GGPoker Ocean KO Draws 420,084 Entries to Set New Record

By Mrinal Gujare

1 годину тому

Mrinal Gujare 1 годину тому

Share this article

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, surpassing PokerStars’ previous record of 253,692. The event generated over $1.9 million in prizes, features progressive knockout bounties with multipliers up to 400x, and has faced criticism over its format.

GGPoker’s $5 Ocean KO Opener has set a new record for the largest poker tournament by entries, attracting 420,084 participants 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.

Ocean KO Surpasses PokerStars Record

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 now surpassed that mark with 420,084 entries across dozens of starting flights.

The tournament offers a first-place prize of $43,938, alongside total bounties exceeding $1.050 million.

Its Progressive Knockout (PKO) structure rewards players for eliminating opponents.

Ocean KO tournaments also feature random jackpot multipliers of up to 400x, potentially increasing individual bounty payouts to six or seven figures.

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

GGPoker recently added Ocean KO tournaments to its schedule, while Winamax already offers a similar format through its Space KO tournaments.

The potential payouts were demonstrated last month when 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.

With 420,084 entries, GGPoker’s $5 Ocean KO Opener has surpassed PokerStars’ decade-old participation record. Its prize pool of more than $1.9 million and jackpot-style PKO structure have also brought renewed attention to the format, which continues to divide opinion among online poker players.

News New Record Set