PSPC 2021 in Barcelona: How Platinum Passes Were Awarded in 2020, and What Might Come This Year

2021 Update: PokerStars suspended the PSPC 2020 in Barcelona due to the coronavirus pandemic. The operator is hoping to run the tournament this year, though has announced no schedule to date.

We will update this FAQ when more information comes in. The FAQ below we leave for historical purposes, but some of the information is outdated.

What is the PSPC?

The PSPC (PokerStars Players No Limit Hold’em Championship) is a high stakes poker tournament where hundreds of amateur players are able to win entry (via the coveted Platinum Pass) and compete with professional poker players for life-changing money. The PSPC has quickly become one of the most popular events in poker. Returning in August 2020, the second edition of the PSPC is taking place in sunny Barcelona, Spain.

What is a Platinum Pass and What Does it Include?

PokerStars is once again providing various opportunities for players to win Platinum Passes, the gateway into the PSPC for free, via various routes including both live stops and online promotions. Each Platinum Pass is worth over €26,000 (approximately $30,000) and includes:

• Entry to the €22,500 PSPC 2020 event
• Six nights’ accommodation for two in a five-star hotel
• Airport transfers
• PSPC merchandise
• €1,250 expenses
• Various exclusive Platinum Pass winner experiences during the event*

There are various ways you could win a Platinum Pass and a chance to become the next Ramon Colillas. We will be updating this page frequently to reflect all of the ways to win a Platinum Pass, so bookmark this page and check back often.

How Can I Win a Platinum Pass to the 2020 PSPC?

PokerStars hosts a number of ways that people can win a Platinum Pass and gain entry into PSPC 2020. We will update this page periodically with the latest Platinum Pass competition information.

Spin & Go 10 Leader Boards

PokerStars is running a special Spin & Go leaderboard offering players a chance to win a share of $8000 daily prize pool.

All players have to do is go to the challenges window found in the main lobby and opt-in for the Spin & Go 10 leaderboard challenge. Once they opt-in, players must play 10 Spin & Go’s of the same leaderboard tier in a day.

Players then earn points for their finish position. The higher the finish position, the bigger the points they are awarded.

Each stake has its own leaderboard and each of them awards the top 50 places except for the high stakes leaderboard that pays the top 20 places. Players can win a minimum of $5 and up to $1000. Players also earn an entry into a $10,000 Freeroll.

In addition to the cash prizes, PokerStars is also offering a coveted Platinum Pass. However, to be able to win the Pass, you must be the first player to reach the highest score throughout the promotion.

Here are the main points:

• Players must opt-in to the Spin & Go Leaderboard challenge
• Play 10 Spin & Gos
• Player with the highest score throughout the promotion wins a Platinum Pass worth $30,000
• Players also compete for a daily prize pool of $8000
• The promotion runs until March 30.

What PokerStars Live 2020 Events are Awarding a Platinum Pass?

PokerStars has confirmed that a number of their live events taking place in 2020 will be giving participants a chance to win a Platinum Pass to the PSPC.

These events are peppered across the globe from Brazil to the Philippines, as well as European countries including France, Spain, Russia, and Monaco (Monte Carlo).

At least nine events are scheduled in France and Spain as part of the popular Road to PSPC campaign, with each of these stops giving away two Platinum Passes.

There will be three stops running under the European Poker Tour (EPT) brand, taking place in Sochi, Russia from March 20 — 29 where one Platinum Pass will be handed out. The tour will then move to Monte Carlo in late April, also giving away one Platinum Pass.

PokerStars, which sponsors the popular South American tour, the Brazilian Series of Poker (BSOP) will hand out one Platinum Pass during BSOP Brasilia in January-February, two during BSOP Sao Paulo in March and once again during BSOP Winter Millions Sao Paulo in July.

Two Platinum Passes will also be up for grabs in Manila, with one to be given away at Red Dragon Manila taking place in January and at Manila Megastack series in May.

Online qualifiers for a majority of these live events will run at PokerStars online poker client, giving players the opportunity a chance to qualify for these events and ultimately win the Platinum Pass for much low price, with some even offering satellites for free.

Platinum Passes 2020 PokerStars Live Events

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Past PSPC Competitions

PSPC Mega Path

• When: Every Sunday
• Where: Online at PokerStars
• Event Buy-in: $2 or qualify for free by winning a special Stars Rewards Spin & Go

We think Mega Path offers the best shot at winning a Platinum Pass.

