Americas Cardroom is set to host what it describes at its “biggest tournament” and the “largest ever by a US-facing site.”
Although the online poker site serves 43 US states, it operates in something of a grey area. With nothing in federal law expressly outlawing online poker, the site has been active since 2001.
Americas Cardroom Spitting Venom
Based on that, Americas Cardroom is calling its $5 Million Venom the richest poker event in the US. Getting underway on July 14, the MTT will cost $2,650 but satellites will start at $4.40.
At the close of three starting days – Day 1A on July 14, Day 1B on July 16, and Day 1C July 21– the remaining players will fight for a $1 million top prize.
Other than a lucrative prizepool, Venom’s USP is Bitcoin. Americas Cardroom has processed bitcoin payments since 2014 and Venom’s winner will receive their $1 million prize in BTC.
For those who’d prefer something more traditional, the winner can send the cryptocurrency back and receive a USD et al. However, with Bitcoin currently in the midst of another boom, Americas Cardroom is hoping the hype will help their latest MTT.
Alongside the $5 million tournament, the European and US-facing site will revive its OSS Cub3d series.
Running for 30 days and featuring 160 MTTs, the series will give players a chance to win $13 million in guaranteed prize money.
Site Hoping Stability Issues Remain at Bay
While Americas Cardroom will want Venom’s appeal to be as potent as the substance on which it’s based, stability issues may be a concern. Between 2017 and 2018, the operator was forced to cancel a number of tournaments due to Denial of Services (DDoS) attacks.
In tandem with security issues, the site has been accused of harboring bots. In 2018, Joe Ingram told players not to play there due to cheats.
The comments started a back-and-forth war or words between Ingram and Americans Cardroom owner Phil Nagy.
The two settled their differences early this year following a new initiative at the site. In what he calls the “only” transparent reimbursement policy, Nagy revealed his security team is now hot on bots.
As per an April update, Nagy confirmed new software had uncovered 277 bots. Following the swoop, $175,000 was given back to affected players.
