Since Black Friday, U.S. citizens being able to play for big prize pools on legal, regulated and ring-fenced sites might have seemed like a longshot.
But PokerStars is bringing some real guaranteed money — more than $1 million — to New Jersey next month with the NJ Spring Championship of Online Poker.
A closer look at NJSCOOP
The New Jersey version of SCOOP is modeled after the annual series PokerStars runs in the rest of the world.
There will be $1.1 million in guaranteed prize money in the first-ever NJSCOOP that will take place from May 15-29. Other details of the series:
- There are 27 events across two stakes (low and high), for a total of 54 tournaments.
- Three different “high” events will feature prize pools of six figures.
- Buy-ins range from $10 to $1,000.
- Qualifiers are already available to all events for as little as $1.
NJSCOOP main event
The main event will take place on Sunday, May 29, the final day of the series. It starts at 6 p.m. and will last two days.
The high version features a $500 buy-in and $200,000 guaranteed. The low version is available at a $50 price-point, with $30,000 guaranteed.
This is the largest tournament ever offered in New Jersey since it legalized online poker.
Other NJSCOOP items of note
Most days of the series feature more than one event, giving players multiple chances to win big top prizes.
There are four events — eight tournaments — on the first day of the series, with more than $200,000 up for grabs. That includes a $250 buy-in event guaranteeing $100,000.
NJSCOOP also features a leaderboard competition for players who will compete in many of the tournaments. The winner of the competition receives $2,000 in “tournament dollars” that can be used in PokerStars tourneys, and a spot in the Americas Cup of Poker live event to be held in AC in June.
Other top leaderboard players will also receive cash prizes.
Some PokerStars pros will be in the mix
PokerStars has deployed some of its roster of pros to play in the state since it launched in March. That includes sending several of them to a VIP Club Live event in Atlantic City on May 14, the day before NJSCOOP begins.
Chris Moneymaker, a member of Team PokerStars Pro, said this in a press release about the NJSCOOP announcement:
“The global PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) is one of the must-play poker events of the year. It’s awesome that it’s coming to New Jersey so that players in the region can experience the exciting tournament structures and the thrill that comes with chasing a major tournament title and big prize money. I can’t wait to play in the first NJSCOOP and I plan to stream most of my play live on Twitch. I would love to win a title in its debut year.”