-C and WSOP Europe back to transcontinental players.”

 The remaining stops on the schedule include:

  • Oct. 18-28 – Sao Paulo (Brazil)
  • Nov. 3-14 – Sydney (Australia)
  • Nov. 25- Dec. 3 – Holland (Amsterdam)
  • Dec. 2-10 – Punta del Este (Uruguay)
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Poker Podium: Simon Mattson, Preben Stokkan Among Huge September Online Winners

September produced some massive winners in the international online poker market. Players saw some massive series and payouts on PokerStars, GGPoker, PartyPoker.

One major highlight included Simon Mattson taking down the World Series of Poker Online Main Event. Preben Stokkan also came up big, winning the PartyPoker Millions Online Main Event. Poker Podium takes a look at those winners as well as other action from September.

PartyPoker

The MILLIONS Online recently wrapped up at PartyPoker. In the $3,200 Main Event, Preben Stokkan (pictured in lead image, courtesy PartyPoker) found the winner’s circle for a payout of $391,731.

Originally from Norway and now living in the United Kingdom, Stokkan also earned a Party Ape NFT as part of the prize package. He took the chip lead into the final table and rode that to victory. 

Eelis Parssinen, of Finland, took runner-up for $270,213 with Austria’s Ole Schemion grabbing third for $186,168.

The win came only days after Stokkan also chalked up a victory in the $1,575 Closer PKO. That event brought in 253 players for a $379,500 prize pool. Stokkan added $73,423 for that win as well.


The $320 Min Main Event saw Franco Spitale, of Argentina, rise to the top for a payout of $100,480. Austria’s Leon Sturm finished runner-up for $68,227.

Two other players shined in the MILLIONS Online. Ricardo Arraiano, of Malta, won the Super 500 PKO for a total prize of $69,315. Emiliano Ricchini, of Argentina, won the Super 100 for a total of $31,765.

PokerStars

The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) recently wrapped up at PokerStars, despite some hiccups. Stars has rescheduled main events and added some other tournaments for November after DDoS attacks led to some tournament cancellations.

The first running of WCOOP saw several big winners however. Well-regarded online player Renas Bruschi took the $5,000 Titans title for $173,239. Bruschi has more than $8 million in online winnings.

After two runner-up finishes in the series, Stars ambassador and Twitch streamer Patrick Leonard added a WCOOP ‘22 title by winning the $1,050 Six-Plus Hold’em event for $17,444. He also won events in this version of Short Deck in the 2021 WCOOP and in SCOOP earlier this year.

After the nice finish, Leonard then made a huge run in the $5,000 WSOP Online Main Event at GGPoker (more on that below) as well for a score of more than $91,000.

A look at other PokerStars winners

Winamax ambassador Joao Vieira also scored three WCOOP titles in the series. That included taking  down the $2,100 Deep Stack for $62,131. He also rose to the top in the $2,000 Deuce to Seven Triple Draw for an additional $32,230.

Women’s WCOOP event winner Charlotte Van Brabander. (photo courtesy PokerStars)

Brazil’s Rui Ferreira took runner-up in that Deep Stack event for $48,097 after already winning three events in the series as well.

Sweden’s Christian Jeppsson scored his third career WCOOP trophy in the $2,100 Thursday Thrill PKO for $115,695. He then added another win in the $1,000 NLHE freezeout for $47,880.

Ognjan Dimov was one of the series biggest winners, scoring three championships. That included winning the $5,200 High Roller for $160,277 and the $10,000 High Roller for $230,000.

In the first WCOOP Women’s World Championship, Belgium’s Charlotte Van Brabander (a former PokerStars ambassador) took the top spot for  $15,886. Current Stars ambassador Georgina “GJReggie” James also made a nice run, finishing seventh for $3,014.

GGPoker

Obviously much of September’s GG action focused on the WSOP Online. The series recently wrapped up and Simon Mattsson scored the biggest title of the series. He took down the $5,000 Main Event for a massive score of $2.8 million.

