PartyPoker MILLIONS Online Set to Begin February 21
It is back. The PartyPoker MILLIONS Online debuted several years ago. It didn’t happen in 2020 because, well, coronavirus. PartyPoker became the go-to site for many tours that took their live events online because of pandemic-related cancellations and closures. PartyPoker hosted numerous World Poker Tour series, along with the Irish Poker Open, Super High Roller Bowl and Poker Masters.
PartyPoker did fit some of its own series in throughout the year, but it saved the PartyPoker MILLIONS Online for the beginning of 2021.
The tournament will kick off on February 21 and play through the final table on March 3. Multiple reentries, two starting days, and many satellites will give players the chance to get in on the $5 million guarantee.
MILLIONS Online 2021 Details
The Main Event of the MILLIONS Online will require a $5,300 buy-in and guarantee a prize pool of $5 million. There will be two starting days, and players will be able to reenter once if they choose.
Players will start with one million chips and blinds at 2,500/5K with a 625 ante. Levels will be 25 minutes long, and late registration will remain open on each of the starting days until the end of Level 9. Each starting day will play until only 15% of the field remains.
It should be noted that players will be required to use their real names.
–Sunday, February 21: $5,300 buy-in Main Event Day 1A
–Sunday, February 28: $5,300 buy-in Main Event Day 1B
–Monday, March 1: Main Event Day 2
–Tuesday, March 2: Main Event Day 3
–Wednesday, March 3: Main Event Final Table
Note that levels increase to 30 minutes each on Day 2 and 40 minutes each for the remainder of the tournament.
The #MILLIONSOnline Festival is coming in February 2021 with a $5m Guaranteed main event. 10 x $5,300 Main Event Seats GTD every Sunday with no direct buy in to the satellite final, qualify in via the $0.01, $5.50 and $55 satellite phases
See more at https://t.co/sWQb626Orv pic.twitter.com/BHM7WzP41o— PartyPoker (@partypoker) December 23, 2020
For those who can’t afford or don’t satellite into the Main Event, there will be a mini version with a $1,100 buy-in and $1 million guarantee. Players will receive one million starting chips in this one, along with 25-minute levels to start and late registration until the end of Level 9. This tournament will also allow one reentry and play its starting days down to 15% of the original field.
That event starts earlier in February and will play out as follows:
–Saturday, February 13: $1,100 buy-in Mini Main Event Day 1A
–Sunday, February 14: $1,100 buy-in Mini Main Event Day 1B
–Monday, February 15: Mini Main Event Day 2
–Tuesday, February 16: Mini Main Event Day 3
–Wednesday, February 17: Mini Main Event Final Table
Ways to Win Seats
There are satellites running for both of the events already on PartyPoker. There is no shortage of chances to get into one or both tournaments at a discount. They start at just $0.01.
PartyPoker will host massive satellites on January 24 and 31. There will be no direct buy-ins, as they are phased events that lead up to the big satellites. The Mini satellite will guarantee 20 seats for the $1,100 buy-in Mini Main, while the bigger satellite will promise 10 seats to the $5,300 buy-in Main Event.
Phase 1 action started this weekend, but Phase 2 events begin this week. Buy-ins to those events start at just $11 for the Mini Main and $55 for the Main Event.
https://twitter.com/partypokerlive/status/1350442791000805376?s=20
Keep the PartyPoker social media pages open for information on more qualifiers to the MILLIONS Online.
Massive 2018 and 2019 Fields
The two previous iterations of this tournament were substantially larger than this one is anticipated to be.
The 2018 inaugural MILLIONS Online ran from the end of November to the beginning of December that year. The $5,300 buy-in event allowed reentries and put a $20 million guarantee on the prize pool. When all was said and done, there were 4,367 entries to surpass that guarantee and create a prize pool of $21,385,000.
The top two finishers agreed to a payout deal, and when it all finished, Manuel Ruivo of the Netherlands won it for $2,329,944, just slightly more than Pim de Goede of Malta, who won $2,309,995.
In 2019, PartyPoker ran a follow-up MILLIONS Online in December. That one required a $10,300 buy-in but kept the $20 million guarantee. From four starting days, the final board showed 2,109 entries and a $21.09 million prize pool.
That one also ended with a deal, with Benjamin Chalot taking first place for $2,259,113 and “Lucio” finishing second for $2,222,511.
Why, you might ask, would this year’s guarantee be so much smaller?
The answer is market saturation. While online poker numbers skyrocketed during the pandemic, so did the tournament options. PokerStars increased its series options, and GGPoker substantially broadened its presence and offered almost constant tournament options. Therefore, the bright lights of the MILLIONS Online don’t draw players as they did in past years.
Is it still a good tournament with great value? Of course! PartyPoker simply had to adjust to the 2020 market conditions.
