Online poker in the United States has seen a spike in popularity over the past few weeks. PokerStars introduction into New Jersey surely had something to do with it. Only a few weeks in, the online poker giant has already created the largest tournaments in the state. Prize pools still pale in comparison to the rest of the world online poker rooms, but it's a great sign of the future.
With the WSOP scheduled to start in just a few weeks, poker rooms across the United States are seeking to stake their claim on those looking for an entry in the expensive tournaments. Online poker rooms have already announced satellites and other qualifiers into the WSOP.
Here's a look back at the state of online poker in the United States for the week of April 8th, 2016.
In only two weeks, PokerStars has already shown why their inclusion into the poker space was a pretty big deal. Over this short period, Poker Stars already holds the record for the largest online tournament in the state of New Jersey.
Craig Rubinstein was the lucky winner of the event cashing for over $13,000. Oddly enough, it was his birthday. Happy birthday Craig!
What makes this even more impressive is the 20% increase in prize pool over the following week in the same tournament. Poker Stars has long been known to have the best tournament schedule by far. Their reputation stands little chance of going anywhere, anytime soon.
The uptick in traffic could be seen across the board, with other sites like 888, Party Poker and WSOP.com reeking the benefits.
Another move that should solidify PokerStars as the number one place to play online poker in New Jersey was the announcement of their widely popular SCOOP event. The Spring Championship of Online Poker has been a mainstay in the poker community for almost a decade. It's like the online WSOP in a sense. With the WCOOP taking the same place in poker relevance.
Introducing SCOOP events to the U.S. market is a wise move. Doing it so quickly is even smarter.
Thus far, 27 events have been announced with a similar format to the main sites counterpart. Both high and low buy-in events spread across multiple poker variants to include, PLO, Stud and 8 -Game mixed events. The majority will be some form of No Limit Hold Em.
To date, Poker Stars hold almost 40% of the poker share in New Jersey according to Poker Scout. Depending on how high the guarantees are during SCOOP events, this number could grow even larger. Across the board, total poker activity is up 38% across all sites in New Jersey.
WSOP.com is going to be the obvious place to win your way into the WSOP events in Las Vegas. Back by popular demand is the Colossus. A $565 buy-in event, with a guarantee of $7 million, increased from $5 million in 2015. A bracelet event, which also hails as the lowest buy in ever for a WSOP tournament.
Qualifiers are being held now, throughout April when the event takes place, live at the Rio Grande. Satellites are running on both the New Jersey, and Nevada WSOP online sites. For only $10, you could win your way into the world's largest live poker tournament. Over 22,000 players entered in its first year at the WSOP.
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