TOUCHDOWN: Champions Preseason Series Hits PokerStars Gridiron with $195,000; Platinum Pass Events Coming Soon
PokerStars is tackling the rest of summer with the site’s Champions Preseason Series with online tournaments running through Aug. 29 in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.
The series features over 20 events in each state with numerous tournament styles and buy-in levels. Currently each state is a ringed-in and plays independently of each other. States may carry different guarantees and all carry a football theme just as the season approaches.
Inside the PokerStars Champions Preseason series
The Preseason series is a warm-up in anticipation for the Championship Of Online Poker (COOP) events. That major series is set for Sept. 9-26 with each COOP Main Event taking place on Sept. 25.
The $500 Big Game event kicks off Aug. 28 in all three markets. New Jersey players will find a $20,000 guarantee attached to the event. The $200 Main Event also heads online on Aug. 28 as well.
Besides the Main Event, PokerStars will offer multiple event formats. That includes eight-game mix, bounties, six-max, and turbos. Some events that stand out include:
- $100 Bounty Builder Deepstack (Event 14, Aug. 25) – $10,000 guaranteed
- $25 Mini (Event 17, Aug. 27) – $5,000 guaranteed
- $200 Main Event (Event 18, Aug. 28) – $30,000 guaranteed
- $100 Final Cut (Event 23, Aug. 29) – $12,000 guaranteed
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7pm: 💵 $30 Spiked Nightly Stacks 💰 $6k GTD
7:30pm: $1 Friday Night Lights Turbo 💰 $200 GTD
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— PokerStarsUSA (@PokerStarsUSA) August 19, 2022
Daily chance freeroll and satellites
PokerStars is offering a daily freeroll for players throughout the series. Each day up to $500 in tournament tickets is up for grabs and the freerolls run through Aug. 28.
Major Ticket Satellites are also running daily, offering a chance to win tickets into nightly events for as little as $3.
Platinum Pass events may be coming for US players 
Beyond the Preseason series, PokerStars USA also recently announced via the client software that live tournament events are coming back to the US. The events will be part of the company’s qualifiers for the PokerStars Players Championship (PSPC). That event takes place in the Bahamas in January and features a $25,000 buy-in.
The company is awarding Platinum Passes in the lead up to the event. The site has scheduled numerous international events for these prizes in recent months.
According to the US site, Platinum Passes can be won in numerous ways including live events, online tournaments, and more. A $30,000 Platinum Pass includes:
- PSPC buy-in
- Six nights hotel accommodation for winner and a guest in a five-star hotel
- airport transfers
- $1,900 toward additional expenses
- exclusive experiences during the event
Some players are anticipating the possibility of a live PokerStars series sometime this fall. The site has not officially posted any live events yet beyond the client software announcement Stay tuned with USPoker for more updates coming soon.