PA has enjoyed online poker for a whole year now and PokerStars PA wants to celebrate. T0 commemorate the momentous occasion, PokerStars will run a special PokerStars 1st Anniversary tournament Series. The series, which is scheduled to take place in November, guarantees punters $1 million spread across 35 events.
This online anniversary tournament will be PokerStars’ 7th online tournament series in the PA market this year and the 8th since PokerStars joined the market in late 2019. Although the schedule for the tournament is yet to be released, we already know that there will be a $100 buy-in Main Event, guaranteeing $200,000.
This first anniversary series will have the 2nd largest average guarantee per event in the history of the PA poker market. The series guarantees an average of $28,571 per event. The only other tournament to have surpassed this number is the Pennsylvania Championship of Online Poker (PACOOP) that averaged $30,000 every event. For this anniversary series, punters in PA can also expect:
- a Second Chance Freeroll promotion
- $20 Mini Main Event on November 15 guaranteeing $25K
- $50 Phase tournament running throughout, guaranteeing $50K
PokerStars has cemented its top position in the PA poker market and it is not likely to budge anytime soon. The online poker giant was the 1st operator to offer regulated online poker in PA. It joined the PA online poker and sports betting market through its partnership with Mount Airy Casino.
$1025
Welcome Package
$25 free bonus + deposit match, first deposit up to $500.
$600
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 100% match bonus based on first deposit of up yo $600.
$500
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 100% match bonus based on first deposit of up to $500.
To this day, PokerStars is yet to receive competition from any other operator but this is likely to change in the coming year 2021. Case in point, PartyPoker is expected to join the PA online poker market soon after it received the approval from Roar Digital. As such, in 2021, PA poker players should expect to enjoy Roar’s offerings including PartyPoker PA and BetMGA PA. 888 is also interested in joining the market after it recently received approval.
In the one year that PokerStars has been in business in the state, it has offered poker players a selection of poker action that ranges from single events to massive tournament series that have handed out millions of dollars in prize money. After such a successful first year, poker players in the state can expect even more quality action.
What we cover
Where does PA stand on multi-state legal online poker?
The online poker industry has never really recovered fully from the outcome of Black Friday or the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). 2006’s UIGEA essentially devastated the industry by effectively causing the closure of unregulated sites that were offering online poker games at the time.
The industry has done its best to rise from the ashes since then and many states have since managed to rebuild their regulated online poker markets from nothing. But progress hasn’t been as fast as some expected. The good news is that multi-state poker is what could finally make all the difference in the industry.
What started as a 2 state online poker agreement between Delaware and Nevada has today grown and expanded to include the Garden State. As the Pennsylvania online poker market continues to grow and mature, it could eventually join the alliance making it a four-way pact.
Before MSIGA, each state would operate its online poker networks independently. However, MSIGA’s framework allows states to share liquidity across borders. PA’s iGaming law already has provisions for liquidity and MSIGA built-in so it is very likely that PA will join interstate poker.
Though the online poker landscape in the Commonwealth is still relatively new compared to say, New Jersey, the online poker market is still very much a niche vertical. So far, there are 13 online poker licenses for grabs, one representing each of the state’s current and future casinos. Out of these 13 licensees, at least 10 will want to pursue online casinos. However, only a handful or less are likely to explore online poker.
As such, compared to casino games, online poker still has a-ways to go. Regardless of how the market shakes up in the future, PokerStars is well poised to dominate Pennsylvania’s online poker. If MSIGA becomes a reality sooner or later, PokerStars alongside other giants namely WSOP and 888 Poker will have the MSIGA map covered for the conceivable future.
PA is already large and vibrant enough to support its own online poker network, but it would fair off so much better with MSIGA. Currently, the 3 states with legal online poker enjoy approximately 13 million residents each. That’s about the same number as PA. So when and if PA joins MSIGA, it would instantly double its reach.
Because poker creates action in peer to peer games, the combined traffic from all 4 MSIGA states should exceed the sum of the individual poker markets. More punters will create more incentive to take part in games and tournaments, thus consequently spawning more massive prize pools and longer phases of dense activity. In the end, the positive results should also generate more incentives for other states to join MSIGA.
Final Thoughts
As online poker continues to expand across the rest of the country, PokerStars is slated to have more skins operating across more states, which will make it even more powerful as it regards MSIGA. Most experienced poker players would agree that PokerStars easily has one of the most superior standalone software.
The continued expansions and partnerships are what will give PokerStars additional access to additional markets as time goes by. As such, PokerStars’ future has never shined brighter. Poker players in the state should also expect more tournaments with even higher guarantees as time progresses. All in all, it’s good news all around for PA poker.
Are you interested in playing poker online in New Jersey? Check out our in-depth reviews of the best poker sites in New Jersey: BetMGM, PartyPoker, and Borgata.
$1025
Welcome Package
$25 free bonus + deposit match, first deposit up to $500.
$600
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 100% match bonus based on first deposit of up yo $600.
$500
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 100% match bonus based on first deposit of up to $500.
