It's winter in Barliloche, Argentina, but for two days in September PokerStars is turning up the thermostat. Usually the name Americas Cup is reserved for the biggest soccer tournament on the continent, but PokerStars is introducing something new this winter: The Americas Cup of Poker.

It started yesterday with the easy stuff. PokerStars Team Pros met their teammates for a drink and a trip up the mountain to ski at one of South Americas best resorts, Cerro Catedral.

After that, it was on to the poker. Here's how it worked:

The tournament started with six sit and gos of eight randomly seated players. The players accumulated points according to how they finished. The top three teams earned an automatic bid to the semifinals. The fourth and fifth place teams had a playoff to earn the fourth seat.

In all, the players were fighting for the following prizes.

1. $100,000
2. $60,000 .
3. $30,000
4. $20,000
5. $10,000
6. $10,000
7. $10,000
8. $10,000

Dennis Phillips was the first captain to be eliminated. His A-Q didn't beat his Mexican opponent's [Ac][5c]. With a club on the river for a flush,"Ratero1" eliminated the American captain and Mexico was looking strong.

Argentinian Team Pro Leo Fernandez and Costa Rican Team Pro Humberto Brenes took their jobs very seriously. They ended up winning their tournaments, giving Argentina a chance to compete in the play-off and pushing Costa Rica into second place.

Meanwhile, Canada's Darus Suharto helped his team to a fist place finish in the first round.

At the end of the first round of play, here's how the teams stacked up.

Canada - 37
Costa Rica - 34
Brasil - 31
Chile - 27
Argentina - 26
México - 24
Colombia - 18
USA - 19

In the playoffs, Argentina managed to beat Chile after Leo Fernandez and Gaston Catzman won their heads up matches.

Action continues today in Bariloche. Check back tomorrow to see how the teams fared.

Photo Credit: Carlos Monty and Reinaldo Venegas

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: Americas Cup]