Run It Back: BetMGM Poker Online Series Returns In June With $275K in Guarantees
It’s a new month, which means new tournament series for Michigan online poker players. BetMGM Poker MI went live with the third installment Friday of its BetMGM Online Series.
The 10-tournament series takes place June 20-27, with guaranteed prize pools across the series totaling $275,000.
10 poker tourneys for micros, high rollers alike
Buy-ins for the series range from just $20, all the way up to $1,060. As with previous iterations of the BetMGM Online Series, most events are no-limit hold’em, with a progressive knockout bounty tournament and one pot-limit Omaha event tossed into the mix.
Following a late afternoon $215 buy-in tournament with a $50,000 guarantee on June 20, the series features one event per evening until the following Sunday.
That climactic day features three different “main” events, each at different price points.
The $20 “Mini” comes with a $5,000 guarantee. The $109 “1/2 price” event has a $30,000 guarantee attached. Finally, the $1,060 buy-in event earns the top spot on the marquee, sporting a series-high $75,000 guarantee.
Here is the full schedule:
| No. | Date | Time (ET) | Event (Gtd.) | Buy-in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | June 20 (Su) | 5:00 p.m. | $50K Gtd. NLH 8-Max | $215 |
| 2 | June 21 (M) | 8:00 p.m. | $20K Gtd. NLH 8-Max | $215 |
| 3 | June 22 (Tu) | 8:00 p.m. | $25K Gtd. NLH 8-Max | $535 |
| 4 | June 23 (W) | 8:00 p.m. | $10K Gtd. PLO 6-Max | $109 |
| 5 | June 24 (Th) | 8:00 p.m. | $20K Gtd. NLH 6-Max | $215 |
| 6 | June 25 (F) | 8:00 p.m. | $20K Gtd. NLH 8-Max Progressive KO Bounty | $215 |
| 7 | June 26 (Sa) | 8:00 p.m. | $20K Gtd. NLH 8-Max | $215 |
| 8 | June 27 (Su) | 5:00 p.m. | $5K Gtd. NLH 8-Max Mini | $20 |
| 9 | June 27 (Su) | 5:00 p.m. | $30K Gtd. NLH 1/2 Price 8-Max | $109 |
| 10 | June 27 (Su) | 5:00 p.m. | $75K Gtd. NLH 8-Max | $1,060 |
Guarantees scaled back slightly after May series
The series resembles the first two versions of the BetMGM Online Series at BetMGM Poker MI. However, the overall total of guarantees has been reduced.
Coming shortly after first launching in late March, the first BetMGM Online Series in April had $300,000 in total guarantees. Ultimately, players won a little more than $360,000 across the series.
The second version in May, again featuring 10 tournaments, stepped up the total guarantees to $315,000. But the turnouts were considerably less robust. Nine of the 10 events had overlays.
Ultimately, BetMGM Poker MI had to add about $65,000 to prize pools during the series. That result no doubt influenced the setting of guarantees for this month’s go-round.
PokerStars remains the Michigan online poker ‘big stack’
Not helping BetMGM Poker MI in May was the fact that its second series coincided with the final week of the Michigan Spring Championship of Online Poker (MISCOOP) on PokerStars MI.
The 17-day MISCOOP ultimately awarded more than $2.35 million across 120 tournaments. In fact, the $300 buy-in MISCOOP Main Event alone had a prize pool of nearly $244,000, a figure rivaling the total amount over the entire BetMGM Online Series.
That “duel” between Michigan’s only two online poker sites (as it were) perhaps recalled the imbalance between the site’s competing Easter events in early April. Whereas PokerStars MI hosted its first Michigan Classic event with a $500,000 guarantee, the then-brand new BetMGM site held a more modest $50,000 freeroll.
PokerStars MI has clearly benefited from its three-month head start versus its competition. However when it comes to measuring success, the smaller site will likely be more curious to compare June’s BetMGM Online Series with the previous two installments than with what its market rival does.
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