Poker Articles

By Dan | Published Jul 29 2009, 11:16 PM

Taking place right now on the world’s largest online poker site is the Americas Cup of Poker. The promotion, which pits players from 16 countries against each other with $250,000 and a trip to Argentina on the line, has attracted PokerStars members from across the Western Hemisphere. The finale of the Americas Cup of Poker will play out in a ski resort in scenic Bariloche, Argentina. I’ve been there and it’s as picturesque as it gets, so don’t let this unique opportunity pass you by. Let’s check out what has attracted a bevy of players to the virtual felts of PokerStars.

Sixteen countries are represented in the Americas Cup of Poker, each segmented into one of four groups. The first set, cleverly labeled Group A, consists of the United States, Mexico, Ecuador, and Guatemala. Group B is composed of Canada, Columbia, Uruguay, and Panama. Chile, Venezuela, Peru, and Costa Rica make up Group C, while Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Honduras rally behind Group D’s flag. Each country will play against the other members of its group in daily freerolls, $0.20 tournaments, and $0.50 tournaments. Three six-day heats are run, with the second set beginning on August 3rd and running through August 9th. Here are the match-ups for that heat:

Group A
USA vs. Guatemala
Mexico vs. Ecuador

Group B
Canada vs. Panama
Uruguay vs. Colombia

Group C
Chile vs. Costa Rica
Peru vs. Venezuela

Group D
Brazil vs. Honduras
Argentina vs. Paraguay

Players who finish in the Top 100 in each tournament are awarded points, which escalate based on buy-in. For example, the top finisher in a daily freeroll grabs 600 points, the winner of the daily $0.20 tournament earns 1,500 points, and the victor of the $0.50 event nabs 3,000 points. The top two countries with the most number of wins in each group advance to the live final in Argentina. The five players on each team who rack up the most number of points will make the trip to Bariloche (pictured at right), with a member of Team PokerStars Pro joining each squad to make things more interesting. The live final will pay out as follows, with the money being split evenly between each of the team members:

1st Place: $100,000
2nd Place: $60,000
3rd Place: $30,000
4th Place: $20,000
5th Place: $10,000
6th Place: $10,000
7th Place: $10,000
8th Place: $10,000

Players who claim allegiance to more than one country among the 16 that make up the Americas Cup of Poker will count towards the nation that their PokerStars account is registered to. All tournaments are capped at 15,000 players and filled on a first-come, first-served basis. The online poker site is also dishing out $50 rewards to players who transfer a minimum of $1 to a fellow PokerStars member. In order for the person who transferred the money to receive the $50, the player who received it must reach the final table of a $0.20 tournament. Only the money covered by the transfer counts and “the second player [must have] less than $0.20 in his account at the time of receiving the transfer and not transferred or withdrawn money to reach this balance,” according to text found on PokerStars’ website.

Guatemala, Panama, and Honduras became part of the Americas Cup of Poker as wild card teams. Check out "Tourney" and "Regional" in the PokerStars lobby to hunt down Americas Cup of Poker tournaments. Visit PokerStars today to play in the competitive Americas Cup of Poker.