One of the most venerable of all recurring online poker tournaments will soon begin celebrating its 18th anniversary in a "season" of its own. PokerStars has announced that beginning early in March, Stars players will be able to join the fun during a six-week Sunday Million Season, with plenty of added excitement and money at stake.
The six weeks of celebration at PokerStars runs from March 10 to April 21, 2024. The six-week stretch includes special tourneys with boosted guarantees and $100,000 in leaderboard prizes. The boosted guarantees come in special themed tournaments under the Sunday Million Season banner, spread throughout the Season's six-week run.
The 18th anniversary season will include 23 special episodes, referring to events with added elements such as doubled leaderboard points. The episodes, as with the leaderboards themselves, will include events with High, Medium, or Low buyins, making sure to spread the anniversary fun across all buy-ins and bankrolls.
PokerStars has already identified three of the special "episode" events:
- $215 Sunday Million 18th Anniversary - $8M GTD on April 7
- $11 Sunday Storm 13th Anniversary - $500K GTD on April 14
- $109 Sunday Million Season Finale - $1.5M GTD on April 21
'Season' to include 40 events, new Prestige badges, winner's trophies
The overall Sunday Million Season will include 40 total events, and while all the events will fall into one of the High, Medium, or Low buy-in categories, though a given format may not be available in all three buy-in ranges. Special winner's trophies will be awarded in all 40 Season-designated events.
Players will also have the opportunity to earn a Prestige Badge for participating in the series. To receive the honor, a player must opt in, then play in at least five of the 40 events. Upon completion, each player meeting the requirements will receive a special Sunday Million Season Challenge badge.
The Sunday Million Season leaderboards will honor the best overall finishers in the High, Medium, and Low categories. A Player of the Season award and trophy will also go to the player with the best combined overall finish in all Sunday Million Season events.
April 7 is Sunday Million Anniversary Day
In the heart of the Sunday Million Season lies the headline event, the iconic PokerStars Sunday Million Anniversary 18 itself. This takes place on April 7, has a $215 buy-in if done directly - numerous satellite paths are also available - and features an $8 million prize-pool guarantee. With three starting flights, each of which allows a single re-entry, 24 hours of late registration, and a million-dollar first prize, the 18th-anniversary Sunday Million will draw a hefty field of players seeking to join PokerStars history.
Last year, Brazil's Ricardo ‘RFN1986′ Nagamoto won the 17th Anniversary Sunday Million. Nagamoto topped a massive 39,500-entry field to collect the $1 million first-place prize.
'Season' final weekend includes Finale event
Another special event is the April 21 Sunday Million Season Finale, which features a $530 buy-in and its own $1.5 million guarantee. Seats into the Season Finale will be awarded throughout the series in some of its preceding events; players shou;d check the PokerStars Sunday Million Season landing page for more information.
In the week prior to the Season Finale, PokerStars brand ambassadors Fintan Hand, Ben Spragg, Parker Talbot, and Rafael Morales will each host a special event. Not only will players making the final table receive a Season Finale entry (an added prize also to be awarded in some earlier events, an extra Season Finale seat will be awarded as a bounty for knocking out each of the four pros in their speccial events.
Those four events, running between April 16 and April 18, are as follows:
- Fintan Hand: $5.50 PKO - $25K GTD on Apr 16
- Ben Spragg: $11 Mystery Bounty - $70K GTD on Apr 17
- Parker Talbot: $55 Mystery Bounty - $150 GTD on Apr 18
- Rafael Moraes: $5.50 PKO - $20K GTD on Apr 18
