PokerStars has long been known for offering quality online poker tournament series. In the winter, the brand focuses on offering the Winter Series. In the United States, the online poker brand will be offering the Winter Series in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey. This will be the first time that Pennsylvania has provided such a poker option.
Winter Series Details
The Winter Series will take place in both states, but each will kick off at a different time. The New Jersey version has already begun, starting on January 18th and running through the 26th. The Winter Series has already taken place in the Garden State a few times and usually is scheduled alongside the Winter Poker Open, a popular poker tournament series at the Borgata.
In Pennsylvania, the online poker series will begin on the 25th. It will start as the New Jersey series comes to an end. This is smart as players who are located near the border between the two states could cross over and play again once this series starts.
The Winter Series would normally offer a Main Event on a Sunday but in Pennsylvania, the tournament will take place on Saturday February 1st. This is because the Super Bowl will be taking place on Sunday the 2nd.
Guarantees and Tournaments
In New Jersey, the Winter Series will offer 21 total events with $300,000 in total guaranteed prize money on offer. The Main Event will have a $400 buy-in and a $60,000 guaranteed prize pool. The High Roller tournament will have a $16,000 GTD and a buy-in of $750.
The series will mostly consist of Texas Hold’em action. There will also be Omaha events, progressive knockouts and short-handed events, among others.
In Pennsylvania, the Winter Series will be larger in comparison to New Jersey. The series will have $675,000 in total prize money with 30 total events on the schedule. The Main Event will have a smaller buy-in than the Garden State, at $300 but a larger prize pool of $100,000.
In Pennsylvania, the series will have more progressive knockouts on the schedule, a format that continues to gain in popularity. In PA, the Winter Series will also be unique as it has a sports theme. Many of the tournament events will have a football theme. On the first day, players will find tournaments titled The Anthem and The Coin Toss.
Players in Pennsylvania also have an added incentive of depositing with a special promo code to earn a ticket to a freeroll satellite connected to the Main Event, which is titled The Big Game. PokerStars is also offering PA players second-chance all-in shootouts for those who are eliminated short of the money during the Winter Series.
All eyes will be on the Pennsylvania version of the Winter Series as PokerStars has the monopoly in the state and this is the first time the series will take place. Pennsylvania has been doing quite well via their online poker industry and it could be a sign that iPoker is slowly making a comeback.
