“Just back from the media tournament, which was an enjoyable hour or so of pretending to be a fearsomely aggressive player before my Q3 was shattered by a pair of jacks.
The event took place in the Amazon Room of the Rio Pavilion, the main tournament area of the WSOP. Today is satellite day, the last chance for players to win their way into the Main Event for a twentieth or a tenth of the $10,000 entry ticket.
“One thing you may have heard about during the World Series of Poker this summer was the successful “Ante Up for Africa” charity poker tournament that raised $500,000. The event brought together the stars of poker, professional athletics, and Hollywood, including much of the cast from Ocean’s Thirteen in a $5,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em charity poker tournament. The event was cohosted by Annie Duke and Don Cheadle, and it was held in the Amazon Room on July 5, the day before the main event began.
One thing you may not have heard about is that PokerStars generously increased the amount of aid the poker world was able to send to relief efforts in Darfur. “PokerStars made a decision to give $1 million to the Not On Our Watch organization, which was founded by Don Cheadle and other members of the cast of Ocean’s Thirteen to support the victims of Darfur, and those monies are going to be channeled into other nonprofit organizations on the ground in Darfur.
Posted in Event, International, Online, PokerStars, WSOP
“If Yang spends the next year committed to charity work, he could help erase the stereotype of the selfish poker player.
Annie Duke alluded to this stereotype when she listed reasons for running a WSOP charity tournament to help the situation in Darfur. Her efforts, along with the bankrolls of dozens of players, raised more than $500,000 for a cause that desperately needs it.
“He’s been playing poker for two years and this is his first WSOP. He won a $225 satellite at Penchanga. He’s got the most karma points coming into the final table. He will be donating 10% of his winnings to the Make a Wish Foundation, Feed the Children, and the Ronald McDonald House.”
“The tactics may be cut throat but the results can be downright sweet.
An increasing number of poker players are donating portions of their winnings to good causes. Six days into this year’s World Series of Poker main event, bluffing, stealing and sandbagging already have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity.
“Poker players have been called a lot of nasty things, so it is always a special day when we get to call them philanthropists. For most of the world’s top players, day one of the main event of the World Series of Poker is all about gathering information, but today Kenna James and Humberto Brenes spent their time giving information and raising awareness about the Wounded Warriors Foundation.
“Ante Up for Africa,’ the WSOP fundraiser headlined by Don Cheadle and Annie Duke designed to raise funds for Darfur relief efforts, succeeded beyond its expectations when the final two players in the field, Dan Shak and Brandon Moran, spontaneously decided to donate all of their prize winnings to the relief fund’s cause. Shak and Moran became official co-champions of the event, but the real winners were the people of Darfur, who will receive over a half million dollars through this single day’s effort.”
PokerNews (07/06/07)
“Bad Beat on Cancer and the World Series of Poker will join forces to fight cancer during the WSOP events June 1 through July 17. WSOP registrants will have an opportunity to designate a portion of their winnings to the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation and the Nevada Cancer Institute.
Even if you can’t be there for the fun, thousands of players across the country have joined the fight. Donate now and put a Bad Beat on Cancer”
“In a record setting field at the World Series of Poker Ladies Event (1,286), the 2007 Queen of Hearts team upped the stakes. Two of its members finished in the money for the first time — Mary Jones, Ladies Event defending champion, was 16th and two-time bracelet winner Susie Isaacs placed 35th — in a very tough field. But this was also the year the team truly secured the widespread recognition that will continue to help it raise funds and awareness for the Nevada Cancer Institute, Official Community Relations Partner of the World Series, and the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Campaign.
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“That victory attracted the attention of Las Vegas entrepreneur Lisa Tenner, who invited Tilly to join her inaugural Queen of Hearts charity poker organization, an informal team formed last year to raise money for the American Heart Association during the annual World Series of Poker.
With this year’s World Series in full swing at the Rio, Tenner, Tilly and more than a dozen female poker pros, celebrities and business executives have joined together for the 2007 version of the Queen of Hearts team. A portion of any World Series of Poker tournament winnings accrued by the players will be donated to the American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women” campaign and the Nevada Cancer Institute…”
Poker Cares: Charity Poker News and Events 