41 PLAYERS NOW CONFIRMED FOR BIG ONE FOR ONE DROP
$1 Million BUY-iN POKER EVENT RETURNS JUNE 29 – JULY 1st DURING 2014 WSOP
Las Vegas, June 17, 2014 – With a 56 player cap, players are moving fast to ensure they get a seat at the biggest poker game in the world. Just 15 seats remain open less than two weeks before cards officially hit the felt with organizers optimistic the event will be a sellout.
Several businessmen and poker players have anted the $1,000,000 buy-in to participate in the second installment of the The BIG ONE for ONE DROP which returns to the famed Amazon Room at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino.
The BIG ONE for ONE DROP will take place over three days, from June 29 to July 1, 2014, with play beginning at 1:00 p.m. on the Sunday starting day.
As part of the 45th Annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas, The BIG ONE for ONE DROP is a $1,000,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em charity poker tournament limited to 56 players willing to put up the highest entry fee ever offered.
Later this month, a seat will be up for grabs for anyone interested for as little as $200. On June 28th at 6pm, the Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas will hold a $25,300 satellite. Players will have no fewer than seven mega-satellite “step” opportunities, ranging from $200 to $3,750 on June 26th and June 27th to generate entry into the culminating $25,300 tournament with a Big One entry on the line.
The new participants are:
- Daniel Cates – This Maryland poker pro has never cashed at the World Series of Poker, but earlier this year won nearly $1.8 million in a poker tournament in Monte Carlo. Known for his online poker prowess, the 25-year-old Cates enters this event for the first time.
- Daniel Colman – This young poker pro from Massachusetts with four previous WSOP cashes also looks to take a $2 million score from a recent tournament in Monte Carlo and turn it into a possible $20 million payday in the Big One. It will be Colman’s first appearance in this event.
- Tom Hall – This businessman is no stranger to the game of poker, but for the first time has added his name to this event. “Hong Kong Tom” got his taste of the WSOP with his lone cash in a high roller event at WSOP Asia-Pacific in 2013. Often found playing in the cash games of Macau, Hall will make his WSOP Las Vegas debut in this event.
- Isaac Haxton – This Las Vegas poker pro is a former Brown University student who pursued a computer science degree. He has won nearly $1.8 million at the WSOP in 24 previous cashes, but hopes to score his first bracelet by taking down the Big One.
- Anonymous Businessman – This businessman has been known to play in some of the high stakes games in Macau, but will be coming to the WSOP for the first time to play in this event.
- John Morgan – The CEO of Winmark Corporation in Minnesota, returns to the event after participating in 2012. Morgan is best remembered for getting his opponent to fold pocket eights in the inaugural Big One. Whether Morgan had a straight flush or not is still a mystery. Morgan is a successful businessman and philanthropist who only occasionally has time to dabble in poker tournaments.
- Greg Merson – The 2012 WSOP Player of the Year and world champion was an accomplished online player who broke through on the live circuit in 2012, picking up two WSOP gold bracelets, both seven-figure scores, including a win in the biggest tournament in the world, the WSOP Main Event where he walked away with $8,531,853. Merson is just shy of $10 million in WSOP earnings and will play the Big One for the first time.
- Daniel Negreanu – The only two-time WSOP Player of the Year, Negreanu had an incredible 2013, capturing two WSOP gold bracelets and cementing his legacy in the game. “Kid Poker” is poker’s all-time leading money earner, has cashed 72 times at the WSOP, won 6 WSOP gold bracelets and earned more than $7 million in WSOP events. This Canadian poker pro now living in Las Vegas could nearly double his $21 million in lifetime earnings with a victory in the Big One.
- Doug Polk – Another new entrant to this game is 25-year-old Las Vegas poker pro Doug Polk. Polk has been a regular in the high stakes online games and has six previous WSOP cashes, three this year already including winning his first WSOP gold bracelet earlier this month in the Turbo event.
- Scott Seiver – Another new edition to the event, is 29-year old Las Vegas poker pro and WSOP gold bracelet champion Scott Seiver. The former Brown University student has won more than $10 million in his poker career, including a high roller victory in 2013 good for more than $2 million.
- Talal Shakerchi – No stranger to big games around the world, this successful businessman from Great Britain likes to match his wits with the best players in the game. He has cashed five times previously at the WSOP and has nearly $1.8 million in live tournament earnings despite his minimal participation. Shakerchi played this event in 2012.
ESPN cameras will be on hand throughout the three-day event to document the drama over three consecutive weeks on ESPN beginning July 29. ESPN will air two-hour blocks as follows:
- TUESDAY, JULY 29 – 8-10 P.M. ET – Day 1 and Day 2 action
- TUESDAY, AUGUST 5 – 8-10 P.M. ET – Day 2 action, and final table bubble
- TUESDAY, AUGUST 12 – 8-10 P.M. ET – Final table action through to winner
The entire list of names in the field can be found here: http://www.wsop.com/2014/bigone/
The event seats are reserved on a first-come first-serve basis, with those providing a deposit guaranteeing their seat. The winner will also receive a special edition WSOP platinum bracelet by famed jeweler Richard Mille. The event is open to anyone 21 years or older.
With the new 56 player cap, the first place prize has the potential to reach in excess of $20,000,000 if every seat is filled. Any interested player who can verify funds is urged to contact Alex Meunier at One Drop (Alexandre.Meunier@onedrop.org).
The buy-in for The BIG ONE for ONE DROP at $1 million, remains the largest ever for a poker event. There will be no rake or house fees to operate the event, and $111,111 of each buy-in will be taken out as a charitable donation to ONE DROP. Thus, $888,889 goes directly into the prize pool.
The BIG ONE for ONE DROP is an unprecedented effort to raise awareness of water-related issues amongst the poker community and beyond to raise funds to allow ONE DROP to continue to deliver on its important mandate. Funds will be directed to ONE DROP projects around the world, where the team is hard at work at providing sustainable water access and helping communities flourish.
About ONE DROP
ONE DROP—a non-profit organization created in 2007 by Guy Laliberté—strives to ensure that water is accessible to all, today and forever. ONE DROP significantly and sustainably improves living conditions through innovative projects which promote self-reliance in communities worldwide. In the U.S., ONE DROP is a public charity that undertakes innovative activities in which water plays a central role as a creative force to generate positive, sustainable change worldwide. To learn more, visit ONEDROP.org
About the World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is the largest, richest and most prestigious gaming event in the world awarding millions of dollars in prize money and the prestigious gold bracelet, globally recognized as the sport’s top prize. Featuring a comprehensive slate of tournaments in every major poker variation, the WSOP is poker’s longest running tournament in the world, dating back to 1970. In 2013, the event attracted 79,471 entrants from 107 different countries to the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and awarded over $197 million in prize money. To learn more about the World Series of Poker, visit WSOP.com.
Media Contacts:
Seth Palansky, VP, Communications, WSOP, (702) 407-6344 or spalansky@caesars.com
Stephanie Weinstein, Public Relations for ONE DROP, (514) 242-4608 or stephanie.weinstein@onedrop.org
