Once again, PokerStars has launched its special Emerald Edition Power Pass for the Irish Open and we are adding amazing value with a free ticket into the Mini Irish Open worth €250!
The Emerald Edition is a special $2,500 prize bundle that features all the normal benefits of PokerStars’ acclaimed Silver Power Pass on top of the added Mini Irish Open ticket. The Emerald Edition features a buy-in into the €2.5 million guaranteed Irish Open Main Event, a €350 Irish Open side event entry plus money towards expenses, limited edition merchandise, special live event liaison support and exclusive Irish Open activities.
Last year, there were more than 85 Emerald Edition Silver Power Pass winners in the record-breaking Main Event – with 22 of them making the money including award-winning podcaster David Lappin and UKIPT Brighton finalist Oli Hutchins.
Willie Elliot, PokerStars Live Events Customer Engagement Manager, is expecting big numbers yet again for this year’s festival. He said: “Everyone loves free money and getting a free Mini Irish Open ticket is basically that! I think it’s highly likely we will have even more Emerald Pass winners this year. Even when people have a choice of festival, they’re very tempted to use their Pass for the Irish Open because of the free Mini ticket. We also get normal qualifiers who still want to use their Silver Pass at the Dublin festival for re-entries and side events and things like that.”
A bunch of PokerStars players have already redeemed their Emerald Edition passes to use at this year’s Irish Open. British star Jack Hardcastle and prolific Power Path player Matthew “Harn1” Harniman will both be heading to Dublin on the back of their $2,500 prize packages. Harniman is considered the greatest Power Path player of all time – he had already racked up two Gold, 30 Silver, and 60 Bronze passes by last August when he was interviewed for the PokerStars blog. The former sports betting industry pro turned full-time poker player has honed his satellite skills over two years of non-stop Power Path tournaments and and even plays $11 Step 3 qualifiers on his phone while out walking. “It’s so routine and habitual now,” he says. “I can play it without too much thinking.” Harniman mainly uses his Power Passes for online tourneys but came to last year’s 2025 Irish Open after friends told him it was “the most fun stop of the year!”
Don’t miss the Power Path Express on Sunday!
PokerStars’ exciting Power Path satellite structure gives recreational players a chance to win their way into the Irish Open every single night. But this Sunday is a huge opportunity to fast-track your way through to a coveted Emerald Edition Silver Pass for the 2026 Irish Open. The Power Path Express, which starts at 15:10 ET on Sunday, is a $55 buy-in online poker tournament with more than $50,000 in Power Passes guaranteed. There are two Gold Passes worth $10,300 up top, plus five Silver Passes (Emerald Edition for Irish Open fans!!!) worth $2,500, and 158 Bronze Passes worth $109.
How Power Path works
Aside from the Power Path Express promotion detailed above, free tickets for the first Power Path step are available daily. That means you could be competing in Dublin this year without having to lay out a single cent!
The PokerStars Power Path is a four-step qualifying route beginning with a Step 1 $0.50 Spin & Go. Players can either buy into these directly or enter using a Step 1 ticket. Step 2 is either a $1 Sit & Go (with 16 players) or a $1.50 Multi-table Tournament (MTT). Step 3 is a $11 MTT and the final Step 4 is a $55 MTT.
The Power Path Silver Pass is aimed at recreational players and offers a crucial benefit for amateurs as no one can buy in direct to the final Step 4 $55 MTT. This fences off the final Step and protects casual players from having to compete against a ton of multi-regging poker pros.
All real-money players on PokerStars will also receive a daily Rewards Chest containing a free ticket to the Step 1 $0.50 Spin & Go. Players are also welcome to buy in direct for Step 2 ($1/$1.50) or even the $11 Step 3. But Step 3 is the final stage at which players can buy in directly. To get into the final Step 4 – where the super-lush Silver Power Pass 2025 Live Event Passport is on offer – you have to win your ticket via Step 3.
You can check out all the details for the Irish Open on the PokerStars client under Power Path > Home > The Passes.
This year’s Irish Open festival runs from March 26 to April 6 at the historic Royal Dublin Society. Last year’s Main Event was a record-breaker, with a staggering 4,562 entries generating a €4,447,950 prize pool.
PokerStars created the Power Path with the sole intention of getting more casual and recreational players into big events and making sure their route to a live event isn’t crowded with pros who can afford – and anticipate making – multiple entries for the final qualifiers.
Another key difference is that the final Step 4 qualifier is single re-entry. No unlimited re-entries; no slew of pros hopping in at the last minute.
Fair crack for amateurs and recreational players
Irish Open champion David Docherty, who won €365,000 in the 2023 Main Event after qualifying in a PokerStars satellite for just $109, said: “A lot of pros just late-reg the final step and fire off two or three bullets. It can be quite difficult to get through that if you’re a recreational player as you’re also up against players who can afford to enter that same $109 satellite two or three times.
“I’m sure there will be people who have never played a live tournament before winning their way into the Irish Open via PokerStars’ Power Path and going on to do well. Most pros won’t play the lower steps to get into the qualifier; they would rather just play the final step. With Power Path, they’re not allowed and I think that’s great for the poker ecology.”
