The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) finally came to an end of this year’s tournament in October 2023, and whilst some players won big, some also fell short of the crown.
The winner of the main event was Ivan (ILS007) Stokes, and it happened to be his first-ever world title – You really can’t beat that! Cusping the win and defeating “ShipitFTW911” from Sweden, he took a whopping sum of $1.04 million. Now classed as the world champion, this main event required a $10,300 buy-in, which means he had to spend big, to win bigger.
Second place was taken by Swedish poker star ShipitFTW911, who had come leaps and bounds from 2021’s championships, seeing he was knocked out in 12th place.
Miles apart from this year’s win, this second place managed to see him take over $765 thousand, so he certainly didn’t do too shabby for 2023. Each and every online casino has been created to ensure the player has a truckload of fun, but winning this big on poker has plenty of perks.
Each game you win, a price is guaranteed to be paid out, whether you’re online or offline. The world of gambling manages to swipe a momentous amount year in and year out, and even ninth place managed to bag almost $100k – suddenly last place doesn’t sound too bad, right? Now, let’s get into what games you can win big on in the world of online casinos…
1) Blackjack
Also referred to as 21 by most, blackjack online is the most popular game on online gambling platforms. The aim of the game is to ensure your hand of cards gets as close to the sum of 21, without ever going above. The moment you do, the game is over for you, but not your competitors. You will be given two hands per player, and you can choose to either keep your hand or pick up a card, in your pursuit to 21. The reason it’s inevitably so popular is because the game is so widely available for all players to play.
Some professional online pokies come in with a strategy to play, and certainly, when it comes to physical casinos, elite players have the ability to count cards and beat the dealer. Wins are big, especially if you hit the big 21, so be ready to cash a huge payout. The average payout in blackjack is 3-2, however, some online casinos have now offered a 6-5 payout rate.
If the odds mean nothing to you, then money certainly talks – in 1995, an individual called ‘shoeless Joe’ walked into a Vegas casino and turned $400 into $1.6 million, just from playing blackjack.
2) Baccarat
Both high-stake rollers and casual gamblers love to dabble in Baccarat, because of its extremely low house edge. You can play it online or offline, and it involves beating the dealer with your hand of cards… similar to 21 in that sense.
There are three different routes in which an outcome can come from a game of play, and this is your winning, the dealer winning, or an overall tie. The aim of the game is to keep placing a bet on the hand of cards that you think will be closest to a value of nine. The payout if you were to win a game of Baccarat when you bet on your hand of winning is 1:1, meaning it’s a pretty close shot at winning!
The most infamous player to hit the biggest jackpot in Baccarat is Tokyo-born Kashiwagi. Also known as “The Warrior” this property tycoon was often seen to spend $200,000 on a hand, and spent over 80 hours straight on the game. In one night alone, he won over $1 million, meaning he is the most famous player that wins big in the game. It’s the ultimate definition of if you spend big, you can win great.
3) Craps
Worlds apart from both blackjack and Baccarat, Craps is a game that’s played with dice. You can either play with virtual dice online or in reality at the casino tables. It’s more of an enigmatic buzz-filled game, with plenty of social interaction, due to the nature of the table setup.
It’s as simple as it comes when it comes to learning to play this one, all you need to do is place a bet on the dice whilst it’s being thrown, and from there you win money from the outcome of these two 6-faced dice.
In regards to payouts, it all depends if you yourself are a high roller or not. In 2011, an individual walked into the Atlantic City casino and placed $100,000 per roll. After a solid six-hour stretch of the game, the player managed to cut loose with around $5 million.
No matter what game you’re wanting to play, it’s all about what you put into it. The world championships have seen winners one year, who peak and fail the next. The games are all in the hands of lady luck, so ensure to play for entertainment only.
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