ACR Venom 2026 Is Live: $15M Dual Mystery Bounties, a $500K Knockout and Day 1C Today

One poker hand could be worth half a million dollars before you even count the pot.

That is the headline behind ACR Venom 2026, which is now underway with the largest set of Venom guarantees ACR Poker has ever announced.

The 25th anniversary edition features two simultaneous $2,650 Mystery Bounty tournaments:

• $12 million guaranteed NLH Mystery Bounty Venom
• $3 million guaranteed PLO Mystery Bounty Venom

Together, they create a $15 million guaranteed Dual Venom.

But the guarantee is only part of the story.

The No-Limit Hold’em tournament contains a maximum mystery bounty of $500,000. The Pot-Limit Omaha edition has a $250,000 top bounty. Every mystery bounty is worth at least $5,000 once bounty play begins.

And today, August 17, brings another important moment.

Day 1C of both Venoms takes place today, while ACR also begins its Venom Specials schedule with more than $10 million in additional tournament guarantees running alongside the remaining starting flights.

This is not simply another online poker series.

It is a format where reaching Day 2 guarantees you money, knocking out one player can completely transform your result, multiple qualifying stacks can be combined, and more than 1,500 Venom seats are being distributed through satellite routes.

Here is everything you need to know about ACR Venom 2026, including the full flight schedule, how the mystery bounties work, the difference between the NLH and PLO tournaments, the unusual stack-combining rule and how to qualify without paying the full $2,650 buy-in.

If Mystery Bounty tournaments are still new to you, start with our Mystery Bounty Poker 2026 strategy guide.

ACR Venom 2026 Quick Facts

Why the 2026 Venom Is the Biggest One Yet

Venom has already been one of the largest recurring online poker tournaments outside the major championship series.

This edition pushes the concept further.

ACR is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a combined $15 million guarantee across the two flagship Mystery Bounty events.

The NLH tournament accounts for $12 million of that total, making it the primary attraction.

The PLO event contributes another $3 million and gives Omaha specialists their own major championship without forcing them into Hold’em.

Previous Venom editions had reached the $10 million guarantee level. The 2026 dual format raises the combined headline number to $15 million.

That makes this a useful snapshot of how large online poker festivals have become. Our Online Poker Boom 2026 report explains the broader growth in online tournament traffic this year.

Day 1C Is Today

The first Venom flights began on August 13.

Day 1B ran on August 16 as part of ACR’s huge Super Stacked Sunday schedule.

Now Day 1C takes place on Monday, August 17.

The scheduled start time is 12:05 PM Eastern Time, which is 7:05 PM in Cairo.

Players who miss today’s flight still have five more opportunities after Day 1C.

Complete ACR Venom 2026 Day 1 Schedule

Day 2 takes place on August 31 at 1:05 PM ET.

Everyone who reaches Day 2 is already in the money.

That is also when the Mystery Bounty portion becomes active.

The $500,000 Knockout Changes Everything

This is the number that gives the NLH Venom its biggest viral hook.

One mystery bounty can be worth:

$500,000.

You do not need to win the tournament to find it.

You need to eliminate the player attached to the winning bounty draw once mystery bounties are active.

That creates two completely separate ways to make a huge score.

The first is traditional tournament equity. Survive, accumulate chips, climb the payouts and try to win the event.

The second is bounty equity.

A player could eventually finish well short of first place and still produce an extraordinary result if one knockout unlocks the largest bounty.

The PLO version follows the same general idea with a maximum bounty of $250,000.

Every Mystery Bounty Is At Least $5,000

The top bounty gets the headline, but the minimum is strategically important too.

ACR lists a $5,000 minimum mystery bounty in both events.

That means every successful knockout after the bounty stage begins has immediate financial value.

This can dramatically alter all-in decisions.

Suppose a short stack jams and you are deciding whether to call.

In a normal tournament, you compare your hand equity, pot odds, stack consequences and tournament value.

In a Mystery Bounty tournament, you may also have thousands of dollars of additional expected value attached to eliminating that player.

That can make a call profitable even when the same call would be too loose in an ordinary freezeout.

But it does not mean you should chase every bounty with terrible cards.

The biggest Mystery Bounty mistake is seeing the possible prize and forgetting the probability of actually winning the hand.

The Most Unusual Rule: You Can Combine Qualified Stacks

ACR Venom uses a feature that makes the multiple Day 1 flights particularly interesting.

Players can enter more than one qualifying flight and combine stacks that successfully reach Day 2.

That is very different from a normal multi-flight event where only your largest stack might advance or where qualifying ends your ability to play another flight.

Imagine you qualify from one flight with 400,000 chips.

You enter another Day 1 and qualify again with 600,000.

