If the preparations have not already begun in homes across the world, they are bound to happen soon. Every pantry should be stocked with provisions for two weeks. Every coffee maker should be ready for emergency use. Massage therapists should be on standby for any sort of repetitive motion disorder arising from continuous mouse-handling. All phone ringers should be turned off and voicemail notifications should sound a lot like, "Thanks for your call. I can't answer right now, because I'm playing WCOOP. Call me back in October."



Friday marks the beginning of the 2007 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker. Over the period between September 14 and September 30, PokerStars is guaranteeing a whopping $15,000,000 in prize money. If history is any indication, the total prize pool will end up being even more than that.

The PokerStars Blog will have full coverage from beginning to end of this year's championship series. Stay tuned for even more fun news about WCOOP as the first day off this year's fun kicks off.

In the meantime, start making your preparations now. Buy your coffee, stock your pantry, and tell all your friends to leave you alone. It's WCOOP time. Here's the schedule with the guarantees in bold type:

Sep.14 (15:00) NL Hold'em [6-max] $215 $400,000
Sep.14 (16:30) PL 5-Card Draw $215 $100,000
Sep.15 (15:00) PL Omaha [6-max] $215 $200,000
Sep.15 (16:30) 2-7 Triple Draw $215 $100,000
Sep.16 (16:30) NL Hold'em $530 $2,000,000
Sep.17 (15:00) PL Omaha w/Rebuys $320 $400,000
Sep.18 (15:00) Limit Hold'em $215 $100,000
Sep.19 (15:00) Limit Omaha H/L $530 $300,000
Sep.20 (15:00) NL Hold'em w/Rebuys $215 $1,000,000
Sep.21 (15:00) NL Hold'em Match Play $320 $500,000
Sep.21 (16:30) Razz $215 $100,000
Sep.22 (15:00) HORSE $215 $200,000
Sep.22 (16:30) PL Hold'em $530 $400,000
Sep.23 (16:30) NL Hold'em $1,050 $2,000,000
Sep.24 (15:00) 7 Card Stud $320 $100,000
Sep.25 (15:00) PL Omaha H/L $320 $200,000
Sep.26 (15:00) NL Hold'em [6-max] $320 $400,000
Sep.27 (15:00) 7 Card Stud H/L $530 $200,000
Sep.28 (15:00) PL Omaha $530 $300,000
Sep.28 (16:30) NL Hold'em Triple Shootout $530 $200,000
Sep.29 (15:00) HORSE $5,200 $500,000
Sep.29 (16:30) Limit Hold'em $1,050 $200,000
Sep.30 (16:30) NL Hold'em Main Event $2,600 $5,000,000