PokerStars’ 2016 Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) claims a series of All Time Highs and the world record for richest ever online poker series.
Held over the past 17 days, the total prize pool of $90,984,283.44 across 56 events crushed the previous record of $81,222,158.66, set during SCOOP 2014, by nearly $10 million.
All three 2016 Main Events, which play to a finish Tuesday, have surpassed previous participation and prize pool records, the company said.
The $10,000 Main Event (High) saw 824 entries generate a prize pool of just over $8 million, easily eclipsing last year’s 694 entries that played for a then-record SCOOP Main Event (High) prize pool of $6,940,000.
The $1,000 Main Event (Med) attracted 5,026 entries and a prize pool of $4,786,661.88, bettering the 4,238 entries and $4,238,000 prize pool from SCOOP 2015 and the $100 Main Event (Low) featured 24,591 entries and a prize pool of $2,255,978.34, a big jump from the previous best of SCOOP 2013, where there were a total of 23,045 entries playing for a share of the $2,304,500 prize pool.
“This record-breaking prize pool is testament to the enduring popularity of online poker,” said PokerStars director of corporate communications, Eric Hollreiser.
“It’s also a result of the talented people and hard work exhibited by everyone at PokerStars, from the poker room tournaments team who put the schedule together, to the customer support teams helping our players get the most out of their experience.”
The final nine players in the $10,000 Main Event (High) are competing today for a first prize of over $1.4 million, which would be the fifth highest prize ever awarded in an online poker tournament and biggest for a SCOOP event. All nine players will win at least six figures.
The $1,000 and $100 Main Events have top prizes of more than $750,000 and $225,000 respectively, and also conclude later today.