News ACR Poker Unveils New Mystery PKO Format With $650K Halloween Special Owen Gaines Owen Gaines is a professional poker player and author who has played an estimated ten million hands and written four poker strategy books. October 14, 2026 Three tournaments debut a format exclusive to the Winning Poker Network, with buy-ins from $5.50. Starting flights open October 18, and the bounty hunt begins November 1.Finding a huge mystery bounty usually means the table has one fewer big prize to chase. Mystery PKO changes what happens next: half of that prize goes straight to the player who finds it, and half goes onto their head.This Halloween, ACR Poker is introducing the format through three tournaments with $650,000 in combined guarantees. The first Day 1 flights begin Sunday, October 18, with buy-ins of $109, $33 and $5.50.The format is exclusive to the Winning Poker Network and combines hidden Mystery Bounties with visible Progressive Bounties. A knockout can deliver an immediate payday while making the player who scored it a more valuable target.There is time to build a stack before that starts. All three events reach Day 2 on Sunday, November 1, when bounties become available. Players can enter multiple starting flights and combine qualifying stacks for that day, subject to the event’s entry conditions.Three buy ins and one new bounty huntThe $109 event carries a $500,000 guarantee, the largest of the three. The $33 tournament guarantees $100,000, while the $5.50 tournament offers $50,000 guaranteed. Tournament Schedule and Guarantees Buy-in Guarantee First Day 1 Day 2 $109 $500,000 Sun., Oct. 18 Sun., Nov. 1 $33 $100,000 Sun., Oct. 18 Sun., Nov. 1 $5.50 $50,000 Sun., Oct. 18 Sun., Nov. 1 All three use the same Mystery PKO concept. The choice is the entry price and tournament guarantee; each event has its own bounty prize structure. A guarantee describes the tournament’s overall prize pool, rather than the value of its largest mystery prize.What each knockout paysDuring the Day 2 bounty phase, an eligible elimination reveals the knocked-out player’s Mystery Bounty. The player who scores the knockout receives 50% immediately, with the other 50% added to their visible Progressive Bounty.If the eliminated opponent already has an accumulated Progressive Bounty, that amount gets the same 50/50 split. Half is paid immediately to the eliminator, and half is added to the eliminator’s own bounty.That means a single knockout can pay from both components: a newly revealed mystery prize and money the opponent has already accumulated on their head. The mystery amount remains hidden until the elimination; the Progressive Bounty is visible to opponents.For a simple hypothetical example, knock out a player whose mystery prize is $100 and whose accumulated Progressive Bounty is $40. The immediate payment is $50 from the mystery prize plus $20 from the progressive amount: $70 in cash.Another $70 is added to the eliminator’s Progressive Bounty, on top of anything already there. Those example amounts illustrate the split; they are not advertised prizes for the Halloween tournaments.The visible bounty therefore does not pay out in full when its owner is eliminated. Half moves to the next player’s balance, and half moves onto that player’s head. Collecting a reward also gives the rest of the table another reason to chase you.A big reveal can create another targetThe new twist becomes clearest when somebody uncovers a major mystery prize. That player banks half, but the remaining half increases their Progressive Bounty. Other players can still win a portion of that money through later knockouts.The original mystery prize has been revealed. Its full value has not left the bounty action. Follow the player carrying that money, and a later elimination can produce another payout while building the next visible target.For players, that creates two things to watch once bounties begin: the prizes still hidden and the accumulated amounts already on display. A large Progressive Bounty is useful information, though collecting it still requires winning the qualifying knockout.Build the stack before November 1Day 1 is about qualifying with chips. Eliminations during starting flights award no bounty money. Every player begins Day 2 with $0 in accumulated Progressive Bounty, regardless of their qualifying chip stack.Players who qualify through more than one flight can combine those stacks for Day 2 under the applicable entry conditions. That offers a way to bring more chips into the bounty phase, without changing the starting Progressive Bounty amount.Check the tournament lobby for the full flight schedule, Day 2 starting times and entry requirements. The first opportunity to qualify is October 18; the bounty phase arrives November 1.Choose the $109, $33 or $5.50 event and start building a stack. Once the bounty hunt begins, someone else’s big reveal could put your next payday on the table.