Welcome to Day 1 of the 2020 WCOOP-72-H: $5,200 NLHE [8-Max, Main Event]
As of 1.05 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST), the highly anticipated flagship event of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker 2020 will kick off and feature a guaranteed prize pool of $10,000,000. Nearly 90 minutes prior to the start, there are already more than 430 players registered and that number is certain to grow in the hours to come.
The pinnacle event of the festival has been taking place since 2002 and players from the United States have earned the most titles, including big names as J. C. “area23JC” Tran, Carter “ckingusc” King and Yevgeniy “Jovial Gent” Timoshenko.
Also among the winners is none other than Fedor “CrownUpGuy” Holz who earned the title in 2014, followed by regulars of the international poker circuit such as Jonas “llJaYJaYll” Lauck and Steven “ SvZff” van Zadelhoff.
The defending champion is the UK's Fraser “BigBlindBets” Russell who defeated a field of 2,236 entries in 2019 and took home $1,665,962.04, the third-biggest winner prize in the history of the event.
WCOOP-72-H: $5,200 NLHE Main Event Day 1 Level Structure
| Level | Duration | Small Blind | Big Blind | Ante |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 30 min | 500 | 1,000 | 125 |
| 2 | 30 min | 600 | 1,200 | 150 |
| 3 | 30 min | 700 | 1,400 | 175 |
| 4 | 30 min | 800 | 1,600 | 200 |
| 5 | 30 min | 1,000 | 2,000 | 250 |
| 6 | 30 min | 1,250 | 2,500 | 325 |
| 7 | 30 min | 1,500 | 3,000 | 375 |
| 8 | 30 min | 1,750 | 3,500 | 450 |
| 9 | 30 min | 2,000 | 4,000 | 500 |
| 10 | 30 min | 2,500 | 5,000 | 625 |
| 11 | 30 min | 3,000 | 6,000 | 750 |
| 12 | 30 min | 3,500 | 7,000 | 875 |
| 13 | 30 min | 4,000 | 8,000 | 1,000 |
| 14 | 30 min | 4,500 | 9,000 | 1,100 |
| 15 | 30 min | 5,000 | 10,000 | 1,250 |
Day 1 will feature a total of 15 levels of 30 minutes each with a starting stack of 250,000 and the late registration will remain open until 1.05 p.m. EST the following day, five minutes prior to the restart of Day 2. During the late registration period, up to two re-entries are available and the tournament will play down to a champion throughout the next four days.
| Day | Date | Start Time | Further Info |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 20th, 2020 | 1.05 PM EST | Play 15 levels of 30 minutes |
| 2 | September 21st, 2020 | 1.10 PM EST | Play concludes when 72 remain |
| 3 | September 22nd, 2020 | 1.05 PM EST | Play concludes when 9 remain |
| 4 | September 23rd, 2020 | 1.05 PM EST | Play down to a winner |
The PokerNews live reporting team will provide all the action from start to finish, and the final day will also be broadcasted on the PokerStars Twitch channel with cards-up coverage and commentary on a delay of at least 20 minutes.