As players look to chase away the winter blues, PokerStars USA schedules its popular Winter Series in its US-facing sites comprising New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.
Starting this Saturday, January 22, 2022, and running until the end of the month, the Winter Series will run separately on each of its three platforms — PokerStars NJ, PokerStars PA, and PokerStars MI.
In total, more than $2 million is up for grabs between the three series.
As Pennsylvania and Michigan have yet to join the interstate shared liquidity pact, there will be no shared prize pools and players will only be competing within their state. However, this could change soon as there are hopes of these two states joining the existing Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) in the near future. This would allow operators to combine their player pools with New Jersey, Nevada, and Delaware, which are already part of the pact.
But until that happens, there will be more segregated events, more winners, and a higher chance for players to take down the event.
- $150 in free funds
- Great tournament schedule
- Excellent player traffic
Pennsylvania Leads the Pack
Thanks to its market size, the Winter Series in Pennsylvania is the largest of the three, boasting $1 million in guarantees — the same as last year. Meanwhile, neighboring New Jersey promises half of that, sticking with last year’s $500,000 in guaranteed prize money.
In Michigan, the Winter Series will be making its debut with an impressive $650,000 in guaranteed prize money.
The schedule is more or less the same in each of the three markets, with PA offering 44 tournaments while both NJ and MI spread 42 tournaments.
Buy-ins are quite diverse ranging from $10 at the lowest level and going up to $1,000 for the High Roller. As what has become the norm for PokerStars USA, the entry fees are slightly more expensive in New Jersey — averaging about $121 per event — while the series in Pennsylvania and Michigan averages $108 and $100, respectively.
PokerStars USA Winter Series 2022 Comparison
| PokerStars PA | PokerStars MI | PokerStars NJ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Gtd | $1,000,000 | $650,000 | $500,000 |
| No. of Tournaments | 44 | 42 | 42 |
| Avg Gtd | $22,727 | $15,476 | $11,905 |
| Buy-ins Range | $10 to $1,000 | $10 to $1,000 | $10 to $1,000 |
| Avg Buy-in | $108 | $100 | $121 |
| Main Event | $200 buy-in, $150K Gtd | $200 buy-in, $100K Gtd | $300 buy-in, $75K Gtd |
But a variety of satellite routes are available to players to offset the cost for most of the events — starting from as little as $1 in PA and MI, and $5 in NJ.
Most of the events are No-Limit Hold’em, but there is a decent spread of formats, with plenty of progressive knockouts and freezeouts on offer. There is a mix of 4-, 6-, 8-, and 9-handed tables in the form of Zoom, Deepstacks, and turbos. Non-freezeout events permit re-entries ranging from three to five.
Four-card lovers have not been left out as the operator has scheduled Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) in each of the three states. Players in Pennsylvania and Michigan even have the option of niche game variants, such as PLO Hi/Lo, 5-Card Draw, and mixed rotation game HORSE.
The 10-day series reaches its peak action on Sunday, January 30 with two-day Main Events scheduled for each state. However, they differ a bit — In Pennsylvania, the Main Event boasts $150,000 in guaranteed prize money for a buy-in of $200; in Michigan, the Main Event also features a buy-in of $200, but promises $100,000; and the Main Event in New Jersey offers $75,000 for a higher cost of $300.
As usual, to cater to the smaller budgets, there will be a Mini companion version in each of the states, costing $30 in PA and MI and $50 in NJ.
Other notable tournaments include Main Event Trainers and Warm-Ups — structured similarly to the Main but for a fraction of the buy-in and faster blind levels. A couple of High Rollers have also been included ranging from $500 to $1,000.
Piggybacking on the weekly schedule, the Sunday Special Winter Editions come with boosted guarantees but cost the same.
Chance to Qualify for Winter Series 2022 for Free
To get players in seats and promote the series, the operator is running its tried-and-tested Depositor FREEZErolls. Through this promotion, players have the chance to win seats to the series, including the Main Event for free via two different choices of bonuses:
- Deposit at least $30 using the bonus code
WINTER30to receive an entry to a FREEZEroll that gives away at least $1,500 in Winter Series seats.