The WSOP Online wrapped up on Tuesday at GGPoker with Eric Mattsson winning the $5,000 Main Event for $2.8 million.
Main Event winner Simon Mattsson. (photo courtesy PokerStars/Danny Maxwell)

The championship easily topped the $20 million guarantee, bringin in 4,984 entries for a $23.7 million prize pool. That wasn’t Mattsson’s only win of the series. He also took down a $5,250 Bounty Hunters Super High Roller non-bracelet event for $23,293.

In total, the series’ 33 events produced a total prize pool of more than $66 million. Beyond the Main Event, the $1,500 Millionaire Maker saw the second-largest payout of the series. Markus Prinz scored that title for $1.2 million with the tournament attracting 4,706 entries for $6.7 million.

The $10,000 Super MILLION$ High Roller also produced hefty numbers with 593 entries for a $5.7 million prize pool. David Yan scored the win for almost $1 million.

888poker

A former WSOP Main Event champion scored a nice finish at 888 in September. Sweden’s Martin Jacobson, winner of the 2014 WSOP Main Event, came up just short of a title in the $109 Big Shot, which features a $100,000 guarantee.

The event brought in 909 total entries and Jacobson entered the final table as chip leader. However, the United Kingdom’s “Patsharpe” took the top spot for $15,480 with Jacobson as runner-up for $11,290.

In other news, 888 recently offered up some prizes for those who shared one of their best stories from the site. Numerous players submitted their memories including this winner from a recreational player.

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PokerStars COOP Series Kicks Off This Weekend in Ontario, Canada; $2M Guaranteed

The inaugural Ontario Championship of Online Poker runs Oct. 1-17 at PokerStars with 132 tournaments and an overall guarantee of $2 million.

The Championship of Online Poker has become one of the most recognized tournament brands in online poker. PokerStars is now bringing a COOP series to players in the Canadian province of Ontario this fall.

The inaugural Ontario Championship of Online Poker (ONCOOP) kicks off on Saturday with 17 days of action. The entire series runs from Oct. 1-17 with 132 tournaments and an overall guarantee of $2 million. ONCOOP becomes the largest and richest PokerStars series in Ontario yet.

What to expect from PokerStars ONCOOP

The series brings some major online tournament action to Ontario, which underwent provincial regulation earlier this year. PokerStars launched in June and is now ramping up a COOP festival for Ontario players.

The series offers something for every bankroll and interest. ONCOOP features  a range of Low and High buy-in options, allowing players of all types to get involved. Players will find two main events running on Oct. 16.

The $500 No Limit Hold’em High Main Event features a $200,000 guaranteed prize pool. The $50 Low Main Event comes with $40,000 guaranteed.

Other series highlights include:

  • $200 NLHE Kickoff (Oct. 1) – $20,000 guaranteed
  • $1,000 Sunday Special High Roller (Oct. 2) – $70,000 guaranteed
  • $300 Thursday Thrill PKO (Oct. 6) – $32,000 guaranteed
  • $100 NLHE PKO (Oct. 14) – $18,000 guaranteed

Growing the Ontario platform 

Following the launch of PokerStars in Ontario, players in the Canadian province have already found some nice series.  The first of those was the Ontario Platinum Series, which featured $1 million awarded to players.

The Bounty Builder Series next ran from Sept. 4-19 with another $1 million guaranteed. Since then, Stars officials have focused on planning an even bigger series with ONCOOP. The festival now doubles the guarantee of the first two series.

Here’s a look at the complete series.

