PokerStars Schedules 2020 PACOOP for PA Market
It seems like PokerStars has been offering a lot of tournaments and series this year for its Pennsylvania players. That is true.
Why shouldn’t PokerStars show love to the Pennsylvania market?
It dominates that market…as it remains the only online poker site available to those players. Years after Pennsylvania lawmakers legalized online poker, PokerStars PA launched in November 2019, and nearly one year later, it remains the only poker site in the state. Combine that with the coronavirus pandemic that relegated most poker players to their homes for the majority of 2020, PokerStars has had the opportunity to further endear itself to its Pennsylvania customers.
In April, PokerStars PA hosted the PASCOOP, the Pennsylvania version of the Spring Championship of Online Poker. It offered 50 tournaments on the initial schedule and $2 million in prize pool guarantees. When it was finished, the actual prize pools totaled $3,267,905.
In May, PokerStars hosted the inaugural Pennsyl-MANIA, a single tournament with a $200 buy-in and $250K guarantee. It attracted 2,774 entries to create a $515,964 prize pool. So, the sole Pennsylvania poker operator set another one for August with the same buy-in but a $350K guarantee. It drew fewer entries with only 2,026, but the prize pool did surpass the guarantee by landing at $376,836.
Your Pennsyl-MANIA winner is "SlotWinna777" for $44,614.87 after a four-way deal! 🏆 #PokerStarsPA pic.twitter.com/AU52MlPpRI
— PokerStarsUSA (@PokerStarsUSA) August 25, 2020
That led to the announcement of the 2020 PACOOP, set to kick off on September 19.
COOP Craziness
It is definitely COOP time at PokerStars.
The global WCOOP – World Championship of Online Poker – kicked off its 19th annual series on August 30. It will continue running through September 23 with a total of more than $81 million in guarantees.
Just after PokerStars launched in Pennsylvania last November, the operator announced the inaugural PACOOP. It ran from November 30 through December 16 with 50 events and $1 million guaranteed. While one-fifth of those tournaments ended up with overlays totaling more than $17K, other tournaments did well and set the final tally at $1,559,767.10.
Last week, PokerStars teased the 2020 edition of PACOOP to play from September 19 to October 5.
Today, PokerStars confirmed those dates and announced a 50-event schedule.
The entire series will guarantee $1.5 million, with the Main Event promising $200K and two Sunday Special events guaranteeing $100K each.
PACOOP Series Details
The second annual Pennsylvania Championship of Online Poker will offer something for everyone over the 17 days of events. Buy-ins will range from $20 to $500, and players will be able to choose from No Limit Hold’em to Pot Limit Omaha, from Stud to Draw, and from Fixed Limit Hold’em to an 8-Game Mix.
PACOOP 2020 will kick off on Saturday, September 19. That first weekend shows the diversity of offerings:
Saturday, September 19
-Event 1 at 6pm: $100 NLHE PACOOP Warm-Up ($50K GTD)
-Event 2 at 8pm: $50 NLHE 8-Max PACOOP Warm-Up ($30K GTD)
Sunday, September 20
-Event 3 at 1pm: $100 NLHE 8-Max Deepstack Turbo ($35K GTD)
-Event 4 at 2pm: $50 NLHE 6-Max ($20K GTD)
-Event 5 at 3:30pm: $150 NLHE 8-Max PKO ($30K GTD)
-Event 6 at 5pm: $100 NLHE Sunday Special ($100K GTD)
-Event 7 at 7pm: $100 PLO 6-Max ($15K GTD)
-Event 8 at 10pm: $50 NLHE 8-Max Sunday Supersonic ($10K GTD)
And on the final Sunday, October 4, there will be two Main Event tournaments:
-Event 43 at 5pm: $300 NLHE Main Event ($200K GTD)
-Event 44 at 6pm: $50 NLHE Mini Main Event ($40K GTD)
The complete schedule is listed on the PokerStars blog.
Check out the full 50-event Pennsylvania Championship of Online Poker (PACOOP) schedule. The series will play out on PokerStars PA from Sept. 19-Oct. 5. https://t.co/AL6gdd2b43 pic.twitter.com/l35a8j7Gvf
— PokerStars Blog (@PokerStarsBlog) September 10, 2020
Ways to Play
As always, PokerStars will provide ample opportunities for players to win their seats for PACOOP tournaments at a discount.
There will be a special Main Event Depositor Freeroll on Sunday, October 4. Any player who deposits at least $30 using the bonus code PACOOP from now through that date can play the freeroll, which will offer 30 free tickets to the $300 buy-in Main Event.
For those playing PACOOP, PokerStars has something for players who bust before or on the money bubble. Thy will receive tickets to Second Chance Freerolls that will run every day from September 20 through October 4. Each will award $1,250 in satellite tickets and PACOOP seats. In all, the Second Chance Freerolls will award $18,750 worth of tickets.