Under the Venom’s cumulative-stack format, those successful stacks can be added together for Day 2.

This creates a genuine incentive for some players to keep playing even after already qualifying.

It also creates a bankroll trap.

A player can convince themselves that another $2,650 entry is automatically justified because more chips can be carried forward.

That is not necessarily true.

The ability to combine stacks increases the value of additional flights, but it does not remove tournament variance or make repeated entries affordable.

Our Re-Entry Poker Tournaments 2026 guide explains why extra bullets should be treated as separate investments rather than emotional attempts to rescue an earlier result.

How Much Would All Eight Direct Entries Cost?

The direct buy-in is $2,650.

If somebody entered all eight starting flights once, the total direct entry cost would be:

$21,200.

That is before any other tournament, satellite or related expense.

For a professional with an appropriate bankroll and strong expected value, multiple flights may be reasonable.

For most players, blindly firing every available Day 1 would be an enormous financial commitment.

Use our poker bankroll management guide before letting a $15 million guarantee convince you that one more $2,650 bullet is small.

More Than 1,500 Venom Seats Are Being Guaranteed Through Satellites

This is where the series becomes accessible to players who cannot justify a $2,650 direct entry.

ACR’s Venom Fever promotion advertises more than 1,500 guaranteed Venom seats.

Qualification routes include:

• Direct satellites
• Mega satellites
• Beast tournaments
• Venom Madness satellites
• Survivor Flips
• Step satellites
• Promotional routes

ACR also advertises qualifying possibilities beginning from extremely small amounts, including promotional routes that can produce a seat without paying the full Venom buy-in.

For most recreational players, this is the realistic path.

Turning a small satellite into a $2,650 ticket produces a completely different risk profile from buying directly into multiple flights.

Our Poker Satellites 2026 guide covers the biggest strategic mistake satellite players make near qualification.

Venom Specials Start Today With $10M+ More in Tournament Guarantees

August 17 is important for another reason.

ACR says the remaining Venom flight dates will also feature a slate of Venom Special tournaments.

Across the promotional schedule, more than $10 million in additional tournament guarantees are being advertised.

That means the two $15 million Venoms are not operating in isolation.

The surrounding schedule is designed to keep players active even if they are not currently playing the $2,650 Main Events.

This can be especially appealing to players who travel through satellites, bust a Venom flight early or simply want lower buy-in options during the same festival period.

NLH Venom vs PLO Venom

The correct choice depends on actual skill, not which tournament has the cooler bounty graphic.

A strong Hold’em player should not automatically enter the PLO event because the field might be smaller.

PLO equity runs much closer, large draws are common and seemingly dominant made hands can be surprisingly vulnerable.

If you are considering the four-card version, review our Pot-Limit Omaha Poker 2026 guide first.

Why Everyone Being in the Money on Day 2 Matters

Reaching Day 2 accomplishes two things at once:

1. You lock up a tournament cash.
2. You gain access to the Mystery Bounty stage.

This creates an unusual Day 1 objective.

Your priority is not simply accumulating the largest possible stack at any cost.

Survival has direct additional value because qualification unlocks both guaranteed prize money and bounty opportunities.

That does not mean folding your way into Day 2 with almost no chips is always optimal.

A tiny Day 2 stack has less ability to collect bounties and less tournament equity.

The best strategy balances qualification security with the value of carrying a meaningful stack forward.

The Bounty Stage Can Create Extremely Loose Calls

Once Day 2 begins, expect the dynamic to change immediately.

A short stack is no longer only a stack of tournament chips.

It is also a lottery ticket containing at least a $5,000 mystery bounty and potentially much more.

Players covering short stacks may call all-ins noticeably wider.

That means a short stack can sometimes shove for value with hands that would not receive the same action in a normal tournament.

It also means careless bounty hunting can become one of the fastest ways for a big stack to disappear.

Strong Mystery Bounty players ask two questions separately:

What is the chip-EV decision?

How much bounty value changes that decision?

They do not simply call because a bounty exists.

Can a $500,000 Mystery Bounty Be Bigger Than First Place?

The final payout structure depends on the completed field and total prize pool, so the exact first-place amount cannot responsibly be stated before entries close.

But a $500,000 bounty can obviously rival the type of payouts associated with extremely deep finishes in major online tournaments.

That is what makes mystery bounty poker so compelling for spectators.

A player does not need to reach the final table before one elimination can produce a career-changing prize.

It breaks the traditional relationship between finishing position and the largest individual payouts.

What Happened in Previous Venoms?

Venom already has a history of attracting major poker names.

Recent editions have included deep runs from players such as Chris Moneymaker, Chance Kornuth and Alex Foxen.

Moneymaker has reached multiple Venom final tables, while Kornuth and Foxen both made significant PLO runs in the previous dual format.

