PokerStars has paid out almost $10.8 million across the completed Stadium Series tournaments and there’s still another two weeks worth of events to go, including the $5 million guaranteed Main Event!
The first Weekly Finals crowned their champions on the evening of July 14. Brazil’s “BK AK 171” triumphed in the $5.50 Low edition, which attracted 22,379 entrants. The Brazilian came out on top and banked an impressive $15,401 for their $5.50 investment.
Argentina’s “McFadden92” was the $55 Medium champion. This event also attracted a five-figure crowd with 10,297 players creating a $514,850 prize pool. The Argentinian saw their $55 buy-in turn into a most impressive $69,030.
Mike “munchenHB” Telker took down the $530 High edition and added $157,004 to his lifetime winnings tally. You can read all about Telker’s superb victory in its own dedicated article.
The first six-figure prize of the Stadium Series went to Austria’s “klem90” who was the last man standing from the 1,597-strong field in the Stadium Series Heat 01-H: $530 NLHE 8-Max. The eight-handed final table was ridiculously stacked, with the likes of Niall “Firadlo87” Farrell and Thomas “WushuTM” Muehloecker present and correct.
Muehloecker eventually fell in second-place and secured an $87,252 prize, leaving klem90 to secure the $121,806 top prize.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | klem90 | Austria | $121,806 |
| 2 | Thomas “WushuTM” Muehloecker | Austria | $87,252 |
| 3 | Mastermandel | Austria | $62,500 |
| 4 | BirdUp4 | Netherlands | $44,770 |
| 5 | Tudor “tdr01” Cristian | Romania | $32,070 |
| 6 | Niall “Firadlo87” Farrell | United Kingdom | $22,972 |
| 7 | James “OP-Poker James” Mackenzie | United Kingdom | $16,456 |
| 8 | Luckbox1326 | Romania | $11,787 |
Read about Telker’s Massive Weekly Final Victory
Stadium Series Heat 02-H: $530 NLHE Progressive KO
Before taking down the high buy-in edition of the weekly final, Mike “munchenHB” Telker got his hands on the Stadium Series Heat 02-H: $530 NLHE Progressive KO title. Telker outlasted 1,258-opponents to bag the $41,416 top prize plus $37,664 worth of bounties for a combined score of $80,080.
Telker defeated Austria’s “Faboulus888” heads-up to secure the victory. The Austrian runner-up walked away with $53,048 when bounties were taken into consideration.
A special mention has to go to third-place finisher “KingKomeron” of Estonia who added $10,899 worth of bounties to the $25,903 main prize pool prize. Only Telker locked up more from the bounty prize pool.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize | Bounties | Total Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael “munchenHB” Telker | Costa Rica | $42,416 | $37,664 | $80,080 |
| 2 | Faboulus888 | Austria | $42,415 | $10,633 | $53,048 |
| 3 | KingKomeron | Estonia | $25,903 | $10,899 | $36,802 |
| 4 | mirel06 | Romania | $18,804 | $5,906 | $24,710 |
| 5 | Gratitude | Estonia | $13,651 | $8,386 | $22,037 |
| 6 | Jon “luckyfish89” Clark | United Kingdom | $9,910 | $6,613 | $16,523 |
| 7 | lcl1988 | China | $7,194 | $2,523 | $9,717 |
| 8 | copag holdem | Brazil | $5,223 | $1,109 | $6,332 |
| 9 | 777acenace777 | Canada | $3,791 | $5,125 | $8,916 |
Stadium Series Heat 06-H: $530 NLHE 8-Max Progressive KO
British superstars Conor “1_conor_b_1” Beresford became a Stadium Series champion by triumphing over 914-opponents in the Stadium Series Heat 06-H: $530 NLHE 8-Max Progressive KO event. Beresford’s victory weighed in at $38,604 plus an additional $28,017 worth of bounty payments for a combined score worth a cool $66,621.
All but one of the eight finalists padded their bankrolls with five-figure prizes, a superb return on a $530 investment. The champion aside, the biggest score went to Ukraine’s “MountainRo$e” who netted a combined $50,486 for their runner-up finish.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize | Bounties | Total Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Conor “1_conor_b_1” Beresford | United Kingdom | $38,604 | $28,017 | $66,621 |
| 2 | MountainRo$e | Ukraine | $38,603 | $11,883 | $50,486 |
| 3 | mahairong | China | $22,904 | $4,125 | $27,029 |
| 4 | addionutz | United Kingdom | $16,327 | $1,500 | $17,827 |
| 5 | Dachish | Russia | $11,638 | $6,059 | $17,697 |
| 6 | ludako123 | Bulgaria | $8,296 | $2,777 | $11,073 |
| 7 | corresao | Argentina | $5,913 | $1,421 | $7,334 |
| 8 | Chrobson | Poland | $4,215 | $7,966 | $12,181 |
Stadium Series Heat 09-H: $1,050 NLHE
The Stadium Series Heat 09-H: $1,050 NLHE event attracted a 515-strong field and ended in a four-way deal that saw the final quartet share almost $250,000!
