BetOnline King of the Ring Series: $1M GTD March 2 - 9

BetOnline and the rest of the Chico Poker Network are hosting a King of the Ring Progressive Knockout Series from March 2 through 9. There's $1 million in guaranteed prizes in this series over the course of 106 events one of which has $250,000 guaranteed.

About the King of the Ring Series

The King of the Ring Series consists of 106 PKO series events from Sunday, March 2 to Sunday, March 9. There are 13 MTTs per day with the exception of the first day of the series, which has 15. The buyins range from $5.50 to $530. Series events are not numbered, but they're easy to identify in the lobby because they have a silver nameplate with “KOTR” at the beginning of the name of each series MTT.

The times at which the tourneys begin are spread throughout the day with the earliest starting at 12:30 a.m. ET followed by a break until 9:30 a.m. Then the tourneys run until 9:30 p.m. with another break until 12:30 the following morning.

Though the majority of tournaments feature No Limit Texas Hold'em gameplay, there are 15 PLO/8 events as well as a single 5 Card PLO tournament. All events are in Progressive Knockout format.

There's little in the way of variety of formats in the KOTR series although there are a few differences in structures with turbos, 7-max and 6-max events present. There are no rebuys or add-ons permitted although one can re-enter any tournament for a maximum of up to 10 entries. It's clear that this series doesn't attempt to cater to everyone but rather to those who especially appreciate Progressive Knockouts, which we describe in detail below.

Progressive Knockout Format

The PKO, or Progressive Knockout, format is an increasingly popular wrinkle on the tried-and-true bounty tournaments that have existed for decades. Just like in a normal bounty event, players receive a payout every time they knock an adversary out of the game. In addition, there's a regular prize pool that pays out to the top finishers like in a non-bounty tourney. Generally speaking, half of the buyin goes toward the bounty pool, and the other half contributes toward the normal prize pool

Where PKOs differ from standard knockouts is that each individual who eliminates another doesn't receive the full bounty payout. Rather, they get half of the bounty with the other half transferred over to their own head. This makes for excitement later on in the tourney where the bounties can reach 10 times the buyin amount or even more depending on how many competitors a player has knocked out over the course of the event.

Notable Events

Because the tournaments in the King of the Ring Series occur at widely separated times of day, there's almost certainly something each day that will fit within your schedule. However, for the exact same reason, you're unlikely to be able to participate in every series event. Therefore, we've taken the liberty of highlighting some of the most interesting ones below so that you can get a few ideas on the events for which you may wish to free up some time.

Sunday, March 2, 1:30 p.m. ET; $215 KOTR $250,000 GTD
While most series save the bigger events toward the end of the schedule, the KOTR does things differently by putting the largest guarantee on the first day. The buyin of $215 is a bit pricey but should still be affordable if you designate this as one of the few KOTR tourneys you play.

Sunday, March 2, 7:00 p.m. ET; $109 KOTR $50K GTD Showdown
Those who don't want to fork over $215 earlier in the day can wait a few hours and participate in the $50,000 Guaranteed instead for just $109. Still, the guarantee is a respectable $50,000, so the prizes should still be worth contending for.

Sunday, March 9, 12:30 p.m. ET; $11 KOTR $3,000 GTD PLO/8
KOTR is definitely focused on NLHE, but there are a few opportunities for fans of four-card poker. The $3,000 guarantee attached to this event makes it the largest PLO tournament on the roster, and the $11 buyin makes it affordable enough for almost everyone.

Sunday, March 9, 5:30 p.m. ET; $530 KOTR $100,000 Guaranteed
The largest-buyin event on the roster, this one is geared toward the high rollers. The small expected field means it shouldn't take too long to complete, and with starting bounties of $250, you might find yourself angling to score four-figure bounty payments before the tournament is over.

Leaderboards Await

BetOnline has divided the KOTR series events into three “weight classes” based on buyin amount: Heavyweight (buyins $100+), Middleweight ($22 - $55 buyins), and Lightweight ($5.50 - $11 buyins). Each weight class has its own leaderboard where points are awarded for each opponent eliminated from the tournament.

The Heavyweight leaderboard pays out a total of $3,500, and this same amount will be distributed to the Middleweight leaderboard winners as well. The Lightweight leaderboard will meanwhile award a total of $3,000. The payouts will be in the form of Tournament Tickets or Tournament Money. The distribution of prize money has not yet been announced, but last year's series awarded the top 35 individuals on each leaderboard.

Step Into the Ring

If you don't already have an account at BetOnline or one of the other Chico Poker Network sites, then it will be impossible for you to participate in the King of the Ring Series or any of the other promos hosted by this network. To sign up at BetOnline and redeem a 100% up to $1,000 poker bonus, press the button below:

Or if you want to learn more about the site first, check out this comprehensive BetOnline review. PRB has also prepared reviews of two other CPN poker rooms: SB Poker and TigerGaming (non-US).

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