PokerStars SCOOP 2010: Biggest Online Poker Series Ever

The Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) is set to begin on PokerStars on May 2nd, featuring an unprecedented prize pool of $45 million across 111 events. This annual series, known for its inclusive format, allows players of all bankroll sizes to compete.

In 2009, the SCOOP series spanned 11 days with 66 tournaments, buy-ins ranging from $5.50 to $25,500, and a total guaranteed prize pool of $30,000,000. This year, the series has expanded significantly, with a guaranteed prize pool of $45,000,000. Each event will be categorized into three 'weight classes': Low, Medium, and High, each with different buy-ins and prize pools. For example, the SCOOP-1 Low has a buy-in of $20+$2 and a guaranteed prize pool of $250,000, while the SCOOP-1 High has a buy-in of $2000+$100 and a guaranteed prize pool of $1,000,000.

The 12th tournament in the series will feature a knockout format, scheduled for the night of May 7th. This format is highly anticipated by players. Jude 'j.thaddeus' Ainsworth, the main winner of SCOOP 2009, has since joined the PokerStars professional team. Russian players had a strong showing in the 2009 series, winning three tournaments. Notably, Vyacheslav 'Amke' Zhukov secured a victory in the High category triple draw tournament. Top Russian players like Dmitry 'veryking' Vitkind and Mikhail Tulchinsky are planning to sell stakes in various tournaments of the series.