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$5 Ocean KO Becomes Largest Poker Tournament by Entries

1 hour ago

Mrinal Gujare 1 hour ago

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GGPoker’s $5 Ocean KO Opener attracted a record 420,084 entries, surpassing PokerStars’ previous best.
The tournament generated a prize pool exceeding $1.9 million, with over $1.05 million in progressive knockout bounties.
Its jackpot-style PKO format has sparked debate over the role of random multipliers in online poker tournaments.

GGPoker’s $5 Ocean KO Opener attracted 420,084 entries, breaking PokerStars’ previous record. The tournament generated over $1.9 million in prizes, including a $43,938 first-place award. Its jackpot-style progressive knockout format has also drawn criticism over random bounty multipliers.

GGPoker’s $5 Ocean KO Opener has set a record for the largest poker tournament by entry count, attracting 420,084 entries and surpassing PokerStars’ previous record of 253,692 entries from October 2015.

The tournament exceeded its $1 million guarantee, generating a prize pool of more than $1.9 million. At least 24,134 players advanced to Day 2, scheduled for Monday.

PokerStars previously held the record with its October 2015 Common Cents tournament, which attracted 253,692 participants.

Austrian-based player Simon "DaDumon" Grabenschweiger won the event, turning a one-cent entry into $10,000.

GGPoker’s Ocean KO Opener has surpassed that benchmark with 420,084 entries across dozens of starting flights, making it the largest poker tournament recorded by entry count.

The record-setting event features a first-place prize of $43,938 and total bounties exceeding $1.050 million. Its overall prize pool stands above $1.9 million.

The tournament uses a Progressive Knockout (PKO) format, rewarding players for eliminating opponents. Ocean KO events also feature random jackpot multipliers of up to 400x, which can substantially increase individual bounty payouts.

A 400x multiplier in the current tournament could turn a knockout into a six-figure or seven-figure bounty payout.

Despite its record field, the format has attracted criticism online. Some players argue that random multipliers of up to 400x make online poker resemble a lottery rather than a traditional tournament.

GGPoker’s Ocean KO tournaments are a recent addition to its schedule, while Winamax already offers a similar format through its Space KO tournaments.

Last month, Winamax player "oldepaso68" won a record €838,000 bounty from a single knockout in a €100 Space KO tournament. The player subsequently collected €922,104 in bounties and finished with total winnings of €927,783.

The tournament’s regular first-place prize was worth just over €5,000. The result highlights the potential scale of jackpot-style bounty payouts compared with standard tournament prizes.

With 420,084 entries, a $5 buy-in and a prize pool exceeding $1.9 million, the Ocean KO Opener has surpassed PokerStars’ decade-old participation record.

The event also brings renewed attention to jackpot-style PKO tournaments, whose random multipliers have generated debate among players. At least 24,134 competitors remain in contention as the tournament progresses to Day 2.

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