# PKO poker: how bounties grow and payouts work

> PKO poker bounties explained, from the buy-in split and knockout cash payments to growing bounties and the champion’s payout, with ToolsGambling calculations.

- Source: https://toolsgambling.com/blog/pko-poker-bounty-split
- Author: Evgeniy Volkov (ToolsGambling)
- Published: 2026-10-30
- Updated: 2026-10-30
- Cite as: "PKO Poker: How Buy-ins, Bounties and Prizes Are Split", ToolsGambling, https://toolsgambling.com/blog/pko-poker-bounty-split

A PKO is a knockout tournament where part of each buy-in becomes a bounty on the player’s head; in the common version, that part is half. On a \$10 buy-in the head starts at \$5, and knocking out a player with a \$5 head pays \$2.50 in cash. Under the rule described by PokerNews, with a 50% bounty share, another \$2.50 is added to the bounty on your head; the ToolsGambling calculation shows how that adds up over a series of knockouts.

> **Key takeaways**
>
> In this PKO calculation, half of each buy-in goes into the prize pool and half funds the player’s bounty.
>
> Knocking out an opponent in a PKO pays half of their bounty in cash.
>
> The other half of an eliminated opponent’s bounty increases the bounty on the eliminating player’s head.
>
> The PKO champion receives the runner-up’s bounty and the bounty on their own head.

## What is a PKO?

A PKO (progressive knockout) is a knockout tournament in which eliminating opponents earns you cash and increases the bounty on your head. An opponent’s bounty is visible in advance, so you know the amount involved before knocking them out.

The growing bounty distinguishes PKO from a standard knockout tournament: part of the eliminated player’s bounty moves onto the eliminating player’s head instead of being paid out immediately. A player’s current bounty can therefore differ from their starting bounty.

In practice, check the bounty on each opponent’s head before the hand. That figure determines the bounty reward for knocking them out, and it can be larger than the starting amount if the opponent has already eliminated others.

## How does the buy-in split?

In this calculation, 50% of the buy-in goes into the prize pool and 50% funds the player’s bounty. For a \$10 buy-in, that means \$5 in the prize pool and \$5 on the player’s head.

The prize pool is built from the other half of the buy-in and paid out by finishing place. Bounty cash is paid separately, for each knockout, so the total result of a PKO combines the two parts.

PokerNews, in Will Shillibier’s article dated 26 Dec 2024, describes the division between bounties and the prize pool. Matthew Pitt’s PokerNews article dated 30 Jan 2025 specifies that half of the buy-in goes into the regular prize pool. CardPlayer’s undated glossary confirms the subsequent bounty split: half is paid directly and half increases the eliminating player’s bounty.

Prize-pool payouts and bounties are separate components. The [ICM trainer](https://toolsgambling.com/poker/icm-trainer) helps assess prize equity without bounties; bounties need a separate calculation.

## What does the eliminating player receive?

The eliminating player receives half of the opponent’s bounty in cash, while the other half is added to their own head. This is the rule described by Matthew Pitt in PokerNews on 30 Jan 2025 and in CardPlayer’s undated glossary.

If you knock out a player with a \$5 bounty:

- You receive \$2.50 in cash.
- Another \$2.50 is added to your head.
- If your bounty was \$5 before the knockout, it becomes \$7.50.

The amount added to your head is not an immediate cash payment for that knockout.

## How does the bounty on your head grow?

The bounty on your head grows by half of each opponent’s bounty when you knock them out. The calculation below assumes a starting bounty of \$5, a 50% bounty share and exactly \$5 on every eliminated opponent’s head.

**ToolsGambling calculation: bounty growth across multiple knockouts**

| Knockouts | Total cash received | Bounty on your head afterward |
|---|---:|---:|
| Three knockouts of \$5 heads | \$7.50 | \$12.50 |
| Five knockouts of \$5 heads | \$12.50 | \$17.50 |

![Diagram: a \$5 head, one knockout pays \$2.50 in cash and adds \$2.50 to the head, three knockouts in a row](https://toolsgambling.com/media/article/2026/10/ac3115faf2e758e93febcd60e95ce32d.webp)

*Educational diagram from the ToolsGambling calculation, bounty share 50% of the buy-in.*

The cash column shows the total for the entire series, not just the final knockout. If opponents have different bounties, the knockout count alone is not enough to calculate your proceeds: the bounty on each opponent’s head matters.

