Talk about pent up demand. PokerStars PA has upped their guaranteed prize pools for the PA Championship of Online Poker series twice since the tournament series started on Nov. 30.
The upwards resets came after a successful weekend round of tournaments which launched the tournament series.
Sweet smell of success for PACOOP
For instance, the opening $100 No-Limit Hold’em event had a guarantee of $20,000. The turnout more than doubled that number though, with a prize pool of more than $50,000. The third event, with a $15,000 guarantee, finished with a nearly $35,000 prize pool.
The most significant event of the opening weekend, a $200 buy-in Sunday Special, had a $50,000 guarantee, but the final prize pool was $63,426. The top player took home nearly $12,000.
Here is a look at the remaining events on the schedule and what guarantees have been bumped up from the original number:
| Event | Date | Tournament | New Guarantee | Newer Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Dec. 5 | $200 NL Hold'em [Thursday Thrill SE] | $30,000 | $40,000 |
| 18 | Dec. 5 | $50+R NL Hold'em | $15,000 | $20,000 |
| 19 | Dec. 5 | $100 NL Hold'em [BigStack Turbo] | $15,000 | |
| 20 | Dec. 6 | $300 Eight-Game [6-Max] | $15,000 | |
| 21 | Dec. 6 | $150 NL Hold'em [Turbo, 6-Max] | $15,000 | |
| 22 | Dec. 7 | $100 NL Hold'em [Deepstack, 8-Max] | $20,000 | $30,000 |
| 23 | Dec. 7 | $150 NL Hold'em [Saturday Speedway SE] | $15,000 | |
| 24 | Dec. 8 | $100 NL Hold'em [Marathon] | $25,000 | $30,000 |
| 25 | Dec. 8 | $100 PL Omaha [8-Max] | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| 26 | Dec. 8 | $150 NL Hold'em [6-Max, Big Antes] | $25,000 | $30,000 |
| 27 | Dec. 8 | $300 NL Hold'em [Sunday Special SE] | $60,000 | |
| 28 | Dec. 8 | $200 NL Hold'em [Progressive KO] | $35,000 | |
| 29 | Dec. 8 | $100 NL Hold'em [Sunday SuperSonic SE, Hyper-Turbo] | $12,000 | |
| 30 | Dec. 9 | $300 NL Hold'em [4-Max] | $30,000 | |
| 31 | Dec. 9 | $500 PL Omaha [High-Roller, 6-max] | $20,000 | $25,000 |
| 32 | Dec. 10 | $200 NL Hold'em [Super Tuesday SE] | $50,000 | |
| 33 | Dec. 10 | $100 No Limit Omaha Hi/Lo [8-Max] | $8,000 | $10,000 |
| 34 | Dec. 11 | $30+R NL Holdem [6-Max] | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| 35 | Dec. 11 | $200 NL Hold'em | $20,000 | $25,000 |
| 36 | Dec. 11 | $100 Stud Hi/Lo | $8,000 | $10,000 |
| 37 | Dec. 12 | $250 NL Hold'em [Thursday Thrill SE] | $30,000 | $35,000 |
| 38 | Dec. 12 | $150 NL Hold'em [Turbo] | $20,000 | |
| 39 | Dec. 13 | $200 FL Holdem [6-Max] | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| 40 | Dec. 13 | $200 NL Hold'em [Deep, Hyper-Turbo] | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| 41 | Dec. 14 | $300 NL Hold'em [6-Max] | $30,000 | |
| 42 | Dec. 14 | $75 NL Hold'em [Zoom] | $15,000 | |
| 43 | Dec. 15 | $100 NL Hold'em [Big Antes] | $15,000 | $20,000 |
| 44 | Dec. 15 | $300 NL Holdem [Main Event, 2-Day Event] | $125,000 | |
| 45 | Dec. 15 | $50 NL Hold'em [Main Event Structure] | $25,000 | $35,000 |
| 46 | Dec. 15 | $100 NL Hold'em [Progressive KO] | $20,000 | |
| 47 | Dec. 15 | $100 PL Omaha [6-Max] | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| 48 | Dec. 15 | $75 NL Hold'em [Sunday SuperSonic SE, Hyper-Turbo] | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| 49 | Dec. 16 | $150 NL Hold'em [Nightly Stars SE - PACOOP Wrap-Up] | $25,000 | |
| 50 | Dec. 16 | $100 NL Hold'em [Deep, Hyper-Turbo, 6-Max] | $10,000 | $15,000 |
The COOP is part of the PokerStars brand
While this is the first COOP in PA, the COOP format is a signature brand for PokerStars in many jurisdictions. it is the first tournament series for the PA online poker site, which launched in PA just last month.
The recently launched poker site initially promised $1 million in guarantees across the 50 PACOOP events.
However, that changed Monday. PokerStars added $125,000 in guarantees. The Main Event, originally featured a $100,000 guarantee. Stars decided to bump that number up to $125,000.
Guarantees now stand at $1.225 million
Then on Wednesday, PokerStars went all in, jacking up the guarantees again. The site added an additional $100,000 in guarantees, bringing the total to $1,225,000.
The second round of added money boosted the prize pool of the majority of the remaining events, though the Dec. 15 Main Event prize pool still stands at $125,000.
Final PACOOP day is Dec. 16
The PACOOP action started last weekend and continues through Monday, Dec. 16.
There are at least two tournaments to choose from daily and as many as six on one day. Buy-ins range from $50 to $500.
Heavy player traffic on PokerStars PA makes the added guarantees a less risky prospect for the site. Only one event required the company to make up the difference to hit a guarantee, and that fell short by only $200.