Francisco “Tomatee” Benitez finished in fourth-place and won $54,919 before Russia’s “needdollarz” fell in third and banked $72,572, which was the largest prize awarded. Heads-up pitted Matas “NoTilit” Cikinas and “BC1989RF” of Hungary in a one-on-one battle. The latter emerged victoriously and got their hands on $61,295, leaving Cikinas to collect $60,600.
Earlier at the the final table, Marty “TheLipoFund” Mathis saw his tournament end in eighth-place, a finish worth $12,233 while Team PokerStars Pro and Twitch legend Lex “L. Veldhuis” Veldhuis finished in sixth-place for a $21,712 addition to his bankroll.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BC1989RF | Hungary | $61,295* |
| 2 | Matas “NoTilit” Cikinas | Lithuania | $60,600* |
| 3 | needdollarz | Russia | $72,572* |
| 4 | Francisco “Tomatee” Benitez | Uruguay | $54,919* |
| 5 | RPILON | Canada | $28,925 |
| 6 | Lex. L. Veldhuis” Veldhuis | Netherlands | $21,712 |
| 7 | Juan Manuel “proggrezive” Copani | Argentina | $16,297 |
| 8 | Marty “TheLipoFund” Mathis | Mexico | $12,233 |
| 9 | BRzRoll | Netherlands | $9,182 |
*reflects a four-handed deal
The Stadium Series Grand Final Has $5M Gtd
Stadium Series Heat 10-H: $1,050 NLHE 6-Max Progressive KO
PKO events are action-packed at the best of times but go crazy when play is at six-handed tables. This was the format for the Stadium Series Heat 10-H: $1,050 NLHE 6-Max Progressive KO which drew in a 443-strong crowd who played for a share of $500,000.
Any of the six finalists would have made a worthy champion, but only one of them could claim that title, as is tournament poker’s nature. That person was UK-based Spaniard Javier “que_te_crio” Fernandez Alonso who defeated Diego “Mr.Bittar” Valadares Bittar heads-up. Alonso collected a combined $87,696 with Bittar scooping $55,305.
Before that heads-up clash, “Aleks Better” and “Those_Bros” fell in sixth and fifth-place respectively. Claas “SsicK_OnE” Segebrecht was the fourth-place finish while Nathan “SneakyBeakyL” Schmitt collected the $32,548 third-place prize.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize | Bounties | Total Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Javier “que_te_crio” Fernandez Alonso | United Kingdom | $42,702 | $44,994 | $87,696 |
| 2 | Diego “Mr.Bittar” Valadares Bittar | Brazil | $42,702 | $12,603 | $55,305 |
| 3 | Nathan “SneakyBeakyL” Schmitt | Austria | $25,627 | $6,921 | $32,548 |
| 4 | Claas “SsicK_OnE” Segebrecht | Austria | $18,400 | $6,437 | $24,837 |
| 5 | Those_Bros | Canada | $13,211 | $2,843 | $16,054 |
| 6 | Aleks Better | Russia | $9,485 | $4,062 | $13,547 |
We’re Live Reporting the Stadium Series Weekly Finals here
How To Get Involved in the Stadium Series
Stadium Series tournaments run every day and continue to do so up until August 2. Head to the PokerStars tournament lobby and buy in now if you have the bankroll for those events. If you don’t have the bankroll for the bigger events, or you simply want to save yourself some cash, there are plenty of other routes into the biggest Stadium Series games.
The Stadium Series Heats are the daily tournaments. The top finishers in these tournaments receive a free ticket to the coveted weekly Stadium Series Sunday Finals. Reach the final tables of these finals and PokerStars gifts you a $5,200 ticket to the Grand Final where you’ll play for a share of a guaranteed $5 million.
Spin & Go specialists can try their luck in the special edition Spin & Go’s. These come with buy-ins of $4 and $22 and award a mixture of cash and Stadium Series tournament tickets.
Don’t forget you can also complete the Stadium Series Trials via the Challenges Window of your PokerStars account. Start the challenge then play real money multi-table tournaments. You earn one leaderboard point for every $1 spent on tournament buy-ins. Finish in the top 25 of the leaderboard when the promotion ends on August 1 and a $5,200 Grand Final ticket is all yours. Finish in 26-125th place and bank a free Stadium Series Fast track Final ticket worth a cool $1,050.
Last, but certainly not least, is the Stadium Series Fast Track program. These are a series of sit & go and MTT tournaments where you can buy into at any stage, but only Stage 4 awards Grand Final tickets.
- Step 1: $1 Sit & Go Tournament (12 players)
- Step 2: $11 Sit & Go Tournament (21 players)
- Step 3: $109 MTT Tournament
- Step 4: $1,050 MTT Tournament
Keep an eye on your email inbox and in the PokerStars lobby for the many planned giveaways. PokerNews has learned PokerStars is giving away more than $2.5 million in Stadium Series tickets and by adding some serious value via other giveaways to make it possible for every player to have a shot at Stadium Series glory.