DOUGLAS, Isle of Man, Aug. 21, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- The fifth annual PokerStars.com World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) begins on September 16 with a guaranteed prize pool of $10 million. The WCOOP is truly a "world championship" series of events, featuring a menu of 18 poker tournaments. This year's WCOOP is expected to attract players from more than 80 nations, making this the most international poker event ever in history. Players will compete for WCOOP commemorative gold bracelets and millions in cash prizes.
The WCOOP is hosted by the world's largest tournament poker site, PokerStars.com. The WCOOP will run over the course of 16 days, starting with the $200 buy-in Razz (Seven-Card Stud Low) tournament. The festival will end on October 1 with the single richest tournament in online poker -- the $2,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em tournament, offering a guaranteed prize pool of $3 million.
The 2006 WCOOP will also introduce H.O.R.S.E. for the first time ever in a major online tournament. H.O.R.S.E., a rotation of five different varieties of poker (Hold'em, Omaha High-Low, Razz, Stud and Eight-or-Better) is the ultimate test of all-around poker skill. With the buy-in set at $5,000, and a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool, the H.O.R.S.E tournament is expected to attract many of the top names in online poker. PokerStars is proud to announce that this special tournament will be hosted by Barry Greenstein (a.k.a. "The Robin Hood of Poker") who is widely recognized as one of the world's most successful cash and tournament players.
Barry Greenstein of Team PokerStars said, "Prestigious tournaments such as the PokerStars.com World Championship of Online Poker, are the ultimate way to improve your game and experience the excitement of big tournament play."
The WCOOP is a popular event with the established stars of online poker, and the H.O.R.S.E. tournament is bound to attract the elite. But there will also be plenty of room for regular poker players. PokerStars will be running satellites to the major events around the clock, 24 hours a day with buy-ins starting as low as $3.30. As a bonus to loyal players, PokerStars will also be investing $1.5 million toward free entries.
The 2006 WCOOP is sure to set new records. Last year, the WCOOP tournament series attracted 19,727 players generating $12,783,900 in prize money -- making it the third largest poker spectacle in the world, live or online. Unlike major land-based poker tournaments such as the World Series of Poker and events on the World Poker Tour, the WCOOP requires no travel or advance reservations. Anyone of legal age can enter, play and compete for millions in prize money right from the convenience of their own homes.
For a complete schedule of this year's World Championship of Online Poker go to www.PokerStars.com
About PokerStars.com
PokerStars (www.pokerstars.com) is the world's most innovative online poker site. PokerStars was the first site to introduce features that became industry standard such as sophisticated multi-table tournaments, integrated game statistics, players' notes, personalized images, time bank for tournaments and big bet ring games, satellite tournaments, multi-table sit and go tournaments, and much more.
To date, PokerStars has dealt out over five-billion hands and run more than 25 million poker tournaments, awarding well over $5 billion in prize money. PokerStars is the world's largest poker tournament room, with over 5 million registered player accounts. PokerStars' support team is truly unique, as help and assistance are available around the clock from people who know and understand the game of poker and the importance of impeccable customer service.
The PokerStars.com site is also one of the most secure. PokerStars uses industry-leading security software to ensure the integrity of the system, including encryption, card shuffle randomness and preventative measures against cheating and collusion. Money covering player's balances is held in segregated accounts managed by the Royal Bank of Scotland, ensuring that PokerStars can fulfill its obligations to players at all times.
In February 2006, PokerStars.com became the first poker website ever to reach the 100,000 simultaneous player mark. That watershed achievement marked the largest poker event in history. Every week, the PokerStars.com "Sunday Million" is played, the largest weekly tournament on the planet with a $1 million guaranteed tournament prize pool.
PokerStars is an official member of the World Poker Tour, and the title sponsor of the European Poker Tour (EPT) and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. In the fall, PokerStars hosts the world's largest online tournament, the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). PokerStars also sponsors major events around the globe, such as the World Cup of Poker and other exciting tournaments.
During the last three years, PokerStars.com sent more players to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) than any other source or website. A whopping 1,623 entrants (more than 20 percent of the field) qualified to play in the 2006 WSOP via PokerStars satellites. PokerStars is the site where the 2003 and 2004 World Series of Poker champions won their entries into the WSOP. The 2005 world poker champion, Joe Hachem, has also been an active player at PokerStars since 2001. He joined Moneymaker and Raymer as official representatives of PokerStars.com, thus fortifying the company trademark, "Where Poker Players Become World Champions." For more information go to: www.pokerstars.com