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2013 Poker Hall of Fame class and WSOP Big One for One Drop II announced21 October 2013LAS VEGAS -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- 1983 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Tom McEvoy and 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen will become the 45th and 46th individuals to be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. The two were nominated by the public and voted in by a 37-person panel made up of existing Poker Hall of Famers and members of the media, it was announced today by the Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council. McEvoy and Nguyen will be inducted officially on Sunday, November 3 at 5:00 pm at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas a day before the 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event final table gets underway. The special induction ceremony and celebration will take place in the exclusive Wine Cellar in the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino Masquerade Village. McEvoy joins poker’s most exclusive club 30 years after winning the game’s biggest event, while Nguyen’s enshrinement comes 15 years after his most notable victory. “I would like to thank everyone for making my election to the Poker Hall of Fame possible,” said McEvoy. “It was a very emotional day for me when I got the news. I consider this the highest honor a poker player can receive next to winning the Main Event of the World Series of Poker. I feel both deeply honored and humbled to be included with all the other poker greats. This is truly the frosting on the cake of my poker career.” “Thank you so much, this is wonderful news,” said Nguyen. “You work so hard, you put so much time in that you want and hope it will be recognized. This is something my grandkids will talk about. It’s awesome, baby, thank you.” The Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council would sincerely like to congratulate the other 2013 finalists all whom remain eligible for future induction: Humberto Brenes, Chris Bjorin, David Chiu, Thor Hansen, Mike Matusow, Jennifer Harman, Carlos Mortensen and Huckleberry Seed. $1 million buy-in BIG ONE for ONE DROP returns June 29 - July 1 during 2014 WSOP As part of the 45th Annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas, the ONE DROP organization and the WSOP are proud to announce the return of the $1,000,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em charity poker tournament – the BIG ONE for ONE DROP – to the 2014 schedule. The BIG ONE for ONE DROP will take place over three days, from June 29 to July 1, 2014, with all play until the televised final table being hosted at Caesars Palace. After the inaugural event sold out, organizers have added one additional table to the 2014 event, allowing for up to 56 philanthropists, business executives and poker sharps to take to the felt. (All tables are played eight-handed.) With the new 56-player cap, the first-place prize has the potential to reach in excess of $20 million if every seat is filled. Additionally, the odds of cashing are better than a typical poker tournament, with 16-20% of entrants receiving a portion of the prize pool, depending on the final number of entrants. The event will be reserved on a first-come first-serve basis, with those providing a deposit guaranting 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. There are only 55 seats left up for grabs, as ONE DROP founder Guy Laliberté has already declared his intent to play. (He finished fifth in 2012, cashing for $1,834,666, after being knocked out by Antonio Esfandiari when his pair of Queens lost to Antonio’s Ace-King when a King came on the turn.) “It was a terrific inaugural event in 2012 with ONE DROP raising nearly $5.3 million from the BIG ONE event,” said Laliberté. “There is still a lot of work to be done to ensure access to water for all. I have no doubt that the poker community will once again live up to its reputation for generosity by helping to transform lives sustainably.” 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. In total, nearly $10 million from the inaugural $48 million paid in buy-ins ended up in the hands of charities. “This event quickly established itself as special and unique and for that reason we chose to make it an every other year affair,” said Mitch Garber, Caesars Interactive Entertainment’s chief executive officer. “But we can’t wait to host it again in 2014 and continue to use this vehicle to impact the planet through ONE DROP’s platform.” The tournament brings together individuals in an unusual way for the cause of water for all. It is the belief of the organizers that this event will again attract high-net-worth individuals from all over the globe and across a wide range of businesses and occupations. The BIG ONE for ONE DROP is an unprecedented effort to raise awareness of water-related issues among 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 dealing with water access. Poker players, with a long, consistent and successful track record of supporting charitable causes via poker tournaments, will still have an opportunity to join the cause, as all 2014 WSOP tournaments will include the chance to compete for huge prize pools with money earners in the events being encouraged to donate 1 percent or more of their winnings to ONE DROP. The schedule for the 45th annual World Series of Poker is currently being developed, with an expectation for a “Save the Dates” announcement in November. Since 2007, ONE DROP projects have changed the lives of more than 300,000 people in Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, India and Burkina Faso. In the next five years, with great fundraising activities, ONE DROP hopes to significantly increase its reach. |