PokerStars OCOOP 2022

DateEvent
Oct. 1#1-H: $200 NLHE [8-Max, #Kickoff], $20K Gtd
Oct. 1#1-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max, #Mini Kickoff], $6K Gtd
Oct. 1#2-H: $300 NLHE [7-Max], $28K Gtd
Oct. 1#2-L: $50 NLHE [7-Max], $10K Gtd
Oct. 1#3-H: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $16K Gtd
Oct. 1#3-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $6K Gtd
Oct. 1#4-H: $50 NLHE [5-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Deepstack], $5.5K Gtd
Oct. 1#4-L: $10 NLHE [5-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Deepstack], $1.5K Gtd
Oct. 2#5-H: $50 NLHE [Sunday Marathon SE], $6K Gtd
Oct. 2#5-L: $20 NLHE [Sunday Mini Marathon SE], $5K Gtd
Oct. 2#6-H: $200 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $20K Gtd
Oct. 2#6-L: $10 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $3.5K Gtd
Oct. 2#7-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, #Warm-Up], $30K Gtd
Oct. 2#7-L: $30 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Mini Warm-Up], $7K Gtd
Oct. 2#8-H: $1,000 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Special - High Roller], $70K Gtd
Oct. 2#8-L: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Special SE], $40K Gtd
Oct. 2#9-H: $200 PLO [6-Max], $16K Gtd
Oct. 2#9-L: $20 PLO [6-Max], $2.5K Gtd
Oct. 2#10-H: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, Sunday Supersonic SE], $12.5K Gtd
Oct. 2#10-L: $5.00 NLHE [8-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $2.5K Gtd
Oct. 3#11-H: $300 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $30K Gtd
Oct. 3#11-L: $30 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Monday Starter SE], $7K Gtd
Oct. 3#12-H: $100 HORSE, $8K Gtd
Oct. 3#12-L: $20 HORSE, $1.8K Gtd
Oct. 3#13-H: $200 NLHE [8-Max, Monday Heat SE], $25K Gtd
Oct. 3#13-L: $10 NLHE [8-Max], $3K Gtd
Oct. 4#14-H: $2,000 NLHE [8-Max, Super Tuesday - High Roller], $75K Gtd
Oct. 4#14-L: $200 NLHE [8-Max], $22K Gtd
Oct. 4#15-H: $200 5-Card PLO [6-Max], $9K Gtd
Oct. 4#15-L: $10 5-Card PLO [6-Max], $1.5K Gtd
Oct. 4#16-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $30K Gtd
Oct. 4#16-L: $50 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $8K Gtd
Oct. 5#17-H: $300 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $28K Gtd
Oct. 5#17-L: $10 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $3.2K Gtd
Oct. 5#18-H: $100 Razz, $6K Gtd
Oct. 5#18-L: $10 Razz, $1K Gtd
Oct. 5#19-H: $100 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $13K Gtd
Oct. 5#19-L: $20 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $4K Gtd
Oct. 6#20-H: $1,000 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO, Thursday Thrill - High Roller], $50K Gtd
Oct. 6#20-L: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $18K Gtd
Oct. 6#21-H: $200 8-Game, $8K Gtd
Oct. 6#21-L: $20 8-Game, $1.5K Gtd
Oct. 6#22-H: $300 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Thursday Thrill SE], $32K Gtd
Oct. 6#22-L: $50 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Mini Thursday Thrill SE], $10K Gtd
Oct. 7#23-H: $300 NLHE [6-Max], $26K Gtd
Oct. 7#23-L: $100 NLHE [6-Max], $15K Gtd
Oct. 7#24-H: $50 HORSE [Progressive KO], $3K Gtd
Oct. 7#24-L: $10 HORSE [Progressive KO], $1K Gtd
Oct. 7#25-H: $100 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $16K Gtd
Oct. 7#25-L: $30 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $5.5K Gtd
Oct. 7#26-H: $50 NLHE [8-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Bounty Adrenaline: 40BB Stack], $6K Gtd
Oct. 7#26-L: $10 NLHE [8-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Bounty Adrenaline: 40BB Stack], $2.4K Gtd
Oct. 8#27-H: $100 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Fat Saturday SE], $12.5K Gtd
Oct. 8#27-L: $20 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Mini Fat Saturday], $4K Gtd
Oct. 8#28-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, Saturday High Roller SE], $30K Gtd
Oct. 8#28-L: $50 NLHE [8-Max], $9K Gtd
Oct. 8#29-H: $200 NLO8 [7-Max, Progressive KO], $9K Gtd
Oct. 8#29-L: $20 NLO8 [7-Max, Progressive KO], $2K Gtd
Oct. 8#30-H: $100 NLHE [6-Max], $15K Gtd
Oct. 8#30-L: $10 NLHE [6-Max], $2.8K Gtd
Oct. 8#31-H: $30 PLO [6-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $2.2K Gtd
Oct. 8#31-L: $5.00 PLO [6-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $0.75K Gtd
Oct. 9#32-H: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Starter SE], $5K Gtd
Oct. 9#32-L: $30 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Mini Starter], $3.4K Gtd
Oct. 9#33-H: $100 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $15K Gtd
