PokerStars PA Unveils First Major Tournament Series With PACOOP

November 15, 2019
PokerStars PA Unveils First Major Tournament Series With PACOOP

It’s been a nice couple of weeks for Pennsylvania online poker players. That improved even more on Thursday when PokerStars PA announced the inaugural Pennsylvania Championship of Online Poker (PACOOP).

The 50-event series runs Nov. 30 to Dec. 16 and features $1 million in guaranteed prize pools. PACOOP will include a variety of tournaments with buy-ins from $30 to $750. Check out the complete schedule below.

PokerStars will also run satellites starting at just $1. The $300 Main Event closes out the events on Dec. 15 with a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool.

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“The Championship of Online Poker, or COOP, is one of our most prestigious events, and we’re proud to give Pennsylvania its own,” Fox Bet President Matt Primeaux said.

“Players in PA have already shown their excitement for PokerStars so we took things to the next level with a $1 million series guarantee and plenty of ways to get in on the action.” 

PokerStars adds extra cash and promotions to PACOOP mix

The PACOOP comes just under a month since PokerStars launched in Pennsylvania. The series follows its successful “COOP” model that is played throughout the world. That also includes New Jersey (NJCOOP), and it now moves to Pennsylvania.

In addition to satellites, players can win tournament entries through some unique promotions including:

  • Main Event Depositor Freeroll – This exclusive event awards 25 Main Event tickets, worth a total of $7,500. The tournament set for Dec. 15 at 2 p.m. EST. To enter, players must make a deposit of $50 or more by Dec. 15.
  • Second Chance Freerolls –  These special events are for PACOOP players who get eliminated short of the money in a tournament. Each freeroll will award $1,250 in satellite tickets and entries to PACOOP events, totaling $20,000. The freerolls will run daily from Dec. 1-16 at 6 p.m. except on Sundays when they will run at 3 p.m.

“I’m thrilled to see PokerStars’ COOP coming to Pennsylvania this December, giving players the chance to play in a world-renowned poker series and vie for titles,” Pennsylvanian and PokerStars ambassador Jennifer Shahade said.

“Having online poker in Pennsylvania has been amazing so far. I felt chills playing my very first Sunday session, and there was such a buzz at the tables. I can’t wait to see everyone battling to be the first PokerStars PA champion.”

Players pleased to see more action in Keystone State

The new series should be welcomed by many players in the state. Waymart resident Chris Wormuth, 40, is one of those and is glad to be back at the virtual tables.

“I play poker every day since it started again and I’m super excited about PACOOP,” he said. “I plan on playing as much as possible now that we have the freedom other states are still fighting to get.”

A disabled Army veteran, Wormuth suffers from a disease that causes cluster headaches. He also suffers from PTSD and depression as well as other medical issues, including injuries from a motorcycle accident in 2015.

For Wormuth, being able to play means more than just cards, chips, and a shot to win a little money. The chance to play his favorite game online offers a way to get his mind off of his daily challenges.

“Poker helps me concentrate on the cards on nothing else,” he said, “because some days I can’t get out of my head.”

Wormuth plans to be at the tables when the PACOOP kicks off.

John Downs Jr., 42, will also certainly have the series on his schedule and is excited to jump in on the action. He runs a manufacturing plant and is an avid recreational player.

It’s already been a nice run on PokerStars PA for Downs. He won a $10 tournament for $488 last week and has already cashed out $900 in winnings.

“It’s a huge step for online poker coming back into the US market,” the married father of three from Williamsport said of the new PokerStars series. “It makes me happy and yes, I plan on playing PACOOP.”

During PACOOP, he plans on playing in some low- to mid-stakes events. Some satellites also interest him and also hopes to earn his way into the Main Event.

Some big numbers in Keystone State, so far

So far, PokerStars and players alike have been pleased with the site’s entry into the market since launching Nov. 4. After the first five full days of play, more than $450,000 was awarded in tournament play.

The $50 Bounty Builder on Day Two saw the first five-figure prize pool. The event was won by “jb2paint” for $1,331 plus $1,081 in bounties.

In fact, the number of players in Pennsylvania topped New Jersey at times on Day One. A recent analysis shows that player pools in PA topped NJ in similar Sunday tournaments.

The Pennsylvania events featured lower buy-ins and bigger guarantees for the five main Sunday events. That is a good sign so far for Pennsylvania players and shows bigger numbers of players are expected.

It appears PokerStars is going all-in when it comes to PA. No doubt that many players will be looking for even more action in PACOOP.

