With summer winding down and the days getting shorter, the thoughts of the online poker world turn to the most prestigious online tournament series in the world. The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) returns to PokerStars in September 2022 to add to more than $1 billion in prizes awarded over the first 20 years.
The 2022 WCOOP series is set to return to the PokerStars app and desktop platform starting September 4 and run for most of the month. Buy-ins for the games range from $5.50 to $25,000, and there are $85 million in guaranteed prize pools across the whole series.
There will be 104 events, with each event running tournaments in Low, Medium, and High tiers. Among those 104 games will be 12 World Championship tournaments, with the High version of both the PLO and NLH Main Events serving as the Championship Event for that discipline.
2022 PokerStars WCOOP Summary
- Series runs September 4-28, 2022
- 104 events running at each of three buy-in levels — Low, Medium, and High
- 12 World Championship tournaments
- The high buy-in PLO and NLHE Main Events are designated World Championship events for those variations
- $85 million guaranteed prize pools
- Buy-ins range from $5.50 to $25,000
WCOOP Turns 21
With its storied history dating back to the earliest days of online poker back in 2002, the WCOOP quickly became one of the most coveted titles in online poker. When online players speak of accolades, a WCOOP title is always at the top of the list of the most sought-after trophies in the game.
While prestigious titles are certainly of interest to online poker crushers, for most poker players, the money is where it is at, and WCOOP has plenty of cash to go along with the prestige. This year’s edition has $85 million guaranteed across its 312 games, and that total will add to the more than $1 billion in prizes awarded over the 20-year history of the series.
Last year, in 2021, the series broke $100 million in prizes for the second time in its history. Unlike 2019, when it barely posted its first series total with nine digits with $104 million in prizes, the 2021 series crushed the $100 million number with more than $122 million in total prizes.
$85 Million Guaranteed for WCOOP 2022
It remains to be seen if the 2022 edition of WCOOP will once again hit nine digits of payouts, but no matter what, the payouts will have at least eight digits. With $85 million guaranteed across the month-long series, it will surely be within $15 million of that ninth digit.
Most likely, given recent events like the record-breaking crowds in Barcelona, and the massive recent MicroMillions, it should easily surpass the $85 million guarantee, and 2022 will almost certainly get to the $100 million value, less than 20% above the promised numbers.
In its 20-year history, PokerStars’ WCOOP has never failed to hit its guarantee. Every year in the history of the series, WCOOP has posted prize pools at least 20% above the guaranteed value. Given that this year’s guarantee is less than 18% away from $100 million, history tells us that the 2022 series will almost certainly give away nine digits in prizes.
Beyond the massive prizes, one of the features of PokerStars’ series is always the wide variety of games on offer. While most series give players plenty of two-card and four-card action, PokerStars goes the extra mile, typically offering at least one “other” poker variant, such as seven-card stud, draw games, and lowball formats.
Check out the full schedule and start planning your shot at a WCOOP title this year. The festival is open to all Canadians outside the province of Ontario, but Ontarians shouldn’t feel left out — they can also expect their ONCOOP series running this fall.
