The Sunday Briefing: WCOOP Creates Huge Prize Pools

The second Sunday of the 2012 World Championship of Online Poker didn't produce any new bracelet winners (each of the three events that began on Sunday were two-day events), but there was still plenty of tournament action to go around. Aside from most of the Sunday majors running, WCOOP second chance events also produced big winners. Carter "cswidler" Swidler earned $115,620, the biggest awarded prize on Sunday, for his win in a second chance event. Joining him in the winner circle was Ariel "ArielBahia" Celestino, who also took down a WCOOP second chance tournament.

PokerStars WCOOP 2nd Chance 22: $1,050 NL Hold'em

Shannon "basebal1b" Shorr (11th - $7,072.50), Will "molswi47" Molson (12th - $7,072.50), and Ravi "govshark2" Raghavan (13th - $5,842.50) each fell short of the final table in the WCOOP 2nd Chance 22 tournament. The final table was still stacked with high-stakes regulars, and Carter "cswidler" Swidler emerged as the champ for $115,620.

PokerStars Sunday 500 ($300K Guaranteed)

The Sunday 500 saw notable finishes from Thomas "Kallllle" Pedersen (10th - $4,757.05), Chad "ChadBrownPRO" Brown (11th - $4,757.05), and Jimmie "AlusivPnkBny" Guinther (14th - $3,688.05). The outright victory and $92,254.70 top prize went to "all in 2526."

PokerStars $109 Sunday Rebuy ($225K Guaranteed)

Among those who came up just short of the final table in the $109 Sunday Rebuy were Tyler "brainwash" Cornell (10th - $4,375), Iulian-Georgian "Ruxandescu" Ruxandescu (12th - $4,375), David "Betudontbet" Emmons (18th - $2,625), Dane "WatchTheSea" Miller (20th - $1,881.25), Josh "JBT449" Bergman (24th - $1,881.25), and Scott "gunning4you" Seiver (25th - $1,881.25). Earning the win following a heads-up deal was "allucan3at" for $71,759.58.

*denotes heads-up deal

PokerStars WCOOP 2nd Chance 21: $109 NL Hold'em

Notable finishes in the WCOOP 2nd Chance 21 tournament included Keith "DaMurdera3" Ferrera (11th - $2,201.70), Andrey "Kroko-dill" Zaichenko (29th - $823.40), and Markus "MarkusG91" Garberg (31st - $823.40). Following a four-handed deal, "GENERRRRRAL" was the sole survivor.

*denotes four-handed deal

PokerStars WCOOP 2nd Chance 23: $530 NL Hold'em

A few big names bubbled the final table of the WCOOP 2nd Chance 23 tournament. Mike "Pipedream17" Dietrich (10th - $3,210), Michael "Skämmes" Tureniec (11th - $3,210), and Tim "Calvin32" Sullivan (12th - $3,210) each just missed out. Ariel "ArielBahia" Celestino topped the final table to earn just over $50,000.

PokerStars Bigger $109 ($160K Guaranteed)

Ben "ShankingYou" Palmer (10th - $2,188.78), Francis "The Lag rat" Anderson (28th - $818.57), and Joshua "theNorfman" Norris (35th - $818.57) were among those who made deep runs in the Bigger $109. Following a three-handed deal, "matmatmat" came out on top for a victory worth $47,514.69.

*denotes three-handed deal

PokerStars Bigger $162 ($150K Guaranteed)

Among the notables who fell just shy of the Bigger $162 final table were Ori "OriQ9s" Hasson (10th - $2,393.58), David "highdro420" Rowan (11th - $2,393.58), and Karolis "g.karolis" Grybauskas (16th - $1,312.61). A three-handed deal took place and "AverageGreg" outlasted the field for nearly $41,000.

*denotes three-handed deal

PokerStars Sunday Storm ($300K Guaranteed)

The always-massive Sunday Storm drew 32,773 players this week. Following a heads-up deal, "stephstealth" got the best of "HamRR" to earn $27,652.71 for the first-place finish.

*denotes heads-up deal

PokerStars Sunday Kickoff ($100K Guaranteed)

Frederico "Vitorbrasil" Conca Silva bested the 1,554-player field in the Sunday Kickoff, taking it down outright for $26,029.50.

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