PokerStars on FanDuel is the latest poker site to go live in the US. Created as a partnership between PokerStars US and FanDuel, one of the largest gambling hubs in the country, it hit the ground running, launching with a big welcome bonus, a freeroll series, and now the Ignite Series, one of the largest online festivals we’ve seen in the regulated US online poker market.
In addition to a brand-new software platform and a revamped loyalty program, FanDuel Poker also seems set on rejuvenating the online tournament scene in the US. With two Sunday Million events to celebrate the launch and a big series to kick things off, the direction seems pretty clear.
With that in mind, we decided to take a deep dive into the operator’s overall tournament offering to see how it compares to other US poker sites. PokerStars on FanDuel is still fairly fresh, which means that their MTT schedule will develop further, but, as it stands, it is already coming up as one of the best options, especially for players looking to play more affordable events with solid guarantees.
- The biggest tourmamment series ever held in the USA
- $5 million guaranteed across 90 tournaments
- Available in Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania
- Claim $1000 welcome bonus available to all players!
FanDuel Poker’s Weekly MTTs
Let’s start at the top and look at the operator’s spread of weekly (non-weekend) tournaments. At a glance, there is a very solid selection of MTTs in a $5 – $50 buy-in range, with guarantees going from $3,000 all the way up to $20,000.
- $5 Daily Duel – $3,000 GTD
- $10 Bounty Builder – $3,000 GTD
- $20 Bounty Builder – $5,000 GTD
- $30 Afternoon Mystery – $5,000 GTD
- $50 Mini Super Tuesday – $15,000 GTD
- $50 Mini Thrill – $20,000 GTD (Thursdays)
- $30 Mini Friday Night Fight – $15,000 GTD
So, on its weekly schedule, FanDuel Poker offers a decent number of tournaments with low two-digit buy-ins and guarantees of 150 to 400 times the buy-in.
Comparing this schedule to other sites, WSOP Online takes the second spot but with fewer low buy-in tournaments with solid guarantees, like their $10 Mystery Bounty ($4k GTD) and $20 Mystery Bounty ($5k GTD). Players looking for bigger prize pools need to shell out larger buy-ins as well to play in tournaments like $109 Monday PKO 6-Max ($15k GTD) and $215 Daily ($15k GTD).
At BetMGM Poker, the best-value daily events belong to the operator’s Big Shots lineup, with some decent picks in the $50 buy-in scope, such as:
- $50 Monster Monday – $10,000 GTD
- $50 Tuesday 40-Stack PKO – $8,000 GTD
- $50 Thursday R+A – $8,000 GTD
- $50 Friday 40-Stack – $5,000 GTD
As you can see, there aren’t many five-figure guarantees in this buy-in bracket. For those numbers, you’ll need to go to the next level and play in events like $250 Tuesday Turbo ($25k GTD), $250 Wednesday NLH ($20k GTD), and $250 Thursday PKO ($25k GTD).
In summary, FanDuel Poker currently offers the best value for money in terms of guarantees, with a quality selection of daily tournaments under $50 with five-figure guarantees.
Weekend MTT Action at FanDuel on PokerStars
FanDuel Poker’s weekend schedule is still being built, and with the Ignite Series currently underway, it may take a little while before we know what a regular weekend will look like on the platform. That said, the operator confirmed there will be at least two majors moving forward:
- $100 Sunday Dynasty – $100,000 GTD
- $20 Sunday Shield – $20,000 GTD
In addition to these, The $30 Mini Battle Royal with $15,000 guaranteed should also be a part of the regular weekend schedule.
As it stands now, the Sunday offering isn’t that different from what other sites have in place, namely:
- BetMGM Poker $50 Sunday Mini Main – $15,000 GTD
- WSOP Online $200 Sunday Major – $100,000 GTD
- BetRivers Poker $100 Main Event – $17,500 GTD
However, FanDuel Poker once more stands out as a value offering, with its marquee Sunday event offering the same guarantee as the one on WSOP.com, but at half the price.
Sunday Shield, with a buy-in of $20 and a guarantee of $20,000, has the potential to become one of the must-play weekend tournaments. It features a very low buy-in for the US market, which means that the guarantee will often be exceeded, potentially by a lot.
It is also safe to assume once the big series is over, we’ll see more weekend MTTs added to the regular schedule, offering good value for money.
FanDuel Poker MTT Series
The last point of comparison is, of course, major tournament series. With FanDuel Poker being only a few weeks old, we don’t have much to go on here, but we can use the operator’s Ignite Series as a benchmark.
The PokerStars Ignite Series launched with 90 tournaments, offering a total guarantee of $5,000,000, and a wide spread of buy-ins, starting at just $12.50 and going all the way up to $1,000. The $300 Main Event has a massive guarantee of $500,000, and all tournaments have a guarantee of at least 200 buy-ins, with 300+ buy-ins being quite common across the board.
BetMGM’s recently-concluded Heart Online Championships featured $3,000,000 in prizes, with two marquee events: the $250 Sunday Main with $100k GTD and $1,000 Championship with $350k GTD. So, even combining the two largest events of the series, the total guarantee is lower than that of the Ignite Series Main at a cost four times lower.
WSOP Online regularly hosts its online circuit festivals, where the guarantee for the Main Event can go up to $250k with a buy-in of around $500. Other tournaments with low six-figure guarantees usually cost around $200 – $300.
Of course, Ignite Series is FanDuel Poker’s big moment as they enter the market, so it remains to be seen if this is something that will only happen once a year, or if we can look forward to series like this on a more regular basis.
So far, though, things are looking quite promising across the board for all fans of online MTT action.