Pennsylvania poker pro Zach Gruneberg is still amazed that online poker is live in his home state. He was excited to learn that PokerStars already has a major series planned so soon.

“I definitely want to play as many events as I can,” said Gruneberg. “This is actually breaking news to me that this is even happening, which definitely gets me fired up. This will be big news.”

Complete PokerStars PACOOP Schedule

EventDateTournamentGuarantee
1Nov. 30$100 NL Hold'em [Nightly Stars - PACOOP Warm-Up]$20,000
2Nov. 30$200 NL Hold'em [Turbo - PACOOP Warm-Up]$15,000
3Dec. 1$200 NL Hold'em [Turbo - PACOOP Warm-Up]$15,000
4Dec. 1$100 NL Hold'em [Big Antes]$15,000
5Dec. 1$150 NL Hold'em [Progressive KO]$25,000
6Dec. 1$200 NL Hold'em [Sunday Special SE]$50,000
7Dec. 1$100 PL Omaha [6-Max]$10,000
8Dec. 1$50 NL Hold'em [Sunday SuperSonic SE, Hyper-Turbo]$10,000
9Dec. 2$50 NL Hold'em [Battle Royale SE Progressive KO]$10,000
10Dec. 2$75+R PL Omaha Hi/Lo [8-Max]$10,000
11Dec. 3$250 NL Hold'em [Super Tuesday SE]$40,000
12Dec. 3$30 NL Hold'em [Mini Super Tuesday]$10,000
13Dec. 3$150 NL Hold'em [Escalating Antes]$20,000
14Dec. 4$100 NL Holdem [DeepStack]$20,000
15Dec. 4$750 NL Hold'em [High-Roller, 6-Max]$40,000
16Dec. 4$150 NL Hold'Em$12,000
17Dec. 5$200 NL Hold'em [Thursday Thrill SE]$25,000
18Dec. 5$50+R NL Hold'em$15,000
19Dec. 5$100 NL Hold'em [BigStack Turbo]$12,000
20Dec. 6$300 Eight-Game [6-Max]$15,000
21Dec. 6$150 NL Hold'em [Turbo, 6-Max]$12,000
22Dec. 7$100 NL Hold'em [Deepstack, 8-Max]$12,000
23Dec. 7$150 NL Hold'em [Saturday Speedway SE]$12,000
24Dec. 8$100 NL Hold'em [Marathon]$10,000
25Dec. 8$100 PL Omaha [8-Max]$10,000
26Dec. 8$150 NL Hold'em [6-Max, Big Antes]$20,000
27Dec. 8$300 NL Hold'em [Sunday Special SE]$55,000
28Dec. 8$200 NL Hold'em [Progressive KO]$30,000
29Dec. 8$100 NL Hold'em [Sunday SuperSonic SE, Hyper-Turbo]$10,000
30Dec. 9$300 NL Hold'em [4-Max]$30,000
31Dec. 9$500 PL Omaha [High-Roller, 6-max]$20,000
32Dec. 10$200 NL Hold'em [Super Tuesday SE]$40,000
33Dec. 10$100 No Limit Omaha Hi/Lo [8-Max]$8,000
34Dec. 11$30+R NL Holdem [6-Max]$10,000
35Dec. 11$200 NL Hold'em$20,000
36Dec. 11$100 Stud Hi/Lo$8,000
37Dec. 12$250 NL Hold'em [Thursday Thrill SE]$30,000
38Dec. 12$150 NL Hold'em [Turbo]$15,000
39Dec. 13$200 FL Holdem [6-Max]$10,000
40Dec. 13$200 NL Hold'em [Deep, Hyper-Turbo]$10,000
41Dec. 14$300 NL Hold'em [6-Max]$30,000
42Dec. 14$75 NL Hold'em [Zoom]$12,000
43Dec. 15$100 NL Hold'em [Big Antes]$12,000
44Dec. 15$300 NL Holdem [Main Event, 2-Day Event]$100,000
45Dec. 15$50 NL Hold'em [Main Event Structure]$20,000
46Dec. 15$100 NL Hold'em [Progressive KO]$15,000
47Dec. 15$100 PL Omaha [6-Max]$10,000
48Dec. 15$75 NL Hold'em [Sunday SuperSonic SE, Hyper-Turbo]$10,000
49Dec. 16$150 NL Hold'em [Nightly Stars SE - PACOOP Wrap-Up]$20,000
50Dec. 16$100 NL Hold'em [Deep, Hyper-Turbo, 6-Max]$10,000
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