The Mega Path qualifier has four steps to win a $30,000 package, starting with a Stars Rewards Spin & Go ticket or Sit & Gos costing just $2.

How can you win a Platinum Pass via Mega Path Qualifiers? All you have to do is qualify for a Step 4 tournament and take down that event.

• Step 1 Stars Rewards Spin & Go (Entry – Ticket Only and Always Running)
• Step 2 Sit & Go (Entry — Pay $2 or Win Step 1; Always Running)
• Step 3 MTT (Entry — Win Step 2; Runs Every Sunday at 13:00 ET)
• Step 4 PSPC Qualifier (Entry — Win Step 3; Runs Every Sunday at 15:30 ET; Awards One Platinum Pass)

The first step is basically free of cost as players can earn Step 1 tickets by opening Stars Rewards chests. Upon completing Step 1, they move to Step 2 which is a Sit & Go. Alternatively, players can enter into Step 2 directly by paying the $2 buy-in. These Sit & Gos are winner-take-all where only one out of 27 players make it to Step 3.

Step 3 is played every Sunday and guarantees 15 seats to the final Step of the Mega Path also played on Sunday. The winner of Step 4 tournament is awarded a Platinum Pass package.

To give you an idea of how great your chances are of qualifying via Mega Path, the first three Mega Path PSPC qualifiers had only 19, 25 and 20 entrants respectively causing big overlays.

A similar promotion is also being run in PokerStars French and Spanish markets.

PSPC Mega Path India

• When: A PSPC Platinum Pass worth approximately ~₹21 Lacs is guaranteed to be won on December 22
• Where: Online at PokerStars.IN
• Event Buy-in: ₹50 or use a First Deposit Bonus ticket

The Mega Path provides players in India with their best chance of winning a Platinum Pass. Similar to the Mega Path running on the .COM site, the .IN version is a series of steps.

In the India version, players can buy in to any level, including the Final.

• Step 1 Sit & Go (First Deposit Bonus ticket or ₹50)
• Step 2a Sit & Go (Entry — Pay ₹200 or Win Step 1)
• Step 2b MTT Freeroll with ₹50 R&A (Twice Daily)
• Step 3 MTT (Entry — ₹1100 or Win Step 2; Runs twice a week)
• Step 4 PSPC Qualifier MTT (Entry — ₹11,000 0r Win Step 3; Runs December 22; Awards One Platinum Pass)

Join PokerStars now for your chance to win a Platinum Pass to PSPC 2020

Moneymaker’s Road to PSPC Tour

• When: October — February 2020
• Where: Various stops including the UK, USA, Russia, Canada, Ireland, and beyond
• Event Buy-ins: Between $150 – $200
• How: Win the Event

The Moneymaker Tour returns and this time the tour goes international.

Chris Moneymaker, PokerStars team ambassador and WSOP Main Event 2003 winner, has announced that not only will there be more events this year, but the Moneymaker PSPC Tour will also be venturing beyond the US for the first time with stops planned in various countries including UK, Russia, Canada, Ireland and more.

Each stop will be handing out Platinum Passes to the winner of the Main Event. At least eight Passes will be given away in the next three months and there could be more stops announced later.

The first Moneymaker’s Road to PSPC stop is in Sochi, Russia in October as part of the European Poker Tour (EPT) Open Sochi. The Platinum Pass will be given away to the winner of the Moneymaker Road to PSPC Sochi event that takes place at Casino Sochi from October 11-13. The buy-in for this event is RUB10,500 (approx. $166).

Top Pair Poker Tourney for Breast Cancer

A Platinum Pass will be up for grabs at a charity poker tournament in Toronto, Canada.

The tournament takes place Saturday, February 8 at The Warehouse at Downsview Park at 2-35 Carl Hall Road in Toronto. The buy-in is $180 when purchased in advance and $225 at the door. The event will also allow rebuys and an add-on.

Chris Moneymaker will be in attendance.

Proceeds will benefit the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation.

