The Winning Poker Network has released more details about its “Cyclone” qualifiers for the Venom – which is just three weeks away – and they look really good!
At the end of last month, the Winning Poker Network announced a Venom Fever promotion that included the Network´s existing Venom Steps program, a series of daily mega-satellites, and “Cyclone” qualifiers. At the time, all that was known about the Cyclone qualifiers was that they were based on the Network´s popular fast-fold Blitz Poker cash games.
Now the Network has released more details of what the Cyclone qualifiers will consist of, and they look really good. Although there is a strong resemblance to the Steps program inasmuch as the objective is to ascend up to seven Cyclone levels in order to win a Venom seat, the way in which you ascend the Cyclone levels is a lot different from anything I´ve seen before.
How the Cyclone Qualifiers Work
Cyclone qualifiers consist of fast-fold Blitz Poker games with a single buy-in (i.e. you are not bringing cash to the tables). There are seven buy-in points and players start each Cyclone qualifier with a predetermined number of chips. The objective in each level is to increase the starting stack to 5,000 chips. As soon as you achieve the objective, you receive a ticket for the next level.
The big difference between the Cyclone qualifiers and the Venom Steps promotion is that you don´t have to finish a level in one session. In the same way, as you can join and leave cash games whenever you want, if you have something more important to do, you can close the Cyclone qualifier, do whatever you have to do, and come back to the qualifier later with the same number of chips as when you left.
Win Unlimited Tickets in Every Qualifier
A further benefit of playing the Cyclone qualifiers is that you can win an unlimited number of tickets to the next level per qualifier. This is because, as soon as you reach the target number of chips, 5,000 chips are removed from your stack and you can continue playing with what´s left. If you build the stack up to 5,000 chips again, you win another ticket to the next level.
Say, for example, you had 3,000 chips in your stack and you shoved all-in against another player with 3,000 chips in their stack. If you win the hand, you´ll have 6,000 chips. 5,000 of those chips will be removed in return for a ticket to the next level, and you can continue playing with the remaining 1,000 chips. If you build the stack up beyond 5,000 chips again, you win another ticket, and you can continue playing until you have had enough, or bust out of the level.
Cyclone Qualifiers Start November 14th
The Cyclone qualifiers get underway next Thursday, which will give players starting at the lowest entry point two weeks to ascend all seven levels in order to win a seat in the Venom. There is no limit to how many Venom seats you can win through the Cyclone qualifiers promotion; and, as the Venom is a multi-entry event which you can enter up to four times and carry your largest stack into Day 2, it makes sense to build an arsenal of entry tickets well ahead of the target event. The seven levels are:
| Level | Buy-In | Starting Stack | Target Stack | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $0.25 | 697 | 5000 | Level 2 Ticket |
| 2 | $1.65 | 1137 | 5000 | Level 3 Ticket |
| 3 | $6.60 | 1119 | 5000 | Level 4 Ticket |
| 4 | $16.50 | 1364 | 5000 | Level 5 Ticket |
| 5 | $55.00 | 1163 | 5000 | Level 6 Ticket |
| 6 | $215.00 | 1588 | 5000 | Level 7 Ticket |
| 7 | $630.00 | 1133 | 5000 | Venom Ticket |
A Great Promotion for Strong Cash Game Players
What I really like about the Cyclone qualifiers is that they give players who have strong cash games and weak tournament skills an opportunity to qualify for the Venom event without having to go through long MTT satellites. Although strong cash game players may have to improve their tournament skills in order to cash in target event, the $6 million prize pool should be enough of an incentive to put a little time in at the tables.
If you fall into the category of needing to improve your tournament skills, both Americas Cardroom and Black Chip Poker have an extensive tournament schedule to suit all bankrolls through which you can develop your game. If you need any further incentive to play at either of these sites, both are offering a 100 percent first deposit bonus up to $1,000 when you create an account using the Winning Poker Network bonus code [bonuscode room=”americascardroom”][/bonuscode].