Oct. 9#33-L: $20 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $5K Gtd
Oct. 9#34-H: $300 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive Big KO], $28K Gtd
Oct. 9#34-L: $30 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive Big KO], $7K Gtd
Oct. 9#35-H: $2,000 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Super Highroller SE], $90K Gtd
Oct. 9#35-L: $200 NLHE [8-Max, Sunday Special SE], $45K Gtd
Oct. 9#36-H: $300 5-Card PLO8, $18K Gtd
Oct. 9#36-L: $30 5-Card PLO8, $3K Gtd
Oct. 9#37-H: $100 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $10K Gtd
Oct. 9#37-L: $10 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $3K Gtd
Oct. 10#38-H: $1,000 NLHE [8-Max, Monday High Roller SE], $50K Gtd
Oct. 10#38-L: $50 NLHE [8-Max], $9K Gtd
Oct. 10#39-H: $100 Stud Hi Lo, $6K Gtd
Oct. 10#39-L: $20 Stud Hi Lo, $1.5K Gtd
Oct. 10#40-H: $200 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Monday Cooldown SE], $20K Gtd
Oct. 10#40-L: $10 NLHE [7-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $2.8K Gtd
Oct. 11#41-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, Tuesday High Roller SE], $30K Gtd
Oct. 11#41-L: $50 NLHE [8-Max], $9K Gtd
Oct. 11#42-H: $300 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $30K Gtd
Oct. 11#42-L: $30 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $7K Gtd
Oct. 11#43-H: $100 NLHE [Heads-Up, Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $8K Gtd
Oct. 11#43-L: $5.00 NLHE [Heads-Up, Turbo, Progressive Total KO, Zoom], $1.8K Gtd
Oct. 12#44-H: $300 NLHE [5-Max], $27K Gtd
Oct. 12#44-L: $10 NLHE [5-Max], $2.8K Gtd
Oct. 12#45-H: $200 NLHE-PLO [6-Max], $8.5K Gtd
Oct. 12#45-L: $30 NLHE-PLO [6-Max], $3.5K Gtd
Oct. 12#46-H: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $14K Gtd
Oct. 12#46-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $3.8K Gtd
Oct. 13#47-H: $200 NLHE [6-Max, Progressive KO], $19K Gtd
Oct. 13#47-L: $50 NLHE [6-Max, Progressive KO], $9K Gtd
Oct. 13#48-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, Thursday High Roller SE], $30K Gtd
Oct. 13#48-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max], $4.5K Gtd
Oct. 13#49-H: $50 NLHE [4-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $7K Gtd
Oct. 13#49-L: $10 NLHE [4-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO], $3K Gtd
Oct. 14#50-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $30K Gtd
Oct. 14#50-L: $100 NLHE [8-Max, Progressive KO], $18K Gtd
Oct. 14#51-H: $100 6+ Hold'em [6-Max], $5K Gtd
Oct. 14#51-L: $30 6+ Hold'em [6-Max], $3K Gtd
Oct. 14#52-H: $200 NLHE [8-Max, Friday Battle SE], $22K Gtd
Oct. 14#52-L: $50 NLHE [8-Max, Mini Friday Battle SE], $9K Gtd
Oct. 14#53-H: $50 NLHE [7-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Last Player Standing], $7.5K Gtd
Oct. 14#53-L: $10 NLHE [7-Max, Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO, Last Player Standing], $3K Gtd
Oct. 15#54-H: $100 NLHE [7-Max, Deepstack, Saturday Kickoff], $8K Gtd
Oct. 15#54-L: $10 NLHE [7-Max, Deepstack, Mini Saturday Kickoff], $2.4K Gtd
Oct. 15#55-H: $300 NLHE [8-Max], $29K Gtd
Oct. 15#55-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max], $5.5K Gtd
Oct. 15#56-H: $100 PLO8 [6-Max, Progressive KO], $8K Gtd
Oct. 15#56-L: $20 PLO8 [6-Max, Progressive KO], $2K Gtd
Oct. 15#57-H: $200 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO, Saturday Rumble SE], $20K Gtd
Oct. 15#57-L: $30 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $6.5K Gtd
Oct. 15#58-H: $30 NLHE [Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO], $6K Gtd
Oct. 15#58-L: $5.00 NLHE [Hyper-Turbo, Progressive KO], $1.8K Gtd
Oct. 16#59-H: $200 NLHE [8-Max], $18K Gtd
Oct. 16#59-L: $30 NLHE [8-Max], $4.5K Gtd
Oct. 16#60-H: $300 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $22K Gtd
Oct. 16#60-L: $20 NLHE [7-Max, Progressive KO], $6K Gtd
Oct. 16#61-H: $500 NLHE [8-Max, Main Event - High], $200K Gtd
Oct. 16#61-L: $50 NLHE [8-Max, Main Event - Low], $40K Gtd
Oct. 16#62-H: $100 PLO [6-Max, Progressive KO], $11K Gtd
Oct. 16#62-L: $10 PLO [6-Max, Progressive KO], $2.5K Gtd
Oct. 16#63-H: $200 NLHE [8-Max, Turbo, Sunday Cooldown SE], $19K Gtd
Oct. 16#63-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max, Turbo], $5K Gtd
Oct. 17#64-H: $200 NLHE [8-Max, Second Chance], $22K Gtd
Oct. 17#64-L: $20 NLHE [8-Max, Mini Second Chance], $5.5K Gtd
Oct. 17#65-H: $50 NLHE [8-Max, Phase 2], $25K Gtd
Oct. 17#65-L: $10 NLHE [8-Max, Mini Phase 2], $10K Gtd
Oct. 17#66-H: $100 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, #Wrap-Up], $15K Gtd
Oct. 17#66-L: $10 NLHE [6-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, #Mini Wrap-Up], $3.5K Gtd