PokerStars Cancels Moneymaker’s Road to PSPC Stones Gambling Hall Stop

The popular Moneymaker’s Road to PSPC was scheduled to give away a Platinum Pass at Stones Gambling Hall in January, but that stop of the tour has been cancelled “while Stones completes a review and analysis of its broadcasting and streaming operations,” according to a PokerStars rep.

We have updated the table below. Check back often to see new additions to the Moneymaker’s Road to PSPC Tour.

Akkari’s Road to PSPC

• How: Win the Event
• When: December 3 — 5
• Where: Live at the BSOP festival at the WTC Sheraton Golden Hall, Sao Paul, Brazil
• Event Buy-in: R$ 350 (approx $87)

PokerStars has revealed yet another new route for players to secure their seats to the PSPC 2020.

Andre Akkari, PokerStars Team Pro will be heading a new stop called “Akkari’s Road to PSPC” as part of Moneymaker’s Road to PSPC.

The event will be held at the Brazil Series of Poker Millions (BSOP) festival at the WTC Sheraton Golden Hall, Sao Paulo in the first week of December.

Akkari will personally hand out a Platinum Pass worth $30,000 to the winner of the tournament that has a buy-in of just R$ 350 which is equivalent to $87. The tournament features a R$ 1 million guaranteed prize pool and it will be held from December 3 to 5.

Along with Akkari, Chris Moneymaker and Bruce Buffer, the official Octagon UFC announcer, will also be present at the festival.

Three direct satellites will run on PokerStars on three Sundays ahead of the event. They are scheduled to take place on November 10, 17 and 24.

Each of these satellites will cost just $3.30 and each will award a seat to Akkari’s Road to PSPC event.

Heroes for Heroes

• When: November 17, 2019 – 5pm
• Where: AVALON Hollywood, 1735 Vine Street Los Angeles, CA 90028
• Event Buy-in: $350
• How: Win the Event

The Los Angeles Police Memorial Foundation is hosting a Celebrity Poker Tournament and they have a Platinum Pass to give away!

With more than 50 celebrities in attendance from the world of TV, film, music and sports, this will surely be a high-profile event and organizers have secured a high profile prize, a Platinum Pass to the 2020 PSPC.

The buy-in not only gets you a shot at a Platinum Pass and the ability to rub nubs with top celebrities, it also includes entry to the spectacular party, and the proceeds go to benefit widows and orphans of Officers killed in the line of duty.

According to the foundation, “past celebrity supporters include: Jack Nicholson, Jerry West, Wayne Gretzky, Mark Wahlberg, Elton John, Sugar Ray Leonard, Vin Scully, Dennis Quaid, Don Cheadle, Kelsey Grammer, Eddie Van Halen, Samuel L. Jackson, Richard Dreyfuss, Chris O’Donnell, George Lopez, Tommy Lasorda, Larry King, Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Oscar de la Hoya, Rihanna, Ray Romano, Betty White, Andy Garcia, Luke Wilson, Gene Simmons, Marlon Wayans, Backstreet Boys, Paula Abdul, David Hasselhoff, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Bob Newhart, Telly Savalas, Johnny Grant, James Gandolfini and many more.”

For information on how to enter this event, you can call 213.847.4240 or purchase entry online here.

Platinum Pass Experience UK/Ireland

• How: Win one of eight qualifying tournaments
• When: September 28 — October 20
• Where: Online at PokerStars
• Event Buy-in: £5 (with re-entries allowed), and daily feeder satellites from just £0.50

Players in the UK and Ireland are the beneficiaries of PokerStars’ latest PSPC 2020 promotion.

The Platinum Pass Experience brings its giveaway to the Moneymaker Road to the PSPC at Asper’s Casino in London on November 9th.

The winners of the eight online qualifiers that make up this promotion will win:

• A £2,200 package to the London Moneymaker Tour stop
• Two nights in a London hotel
• 2 nights hotel accommodations for you and a guest
• Special activities for you and your guest

£2,000 will be added to the prizepool (with the each winner pocketing £200 in spending money) and the 8 finalists will play a single table sit and go for a chance to win a share of the £16K prizepool and a Platinum Pass.

In addition, the Final Table will be live-streamed live Twitch.

The qualifiers have a £5 entry fee (with re-entries allowed), and daily feeder satellites are running from just £0.50. To find the qualifiers, look for ‘Experience’ in the PokerStars client.

