Did you know you can make thousands a year, on top of your poker winnings, by playing at PokerStars? It will take patience, perseverance, and a lot of determination!
Like most things, you will get a lot out of PokerStars if you put a lot into it. You will reap the rewards if you grind hard, study the game, post on the forums, and invest in training sites like Grinderschool. Many break-even players make a ton of money at PokerStars because the PokerStars VIP Program rewards high volume play. Veteran players may want to take a look at our rakeback equivalents article. It compares the PokerStars VIP Program to Full Tilt Poker Rakeback. If you are lazy, don’t put in hands, don’t review your sessions, and tilt then you will lose money. On top of that, you will not be taking full advantage of the free money associated with the PokerStars VIP Program! More importantly, you will not progress as a poker player.
The PokerStars VIP Program has several tiers: BronzeStar, SilverStar, GoldStar, PlatinumStar, SuperNova, and SuperNova Elite. In addition to accumulating VPPs faster, the rewards become bigger and better as you move up the ladder. For example, obtaining SilverStar nets you $10, but put in the work to obtain SuperNova Elite and you will be awarded with a PCA Package and $10,000!
Like many jobs, you start out at the bottom of the ladder at PokerStars as a BronzeStar. Fortunately, there are no asshole bosses, office politics, or glass ceilings to hold you back from being promoted to SilverStar VIP Status. Did you get the memo? PokerStars has reduced the number of VPPs it takes to earn SilverStar from 1200 VPPs to 750 VPPs! It will take 4500 hands of 50NL to reach SilverStar VIP Status. Did we mention you can play in your underwear?
By achieving SilverStar (750 VPPs), you earn your first VIP Stellar Reward of $10. What are VIP Stellar Rewards? VIP Stellar Rewards are VPP milestones that when reached, are awarded with cold hard cash. There are 19 VIP Stellar Rewards to earn in 2010. They range from $10 to $100. Check out the chart on the PokerStars’ website for details.
Other benefits of SilverStar VIP Status are access to more items in the PokerStars VIP Store, the ability to purchase a $50 bonus, and VIP Tourneys. As a SilverStar, you will earn 1.5 FPPs for every 1 VPP earned. Once you have reached SilverStar it’s time to go for the gold!
To earn GoldStar VIP Status, which requires you accumulate 3000 VPPs, you will need to play a little less than 20,000 hands in a month at 50NL. Earning GoldStar grants you access to premium items in the PokerStars VIP Store such as gaming consoles (Xbox 360, Wii, PS3), laptops, iPods, and digital cameras. You may want to save your FPPs to purchase the $285 bonus you now have access to! As a GoldStar, you will be able to buy into certain tournaments with FPPs. You will be accumulating 2 FPPs for every 1 VPP earned. GoldStar VIP Status also gives you the opportunity to satellite into the granddaddy of all freerolls, the quarterly PokerStars Million Dollar Freeroll.
The PokerStars Million Dollar Freeroll happens four times a year – February 6, May 1, August 7, and November 6. Players will compete for a prizepool of $1,000,000! Entry is free to SuperNovas and SuperNova Elites. If your VIP Status is GoldStar or PlatinumStar then you are invited to satellite into this humongous freeroll.
After GoldStar, you will be vying for entry to the PlatinumStar VIP Club. To be promoted to PlatinumStar, you will need to earn 7,500 VPPS in one month. This will take a little over 40,000 hands at 50NL. If you have moved up stakes to 100NL it would require only 25,000 hands. PlatinumStar members receive all the benefits of GoldStar VIP Status plus access to PlatinumStar VIP Store. The PlatinumStar VIP store is filled with incredible items like live event packages, a $650 bonus, and plasma TVs. In addition to an upgraded store, being a PlatinumStar entitles you to buy into weekly events, like the Sunday Million, with your FPPs. As PlatinumStar you will be collecting mountains of FPPs at a rate of 2.5 FPPs for every 1 VPP earned.
The next step is earning SuperNova. To earn SuperNova you must amass 100,000 VPPs in a calendar year (January 1 – December 31). This would take over 500,000 hands of 50NL, 330,000 hands of 100 NL, or 225,000 hands of 200 NL. If you have completed SuperNova then you have earned all of the VIP Stellar Rewards. Congratulations! The big attraction of SuperNova is the Milestone Cash Credits. Think of them as VIP Stellar Rewards on steroids. For example, when you reach 200,000 VPPs you can purchase $3,400 for 50,000 FPPs. Check out the detailed chart at PokerStars for more information on the Milestone Cash Credits. Don’t forget, as a SuperNova you will have a free entry to each of the quarterly million dollar freerolls. The SuperNova VIP Store goes pop! Once you are SuperNova VIP Status, you will have so many FPPs you could buy a Porsche Cayman S from the PokerStars VIP Store and fill it with PokerStars stress balls! A PCA package and a $4000 bonus are also available to purchase in the SuperNova VIP Store. As a Supernova you will be amassing FPPs at a rate of 3.5 FPPS for every 1 VPP earned.
To make it to the top of the ladder, SuperNova Elite, your only weakness can only be hunger and sleep. You must earn 1 million VPPs in a calendar year to earn SuperNova Elite Status. This would take over 5.5 million hands at 50NL, over 3.3 million hands at 100 NL, over 2.2 million hands at 200 NL, and over a million hands at 1000NL. Your hardcore grind will be rewarded handsomely. SuperNova Elite members have the option to play in two live events or play in one live event and pocket $10,000. Additionally, PokerStars awards SuperNova Elites with free entry to the WCOOP Main Event ($5,000 value). Like SuperNova, you are entitled to free entry to the quarterly million dollar freerolls and access to Milestone Cash Credits. You will be earning so many FPPs that you can buy your relatives Christmas presents from the VIP Store. SuperNova Elites earn 5 FPPs for every 1 VPP earned.
Overwhelmed? Remember to take it one step at a time. SuperNova Elite is not earned in one day. You will have to keep a steady pace throughout the year. Don’t forget to step away from the computer once in awhile. It is amazing what a 30 minute walk can do for your poker game! Good luck!
A small deposit at PokerStars has more leverage than investing in the stock market or the FOREX. You will have to put in work, but as you can see, you will be rewarded! When you are ready to create an account use the PokerStars Marketing Code flopturnriver to register and use the PokerStars Bonus Code STARS600 when you deposit for a 100% Bonus up to $600. This $600 boost to your bankroll will only help you move up the VIP Ladder! In addition to a large bonus, when you use PokerStars Marketing Code flopturnriver in conjunction with PokerStars Bonus Code STARS600 you will be invited to exclusive monthly freerolls and money added tournaments. We give away $1000 a month in password-protected freerolls and money added tournaments. We can’t wait to see you in the FTR300, a $3 tournament with $300 added to help you on your way to SuperNova. With a deposit of $10, you can begin to rake in the riches in 2010 with the PokerStars Bonus Marketing code flopturnriver and the PokerStars Bonus Code STARS600!