★★★ Ready to get in the action at PokerStars? Click here for a complete site review with exclusive PokerScout bonus offers. ★★★

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PokerStars Plans Two-Day WCOOP Sequel After DDoS Attacks Lead to Tournament Cancelations

The WCOOP is getting a bit of a sequel this fall at PokerStars after the site was forced to cancel major events on Sunday after undergoing DDoS attacks.

The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) is getting a bit of a sequel this fall at PokerStars. After having to cancel tournaments over the weekend, the site is planning to re-run the WCOOP Main Events and other tournaments as part of a special Championship Weekend Nov. 5-6.

The series also plans to boost guarantees for several events as well. The move comes after Stars saw numerous hacking attempts over the weekend. The two-day mini WCOOP offers a chance for players to get back in on any missed events.

WCOOP briefly resuming in November at PokerStars

The two-day return of WCOOP is a bit of an unusual situation for online poker. The Stars festival will start on Saturday, Nov. 5. The series will include reruns of all canceled events from Sept. 25 and players can look for the return of:

  • the three No Limit Hold’em Main Events
  • all Pot Limit Omaha Main Events
  • all women’s tournaments

“To ensure a great WCOOP experience, all the NLHE Main Events will offer players boosted guarantees,” the company noted in a news release.

PokerStars will also run freerolls and added value satellites in the coming weeks. As part of the action, Stars is even adding more to the schedule. Players can expect additional events “to ensure players have plenty of options to choose from.”

PokerStars plans to release more details on the two-day WCOOP in the coming weeks.

