Combined NJ/MI Player Pool Creates Biggest Weekly Guarantee in US Industry

There was a lot of talk about how siloed state operations impacted prize pools, and the new combined pool between PokerStars NJ and PokerStars MI has proven the point with the biggest weekly guarantees in the US industry.

At the beginning of 2023, PokerStars Michigan and New Jersey combined to form a single player pool serving around 20 million potential players. While there has been a lot of talk about the impact shared liquidity could have on the industry, the PokerStars state merger this year is the first chance for real, on the ground, evidence since 2017 when WSOP New Jersey joined operations in Nevada and Delaware.

The proof is in the pudding, and PokerStars MI/NJ is serving that pudding. A month after the new combined pool came online, the operator is touting $1 million in guarantees per week in the new market.

The new combined player pool creates the biggest market in the regulated US industry at the moment, surpassing the previous behemoth of Pennsylvania. PokerStars PA serves around 14.5 million potential players, but the new combined pool of Michigan and New Jersey has just shy of 20 million people between the two states, That has allowed the operator to revamp its schedule and bump up the guarantees on regular daily events as well as weekly specials. The new schedule includes buy-ins ranging from $5 to $250 so there is likely something to appeal to all bankrolls.

The Sum Is Greater Than Parts

The new combined player pool that links players on PokerStars NJ and PokerStars MI went into effect at the beginning of 2023, and the operator threw a New Year’s Day party with $150k guaranteed over two special tournaments to celebrate the new pool on New Year’s Day.

Just a month into the new era, the bigger player pool is already showing benefits as PokerStars US announced total weekly guarantees of $1 million in the new market. There is nearly $250k guaranteed every week in nightly games like the Nightly Stars ($50 with $12.5k Gtd) plus a huge updated weekly schedule including the Sunday Special, Super Tuesday, and Thursday Thrill with more than $100k guaranteed in those three games alone.

Severin Rasset, Managing Director for PokerStars in the US, was very excited about the new guarantees. “We are excited to announce that we will be guaranteeing $1 million per week across our tournaments for our shared Michigan and New Jersey pool. The combined liquidity of NJ & MI enables us to reinforce our weekly schedule with more tournaments available every day, a wider variety of buy-ins, bigger guarantee and giving our players the best available in the market.”

While the players on PokerStars PA are still off playing by themselves, the Keystone State hasn’t been ignored. Along with the $1 million announced in MI/NJ, there is $500k guaranteed every week across the border in PA, from a weekly schedule that is very similar to the games in NJ/MI. That brings PokerStars’ total US guarantees to $1.5 million per week across PA and the multi-state pool.

It is fairly obvious in the poker world that bigger player pools leads to bigger prizes, but the proof is on the ground in the US this month. With the biggest weekly guarantee in the US regulated industry, the PokerStars MI/NJ compact is leading the way into a new era of US online poker.

Highlights of the $1 Million Weekly Schedule on PokerStars MI/NJ

Reoccurring Nightly Tournaments:

• 6:00 pm — Mini Nightly Stars ($25, $10k Gtd)
• 7:00 pm — Nightly Stars ($50, $12.5k Gtd)
• 7:00 pm — Nightly Stars Knockout ($50, $12.5k Gtd)

Weekly Tournaments:

• Sunday — Sunday Special ($100, $75k Gtd)
• Monday — Battle Royale ($100, $20k Gtd)
• Tuesday — Super Tuesday ($100, $22.5k Gtd)
• Wednesday — Wednesday Storm ($100, $22.5k Gtd)
• Thursday — Thursday Thrill ($100, $22.5k Gtd)
• Friday — Friday Night Fight ($100, $22.5k Gtd)
• Saturday: Deep Stack Saturday ($100, $20k Gtd)

Combined NJ/MI Player Pool Creates Biggest Weekly Guarantee in US Industry

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