For most poker players, a seat on High Stakes Poker belongs firmly in the category of something to watch rather than something to experience.
CoinPoker and PokerGO are offering one player the chance to change that.
A new promotion between the online poker room and PokerGO will award one qualifier a $100,000 seat on High Stakes Poker in Las Vegas, together with travel money, accommodation and a package designed to prepare them for one of televised poker’s most recognizable cash games.
The promotion was announced on August 27, during CoinPoker’s presenting sponsorship of the current seven-day High Stakes Poker Live run from the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas.
Eight Players Will Get a Shot at the $100,000 Prize
Qualification will take place across eight weekly periods between September 6 and October 25.
Players joining CoinPoker with the promotional code POKERGO can compete on weekly leaderboards, with activity in real-money cash games and tournaments contributing towards qualification. Freeroll opportunities will also be available during the promotion.
Each week’s leaderboard winner advances, leaving eight players in contention.
Those eight qualifiers will then take part in a final draw on October 31, when one will be selected to receive the High Stakes Poker package.
That means the promotion is not simply handing a $100,000 bankroll to the player who generates the most action. Eight separate weekly winners will make the final stage before the ultimate recipient is decided.
High Stakes Poker Prize Is Worth More Than $100,000
The headline $100,000 figure only covers the player’s stake in the game.
CoinPoker says the winner will also receive $10,000 towards travel and spending money, accommodation on the Las Vegas Strip and a warm-up game before taking their place under the lights.
A private coaching session and access to the wider PokerGO broadcast experience are also included.
Perhaps the most intimidating part is who could be waiting at the other side of the table.
CoinPoker has used Phil Hellmuth, Tom Dwan and Kevin Hart as examples of the kind of players and personalities the winner could potentially encounter on High Stakes Poker. That should not be taken as confirmation that all three will appear in the eventual game, but it gives some indication of the environment the qualifier could be walking into.
Going from online qualification to playing $100,000 on camera against established high-stakes professionals would represent quite a jump.
CoinPoker’s PokerGO Partnership Goes Beyond the Giveaway
The giveaway follows a wider agreement between CoinPoker and PokerGO.
CoinPoker became presenting sponsor of High Stakes Poker Live from August 25 to 31, a seven-day run of cash games at the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas.
Andrew Robl, Rick Salomon and CoinPoker ambassador Alejandro “Papo MC” Lococo were among the players announced for the broadcasts.
The timing also places the partnership alongside a major push from CoinPoker online.
Its $50 million Global Online Poker Championship (GOPC) began on August 23 and runs through September 28. The 37-day series features more than 700 medal events across schedules aimed at players in Europe, Latin America and Asia.
The opening stages have not been entirely straightforward. Technical problems disrupted the opening GOPC schedule, forcing CoinPoker to temporarily pause affected tournaments before play resumed.
Qualification for the High Stakes Poker promotion begins while the GOPC is still running, giving CoinPoker another significant promotion alongside its largest tournament series.
Million-Dollar Pots Return to CoinPoker
There has also been plenty happening away from the tournament tables.
CoinPoker’s highest-stakes cash games have sprung back into life during the GOPC, including action at $1,000/$2,000.
One August 25 session featured BTCdemon, Barak “iWasOnly17” Wisbrod, Chris “Lukabrate” Nguyen, Hazeslip, Trance, Firefox and former Cash Game World Champion Owen “PR0DIGY” Messere.
The session produced a pot worth approximately $1.1 million, while Jared Bleznick has also returned to CoinPoker’s VIP Arena to play high-stakes PLO against PencilArms.
It makes the High Stakes Poker giveaway particularly well timed. CoinPoker is currently trying to position itself around both sides of high-stakes poker: enormous online games on its own platform and the televised cash-game world associated with PokerGO.
From Online Qualifier to High Stakes Poker
Poker promotions have offered routes into major tournaments for decades. This one has a noticeably different destination.
There is no tournament field waiting for the winner and no opportunity to quietly disappear among hundreds of other qualifiers.
The prize puts one player into a $100,000 televised cash game, where every significant decision can potentially end up being watched and discussed by poker fans.
For the eventual winner, the money on the table will be covered.
Playing as though it is not $100,000 may prove considerably harder.