Major Sunday events shut down

Beginning on Sunday, Stars players saw major delays in tournaments. The events couldn’t have come at a worse time with the massive series underway.

The WCOOP is one of the biggest events in online poker and some of the site’s major championship events were affected.

“We have paused all tournaments on the .com client whilst we deal with some technical issues,” the company Tweeted initially. “We will update here as soon as we can, sorry for any inconvenience.”

The technical issues continued and the site later announced that all tournaments would be canceled. Players involved in any action that was stopped would receive payouts or refunds based on the Stars cancellation policy.

PokerSats support announced on Monday that DDoS attacks caused the issues. The Stars team hoped to assure users that any personal data on the site was safe.

“We can confirm that all our customers’ accounts are safe and their personal information secure, with no signs of any cyber breach,” the company noted on the PokerStars blog. “Our teams are working to counter the issue and look after customers whose play may have been affected.”

What’s a DDoS attack?

PokerStars certainly isn’t the only company to become the victim of these types of hacking attempts. DDoS stands for Distributed Denial of Service and involves criminals looking to gain access to other computer networks.

“A distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack occurs when multiple machines are operating together to attack one target,” the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency notes. “DDoS attackers often leverage the use of a botnet – a group of hijacked Internet-connected devices to carry out large-scale attacks.

“Attackers take advantage of security vulnerabilities or device weaknesses to control numerous devices using command and control software. Once in control, an attacker can command their botnet to conduct DDoS on a target. In this case, the infected devices are also victims of the attack.”

PokerStars support officials believe the issue is now resolved and behind them. The new mini WCOOP offers a chance to at least complete the series and play out the canceled events.

“We have a great track record of keeping our platform operational, however we know how frustrating it can be to experience this kind of disruption, especially during our WCOOP and Galactic series,” the company noted. “We’d like to apologize to everyone affected and thank them for their patience.”

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13th Anniversary Sunday Million Going Big with $10 Million Prize Pool and $1 Million First Prize

PokerStars‘ vaunted Sunday Million tournament will mark its 13th anniversary on April 14. To celebrate, PokerStars is bumping the guarantees into the stratosphere.

For the milestone edition of the tournament, the guarantee will increase by order of magnitude to $10 million. Part of that bump will be a first-prize guarantee of $1 million.

In other words, the Sunday Million’s 13th birthday will create a brand-new millionaire. Needless to say, there’s a lot of excitement surrounding the upcoming event.

“We’re thrilled to be a part of this poker milestone,” said Severin Rasset, PokerStars Director of Poker Innovation and Operations, in a statement. “(B)ut the credit goes to all of the poker lovers out there who have made the Sunday Million happen nearly every week for the past 13 years, so we hope to see them at the tables on April 14.”

Sunday Million has lived up to its name for more than a decade

PokerStars’ Sunday Million has been one of the more prominent online tournaments since before Black Friday. The simple promise of a big tournament for a relatively small price has generated a loyal following for the weekly event.

The inaugural Sunday Million occurred on March 4, 2006. Since then, PokerStars has hosted more than 600 iterations of the tournament.

That first tournament eclipsed the guarantee and generated a prize pool worth $1,178,600. The alliteratively named Canadian player “aaaaaaaa” took first prize in that event for $173,843.50.

The anniversary tournament in April is hardly the first time that PokerStars has raised the prize pool to nosebleed heights. The tournament to commemorate PokerStars’ 10th anniversary remains the largest in Sunday Million’s history.

In that event, more than 62,000 entrants combined to create a $12,423,000 prize pool. Kyle “First-Eagle” Weir took the grand prize on that day in 2011, winning more than $1.1 million for his $215 investment.

PokerStars recently halved the price, but not for the usual reason

The Sunday Million’s $215 buy-in has become part of the tournament’s signature over the years. So, PokerStars’ decision to cut the price in half in January seemed quite shocking.

For most businesses, a price reduction would tend to suggest that the product was not selling at a high enough level. However, that seemed not to be the case for the Sunday Million.

