Some people can’t get enough action in Sunday tournaments online. You’ll find many of the same names playing in several of the major tournaments on the weekends for that exact reason. One online poker room recently set the bar for guaranteed tournaments just a little bit higher. Over the weekend, it was revealed that the two largest tournaments offered on PokerStars every week would see their guarantees increase dramatically starting on August 3^rd. The Sunday Million, which currently sports a $1 million guarantee, will now offer at least a $1.5 million prize pool. The Sunday Warm-Up, which currently boasts a $500,000 prize pool, will now have a $750,000 guarantee. In both cases, the largest online poker site in the world just increased its two largest guarantees by 50%.

PokerStars was the very first site to offer a seven-figure guaranteed prize pool for a tournament. It has been the standard by which all other online poker rooms are measured. On July 13^th as part of its July “2X” promotion, the guarantee of the Sunday Million was bumped up to $2 million, which sent a flurry of activity to PokerStars. In fact, nearly 15,000 players showed up for the Sunday Million that week, each paying $215 to enter and making the prize pool just less than $3 million, well above the guarantee. PokerStars has proven to itself and the online poker community that it can consistently cover its guarantees. I can’t recall a time in recent months that PokerStars has ever had to pay an overlay, due in part to catering to U.S. customers.

The Sunday Million starts at 4:30pm ET. The buy-in is $200+$15 and the online poker site offers a variety of satellites starting at $3 if that is completely out of your budget. First place is always at least six-figures and regularly approaches $200,000 depending on the number of people who enter.

The Sunday Warm-Up starts at 12:45pm ET, four hours before the Sunday Million begins. Just like the Million, it’s a $200+$15 buy-in tournament that attracts throngs of hungry poker players every single week. Starting on August 3^rd, the guarantee of the Sunday Warm-Up increases from $500,000 to $750,000, meaning a gigantic payday will be in store for several contestants. Satellites to the Sunday Warm-Up start at $3 and run constantly.

Both tournaments attract the cream of the crop in the online poker world. In addition, a variety of novices also enter. After all, where else can you find a tournament that allows you to turn $200 into a house in just a few hours? The PokerStars Second Chance, which is a $200,000 Guarantee tournament with a $200+$15 buy-in, also occurs each Sunday. However, no official word has been given on the future of its guarantee. We’ll keep you posted as we learn more.

Other high-stakes weekend tournaments available to players worldwide include a $150K Guaranteed event on Absolute Poker every Saturday and a $200K Guaranteed on Ultimate Bet every Sunday. Given the recent merger of UB and AP into CEREUS, it’s conceivable that these two tournaments may cease to exist. Instead, a high-stakes guaranteed tournament may take their place. If you’re looking for more poker, visit Full Tilt Poker for its $750K Guaranteed and $250K Sunday Brawl. Finally, take advantage of the weekly overlay at Bodog, where the $100K regularly falls woefully short of its guarantee.

The guarantees of the Sunday Million and Sunday Warm-Up will increase starting August 3^rd. Both are expected to remain at the increased levels permanently. Visit PokerStars for more details.

Major news hit the wires in the online poker world on Thursday, as the management of Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker announced the launch of CEREUS, a poker platform that will combine the users and features from both sites. The combined player base will make CEREUS the third largest poker network available to online poker players. A press release that will be distributed on Thursday notes that each site will retain its own “unique assets,” but new tournaments, features, and promotions will be an integral part, as it combines the customer base from each online poker room. The change is expected to take place during the first week of August.

Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet are owned by the same parent company. However, until today, both online poker rooms have not collaborated on promotions or tournaments. CEREUS marks an end to this division once and for all after over a year of development. AP and UB Chief Operations Officer Paul Leggett commented, “This is a huge landmark for our company and online poker. I’m confident that Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet customers will be thrilled by the new platform and we look forward to welcoming many new players from around the world.”

As it currently stands, Absolute Poker holds a $150K Guaranteed tournament every Saturday. Ultimate Bet hosts a $200K Guaranteed tournament every Sunday. Both tournaments have sported large overlays in recent months. What the tournament structure will be under CEREUS is to be determined. In fact, it is not yet known what changes will be noticeable from a consumer’s perspective. Leggert comments, “Our Company’s goal is to provide poker players with the ultimate online experience. The launch of CEREUS is a major step for us in achieving our goal and we look forward to making many more exciting announcements very soon.”

UB personality Annie Duke has recently completely revamped the tournament schedule and structure at Ultimate Bet, which has increased the popularity of the online poker site despite the recent cheating scandal involving its former owners. Ultimate Bet is gearing up for its annual Aruba Poker Classic in September and recently held a 50-Seat Main Event Guarantee for its marquee tournament. The Aruba Poker Classic was initially a stop on the World Poker Tour. New additions to the site in recent months include Sniper tournaments (which are essentially bounty tournaments with a twist) and the UB Army, which front man Phil Hellmuth promoted in style during the 2008 World Series of Poker.

Absolute Poker is in the midst of one of the most unique promotions ever held, giving away $5,000 diamonds to players who earn the most FAME points between now and the end of August. The first five players to reach 10,000 FAME points will each take home a $2,000 diamond. Moreover, diamond straight flushes are worth a $1,000 jewel. I can’t recall seeing another promotion quite like that one. Absolute Poker has also increased the number of satellites to its $150K Guarantee, the largest tournament it offers every week.

PokerNewsDaily.com will have full details on what you can expect with the implementation of CEREUS as we learn them.