, PokerStars offers a welcome bonus for first-time depositors. However, the PokerStars welcome bonus differs from every other
in that one has 90 days to make as many as three qualifying deposits in order to receive the 100% match bonus of up to $600. This allows more flexibility to online
who would like to take full advantage of the bonus, but are not prepared to drop the full $600 into their
In addition to making it easier to claim a large first deposit bonus, PokerStars also gives players plenty of time to clear their bonus dollars, up to six months for each pending bonus. Once enough VPPs have been earned to clear the first pending bonus, the additional VPPs the player earns will automatically be applied to the next pending bonus amount, until all bonuses have been cleared.
100% up to $600
100%
up to $600
Use Marketing Code
vip2012
All first-time depositors are eligible for the 100% bonus match at PokerStars. In order to opt-in to the bonus, simply input the marketing code vip2012 when making that first, initial deposit. If the first deposit is less than $600, PokerStars members can use the same marketing code for up to two more deposits for a 100% match (not to exceed a combined total of $600 in bonus dollars) as long as the additional deposits are made within 90 days of the first deposit.
Once the deposit has been made into the player's real money account using the appropriate marketing code, the player can begin earning the bonus by playing real money cash games and tournaments at PokerStars. Members have 183 days (6 months) after each qualifying deposit to clear the respective bonus from its 'pending' status before it expires. To view the current details of a pending bonus, click on the 'Cashier' button in the PokerStars software, then choose 'Check My Bonus Status.'
All PokerStars bonuses are earned by accumulating VIP Player Points (VPPs) while playing real money
online poker games at PokerStars. The number of VPPs required to clear each bonus dollar varies by
promotion, however the welcome bonus stipulates 17 VPPs for every bonus dollar.
PokerStars awards VPPs based on tournament entry fees and rake paid in cash games. All PokerStars members automatically earn 5.5 VPPS for each $1 paid in tournament fees. In a $50+$5 tournament, the $50 goes to the prize pool and the "+$5" is the entry fee that goes to the "house." Thus, a player would earn 27.5 VPPs for entering a $50+$5 tournament.
The number of VPPs earned in cash games is dependent upon how many seats are at the table, the number of players in each hand, and the total rake paid at the table. In cash games with eight or more seats (whether occupied or not), 6 VPPs are awarded to the table for every $1 raked from the pot, then divided evenly among the players who were dealt into the hand. Cash tables of seven seats or less (such as short-handed or heads-up tables) are provided 5.5 VPPs per $1 paid in rake, which are split equally among every player dealt into each hand. The VPPs are distributed at the end of each hand, with fractional VPPs rounded to the nearest one-hundredth (0.01).
Once the required number of VPPs have been earned after the initial deposit, PokerStars will move the pending bonus into the player's cash account, where it will be accessible as cash. The bonus is released into the player's cash account in increments of $10 for every 170 VPPs earned. An email confirmation will also be sent to the player to inform them of their new cash balance, and the details of the transaction will be available in the 'History' section of the PokerStars Cashier window.
After downloading the
PokerStars software and creating a user account, a new member decides to deposit $200 into their real money account. The online poker player clicks the 'Cashier' button, then selects 'Buy Chips' to open the deposit window. Following the deposit instructions provided, the players types vip2012 into the marketing code box when prompted.
Upon completion of the deposit process, the player will have $200 in their cash account, and $200 pending in the 'My Bonus Status' area of the Cashier. Every VPP the player earns from this point on, by participating in
online poker tournaments and cash games at PokerStars, will count toward the release of bonus dollars into their cash account. The player will require 3400 VPPs to clear the $200 bonus (17 x 200 = 3400).
30 days later, the player decides to deposit another $200 into their account, and claim another $200 of the sign-up bonus by using the marketing code again. The new pending bonus appears separately from any remaining bonus dollars that have not yet been cleared from the first bonus. Once the first bonus is cleared, the VPPs the player earns will automatically be applied to the next bonus amount. The player will have 183 days from the time of the associated deposit to earn the 3400 VPPs needed to clear the second installment of the welcome bonus.
After another 30 days have passed, with the first bonus cleared and the second bonus well underway, the player decides to go ahead and deposit another $200 using the vip2012 marketing code in order to take full advantage of the PokerStars sign-up bonus. The player has now has 153 days to finish clearing the second portion of the welcome bonus, and 183 days from this point to clear the final portion of the bonus, for a grand total of $600 in bonus cash added to his real money PokerStars account - all for playing the real money online poker tournaments and cash games that he intended to play regardless of any bonus earned.