What you can expect from iPoker Mystery Bounties

We chat to Pavlin Djokov and Michael Bedulskis from iPoker about the launch of Mystery Bounties on the network later this month.

For our readers (and myself) who don’t know, what exactly are the regulatory restrictions that make a Mystery Bounty harder to set up than, say, a PKO? Why does it take longer for a network to start running them?

Pavlin Djokov: In Mystery Bounty tournaments, as you know, the bounties are drawn randomly by the system upon player elimination. This is the main difference compared to already certified tournament types, like PKO MTTs where such random element doesn’t exist. Many regulated markets that are part of our iPoker network require such changes in the mechanics of the game and the way the prizes are distributed to be tested by an external testing house and certified. The certification projects take some time to complete.

It seems most live and online operators have Mystery Bounties as an occasional novelty, rather than PKOs which are a mainstay of online schedules. Is that how you view them too, ie. they would be less fun if they were all the time?

Michael Bedulskis: My view falls somewhere in between. I understand why most operators reserve this mechanic for larger online campaigns – there is an element of novelty that needs to be preserved. It seems to be more sustainable to offer players Mystery Bounty events on limited occasions, wrapped around as a centrepiece of a promotion. Building larger guarantees and as a result, bigger Mystery Bounties is imperative here, and it is just easier in a promotional setting.

There is also a certain amount of room to have a more permanent Mystery Bounty component within the main schedule. We will be exploring this avenue after the launch, and while I don’t expect any Mystery Bounty tournaments to replace our current regular Progressive Knockouts, our players will definitely be seeing at least a few such tournaments layered into the main schedule offer.

"Mystery Bounties will start in flighted MTTs"

Mystery Bounty seems perfect for flighted MTTs, will there ever be mystery bounties at iPoker where the bounties just kick in after a certain blind level in a standalone MTT?

Pavlin Djokov: We will be exploring potential extensions of this mechanic in the future, but at the moment our focus is to launch Mystery Bounties within flighted MTTs and observe how they perform.

What will be the starting ratio of normal prize pool to bounty prize pool, assuming no overlays? 70/30 or 50/50 are the most common two.

Michael Bedulskis: We are going to kick off with a default 50/50 prize pool split. We are keen to test other prize pool setups down the line, either in a promotional or main schedule setting.

Will iPoker be doing anything differently in their Mystery Bounties which we have not seen from other operators yet?

Michael Bedulskis: The current Mystery Bounty release is comparable to what is available on other poker platforms across the industry. We have a lot of interest from our operators fueling this launch, so our focus is to test the Mystery Bounty mechanic in its default online format. With that said, we are always open to exploring different approaches and expansions of this mechanic in the future.

"We want to play for big bounties as early as possible"

The biggest bounty is always the big marketing draw of a mystery bounty, can you give us an example of what a typical bounty distribution would look like? 

Michael Bedulskis: There are multiple payout distributions that we are currently working on and will be testing through the upcoming promotions. Some of them are more “top” heavy and distribute larger amounts to the select few random mystery bounties. Other structures are focused on more granular awards. All in all, we have the flexibility to adjust these structures and introduce new ones with fair ease. It is a playing field for us and we are keen to see how different distributions play out.

Some live tours have started holding back one of the big bounties until the final table to keep it more interesting, is that something you would consider?

Michael Bedulskis: There are some use cases for “Final Table Only” big bounties, but we won’t be exploring this idea in the foreseeable future. Online Mystery Bounty tournaments play out slightly differently than in live tours, and there are different objectives we want to achieve.

The overall player journey here is important. We want players to be able to play for massive bounties as early as possible, that’s why enabling this mechanic from the start of the Day 2 is attractive here, as our players can hit it big within just a few hours of play in Day 1. From the get-go, we want as many players as possible to be exposed to this Mystery Bounty mechanic and have a shot at big prizes.

"Operators believe in the Mystery Bounty format"

Will the software be such that players get informed when a big bounty is pulled on another table?

Pavlin Djokov: There is no notification about that but there is a dedicated widget on the table displaying in real time an updated information about all bounties, including those that have been drawn. Also in the Tournament Lobby there is a section displaying all available bounties.

Do you think Mystery Bounties could become bigger than PKOs online?

Michael Bedulskis: Multiple operators have already proven that Mystery Bounty tournaments can generate higher prize pools than regular PKO’s on a promotion basis. Some have even replaced significant amounts of their PKOs with Mystery Bounty events – all this indicates that operators believe in the format. While I don’t think MBs can overtake PKOs and eventually become bigger, I do firmly believe that two formats can (and should) work along together and offer online players a more robust, complete knockout poker experience.

The Bounty Hunter Series at iPoker

After setting a new prize pool record for their Bounty Hunter Series in spring, iPoker is now at it again with another edition of the series exclusively focused on the ever so popular PKO format.

This time around, the Bounty Hunter Series is running for three and a half weeks from October 20 until November 13, with a massive range of tourneys scheduled every day and buy-ins ranging from just €3 for the lowest all the way up to €1,000 for the highest.

For the first time in the history of the iPoker network, Mystery Bounty events are part of the schedule and offer some of the juiciest prize pools throughout. A total of seven multi-day events are scheduled, including a massive €200,000 GTD Mystery Main Event for a buy-in of only €100. On top of that, there's also going to be the €50,000 GTD Mystery Open for €25 as well as the €50,000 GTD Mystery Mini for €3.

Join the Bounty Hunter Series at iPoker

Main Event tickets through missions

During the series, iPoker is also again offering several missions that enable players to qualify for freerolls where they stand the chance to win cash and tickets to the series, with six different types of missions available:

• Mystery Bounty Mission: Make it to Day 2 of the Mystery Bounty Main Event to get a ticket to a €5,000 freeroll on November 14.
• Satellite Mission: Play 10 Bounty Hunter satellites to get a ticket to a €5,000 freeroll on November 14.
• Knock out Mission: Knock out 10 players in the Bounty Hunter Series to get a ticket to a €5,000 freeroll on November 14.
• Knock out Beast Mission: Knock out 30 players in the Bounty Hunter Series to get a ticket to a €2,000 freeroll on November 14.
• Tiered Events Mission: Play 10 tiered events of the Bounty Hunter Series to get a ticket to a €5,000 freeroll on November 14.
• Points Mission:
• Low: Generate €180 in rake to get a €30 ticket for the €100K GTD Mega Stack Event of the Bounty Hunter Series.
• High: Generate €500 in rake to get a €100 ticket for the €200K GTD Mystery Bounty Main Event of the Bounty Hunter Series.

Note: Availability and format of missions might vary from room to room.

Another record prize pool awaits!

As expected, most tournaments will be played in No-Limit Hold'em, most of them with a maximum of five Re-Entries available, but there are also Omaha and Short Deck events scheduled, including a €10,000 Omaha Main Event for €50 as well as three side events running every day during the series.

With a total prize pool of €4 million, we're again seeing the biggest PKO series ever hosted in the iPoker network after the same prize pool was already given away in this year's spring edition. You do not want to miss out on this series as iPoker tournaments are not as crowded with strong players, have smaller fields, offer a large amount of Day-1's to qualify into the Main Event, and have generous satellites for even more value.