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The eighth installment of the Poker Masters will be the fifth major series of the 2023 PokerGO Tour (PGT) season and run from September 14-26, 2023. The 2023 Poker Masters will be held inside the PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The ten-event schedule is a No-Limit Hold'em series with buy-ins ranging from $10,000 to the marquee $50,000 buy-in finale. The first nine events will give players a double reentry option, while the $50,000 finale will be a single reentry. Players in the registration line by 12 p.m. PT will qualify for discounted rake on their first entry. Levels will be 40 minutes long, with a 10-minute break every two levels. The 30-second shot clock will be active during the Poker Masters, with players beginning with six 30-second time extensions. The $50,000 finale will start at 2 p.m. PT and feature 45-minute levels while registration is open, and once closed, levels will be increased to 60 minutes.
All tournaments are part of the 2023 PGT season, with players earning points based on the amount they cash for. The points awarded during the Poker Masters will also decide who wins the Poker Masters, Poker Masters Purple Jacket, and the $50,000 championship bonus.
Start Date | Number | Event | Starting Stack | Level Length |
September 14 | 1 | $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 125,000 | 40 minutes |
September 15 | 2 | $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 125,000 | 40 minutes |
September 16 | 3 | $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 125,000 | 40 minutes |
September 18 | 4 | $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 125,000 | 40 minutes |
September 19 | 5 | $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 125,000 | 40 minutes |
September 20 | 6 | $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 125,000 | 40 minutes |
September 21 | 7 | $25,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 150,000 | 40 minutes |
September 22 | 8 | $25,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 150,000 | 40 minutes |
September 23 | 9 | $25,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 150,000 | 40 minutes |
September 25 | 10 | $50,000 No-Limit Hold'em | 200,000 | 45 / 60 minutes |
The full PokerGO Tour schedule can be found here, and the current PokerGO Tour leaderboard is available here.
Like all PGT-owned and operated events, a 30-second shot clock will be active play during the Poker Masters. Players will begin with six 30-second time extensions, while they will receive an additional six when the field is down to the final six players. Players in the registration line by 12 p.m. PT will also qualify for rake-free on their first entry.
All tournaments are part of the 2023 PGT season, with players earning points based on the amount they cash for. The points awarded during the Poker Masters will also decide who wins the Poker Masters Purple Jacket and the $50,000 Championship bonus.
For players looking to win their way into the Poker Masters cheaply, there are several satellite opportunities throughout the series.
From September 11-13, there are three satellites held in the PokerGO Studio. The buy-in for the tournaments is $1,100 and will start at 12 p.m. PT. Players that register by the start time will have the $90 fee waived. Each satellite sees players start with 100,000 in starting chips and levels will be 30 minutes in duration. Seats won can be used for any $10,000 buy-in during the Poker Masters.
On Sunday, September 17, there will be another $1,000 buy-in satellite into the remaining $10,000 buy-in tournaments of the Poker Masters. On Sunday, September 24, there will be a $5,100 satellite into the $50,000 buy-in Poker Masters finale. There will also be satellites inside the PokerGO Studio at 6 p.m. PT starting on Thursday, September 14.
With the back half of the 2023 PGT season upon us, the points available during the Poker Masters will go a long way to deciding who qualifies for the season-ending PGT Championship. Only the top 40 on the season-ending PGT leaderboard will qualify for the PGT Championship, and one of the names that will be looking to solidify his position inside the top 40 is Daniel Negreanu. Negreanu is the clubhouse leader in PGT cashes for the season with 19 cashes and $994,854 in PGT earnings. Negreanu has yet to secure a PGT victory in 2023 and will be hoping to claim his first of the season to use as a springboard to winning the Poker Masters.
Another player to join Negreanu in playing every event will be Cary Katz. Katz currently sits sixth on the PGT leaderboard having cashed 15 times for $2,965,303 in PGT 2023 earnings. Katz kicked off the season by being crowned the PokerGO Cup champion before winning the final event of the PGT PLO Series. Katz fell short of winning his first WSOP bracelet when he finished runner-up to Jans Arends in Event #29: $100,000 No-Limit Hold'em High Roller. Katz parlayed that run into a second runner-up finish at the Triton Poker Series London when Phil Ivey defeated him in Event #12: $60,000 No-Limit Hold'em Turbo.
The player with potentially the most to gain with a strong showing at the 2023 Poker Masters is Chris Brewer, who currently sits second on the PGT leaderboard with two wins, 16 cashes, and $6,610,834 in PGT 2023 earnings. Brewer sits with 1,917 PGT points and trails WSOP 2023 World Champion Daniel Weinman, who has 2,300 PGT points. Brewer's quest to leapfrog Weinman will not just be to be crowned the 2023 PGT Champion, but also be awarded the $50,000 season-long leaderboard prize.
Other players looking to jostle for position on the PGT leaderboard courtesy of a strong showing at the 2023 Poker Masters will include previous champions Sean Winter (2022) and Sam Soverel (2019), as well as current players positioned in the top 40 of the PGT leaderboard such as Isaac Haxton (3rd), Jeremy Ausmus (10th), Ren Lin (20th), Alex Foxen (23rd), and Bill Klein (38th).
Every event of the 2023 Poker Masters is a two-day event, with Day 1 playing down to the final table. Day 2 will see the final six players return to the PokerGO Studio to conclude the event and crown a champion.
Each Poker Masters final table will be streamed on OTT service PokerGO from 4 p.m. ET from September 15-26, 2023. Day 1 coverage of each event will be handled exclusively by the PGT Live Reporting Team on PGT.com.
Connect with PokerGO.com on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. Watch daily poker clips on the PokerGO YouTube channel. Join the conversation on the PokerGO Discord server. You can save $20 off your first year of a new annual subscription by using the code “PGT2023” at checkout.
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