As usual PokerStars waited until the end of the Spring Championship of Online Poker before rolling out their World Series of Poker Main Event satellites. The situation is a little different than in past years, however. Actual promotions targeting WSOP in particular are non-existent. There aren’t any bonuses for wearing PokerStars gear during the event, nor are there any final table incentives. In fact, there won’t be any PokerStars representatives in Vegas at all this summer.
This isn’t exactly surprising to those that have followed the news of the April 15th indictments. American players can no longer download ACR, so there is no need to advertise in the US. Not to mention that PokerStars has been pulled from all US television networks, so advertising is pretty difficult in the first place.
Players can still win their WSOP Main Event package on PokerStars, although it works a little differently this year. You’ll be playing for a Main Event Passport worth $13,000. If you win one and wish to play in the WSOP Main Event, you will have $13,000 deposited into your PokerStars account.
The fun part is that the WSOP Main Event isn’t your only option. A Main Event Passport allows you to choose from one of several PokerStars tours. You could play in the PCA, EPT, LAPT, or the APPT. All the packages include a Main Event seat and cash for expenses. Some of the packages also include hotel accommodations.
Both the EPT London and PCA packages are actually worth more than $13,000. You won’t need to worry about the difference, though, because PokerStars absorbs the extra costs for you. So you are actually getting a better deal by choosing EPT London or PCA over the others!
In past years, some players made a killing by winning multiple WSOP Main Event satellites. This is because after their first win, every other prize got converted to T$. It won’t be so easy to do that this year. Since there are five different packages for players to choose from, players must win five Main Event Passports before they can have any of the prizes converted to T$.
Despite Black Friday, poker is popular as ever and people are flocking to Vegas in droves. The WSOP fields are going to be huge and some people will make a lot of money. If you are traveling from outside the US and are worried about being able to play online poker while in Vegas, you might try a Bovada Poker download. You’ll be able to access your account anywhere in the world and they offer a 100% deposit bonus.