Poker

PokerStars, partypoker and 888poker battle for online supremacy

By Paul Seaton
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The three largest online poker brands may be approaching the end of the year, but none of them are showing any signs of slowing down their marketing as they battle for the best Christmas present for any poker brand – new players.df

PokerStars go deep

With PokerStars deciding that a new format was well and truly needed, they didn’t stop at one, introducing two new and exciting ways to play on their poker client.

With the two games entitled Deep Water Hold’em and Tempest Hold’em, perhaps they need a little explaining. Both are cash game variants.

In Deep Water, players sink or swim in a format where antes increase if a hand doesn’t reach showdown. Deep Water Hold’em sees every player post an ante, but the cost of that ante is based on the action in the preceding hands. If there was a showdown in the previous hand, then the ante is reset to its original value. However, if the action didn’t get all the way to the river, then the ante value goes up… and up, and up.

As well as a small blind and big blind as usual, there’s also a ‘Giant Blind’ in the next seat round. Think of a straddle and know that it’s double the big blind, so if the small blind pays 10, and the big blind pays 20, then the giant blind is 40 chips.

In Tempest Hold’em, antes increase until a showdown is reached which leads to an added pre-flop blind, which offers players two pretty stark choices, either to shove or fold. The giant blind is in play here too.

With both formats 6-Max rather than full ring, the action at those tables is likely to be a lot faster than in regular games, though in Tempest, pots are capped, meaning that nobody can lose more than 20 giant blinds.

Both Deepwater and Tempest are available immediately in the U.K. and on all major locations, setting aside most of the U.S.A. of course, although PokerStars have been wooing Pennsylvanians by offering the PACOOP in coming weeks.

You can watch a demonstration of the action in Deep Water hold’em right now:

A million dollars added by partypoker to MILLIONS Online

While PokerStars are coming up with new formats to draw in punters, rivals partypoker are throwing a million dollars at one lucky player – well, maybe.

If the Day 1a chip leader wins the MILLIONS Online Main Event, then that person will get an extra million dollars on top of the top prize.

With a $20 million guaranteed prizepool regardless of this extra offer, there are bound to be plenty of hopefuls following Mike Sexton, partypoker Chairman, in his advice to pitch up early.

https://twitter.com/Mike_partypoker/status/1197129187649376256

888poker sending satellite players to Madrid

888poker may have just finished inviting players to be God of their own particular ‘Arena’ – think overflowing laundry basket, empty pizza boxes and empty energy drink cans – they’re not resting on their deity-donning laurels.

With over a million dollars in the 24-tournament series of PKO events prizepool, players won over $1.17 million in prizes, including players such as Ole Schemion, and over 22,000 players took part in the events overall.

Now, 888poker are heading to Madrid for the first time as they kick off their 2020 live tours with a festival in the Spanish capital.

Pushing players to their satellites, 888 will be hoping that they have a busy winter period as players look to win their seat from just a few cents and catch some sun in the New Year.