ACR Poker’s $650K Halloween Mystery PKOs Enter Final Week Before the Bounty Hunt Begins

More than 1,100 Day 2 qualifying spots are already filled across three tournaments, with Rob Kuhn and Jeff Boski among the familiar names preparing for the November 1 bounty reveal.

Halloween is approaching, and ACR Poker’s $650,000 guaranteed Mystery PKO tournaments are entering their final week of starting flights. With three events running and the bounty action scheduled for Sunday, November 1, players have just days remaining to secure their places or build bigger stacks for the showdown.

The Halloween Specials began on October 18, introducing a new Mystery PKO format that combines hidden mystery prizes with growing Progressive Bounties. Unlike traditional Mystery Bounty tournaments, where players collect the full value of a revealed prize, this format adds another dimension to every knockout.

And with more than 1,100 qualifying spots already filled across the three events, the competition is building ahead of the biggest day.

As of Monday morning, October 26, the tournaments had recorded a combined 1,117 Day 2 qualifiers, up from 367 reported on October 20. The figures represent qualifying spots across the three separate tournaments, rather than a count of unique players.

Some familiar names have already secured their places in Day 2. ACR Pro Rob Kuhn has qualified for the $109 tournament, while Jeff Boski has secured stacks in both the $33 and $5.50 events. With additional starting flights still underway, the fields will continue to grow ahead of November 1.

For players who haven’t qualified, there’s still time. Daily starting flights continue through November 1, and those who have already advanced can enter additional flights to combine qualifying chip stacks, subject to tournament conditions.

Three Tournaments, One Big Halloween Finale

The Halloween Specials feature three separate Mystery PKO tournaments, with buy-ins ranging from $5.50 to $109 and a combined $650,000 in guarantees.

The $109 tournament leads the way with $500,000 guaranteed, while the $33 event offers $100,000 and the $5.50 tournament carries a $50,000 guarantee.

Here’s how the three events were shaping up as of October 26:

Day 2 Qualifiers by Buy-in
Buy-in	Guarantee	Day 2 Qualifiers
$109	$500,000	191
$33	$100,000	171
$5.50	$50,000	755
Total	$650,000	1,117

Figures reflect the morning of October 26, 2026. Qualifier counts may include players participating in more than one tournament and will increase as additional flights are completed.

The $5.50 event has attracted the largest number of qualifiers so far, demonstrating the appeal of the affordable entry point. Meanwhile, the $109 tournament offers players the opportunity to compete for the biggest overall guarantee of the three.

All three tournaments reach Day 2 on Sunday, November 1, when the mystery bounties finally come into play.

The Halloween Twist: Every Bounty Creates Another Target

What makes these tournaments particularly interesting is the new Mystery PKO format, which is making its Halloween debut exclusively on the Winning Poker Network.

Traditional Mystery Bounty tournaments offer players the chance to reveal randomly assigned prizes after eliminating an opponent during the bounty phase. Once a valuable mystery bounty has been collected, that particular prize is gone.

Mystery PKO changes that dynamic.

When a player eliminates an opponent during Day 2, the revealed Mystery Bounty is divided into two equal portions. Half is paid immediately to the player responsible for the knockout, while the other half is added to the Progressive Bounty on their own head.

If the eliminated player has already accumulated a Progressive Bounty, that amount is also divided equally. Half is paid to the winner of the knockout, and half is transferred to their own Progressive Bounty.

For example, imagine eliminating a player whose Mystery Bounty is worth $1,000 and who has already accumulated a $200 Progressive Bounty.

The knockout would award $600 immediately, while another $600 would be added to the winning player’s Progressive Bounty. These figures are hypothetical and illustrate the format rather than any advertised Halloween prize.

Suddenly, the player who collected the reward becomes a more valuable target for everyone else at the table.

That’s the defining feature of Mystery PKO. Even after one of the biggest mystery prizes has been revealed, part of its value remains available through subsequent knockouts.

A player who uncovers a substantial reward could soon find themselves being hunted by opponents eager to collect a share of the growing bounty on their head.

Building a Stack Before the Bounty Hunt

For now, the focus remains on qualifying for Day 2 and accumulating chips.

Players can enter multiple starting flights and combine their qualifying stacks, giving those who have already advanced another reason to return before the November 1 deadline.

That could prove valuable once the bounty action begins. A larger starting stack may provide more flexibility and opportunities to compete for knockouts, although it offers no guarantees in a format where fortunes can change quickly.

It’s also important to understand that bounty rewards aren’t available during Day 1. Every player begins Day 2 with $0 in accumulated Progressive Bounty, regardless of how many flights they’ve qualified through or how many chips they’re carrying forward.

The visible Progressive Bounties only begin growing once eligible eliminations take place on November 1.

From that point forward, players will have more to consider than their opponents’ chip stacks. They’ll also be watching the Progressive Bounties accumulating around the table, potentially creating some difficult decisions as the fields narrow.

November 1 Brings the Big Reveal

With Halloween just days away, the countdown is on for players hoping to take part in ACR Poker’s newest knockout format.

The final week provides opportunities for newcomers to qualify and for existing qualifiers to strengthen their positions. And with three separate tournaments offering a combined $650,000 guaranteed, there’s action available across several buy-in levels.

Players can check the ACR Poker tournament schedule for remaining flights, with the full registration details and start times available in the tournament lobby.

For a closer look at the format, guarantees and bounty mechanics, visit the official Halloween Special promotion page.

Halloween might end on October 31, but at ACR Poker, the real trick-or-treating begins November 1.

That’s when the mystery prizes are finally revealed, the Progressive Bounties start growing, and the hunters can quickly become the hunted.