- Players can further increase their chance of winning seats by making a deposit of $100 or more using the bonus code
WINTER100and earn an entry to the bigger sized FREEZEroll giving away a minimum of $4,000 worth of prizes.
These FREEZErolls are scheduled to take place on January 22.
Additionally, the operator is offering a further $8,000 in Winter Series tickets. Players who bust without cashing in the event will receive a ticket for Second Chance Freerolls. These freerolls run every day from January 23 to 30.
PokerStars USA Winter Series 2022 Offers
| Bonus Code | Pennsylvania | Michigan | New Jersey | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Depositor FREEZErolls Deposit $30 or More | WINTER30 | $3,000 | $2,000 | $1,500 | Jan 22 |
| Depositor FREEZErolls Deposit $100 or More | WINTER100 | $10,000 | $5,000 | $4,000 | Jan 22 |
| Second Chance Freerolls | Not Applicable | $8,000 | $8,000 | $8,000 | Jan 23 – 30 |
High Profile Tournament Series
The Winter Series is a big deal for PokerStars — though not on the same league as the operator’s flagship Championship “COOP” series, it is still one of the largest series in the online poker calendar. Since its debut in 2017, it has become a staple of the operator’s annual calendar and runs in all of its markets.
In the New Jersey market, where PokerStars launched in 2016, the Winter Series has been running every year since 2017. The upcoming edition will be the sixth installment in NJ, the third in PA, and the first in MI.
Since its inception, the Winter Series has grown rapidly in New Jersey and Pennsylvania but appears to have found its ceiling point. The inaugural edition of Winter Series in NJ kicked off with $275,000 in guarantees spread over just 10 tournaments and an average guarantee of $27,500. Today, it has grown to half-million but spread out over 42 tournaments and an average guarantee of a much lower $12,000.
Winter Series NJ History
| Year | Total GTD | No. of Tournaments | Avg GTD | Main Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $275,000 | 10 | $27,500 | $400 buy-in, $75,000 GTD |
| 2018 | $325,000 | 12 | $27,083 | $400 buy-in, $100,000 GTD |
| 2019 | $300,000 | 15 | $20,000 | $400 buy-in, $80,000 GTD |
| 2020 | $300,000 | 21 | $14,286 | $400 buy-in, $60,000 GTD |
| 2021 | $500,000 | 40 | $12,500 | $300 buy-in, $100,000 GTD |
| 2022 | $500,000 | 42 | $11,905 | $300 buy-in, $75,000 GTD |
In Pennsylvania, the Winter Series started with $675,000 in guarantees, which were spread over 30 tournaments. It grew to $1 million for its second edition. The 2022 edition guarantees the same amount, but there is one fewer event. The average guarantee per event is sitting at $22,727 — its highest in three years.
Winter Series PA History
| Year | Total GTD | No. of Tournaments | Avg GTD | Main Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $675,000 | 30 | $22,500 | $300 buy-in, $100,000 GTD |
| 2021 | $1,000,000 | 45 | $22,222 | $300 buy-in, $200,000 GTD |
| 2022 | $1,000,000 | 44 | $22,727 | $200 buy-in, $150,000 GTD |
The Winter Series comes fresh off the back of 25 Days of Tournaments — a special series that ran in the US market in December in which the tournaments were only revealed a day prior to its start. The series had only two buy-in levels of $10 and $50.
Prior to that, PokerStars USA hosted the Fall Fest series with guarantees close to $2 million. The series was a massive success as the guarantees were met across the board.
But PokerStars is not the only operator to kick off 2022 with a major tournament series.
Rival BetMGM has scheduled a brand new Double Trouble Series, running from January 21 and offering over $1 million in its three states. WSOP.com has scheduled its stalwart Online Circuit Series giving away 12 WSOP Gold Rings to players in New Jersey and Nevada, featuring $1 million in guarantees.
