PokerStars has released the complete schedule of events for the 2022 World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), which in its 21st consecutive annual rendition remains the flagship of PokerStars' online series offerings. The 2022 WCOOP was previously announced as running September 4-28, 2022, and complete details on the gargantuan series were offered earlier today.
The 2022 WCOOP remains another intense endeavor, including 322 total events and $85 million in guaranteed prize-pool money. As in previous years, the bulk of the series will consist of a three-tiered low/medium/high event buy-in structure, with at least 104 different events offered in each of the three buy-in levels. Overall, buy-ins range from $5.50 all the way to $25,000 for direct entry into the various events.
The highlights of the series occur on Sunday, September 25, when Stars offers a low/medium/high trifecta of WCOOP main events in both no-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha formats. The NLH trio of events begin at 5:30 p.m., with buy-ins of $109, $1,050, and $10,300, with guarantees of $2.5 million, $4 million, and $6 million respectively. At 8:05 p.m. the PLO main events begin, with the same trio of low/medium/high buy-in amounts, and with separate guarantees of $250,000, $600,000, and $1 million.
The high buy-in NLH and PLO main events are also designated as WCOOP "World Championship" events, along with 10 other World Championship events in other formats. The other 10 events are scattered throughout the entirety of the 2022 WCOOP schedule, and along with the NLH and PLO mains, comprise this World Championship schedule (Buy-in / Guarantee in parantheses):
- Sep. 4, 5:30 p.m. PKO NLHE ($5,200 / $1,000,000)
- Sep. 7, 5:30 p.m. H.O.R.S.E. ($1,050 / $100,000)
- Sep. 8, 5:30 p.m. Badugi ($1,050 / $50,000)
- Sep. 11, 5:30 p.m. 6-Max NLHE ($5,200 / $750,000)
- Sep. 12, 5:30 p.m. PLO8 ($1,050 / $100,000)
- Sep. 14, 5:30 p.m. Razz ($1,050 / $65,000)
- Sep. 18, 5:30 p.m. Women's World Championship NLHE ($530 / $65,000)
- Sep. 19, 5:30 p.m. 8-Game ($2,100 / $100,000)
- Sep. 20, 6:05 p.m. Heads-Up NLHE ($5,200 / $200,000)
- Sep. 22, 5:30 p.m. 2-7 Single Draw ($1,050 / $65,000)
- Sep. 25, 5:30 p.m. NLHE "Main Event" ($10,300 / $6,000,000)
- Sep. 25, 8:05 p.m. PLO "Main Event" ($10,300 / $1,000,000)
Champions freeroll, leaderboards, and more
There are plenty of additional WCOOP elements besides the massive 322-event slate itself. The 2022 WCOOP will include a champion's freeroll for all players who captured a WCOOP title in 2021. The top five freeroll finishers will receive $10,300 NLH Main Event entries.
The venerable WCOOP leaderboards will also return, with Low, Medium, High -- referring to buy-ins -- and Overall categories. $25,000 will be distributed to the top finishers in each of the four categories.
WCOOP-themed Spin & Gos play into the fun as well. Special WCOOP Spin & Go events will be offered within Stars' Spin & Go lobby, with top prizes of $10,300 Main Event seats being distributed.
And as always, a huge framework of "Fast Track" satellite events will offer players a chance to win their way into WCOOP events. Stars is adding $100,000 in added-value satellites, which along with the leaderboards and other side offerings are part of at least $250,000 in additional seats Stars is pitching in to the festivities.
Since its creation in 2002, the annual PokerStars WCOOP has logged an unmatched history and volume of online-poker events. Through 2021, 1,738 separate WCOOP events have been held, with well over 6.6 million combined entrants. To date, WCOOP events have awarded over $1.09 billion in prizes to top finishers, and first-place payouts alone have amounted to nearly $167.5 million.
Winners of WCOOP events have come from 73 different countries, led by Russia, whose players have claimed 193 separate WCOOP titles. Russia's Denis Strebkov is the winningest WCOOP player, with nine WCOOP titles, just ahead of the U.S.'s Shaun Deeb and his eight wins; Deeb has played the WCOOP from Mexico in recent years.
Featured image source: PokerStars.