## What if the opponents’ bounties differ?

Suppose the bounty on your head is \$5 and you knock out three players with bounties of \$5, \$10 and \$2.50. The first knockout pays \$2.50 in cash and raises your bounty to \$7.50. The second pays \$5.00 and raises it to \$12.50. The third pays \$1.25 and raises it to \$13.75. In total, you collect \$8.75 in cash, your bounty grows by \$8.75, and the eliminated players’ bounties add up to \$17.50: \$8.75 + \$8.75 = \$17.50.

In this calculation, the total does not depend on the order of the knockouts, because the cash from each knockout depends only on the eliminated player’s bounty. The order does matter for the bounty on your own head at any given moment.

## What does the champion receive?

The champion receives the runner-up’s bounty and the bounty on their own head. PokerNews’s article dated 30 Jan 2025 describes the champion receiving the runner-up’s bounty. This is the bounty on the runner-up’s head when the tournament ends, which can be above the starting amount if they have knocked out other players.

In the worked example, the champion’s own head is worth \$12.50 before the final knockout and the runner-up’s head is worth \$5.00. The final knockout splits like any other: half of the runner-up’s bounty (\$2.50) is paid in cash and the other half (\$2.50) is added to the champion’s head. The total is \$2.50 + (\$12.50 + \$2.50) = \$17.50.

The \$17.50 figure holds only if \$12.50 is the head before the final knockout; if you take the head after it, part of the runner-up’s bounty is counted twice.

That figure is not the champion’s total tournament payout: it excludes the finishing-position prize and cash received for earlier knockouts.

## How does the bounty share affect the numbers?

For a fixed \$10 buy-in, a larger bounty share means a larger starting bounty and more cash for knocking out a player with that starting bounty. The headline payment of **\$2.50 per knockout assumes a 50% bounty share**.

The 40% and 60% shares below are hypothetical sensitivity cases, not rules attributed to any poker room. The calculation keeps the knockout split unchanged: half in cash and half added to the eliminating player’s head.

| Share of buy-in allocated to bounties | Starting bounty | Cash for knocking out a player with that bounty |
|---|---:|---:|
| 40% | \$4 | \$2.00 |
| 50% | \$5 | \$2.50 |
| 60% | \$6 | \$3.00 |

Under these assumptions, cash per knockout changes in proportion to the bounty share. If your room uses another share, then use that actual share for the calculation.

## What falls outside this calculation?

This calculation covers PKO with visible bounties, not formats with hidden amounts or multipliers. In [mystery bounty tournaments](https://toolsgambling.com/blog/mystery-bounty-poker-tournament), the bounty amount stays hidden until the knockout.

If several opponents eliminate a player together, the payout depends on the tournament rules; such cases are not modeled here. Jackpot PKO uses multipliers and is not modeled here. The buy-in fee is not modeled either.

Payouts depend on the bounties on the heads of the players you knock out, so size your bankroll with a margin. The [bankroll calculator](https://toolsgambling.com/poker/bankroll) can help with planning, but these bounty amounts alone do not establish a suitable bankroll.

## What do ToolsGambling’s numbers show?

By ToolsGambling’s calculation, with a 50% bounty share, each knockout of an opponent with a \$5 head pays \$2.50 in cash and adds the same amount to your head. Under these assumptions, three such knockouts produce \$7.50 in cash and increase a starting bounty of \$5 to \$12.50.

When assessing your result, keep knockout cash, the bounty on your own head and your finishing-position prize separate. They are different payout components, not a single amount already received. Compared with a standard tournament, the bounty changes what a knockout is worth: in this calculation, a player with a larger bounty pays more cash than one with a smaller bounty.

## FAQ

### How is the buy-in split in a PKO?

In this calculation, 50% of the buy-in goes into the prize pool and 50% funds the player’s bounty. A \$10 buy-in gives each player a starting bounty of \$5.

### How much do I get for knocking out a player with a \$5 bounty?

You receive \$2.50 in cash. Another \$2.50 is added to the bounty on your head.

### Why does the bounty on my head keep growing?

Whenever you knock out an opponent, half of their bounty is added to your head. That increases the bounty attached to your eventual knockout rather than giving you more cash immediately.

### What does the PKO winner receive?

The winner receives the runner-up’s bounty and their own bounty; the finishing-position prize is separate. In the example, the champion’s head is \$12.50 before the final knockout and the runner-up’s bounty is \$5.00: half of the latter (\$2.50) is paid in cash and half is added to the head, giving the champion \$17.50, excluding the finishing-position prize.

### How is PKO different from mystery bounty?

In PKO, you can see an opponent’s bounty before the knockout; in mystery bounty, the amount stays hidden until the knockout. The PKO table therefore cannot be applied directly to hidden bounties.