IPO Nova Gorica

• When: October 10 — 15
• Where: Live at Perla Resort Nova Gorica, Slovenia
• Event Buy-in: €550
• How: Last longer contest

Scheduled to take place from October 10 to 15, the Italian Poker Open (IPO) visits neighboring Slovenia where another Platinum Pass worth $30,000 is set to be given away at the Main Event. The Main Event has a buy-in of €490+€60 and has four Day 1 flights taking place from October 10 to 12.

The Platinum Pass will be awarded via a special last longer contest. To be eligible for the Platinum Pass, players must register online by visiting IPO’s website. The player who lasts the longest in the Main Event will win the Pass.

More details of the live event can be found here

Road to PSPC Namur

• When: September 23 — 29
• Where: Live at Grand Casino de Namur, Belgium
• Event Buy-in: €175 buy-in Main Event
• How: Crazy Pineapple hand

This will be PokerStars’ first live stop that will be giving out a coveted Platinum Pass to PSPC 2020.

The Platinum Pass will be given away at the €175 buy-in Main Event through a special drawing scheduled to take place at the start of Day 2 on Saturday, September 28.

Players can accumulate multiple tickets to the drawing in three different ways:

• Get 1 ticket just for playing the Namur Main Event
• Get 1 ticket for each entry to an online satellite for the Namur Main Event
• Get 1 ticket for playing Day 1 of the Namur Main Event online.

Qualifiers start at just €0.50.

According to the PokerStars blog, eight players will be picked to play out one hand of Crazy Pineapple that will be broadcast on the livestream. The winner of that hand will win a Platinum Pass.

More details about the live event can be found here

Campeonato España de Poker (CEP)

• Events: CEP Marbella and CEP Peralada
• When: October 23 — 27 and November 27 — December 1
• Where: Casino Marbella and Casino Peralada in Spain
• Event Buy-ins: €500
• How: Crazy Pineapple Hand

Two more Platinum Passes will be given away to qualifiers of the PokerStars sponsored Campeonato España de Poker (CEP) tour stops in Marbella and Peralada. Both will take place in Spain toward the latter part of the year.

CEP Marbella takes place from October 23 to 27 and CEP Peralada plays out between November 27 and December 1.

Instead of handing out Platinum Passes to the winners of the Main Events, this time around, PokerStars will award passes to someone who has qualified to play in the Marbella event and the Peralada event. Players who make it to Day 2 will be entered into a random draw. Those chosen will take part in a Crazy Pineapple hand which will determine the winner.

Both the Main Events have a buy-in of €460+€40. Players can qualify for these events online at PokerStars.ES.

Ramon Colillas, winner of the inaugural PSPC and now a PokerStars ambassador, will be in attendance at both Marbella and Peralada, giving away passes to the lucky winners. Colillas earned his Platinum Pass last year after topping the CEP leaderboard.

PokerStars Twitch Platinum Pass Giveaway Contest

PokerStars recently added a new feature on its online poker platform that lets players connect their PokerStars and Twitch accounts.

To celebrate the launch of the in-client Twitch integration feature, PokerStars is running a contest offering its players exclusive giveaways including two Platinum Passes.

There are three criteria that participants must complete by December 21 for a chance to win a Platinum Pass in this new Twitch-related promotion. Those three criteria are:

• Link their Twitch and PokerStars account
• Watch PokerStars’ official Twitch channel for 24 hours
• Stream themselves playing on PokerStars for at least 10 hours

The first step is quite easy. All players have to do is:

• Go to the settings menu in the PokerStars client
• Select “Account Details”
• Click on “Connected Accounts”
• And finally, select the “Connect” button located right below the Twitch logo.

Players will be asked to log in to their Twitch.tv credentials and they will need to click “Authorize.”

The linking process can be completed from the PokerStars desktop software, on the PokerStars website, or in the PokerStars mobile apps.

Once these criteria are met, PokerStars Twitch ambassadors Georgina “GJ Reggie” James and Mason “PyeFace” Pye will select one winner each that they liked the most based on three success factors: innovation, entertainment value, and quality of production.

The two winners will be announced on December 23.

The Platinum Pass giveaway promotion is open to all players with access to real-money accounts, including players from New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Although PokerStars/Twitch account linking is currently unavailable on the .PA and .NJ clients, they can still do so via play-money dot-NET client.