It has only been a short time since PokerStars launched in Pennsylvania, but already the action at the felt has been hot and the online poker provider continues to announce new options for players. This week, the brand announced a new series, the Pennsylvania Championship of Online Poker (PACOOP) will be live beginning on November 30th and continuing through December 16th.
PACOOP Action
The news was a bit of a surprise as the major online tournament series season for the brand has come and gone. However, it seems PokerStars wanted to start things off right in Pennsylvania, so they announced the upcoming PACOOP. For players new to the PokerStars brand, here is a little history. The original World Championship of Online Poker or WCOOP first launched in 2002.
The series continued for years and has been extremely popular internationally. In 2009, the brand announced the creation of a spring version of the popular series, known as SCOOP. When PokerStars launched in New Jersey, they offered the spring and fall options of the COOP of which players enjoy.
Details of the Series
The PACOOP will have 50 tournament events, complete with $1 million in total guaranteed prize money. Buy-ins begin at $30 and max out at $750. The Main Event will have a $300 buy-in and offer $100,000 in guaranteed prize money.
Players of the PokerStars PA site can take part in the PACOOP several ways. Of course, a direct buy-in can be paid, but to save a little money, players can compete for seats in satellites. The satellites start as low as $1.
Players can deposit $50 with a special code of PACOOP to earn a seat to a freeroll satellite. This event will offer 25 ticket to the Main Event, worth $300 each. Any player that is knocked out of an event before the money bubble will be allowed to take part in a Second Chance freeroll. During the freeroll, players can win satellite tickets.
Poker fans will be excited to see this level of tournament action in Pennsylvania, especially so soon after the site launched in the state. As the event takes place, it will be interesting to note if the guarantees are reached or if there will be any overlays. A prize pool guarantee can have an overlay if the amount is not reached via player buy-ins.
An overlay is the amount that PokerStars must pay in order to reach the guarantee. Take the Main Event for example. If players register and only $80,000 in prize money is reached, then the poker operator would have to pay $20,000 to meet the guarantee.
The series will be a good indicator as to how popular online poker will be in the state. If the guarantees are met and the turnout good, then PokerStars PA might be the turnaround online poker needs in the US. For years, options in New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware have struggled to gain any footing, with revenues remaining at the $1 million mark or under.
