Everyone has their holiday traditions, and PokerStars is no different — since 2007, the Rad Spade has been throwing a huge European Poker Tour (EPT) Christmas party in Prague to end the year. For the 2023 edition, festivities began on December 6 and will run through December 17 for 12 days of sizzling poker action amid the magical Christmas festivities of Prague in the Czech Republic.
Some families have a special meal; others only open presents on Christmas Eve. The PokerStars LIVE family meets up at EPT Prague for a couple of weeks of poker fun with the sideshow of some of Europe’s best holiday markets and events within reach. Not only do players get some of the best Christmas charms in Europe, but poker is record-breaking year after year.
This year follows a huge 2022 series that saw €6 million crushed in the Main Event with over 1,250 entries and almost 1,000 unique players. That was a record-breaking performance, but records and EPT Prague have tended to go together over the years. In 2022, the festival awarded more than €25 million in prizes and had the most entries of any EPT Main Event in history.
This year, the holiday fun promises to be just as hot. There are 65 games over the 12 days of PokerStars Christmas in Prague. See below for some added details.
PokerStars EPT Prague 2023: Details
| Events: | 65 |
| Dates: | Dec 06 – Dec 17 |
| Days: | 12 |
| Buy-In Range: | €250 – €10,200 |
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Twelve Days of PokerStars Holidays at EPT Prague
Traditions are an integral part of the holidays, and for poker players, one of the biggest holiday traditions is December in Prague. Since 2007, with only brief lapses during the COVID shutdown, the Red Spade has returned to the picturesque Czech city every year for a winter poker festival for the ages.
From the beginning, Prague was a jewel in the EPT crown, with one of the biggest Main Event prize pools on the EPT in Season 4 in its inaugural running. Since then, EPT Prague has become a year-end favorite for players looking for the best poker in the world and more.
There is plenty of poker to keep players who make the trip happy. The first day of PokerStars festivities features the first shot at the Eureka Main Event, and the €1100 regional tour event promises to be one of the biggest fields of the whole festival.
Not only does the Eureka Main feature 6 starting days to pack the field but in past EPT festivals that included Eureka games, the Main Event grew to eye-watering numbers. In 2022, for example, more than 4000 entries built a prize pool of over €3.85 million.
Following on the Eureka Main, the regional tour kicks off the €550 Eureka Cup on December 9. With more than 2300 runners in last year’s edition, the Cup could easily break €1 million in prizes this year after the 2022 total nearly hit €900k.
The €5300 EPT Main Event is the marquee game, of course, and players can take their first crack at it starting on December 11. There are two Day 1 flights on Monday and Tuesday, and Day 2 will kick off on Wednesday, December 13. Players can register until the start of Day 2, with entries closing at noon local time on December 13.
Between all the spotlight events is a solid poker schedule, including Mystery Bounty Poker Tournaments, High Rollers, Women, Seniors, and mixed game tournaments like 8-Game and HORSE. There is almost certainly a present under the EPT Prague tree for every poker player at this version of the twelve days of Christmas. See the full schedule at PokerStars and check out some of the non-poker activities on offer on the blog.
Get a Taste of EPT Prague from Home
Not everyone can make it to Prague for Christmas, but PokerStars wants to include as many players as possible in the Prague experience, so the operator is running the Mini EPT Prague Online Series during the final week of the live series.
Games run from December 12 – 17 with $40k in added value to an already juicy series. In addition to the huge guarantees, both editions of the Main Event will include a Gold Power Pass added to the prizes, and there are six bits of Silver from the Power Path sprinkled in as well.
Mini EPT Prague Online Series: Details
| Events: | 18 |
| Dates: | Dec 12 – 17 |
| Buy-In Range: | $1.10 – $55 |
| Max Gty: | $125,000 |
| Total Gtd: | $418,500 |
| Series Value ($GTD/$BI): | $1,943.80 |
The Mini EPT Prague Online Series includes massive value games, with the $55 Mini EPT Main Event – H guaranteeing at least $125k. That event is not even the best value game, though — in fact, it does not even make the top five for the series.
The top-value game is branded as a Main Event, but the $5.50 Mini EPT Main Event – L with $50k guaranteed has the most value as measured by the dollars guaranteed for every dollar of buy-in. The mini version of the Main Event has nearly three times more value than the next best game.
2023 Mini EPT Prague Online Best Value Games
| Date | Start Time (ET) | Name | Buy-in | Guarantee | Value ($GTD/$BI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17-Dec | 12:15 | Mini EPT Main Event – L | $5.50 | $50,000 | $9,090.91 |
| 12-Dec | 9:15 | Deep Stack, 3 Re-entry | $11 | $35,000 | $3,181.82 |
| 13-Dec | 12:15 | PKO Turbo 3 Re-entry | $5.50 | $15,000 | $2,727.27 |
| 17-Dec | 9:15 | 6-Max, Turbo | $3.30 | $9,000 | $2,727.27 |
| 13-Dec | 9:15 | Deep Stack, Single Re-entry | $3.30 | $8,000 | $2,424.24 |
The Twelve Days of Christmas is a bit of a cliché this time of year, but EPT Prague lives up to the name for all poker fans. Whether you are in Prague or at home this holiday season, PokerStars is looking to add a little extra cheer.
2023 Mini EPT Prague Online Series Schedule
| Date | Start Time (ET) | Name | Buy-in | Guarantee | Value ($GTD/$BI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12-Dec | 9:15 | Deep Stack, 3 Re-entry | $11 | $35,000 | $3,181.82 |
| 12-Dec | 12:15 | NLHE – Unlimited Re-Entry | $25 | $40,000 | $1,600.00 |
| 12-Dec | 14:15 | Hyper Freezeout | $1.10 | $2,000 | $1,818.18 |
| 13-Dec | 9:15 | Deep Stack, Single Re-entry | $3.30 | $8,000 | $2,424.24 |
| 13-Dec | 12:15 | PKO Turbo 3 Re-entry | $5.50 | $15,000 | $2,727.27 |
| 13-Dec | 14:15 | HORSE | $2.20 | $1,000 | $454.55 |
| 14-Dec | 9:15 | NLHE -3 Re-entry | $22 | $35,000 | $1,590.91 |
| 14-Dec | 12:15 | High Roller | $55 | $50,000 | $909.09 |
| 14-Dec | 14:15 | Hyper PKO | $1.10 | $2,000 | $1,818.18 |
| 15-Dec | 9:15 | Deepstack, Unlimited Re-entry | $2.20 | $4,000 | $1,818.18 |
| 15-Dec | 12:15 | NLHE Freezeout | $3.30 | $7,500 | $2,272.73 |
| 15-Dec | 14:15 | Hyper | $5.50 | $10,000 | $1,818.18 |
| 16-Dec | 9:15 | PLO | $1.10 | $1,000 | $909.09 |
| 16-Dec | 12:15 | 9-Max PKO | $11 | $20,000 | $1,818.18 |
| 16-Dec | 14:15 | Hyper PKO | $2.20 | $4,000 | $1,818.18 |
| 17-Dec | 9:15 | 6-Max, Turbo | $3.30 | $9,000 | $2,727.27 |
| 17-Dec | 12:15 | Mini EPT Main Event – L | $5.50 | $50,000 | $9,090.91 |
| 17-Dec | 14:15 | Mini EPT Main Event – H | $55 | $125,000 | $2,272.73 |