The presence of established professionals matters because Venom is not simply a large recreational lottery.

A $2,650 tournament with eight flights and millions guaranteed attracts serious online tournament specialists.

Players should expect the average field to become significantly tougher as stacks deepen.

How to Approach Venom Without Destroying Your Bankroll

Set a Bullet Limit Before Playing

Do not decide after busting.

Decide before Day 1 how many direct entries or satellite attempts you are willing to fund.

Separate Satellite Money From Direct Buy-In Money

A $55 or $109 satellite and a $2,650 direct entry are completely different bankroll decisions.

Do Not Chase a Bounty Before Bounties Exist

Day 1 is qualification poker.

The Mystery Bounty stage begins on Day 2.

Remember That Cumulative Stacks Increase Both Opportunity and Temptation

Being allowed to combine stacks does not make every extra entry profitable.

Prepare for Variance

Large-field tournaments are volatile even for excellent players. The PLO version can be particularly swingy because equities frequently run close.

Our poker variance guide explains why a good tournament decision can still produce a bad immediate result.

Why ACR Venom Is Worth Watching Even If You Are Not Playing

The tournament combines several things poker audiences naturally care about:

• Huge guarantees
• A famous recurring event name
• Professional players
• Massive Mystery Bounties
• Affordable satellite stories
• Multiple formats
• A final table with potentially enormous prizes

The $500,000 bounty adds another layer.

A normal tournament becomes more exciting as the final table approaches.

A Mystery Bounty tournament can produce a huge moment much earlier because any qualifying knockout could uncover the top prize.

ACR Venom 2026 FAQs

When is ACR Venom 2026?

The Dual Mystery Bounty Venoms run from August 13 through early September 2026. Eight Day 1 flights are scheduled through August 30, with Day 2 on August 31.

Is there a Venom flight today?

Yes. Day 1C is scheduled for Monday, August 17 at 12:05 PM ET.

How much is guaranteed in ACR Venom 2026?

The two headline events combine for $15 million guaranteed: $12 million in NLH and $3 million in PLO.

How much is the ACR Venom buy-in?

Both the NLH and PLO Mystery Bounty Venoms have a $2,650 direct buy-in.

What is the biggest Venom bounty?

The NLH event has a $500,000 maximum Mystery Bounty. The PLO event has a $250,000 maximum bounty.

What is the minimum Mystery Bounty?

ACR advertises a $5,000 minimum Mystery Bounty in both tournaments once bounty play begins.

When do Mystery Bounties begin?

They begin on Day 2, scheduled for August 31.

Are players already in the money on Day 2?

Yes. ACR states that everyone reaching Day 2 is already in the money.

Can I play more than one Day 1?

Yes. Multiple Day 1 flights are available.

Can Venom stacks be combined?

Yes. Players who successfully qualify through multiple Day 1 flights can combine those qualified stacks for Day 2 under the announced cumulative-stack format.

How many Day 1 flights are there?

Eight flights are scheduled on August 13, 16, 17, 20, 23, 24, 27 and 30.

Can I qualify without paying $2,650 directly?

Yes. Venom Fever provides multiple satellite paths, and ACR advertises more than 1,500 guaranteed seats through its various qualifying formats.

What are Venom Specials?

They are additional tournaments running alongside the remaining Venom flight dates. ACR advertises more than $10 million in combined guarantees across the Specials schedule beginning August 17.

When is the NLH Venom final table?

The NLH tournament is scheduled to play toward its final table on September 1, with the final table beginning September 2 at 4:05 PM ET.

When does the PLO Venom finish?

The PLO Mystery Bounty Venom is scheduled to conclude during Day 2 on August 31.

Final Verdict

ACR Venom 2026 has everything required to become one of the biggest online poker stories of late summer.

There is $15 million guaranteed.

There are two separate Mystery Bounty championships.

The NLH event can award $500,000 from one knockout.

The PLO event can award $250,000.

Every Mystery Bounty is worth at least $5,000.

Eight Day 1 flights give players repeated qualification opportunities, and successful stacks can be combined.

More than 1,500 seats are being distributed through satellite routes.

And beginning today, another $10 million plus in tournament guarantees arrives through the Venom Specials schedule.

The biggest danger is also obvious.

A $15 million guarantee can make a $2,650 entry look smaller than it is.

It is not small.

Use satellites when they make sense. Decide your bullet limit before playing. Understand the cumulative-stack rule. Learn the bounty math before Day 2.

Then remember what makes this Venom different from an ordinary major tournament.

You do not necessarily need to win the whole thing to produce the hand of your life.

Sometimes one knockout is enough.

And in the 2026 NLH Venom, that knockout could be worth $500,000.