PokerStars Demolishes Another World Record Thanks to SCOOP

May 22nd, 2017 | by Jason Reynolds

PokerStars is in the record books again thanks to its Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) and a prize giveaway of more than $39 million.

Thousands of players join SCOOP 2017 and help PokerStars break the record for the biggest day in online poker history. (Image: PokerStars.com)

When PokerStars’ regular schedule of Sunday tournaments collided with SCOOP’s main events on May 21, the operator was prepared to hand out around $29.5 million in guaranteed prize money.

But with more than 1,200 online MTTs to choose from and some large prizepools on offer, players anted up on mass.

Players Swoop in For SCOOP

By the time everyone had completed their buy-ins, rebuys and re-entries, the total guaranteed target had been beaten by close to $10 million.

Leading the way and helping to take the day’s total prizepool to $39 million was SCOOP’s main event high.

Costing $10,000 to enter, the tournament attracted 693 buy-ins (574 entrants + 119 rebuys) for a total prizepool worth $6.93 million.

Also beating their guarantees by a healthy margin were the medium and low buy-in main events. When registration closed on the $1,050 main event medium, 4,056 entrants had taken the prizepool beyond the $3 million guarantee to $5 million.

In the $109 main event low, almost 19,000 entries generated a prizepool worth $2.3 million.

The unexpected swell of players not only shattered the expected payouts, but broke the record for the biggest day in online poker history.

The previous record was set by PokerStars New Jersey back in 2016 when its local version of SCOOP paid out $35 million on May 22.

Another Record Bites the Dust

Perhaps the least surprising fact from the weekend of action was that PokerStars broke its own record. Prior to May 21^st, PokerStars New Jersey and its version of SCOOP, NJSCOOP, held the record for the richest day in online poker history.

Now, however, the record stands with PokerStars’ international platform and the 2017 incarnation of SCOOP.

Aside from being another record in the books for PokerStars, the recent rush of players is a signal that online poker is still alive and well.

Despite a shift in focus towards casino games and sports betting over the last two years, PokerStars is still the destination for major tournament festivals.

Indeed, such is the draw of any event like SCOOP that a number of pros made the trip to neighboring Canada just so they could join the action.