In actuality, the price drop occurred for a different reason. As part of its new recreational player-centric ethos, PokerStars wanted its marquee tournament simply to be more accessible to the public.

Naturally, slicing the buy-in in half means that twice as many players must compete to meet the guarantee each week.  So far, PokerStars has not had trouble doing so, but making a $10 million promise will be difficult, regardless of the buy-in level.

Still, PokerStars is the worldwide leader for traffic for a reason. So, if any site were to eclipse that figure, it would be PokerStars.

Make sure to play the upcoming anniversary tournament if you can. There’s going to be a ton of money floating around.

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PokerStars Tests Six-Table Max Cash Game Restriction In Italy

The live action continues to return to PokerStars as the company released even more regional tour dates on Wednesday.

With effect from July 17, players at PokerStars.it will be restricted to playing a maximum of six cash game tables simultaneously.

The decision was announced in a blog post by Severin Rasset, The Stars Group’s Director of Poker Innovation and Operations.

Players complain that games are too slow

Rasset explained that one of the most frequent comments he has received is that “the games are too slow due to opponents taking too long to act.”

PokerStars carried out some research to find out if this was the result of players multi-tabling rather than focusing on a single table. Surprisingly, the research found that the average time to act was around the same for single tablers and multi-tablers, “with multi-tablers even acting slightly faster than average in some situations.”

The devil is always in the detail. On closer examination PokerStars found that although the multi-tablers’ average reaction time was about the same, this average was distorted by the distribution of action times.

“But, multi-tablers’ deviation from this average is much higher. Or, in plain English, they act fast on average but can suddenly slow down drastically on all their tables. If you are a multi-tabler yourself, you will know why this happens: when there is an important decision to make at a table, all other tables must wait. And, of course, the more tables being played the more frequently this situation can happen.”

The average time to act may be the same, but from the perspective of the other players at the tables, the experience of playing with a multi-tabler is frustrating.

High volume players will be most affected

The table caps will apply to regular cash game tables with caps for other games such as Zoom remaining the same.

The limit of six tables has been chosen because Rasset says that 99.7 percent of players play six tables or less. Nonetheless, he acknowledges that this change will upset some players:

“I am acutely aware that behind this percentage, we have players with a personal story. Some of them might rely on poker for a living. I understand that this announcement will not be seen as good news by these players and that facing such a radical change will be difficult.”

For the highest volume players, those playing 16, 20, or 24+ tables the six table limit will have a drastic impact. Rasset expresses his hope that when limited to six tables these players will focus more and therefore win more.

He makes no mention of the importance of volume based VIP scheme rewards which form an important part of any professional player’s income.

PokerStars has been reducing these rewards over the last five years or so, in an attempt to re-engineer their player ecology to create a better playing experience for casual players.

This strategy has worked out well for the company, at least financially. Stars Group CEO Rafi Ashkenazi has praised the impact of the VIP scheme changes during both quarterly and annual earnings calls.

Liquidity is unlikely to be an issue

Rasset explained that the test will be evaluated by the changes seen in the deviation from the average time to act, plus any feedback that PokerStars receives from players.

What Rasset did not mention was any impact on liquidity. For most poker sites, multi-tabling by a minority of players helps to fill tables that would otherwise run shorthanded or not at all.

Liquidity is important for online poker operators because casual players can be deterred from playing if they can’t find a seat at a table at the stakes and game variant that they prefer. They also tend to leave tables which become short-handed.

PokerStars has the largest player base of any poker operator, so liquidity is a much less important issue for their poker room. Nonetheless, liquidity in the Italian regulated market is limited.

Cash game traffic at PokerStars.it currently averages around 600 occupied seats. This figure will reduce with the implementation of the new policy. The question is by how much, and whether the reduction actually matters either in terms of revenue, or quality of the player experience.

Given PokerStars’ dominance in the market, the trial may well be a success in Italy, at least in terms of reducing unpleasant delays in the action.

So long as there is no concomitant reduction in liquidity that deters casual players, the.com and .EU PokerStars sites, which share a player pool can expect the same limitation to be imposed when the experiment ends.