The start of a new year has brought much good news to lovers and fans of PokerStars in both New Jersey and Michigan. Just days after the interstate poker pool launched, PokerStars announced that the first series would begin in earnest.
As part of the announcement, PokerStars unveiled that a PSPC series will be held from the 13th of January to the 30th. The series will feature 85 events and a whopping guaranteed prize pool of $2.5 million. All the details are outlined for you below.
A large interstate tourney was the last piece remaining for PokerStars to consolidate its recently announced shared pool feature for PokerStars Michigan and New Jersey players. On Thursday, January 5, it wasted no time to announce that it would be launching the PSPC online series. This interstate tourney takes a cue from the PokerStars Players Championship which is scheduled to start January 30 at the Bahamas.
It is expected that the PSPC Online for Michigan and New Jersey players will take place alongside an event for PokerStars Pennsylvania players. Unlike the MI-NJ tournament that has 85 events, its Pennsylvania counterpart features 72 events and promises a prize pool of $1.5 million. This brings the total prize pool to $4 million.
PokerStars US Managing Director, Severin Rasset, made his excitement about the campaign known in a public statement:
“We're now excited to bring players our first multi-state online series and our largest online series to date in the US, where players have the chance to join in the Bahamian fu of the PSPC and play alongside their favorite players as they battle it out on the online tables. There's plenty more to come for the MI and NJ community, and we look forward to exciting and rewarding our players in 2023 and beyond."
The PSPC online series is PokerStars largest ever online poker event in the regulated US market. Although the operator claims that it is the “largest USA series ever,” this assertion is only slightly true. The entire PokerStars’ campaign in Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania will only equal WSOP's 2020 Online Championship Series with a total guaranteed prize of $4 million.
The PSPC is scheduled to begin on January 13, but its main events will not start until January 29. For the record, there are three major events in the series, namely the mini main event, the main event, and a high roller main event. All main events offer a combined guarantee of $500K to players across both states.
PokerStars set the buy-in for the mini main event at $50, alongside a guaranteed prize pool of $75K. The main event has a $250 buy-in and a mouth-watering $300K guaranteed prize pool. Finally, the high roller main event comes with a buy-in of $2,500 and a $125K worth of prize money.
Other events listed in the event schedule have a minimum buy-in of $10, while satellites are up for grabs with as low as $1.
The complete schedule of events for the PSPC Online Series for Michigan and New Jersey players is available below.
As part of efforts to merge the Michigan and New Jersey markets, PokerStars implemented a shared liquidity pool between both states which has kicked off to an impressive start. The three special tournaments introduced to commemorate the launch of the liquidity pool saw a massive turnout, with all events exceeding their respective guarantees.
"It was brilliant to see our communities in Michigan and New Jersey come out in force on January 1 to celebrate the combining of our player pool and enjoy our special New Year's Day events and smash the guarantees,” Severin Rasset said in a public release.
PokerStars New Year $100K Tournament Special attracted 2189 players and brought its guaranteed prize pool to a little over 200K, signally a 100% increase. The Mini Special event drew 6378 online poker players to see its $50K guarantee rise by over $8K. Similarly, the High Roller Special with a $500 buy-in saw a 132% boost to its $40K guarantee.
With this backdrop, the expectations are high for the PSPC Online Series to smash records when it begins on January 13.
Jessica is a news contributor to Gamble Online Michigan. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics but has over three years of experience working in the hospitality and gambling industry. Despite her core finance and investment banking background, she has been a casino feature writer for N1 Interactive Limited and multiple gambling affiliate sites. Her work has been featured on the bet365 blog, casino.zone and Max Force Racing. She spends her time between Michigan and California, staying up-to-date on the latest industry developments
